Paula's Soapbox

I think I speak for most people when I say that GH revisiting the Franco storyline is beyond terrible. It appears that they are trying to redeem this character, not a foreign concept in soaps. Villains turn heroes all the time in this genre; but Franco is not redeemable.  Even if we were to take his DVDs at face value and assume he didn't want Michael hurt, he wasn't beyond exploiting the rape to torture Jason --- remember Francophenia? The writers don't seem to, or they just don't care, which is worse. They would also have us believe that Franco only did the things he did because Jason somehow rejected him.    How could that be? Franco was torturing Jason before Jason ever knew he existed! And don't get me started on how every character thinks Franco looks exactly the same as he did a few years ago. Franco doesn't look like Todd and Kiki doesn't look like Starr, just add some hair dye and the audience will be none the wiser...right!  On top of the Franco...

Today was the day! Former General Hospital star Steve Burton (ex-Jason) premiered on Y&R as war vet Dylan McAvoy. Of course today's episode was mostly a teaser of this new character, but I have a feeling many of Steve's fans will be tuning in daily to get a glimpse of their favorite soap star! Check out Steve's first Y&R performance below:

Ever since Vanessa Marcil Giovinazzo's highly anticipated return to GH, viewers have been hearing about this mysterious Balkan character who was out to hurt Brenda. For a while I assumed the Balkan was Franco because of the scene below where he is on a plane looking at Brenda's photo and talking to someone on the phone about wanting to work with her. [no copyright infringement intended] Of course that assumption was proven wrong once it was revealed that the Balkan was out to get Brenda for killing his son. And even with all the inconsistencies on GH I'm assuming they know that even their viewers can't suspend the reality of disbelief enough to buy that Franco could have a son old enough to date Brenda. The reveal that Theo Hoffman is actually the Balkan should come as no surprise, at least it didn't to me for a couple of reasons. First of all my expectations were already low going into this storyline because of the huge disappointment that was CO77X. I had...

Once upon a time there was a young man of barely eighteen, who was imprisoned after slaying his stepmother to protect his mother and baby sister. This young man was called Michael and his newfound captivity held more danger than all the ports in Port Charles.   Shortly after his imprisonment began, Michael became the victim of a sinister plot in which he was forced to submit to the sexual advances of a fellow inmate. Michael's spirit was broken and it seemed like he might never recover from the harsh realities of prison even after he was freed. Then one day fair maiden Samantha offered Michael a helping hand. It seemed she had come across a lovely lady called Candy who routinely abandoned her clothes in the presence of men for monetary compensation. As luck would have it this lady was willing to offer herself to Michael as a way of helping him overcome his fears of intimacy; but alas young Michael was too inexperienced, too broken to appreciate Candy's kind ...

I doubt if I'm alone in saying that there is a lot wrong with General Hospital these days. While it continues to be one of my favorite soaps there are many changes I would make immediately if I had the power. Below is a list of the top ten suggestions I have for the way the show could improve. 1. The Claire/Sonny storyline needs to be dropped. It isn't working. Their conversations are boring and the context of their relationship is, well...icky. 2. Amp up Lisa's craziness. Despite my earlier distaste for a Robin/Patrick/Lisa triangle, the obsessed ex-girlfriend angle is working. It's interesting and very soapy. 3. Ronnie needs to be established as either a cop with a chip on his shoulder or someone who works for Franco. So far I haven't been able to tell whether Ronnie falls more on the side of good or bad because this character hasn't been clearly defined. 4. Brenda's life away from Port Charles and the people that surround it need to become an int...

Unless you are a soap fan who doesn't read internet spoilers, or you missed Saturday night's podcast you have undoubtedly heard the rumor about what really happened to Michael in prison. That rumor of course being that he was the victim of prison rape, which seems to be exactly what GH has been implying the past few days. And I just want to go on record right now as saying that if the reason for the Michael recast was so the show could put somebody with a more innocent look into these prison scenes it was a bad decision. It is not that Chad Duell isn't doing a good job as Michael because he is. It just never ceases to amaze me how soaps are constantly sacrificing good actors for bad storylines. And this prison storyline is bad on more levels than I can even wrap my mind around. First of all Michael probably would have been okay in prison until Jason got there if Sonny had checked his ego at the prison door and not antagonized Anthony Zacchara with threats about Johnny. Sonn...

With Michael being sentenced to five years in prison, Carly is certainly entitled to be angry. It is even understandable that she would want to lash out at anyone within striking distance and seek revenge on the person responsible for putting him there. In fact given everything that Michael has been through it would be hard to fault Carly for trying to get some sort of justice for him. After all he didn't receive an ounce of it in court, yet I am still having trouble empathizing with Carly enough to support her behavior. As I said in the last post, there were many people responsible for Michael's predicament. And yes, Dante and Lulu definitely played a part in it, but Carly seems to be focusing an unreasonable amount of anger on these two considering how much blame there is to go around. And I still think it is strange that no one is angry with Lucky for bringing Michael in in the first place. He pointed a gun at Jason to keep him from taking Michael out of the country and no...

Even though I don't agree with the way Dante went about telling everyone that Michael killed Claudia, I can sort of understand his reasons for doing it. After all no one has ever really taught Michael the concept of taking responsibility for his actions. Moreover, the guilt over killing Claudia has been making Michael act out in such self-destructive ways that a life in the mob seemed inevitable. And if Carly and Sonny were really honest with themselves they would realize that Michael has been wanting to confess for months, not just to protect Sonny, but because of all the guilt. On the other hand I can understand Carly, Sonny, and Jason's impulse to cover up what happened to Claudia because Michael had already lost a year of his life and was still dealing with the repercussions of that when he killed her. And if they had gone to the police at that time it is reasonable to assume that because Michael is Sonny's son someone would have taken the opportunity to make an example...

Well it appears that we have finally arrived at the beginning of the Spencer/Cassadine storyline. And while I hate to judge it before it has even started, I am not sure I am going to be fond of any storyline that serves as an extension of the Nik/Liz/Lucky triangle. In principle this triangle could have been a good plot point if it had been written as an intriguing story about a woman in love with two brothers with a complicated history. Instead it has been twisted and distorted so that it now appears that the only reason Liz cheated on Lucky is because she suddenly lost her mind. This is not only inconsistent with the way Liz and Nik's affair began but it is an insult to the intelligence of every viewer who remembers Liz cheating on Lucky with Jason. At that time Lucky was addicted to pain pills and sleeping with Maxie, yet Liz's mental stability remained intact even as she carried Jason's child and hid the paternity from Lucky. Liz's current pregnancy makes me believe...

As I watched Monday's General Hospital it occurred to me that there may be a potential pairing that perhaps the writers have not considered yet, Sonny and Liz. Think about it, they both seem to be completely out of touch with reality, which may be enough to convince them that they could actually have a functional relationship. In fact they may very well be the most delusional people in all of Port Charles. Liz thinking that her connection with Lucky might be enough for him to forgive her, and Sonny thinking his connection with Dante might be enough to earn his forgiveness. Still not convinced that these two are a perfect match? I have formulated a list of their compatibilities just in case. 1.) They are both incapable of taking responsibility for their actions because there always seem to be extenuating circumstances for their mistakes. 2.) They always manage to hurt their children without even trying. 3.) They are both impulsive and never think of the consequences of their actions...

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 h...

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...

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 n...

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 li...

As I watched Wednesday's General Hospital it occurred to me that the only person Michael should be living with is Jason. Michael's behavior has been out of control for a while now and Jason seems to be the only one who knows how to grab his attention for even a second. And even though Carly has finally decided to do the right thing and tell the truth about what happened to Claudia, it isn't going to accomplish much unless she can get through to Michael. With his remorseless attitude, no one is going to believe that Claudia's murder was justifiable homicide. Of course in order for Carly to be able to get through to Michael, she is going to have to stop letting him get away with everything. After all that is one reason his behavior continues to get worse. I am constantly astounded by how much freedom Michael is allowed to have despite his actions. And every time he leaves the house following an argument about why he should be allowed to join the mob at 16, I am shocked th...

In the weeks leading up to the introduction of the Franco character on General Hospital, viewers were treated to countless montages featuring the mysterious CO77X graffiti. Since then there has been non-stop speculation about the meaning behind this tag and how it may affect the course of the show. Recently there have been fewer CO77X sightings, but there have been several episodes featuring Franco so I thought it would be a good time to revisit CO77X in an effort to unlock this mystery. This week Jason received a painting from Franco listing the seven deadly sins of vanity, envy, gluttony, lust, wrath, greed, and sloth. Seeing this made me wonder if one of the "7's" in CO77X represents these seven deadly sins. This may seem a bit obvious, but looking back on the scene where Franco is shooting red paint balls at the pictures of people close to Jason, there are seven people on the canvas besides Jason. Taking this one step further it seems logical to assume that Franco...

When Jason received the photo of Maxie laying inside the chalk outline, I expected that he would have an immediate reaction to the axe handle and basket that were in the photo. Instead, neither he or Sam seemed to notice them or their significance. In fact Jason's only reasons for thinking that this picture was somehow linked to the picture of "Claudia" seemed to all be based on the fact that he received both pictures within a short period of time. Never mind the fact that both of them contained elements from Claudia's murder scene. Franco may want to reconsider sending messages through his artwork because apparently symbolism, even in its most obvious form, is completely lost on Jason. These are scenes from when Jason received each photo. The axe handle and basket are clearly visible in both. Pause the first video at 1:33, and the second at :20 to compare the two simultaneously. "Claudia's" photo [no copyright infringement intended] Maxie's photo [n...

Franco's highly anticipated art exhibit was unveiled on Monday's General Hospital, provoking a spectrum of reactions from observers. Luke assumed Franco was nothing more than a fraud, peddling shock in exchange for money, while Dante couldn't take his eyes off of the presumably fake crime scene photos hanging on the wall. At one point he noted their familiarity which makes me think that they were recreations of actual crime scene photos. One photo in particular showed a body positioned in the same way Franco arranged Joey Limbo's body. Taking this into account it would seem that either Franco is manipulating crime scenes in order to send some sort of message or he is manipulating current crime scenes to look like previous ones. And while this can be nothing more than an educated guess until more information is revealed, one can be certain that Franco is fixated on Jason. Even his brief conversation with Sonny did not seem to hold as much value as the mere possibility of...

James Franco may not have known a lot about soap operas when he decided to take part in one, but judging from today's General Hospital it almost seems surprising that this is new territory for him. Granted, he was only in a few scenes, in fact one of them was replayed from yesterday's episode, but he seems to possess an understated mysteriousness that is so befitting of soaps. I believe this quality will be especially beneficial to him on a show like GH where the characters are so complex that most of the time it is difficult to tell the good guys from the bad guys. And while viewers still know very little about the character Franco, it appears, at least for now, that he is the latter. Throughout today's ambush Franco watched nearby with a kind of childlike wonderment, as if he were getting some sort of satisfaction out of all the violence and longed to be a part of it. At one point he even appeared to be mimicking everyone's moves like he was studying some sort of arti...

I knew that it was only a matter of time before Lulu crossed the line and revealed Dante's secret. For weeks she has talked about his undercover assignment in the most inappropriate places as if she were hoping the wrong person would find out about it. And today someone finally overheard her. She told Dante that she had warned Johnny against trusting him, a statement that quickly provoked an argument. It was during this argument that Lulu blurted out everything Dante has worked so hard to keep hidden, including the fact that he is Olivia's son. Johnny, who had secretly overheard this argument, went to Olivia's where he confronted her about what he had heard. I have to say as annoyed as I am by Lulu, in fact I am dangerously close to hoping that Dante finds someone else, Olivia hasn't exactly been a walk in the park either. And today I was reminded of how ridiculous it has been for her to be so worried about Dante's safety when she has the power to ensure it. Months ...