carolineg

The guy that played Jesse wasn't very good. I really like Kirsten Storms and I think she plays Maxie well, but GH never really utilizes her right. And they dress her terribly.. I sorta wish she just stayed playing Belle on Days. I always thought her and Spinelli were popular? Maybe not. Spinelli was an annoying character always lol. I liked the Summer of Sleaze. It was ridiculous and made everyone look bad but it was literally the only time I liked Sam. I am not a Liz/Jason shipper or anything but they really got nothing overall. I mean, a kid, sure, but they never got a chance to be anything more. It was bizarre and I am sure behind the scenes stuff, but they deserved a shot. They have good chemistry to this day. GH has always puzzled me in the way they discard vets while shows like Days literally still use their 60 plus stars to lead stories lol.

I love this era. I loved everything about Aremid and it's ridiculousness. Unfortunately, when I re-watch I generally skip ahead to Paris shenanigans after Aremid ends. I feel like the show just treads water for those few months in between. I mean the damn letter is the star of May Sweeps 1996 lol. ED does so well with Kristen's descent into villainess/crazy lady. I hated her in 1996, but looking back it's actually understandable. John and Marlena practically swoon all over each other 24/7 but they just decide to not tell each other for really no reason at all lol. I won't spoil it for you because it gets so good, but I will say I hope Marlena still has that letter framed somewhere because it took a lot of time for her to get it and read it. Peter was a great villain. It's too bad there were personal reasons he couldn't come back because he's a villain that should have returned several different times. Heck, even now. It's a shame the story was really less effective due to recasts. I definitely think Sami/Austin/Carrie really gets good after this, but Bo/Hope get worse. You can tell Reilly didn't care to write for Bo/Hope the way he did for Austin/Carrie and John/Marlena. One thing I love about Reilly is that the entire cast is involved in these stories. All of Salem except Carrie/Austin/Sami were involved in Aremid. The entire town basically all goes and hangs in Paris during that storyline. It's a little silly but I like how so many people are connected during these stories.

Jesse was a cop. He was Lucky's partner and I believe died in the line of duty. It was the first of Maxie's dead partners but his death actually began the set up to Maxie/Lucky's weird affair.

I think WN was pretty sexy in the 80's but in the 90's no lol. RoJohn/John was definitely the sexier of the two, but I don't think either are classically handsome. I can see the appeal in both of them and WN was hot in Dynasty. By the time he returned to Days all the charm and most of his chemistry with DH was gone. Also count me in with those that hate Marlena's short 80's hairstyle. I like her so much better with longer hair always. I was devastated in 1997 when she cut off her awesome long Paris hair for that unattractive, shaggy short hair. It makes her look older and matronly.

Yes. She was hired to bridge the gap between Laura recasts. And to be Mickey's psychiatrist. So I would assume 46 would be a bit too old for the part regardless, but 29 and as beautiful as DH might have been a little different than the original character concept.

JM was amazing no doubt, but I think the writing really neutered Stefano. Everyone was deathly afraid of a man that ran an underground midget kingdom in Paris and was obsessed with the local shrink. It was always an odd choice.

It's Queen of the Night lol. I always thought that made it sound like Marlena was some sort of Madam in charge of a bunch of call girls. It just sounds kind of dirty lol. In the 80's I thought Stefano did have an obsession with Marlena/Roman especially when he kidnapped the twins right before Marlena shot him, BUT I didn't think it was a romantic/lust obsession. More of "I am obsessed with ruining your life" sorta thing. Anyway, I think Stefano's romantic infatuation with Marlena began in the 90's after Maison Blanche when she tried to seduce him to save John. I think that was actually the catalyst to the desire to have her, but it escalated quickly into him sneaking through her boudoir and making vulnerable to the devil. Gosh just typing that sounded ridiculous. So I don't think we are supposed to believe it was something that was always there but something that happened later on. Regardless, it never made much sense. Especially when he kidnapped her and locked her in a cage in Paris, but wanted her to love him and come to him on her own. While being HELD CAPTIVE away from her family in a Gold Cage. Stefano, that is an awful plan. This also when Stefano became a cartoon. He was always more OTT than Victor or other Days baddies, but he was scary in the 80's. From the 90's on he was just a caricature and it just veered into complete ridiculousness.

Now? There is too much water under that bridge. In the 90's? Absolutely. They should have made it a Jax/Brenda/Sonny like triangle where there were two root for couples and the audience would be divided. But JER didn't do those types of triangles. They was always a villain and an eventual destined winner. I am a firm believer of J&M as the endgame, but I think I would have enjoyed Roman/John/Marlena much more than all the Kristen nonsense. Not that it wasn't good, but it made John and Marlena both look dumb for a long time. It also made Marlena look a little pathetic. Was her plan just to pine away for John the rest of her life if she didn't figure out Kristen's schemes? Were John and Marlena just going to both be miserable because Kristen and John shared a child (which J&M also shared)? That makes zero sense lol. Roman would have made sense and been much more organic and believable. I also was never a big fan of the Stefano/Marlena obsession. Wanting to kill her? Sure, but being so desperately in love with her was just weird. He's a supervillain. At some point wouldn't he just cut his losses? He could get other women. Paris was really good and all, but it was never a characteristic I enjoyed about Stefano. So glad they randomly brought that back currently...

Not about him and Hope at all, but, yes, literally Sami/Carrie/Austin drama could have kept him going for years. Plus, Stefano things. I would have been okay with him and Billie or Kate though. Even him and Kristen honestly. Anna coming back would have been the best.

I mean, I have always heard NBC thought Deidre Hall was too old for Drake in the 90's and that's why Eileen came in, but I still think NBC thought she was a viable character. I do think Reily just adored Marlena and played her more front and center than any other head writer would. And obviously in the end John and Marlena are what the audience wanted. Again, they were in no rush to pair Marlena with anyone else so why not have Wayne around? By the time Roman returned in 1997 even if it was Wayne it was too late. The audience was already way too skewed on J/M's great, soulmate love. I think it would be interesting if Roman and Marlena tried again, but Belle not being his and all the Stefano craziness that had occurred made them just realize they couldn't recapture what they had. Roman could have veered off into other stories and Marlena could have been inserted into Kristen/John again. It could have kept Roman viable as a character and made him less "man scorned/left brokenhearted" like JT's Roman became. I guess it would limit the crazy Marlena stories if she had a love interest, but it would have been a better ending for Roman and Roman/Marlena fans which did exist. And I do think Roman was needed during the Carrie/Austin/Sami mess. Things were too tenuous between John/Marlena/Sami that someone needed to check Sami that she cared about. And he just looked like a crappy father for being MIA for all that Sami/Carrie went through. It's hard to believe that a man that lost so much time with his children against his will would just willingly decide to take a super dangerous, undercover mission and not be heard from for 4 years.

Wayne was fired They said there was no story left for him I heard Marlena and John were a no go so they tried to find someone else because Deidre looked too old . And Dee Hall is my goddess but she does look a little older than John.

I thought the show went hard with John and Marlena after Maison Blanche IMO The Possession was a love story. I never thought Kristen and John were a lovestory. Weird because I get it, but Isabella was very extra and too white hat. Like it's great in the lexicon of John's story but she was never going to be Marlena and they were always trying to make her John's great love

Wasn't Whitney the one the show kept saying was just like Marlena even though they weren't that similar outside of them both being blonde and doctors? Rebecca and John was such a random pairing. It's like the show didn't really know what else to do with John and they were just waiting for Eileen or to see how popular John and Marlena would be. I honestly am not sure what the plan was with John. I think the writers still hadn't settled on J&M being endgame. It's weird that after Isabella he slept and impregnated Marlena, slept with Rebecca, slept with Kristen and offscreen got Paul's mom pregnant in like a year's time lol

I wouldn't be against killing Carly off honestly. I was never a huge Carly fan, so LW's deviation from the actual true version of SJB's Carly doesn't seriously offend me, but I am not sure why they even keep LW around. She plays Carly like a loud soccer mom. She has no romantic chemistry with MB and it's not like she is an amazingly stunning beauty of anything (although she is attractive). She seems like a cool person IRL, but she lacks any vulnerability and warmth onscreen. She's just a very cold actress and it doesn't work well for the character of Carly. But to be honest, I am used to her and, like I said, there are many characters that I would ditch before her. I do think Carly and Jax make a good couple and they actually have chemistry. But the bigger problem is I like CarJax, but it's been well over a decade since I shipped a character or couple on GH, so I don't really care who ends up with who.

I would send Sonny to prison or kill him off. I would have him quit the mob and send him to Rome with Brenda, but that seems like too happy of an ending for him and frankly, Brenda deserves better lol. I would keep Jason and give him his memories back Have him repent his sins and start a new life. Even though I personally like Sonny better, I think Jason is probably the more important character for GH. And poor Monica needs one of her kids to survive. Aside from the poor life choice of marrying and procreating with Carly. I think Jax is fine. I don't think GH uses him well at all. He's a pretty good catch and he is basically been marginalized for Sonny his entire GH career. I could take or leave Lw's Carly but I prefer her over 75% off the cast. There is something inherently unlikeable about Laura Wright though. I am honestly not sure if Sam or KeMo has a lot of fans. It seems like it and I am not sure why. She's attractive but I have never seen an actress look like she was phoning it in more than her. She is so monotone and boring.

I mean obviously making Sonny/Jason/Carly the leads of the show was, and continues to be, a huge problem. Sonny, Jason, and Carly are all fairly good characters on paper, but they are really meant to be supporting characters. I could go on and on with how the show botched Sonny as a character in general. He was a villain. Yeah, he was a pretty decent guy sometimes and really loved Brenda, but he was still a criminal. Giving him endless amounts of children and selling him and Carly as a great love story is just a weird choice. How many women can say Sonny/Jason are good men who did some bad things and we as an audience are supposed to just buy this crap? It's a description I'd buy in 1997, but not in 2019. At the end of the day Carly, Jason, and Sonny are bad people. Its fine if they have friends/lovers who see them as good people or at least having some redeeming qualities, but an entire town including the mayor and police commissioner should not be their cheerleaders. Honestly, I am not sure where it went wrong, but I think pairing Sonny and Carly was a big part of it. And I also think it's very strange the show never had Jason regain any of his Q memories. That couldn't have been the original story plan. And pairing JaSam forever and ever is just boring. I know Sam has tons of fan, but she is just one of the worst characters ever to be a lead.

I would keep all of the above and possibly Jax and maybe Carly? Sonny can leave, but I actually maybe the only one who likes him still. But I am very fond of the 1993-2000 era so perhaps I am blind.. Sonny could have an epic going out story by going to jail, dying, or giving up the business to be with Brenda and I think I would be good with that. The ultimate ending to Sonny occurred in 1997 when he left Brenda to go on the run. The business he loved so much cost him the love of his life. End of Story. The last 20 years of romanticizing the life of Sonny and his whores has been the ruination of GH. And Jason as a hero/hitman hasn't helped, but I digress..

Lol I can't even name 20 characters on current GH. I can't think of a single, non legacy character that's been introduced in the last 10 years that's been any good. Ava? I honestly can't even think of a legacy character introduced that has been interesting. I would easily argue GH needed a time jump or reboot before Days. They both suck, but at least I know most of the characters on Days

Brenda's breakdown story is probably my least favorite Brenda story ever (yes, including the Balkan). The actual breakdown is very cringe worthy acting wise and I hated that Sonny leaving her basically led her to spiral into a mental breakdown. Though I did like the way it brought her and Jax back together. I think if Vanessa had not left the show they would have kept her with Jax for awhile, although I assume Sonny and Brenda were always the endgame. I don't think VM leaving would have effected Carly's airtime or story. She could have had a legendary love/hate relationship with AJ for years. In fact , thinking about it, Vanessa staying would have probably helped the show stay on track. Sonny/Brenda/Jax and AJ/Carly/Jason seemed to be the more appropriate triangles and losing both VM and KMc at nearly the same time sorta left SB's Carly as the only viable younger leading lady so she got all the story instead of just leading her own story which probably indirectly caused Carly to become the lead she is today. I think Brenda/Jax/Sonny are legendary and Carly/Sonny/Jax can't even hold a candle to that triangle, but I am not sure either pairing would be anywhere close to viable today. Maybe Brenda/Jax? The only way I see Brenda and Sonny getting back together is as an endgame pairing when GH ends which I am here for. Jason and Brenda were going to be paired in 2002. I heard the same thing @titan1978 did. Sam's story back then was basically a slightly reworked version of the Brazen/Sonny story they planned before Vm left. I always wonder how Brenda having Sonny's baby and falling for Jason would have effected the show. I assume it would have ended at some point with Carly/Jason and Brenda/Sonny. It was always a missed opportunity to not pair Jason and Brenda but the timing was never right. Jason and Brenda always had a weird almost sexual energy to them even when they were bickering and fighting and I think Sbu and Vm play off each other well. It's one of the few times StoneCold's lack of emotion and SBu's bored acting choices actually worked in a pairing. Oh well it was not to be. But seriously I could think of 10 characters to drop from current GH just to bring Vanessa back. Watching Brenda in super long sleeves cackling, making out with Sonny, and fighting with Jason is still more entertaining than anything on the current show

I think she's been doing this for awhile now. Maybe a year or so. I mean someone in the family has to work....

I have to agree Guza's GH is miles better than GH now and that's saying a lot. By the end he was out of ideas and plagiarizing himself. Even though a lot of his stuff in the end was bad, at least stuff happened. Nothing ever happens of GH anymore. Guza was at least good at big events. I honestly think GH was pretty good creatively until about 2003-2004. The Courtney/Jason/Carly/Sonny stuff was overkill and that's when I feel like the mob glorification really began. Obviously, Sonny/Brenda began the Sonny is awesome narrative, but the Carson early years really took that to a new level and pushed the Jason is a hero hitman agenda that still haunts us today. I agree the show was a little meandering and very dreary. It was really heavy watching all of those death, cancer, accident stories right in a row. There wasn't a whole lot of romance either. Kevin and Lucy are the only couple I can think of that were light hearted and happy. Luke/Laura and Ned/Lois were together at this point I think, but both couples had a lot of back and forth between them. Sonny and Brenda had broken up and were being awful to one another plus we had to watch them with Lily/Miguel, the q's were upset about Jason, everyone was sad about Stone. It felt like 75% of the characters were miserable for several months, but I will say the Labine era and early Guza was probably the last great era of the show. I also think that Labine had a pretty solid idea where she wanted to go with Bobbie, Jason/Robin, Sonny/Brenda/Lily before she left. Some of the Luke/Laura stuff he probably took in his own direction and the Ned/Lois/Jax stuff which had to change because RS decided to leave. So basically, I thinking all he changed was bringing the Cassadines back, inserting Jax into Sonny/Brenda, and writing Lois off. Every other story seems firmly in place and I can't think of any stories that suddenly shifted direction when Guza started.

Liked that episode too. Sarah is such a dud. So boring. Elizabeth makes her interesting. And RH is so beautiful. Julia and Brenda were adorable and Jax and V were cute too. I felt like they were going there but didn't? NLG looks better now than she did 20 years ago.. And the Stefan, Luke, Alexis, Katherine Bell stuff is basically zzzzz.. Although MBE looks amazing. Even though Jax and Brenda did nothing of importance that last scene was very sexy and intimate. Why can VM sell all the scenes in 1997 but is awful in 2010?

Yes! I remember Sonny and Sean? his bodyguard talking about Barrett industries and I think Sonny actually called Brenda off screen to talk about it and it went nowhere. It's a shame because even though the characters weren't the best it would have tied the story together better

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNpPbmgIPSTE0P4nHXwHrsg For those who love Julia it looks like Crystal Carson has uploaded most , if not all, of her scenes as Julia including the late 90's stuff on you tube . GH saddled her with Bill for too long but she was enjoyable with both Ned and AJ. It's so strange to me they basically got rid of her and never brought her back considering she had strong ties to a lot of characters that dominated the mid to late 90's. I didn't like Bill and Julia together because he seemed too old for her although I am not clear how old Julia is. Did they ever establish that? She can't be more than 5-7 years older than Brenda because they had clear childhood memories and interactions together but she acted like she was in her 30's. Plus she's only 2 years older than VM. Anyway, Bill sucked but Jenny was my least favorite Eckert. She was the worst. Hated her and Ned. Hated her and Paul. Hated everything about her. I liked Sly though. They should have brought him back as a teen to be in the Lucky/Liz/Emily/Nik teen scene

Thanks! I really enjoyed this episode even though nothing truly important happened. So many good characters. The Q's!, Alan's increasing drug addiction, Bobbie being a good friend, Emily and Monica having a true heart to heart, SJB's Carly and her schemes, Aj, Keesha, and Julia (love Julia!). The weakest link was Jax and Brenda who were pretty boring and having the same conversation about Sonny they have in various forms for the next 6-9 months ( who am I kidding they have this same conversation about Sonny in various forms for the next 20 years) The Q's add so much. It's weird because I remember thinking 1997-1998 was a mess for GH at the time except for Carly/Tony/Aj/Jason. Mb had left and the Brenda breakdown story was awful and Port Charles had just started so things were a little weird, but the show was actually good. Also I wished they kept CC as Julia-she was great. And young Amber Tamblyn was great as well. I actually want to see the next episode