titan1978

I watched entire scenes with Dex, Joss, Michael and Willow. That’s how much I am giving this new material a chance. And I was at least interested enough to not FF. The stuff I had a hard time sitting through were the scenes with Nina, Alexis, and the columnist, and Curtis and his father. This is the most emotionally invested I have seen Steve Burton in ages as Jason. The scenes with Carly were actually moving. Makes me wish Robin was here too. This is my first time seeing the aged up Rocco and I like the actor. Smart to have Genie Francis and Laura Wright in those scenes with the teenagers. I hope Lulu is on her way home soon.

I am holding out hope that Ava is up to something. I don’t have the stomach to watch Sonny and Ava fall in love.

Rhonda Wexler is one of the most annoying characters of all time on GH. But I still think it makes sense and her strange combo of overprotective and also negligent resonates, I’ve known many people just like her.

Does Corday still have his tiny percentage of Y&R?

I was too! It’s part of what made me nervous for him.

“A guy at my tennis club said it should be called The Sun Also Sucks!”

It’s not Guza pace- it’s moving too fast for that. Even sped up Guza it would have been Friday at the earliest before Sonny saw evidence of Jason. He didn’t even get sent to the PCPD and have to wait for Diane to get him out while he railed about Dante. But it’s clearly more thought out and they are showing so many emotional beats that should be played.

Thanks to Grey’s Anatomy and Robin being a doctor, during the 2000’s we had a robust hospital again. Hopeful for them to build that back up. Nothing against Portia. And I know this is a budget and scheduling limitation. But someone like TJ could not possibly be near their guarantee. When you watch older stories/episodes, there is no substitute for Dr Hardy, Bobbie, Tony, Monica and Alan etc being the doctor to tell you your loved one is in critical condition. Patrick/Robin, Epiphany, etc also made that seem serious.

I appreciate they are playing the beats out. It’s almost like a soap again. It’s still accelerated, but it’s there. And the strange cutting and editing isn’t happening yet. There are times, especially in the last couple of years, where it often felt like you missed something because it got cut or they just decided to blow past the details to keep the plot moving. I didn’t realize just how much I dislike Nina until those scenes today. And I used to like Chase, but he is struggling in these scenes that actually have some weight to them. I also hope we rebuild the hospital staff. Just Portia and a bunch of day players does not work. We need a sense of familiarity there. Isn’t Willow a nurse, or did she not finish school?

There is so much diverse talent out there just waiting for a chance on a show like this. BTS and in front of the camera. There is no point in creating a new soap unless they plan to be as modern and groundbreaking as they used to be in the days of Nixon. And I don’t mean ignoring the traditions of the genre. I mean taking a real risk again with story and characters, not just treading water with the most generic storytelling to least offend.

It does add some promise- it’s not just the same recycled names and titles.

What exciting news! How cool for MVJ too. The involvement of P&G is what truly shocked me. I never thought they would pull a Hello Barbara!

I was wondering where she was. I actually like her on the show, so hopefully Terry is utilized better.

Korte was there when they were moving Jason into the central character role and Sonny was being called out for his emotional damage. It started with the ill conceived Emily relationship and really became an issue after Claudia, Michael’s stint in prison and rape, and original Dante stuff. They have headed this way before, even if it was Carly and Jason realizing their mistakes in letting Sonny control their lives. At times I wondered if Guza was going to have them go after him. The tone shift was so noticeable. Do I think that is where this is headed? No. But Sonny not being the town grandpa figure would be welcome and it is possible we get that.

Just Dante laying there shot juxtaposed with Olivia talking about him with Sam is already classic GH to me. I am totally invested and concerned about Dante. Stakes that matter was high on my wishlist for the new HW team. In one episode they made me more invested than I have been in ages, because I believe the danger and the emotional fallout. And I don’t even like Dante with Sam! Jagger having a point of view, even if I don’t agree with some of it is also welcome. It’s also just nice to see someone tear into Sonny. Chase really dragged down those scenes on the dock. It’s pretty bad when Joss and Dex are acting circles around you.

Jagger always had a savior complex, first with his siblings, then with Karen. His resentment here makes total sense to me. As someone that watched the show when Sonny arrived, I do not agree that Sonny used Stone to rehab his image. Luke did more of that than Stone did. They got rid of Frank Smith together, and Luke opened the club with Sonny (the very same club that used to have Karen stripping in it). And truthfully, Brenda did too. All that happened before Stone’s illness and death. He didn’t become Saint Sonny until the 2000’s. I get that this is not what Jagger thinks. I want Sonny to pay just as much as the next person. But if you follow the logic that exists in Port Charles, Sonny is a mob boss that doesn’t run drugs and keeps worse things at bay. I’m not arguing the logic here, or the stupidity. I’m just saying that is what the show presents. So I understand Laura and Anna not going after him. I do not agree that they would be friends with him and so chummy though. But I get the looking away a little.

He had way more dimension before he left the show the first time. Jason Morgan smiled, he rolled his eyes, he loved Robin very deeply. He was cocky, had an attitude, and also played out more emotion and empathy. Things really changed in the 2000’s.

Something Riche’s GH really captured well was a sense of melancholy, under all her head writers. Characters sitting with their feelings, sadness but not hysterics. Those long scenes filled with characterization. And Brenda really was connected across the canvas at this point. I do remember thinking at the time no body plus no real funeral - they are really telegraphing she is welcome back at any time.

As Vee said it was very noticeable when Guza came back in 1997. In some cases stuff was just coasting along, and in other situations is was clear Guza had started shaping things. It got more and more apparent right up to the week before he was credited again. And we know from MVJ and others that Guza was working in tandem with Labine as she was leaving for at least the last month if not a little longer before his first tenure as HW.

I think she would be fantastic with Dante and Laura too.

That writing team’s work with Michelle was so fantastic during this. Let’s all take a moment to acknowledge that JFP said she learned her lesson with Maureen. Not that she should have been spared, but they should have not made it so tragic. Clueless Jill.

The Floating Rib being a prime example. Not The Outback, a restaurant Mac actually owned. Just a name thrown out there for someone that watched in 1981. Or new gossip being named Amy. Just like Amy Vinning! Ugh.

As someone that watched back then, it is in character for Jagger to hold a grudge. Outside of Karen/Brenda, finding his siblings was the only emotional storytelling he had back then. IMO he would still be stuck on anything he considered a failure- not saving Stone and losing Karen. I am not in favor of ASJ ever coming back on this show. He was not a great actor, and his rhetoric disgusts me. But beyond just the hotness factor, he had charisma back then, and he had a warmth and charm that helped make him popular with the audience. Just like Vanessa had a lot of charisma, and also a vulnerability that made the audience forgive her and root for her at the beginning. She grew tremendously as an actress though, he did not.

Now if this lead to Sonny becoming more sleazy like he was back then, maybe the whole thing has a point. Sonny pushing drugs and strippers again- talk about a fan revolt. And since she was brought up- hell yes we deserved Serena back, and the actress was game. But we got Kiki and Willow and Sasha.

Steven Webber had been back before that as an adult, in 2004. He was also a baby when he left, and Elizabeth is his sister. That is way more connection and less baggage than this guy as Jagger. They also had Heather in and out. And as an adult he was never as big a deal as Jagger was. The point is they are not really using history. It’s base level fan service disguised as using history. I don’t even dislike the actor, he’s just miscast here.