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According to the newspaper columnists at the time of Mark Dante's return, Gerald Gordon had been a favorite of Fred Silverman, who left ABC for NBC and took Gordon with him. Silverman supposedly put him on a contract with NBC. Gordon return to "General Hospital" occurred after Silverman left NBC so Gordon may have been in need of work and he may have left Monty on good terms. His pairing seems very C-story at best based on synopses but maybe there was more to it.

The show definitely is ignoring some of the complexities involved in the situation. I am also curious to see how Kate Phillips is presented because I get the sense we are suppose to hate her for being "civic minded" and encouraged a clinic that provided abortion services. I know there is a bigger story coming up about abortion with someone in that circle so I'll be curious to see how it plays out. Slightly off topic, on the British soap "Eldorado" they handled abortion with more engagement in the complexities of the issue while still taking a heavy religious punishment angle; Rosario aborts her mid-life pregnancy only for her only son to die several weeks later. I have to wonder if we will get a speech about how Dave Phillips feels that his son Kevin was taken from him because of his sinful abortionist past. I almost wonder if Vinley wasn't subtly trying to undermine the issue of abortion with the deeper intersection into a character like Blue Noble and his childhood, but I suspect that subversive reading may not be accurate. As I think I may have already suggested, I would have kept Russ in Lori's orbit especially after the mental health crisis. I also would have extended the Russ as Lester Lewis' assistant storyline. I think Lori and Russ finding each other again after Lori's attack in a friendly way that concerned all the supporting parties (Marianne, Ben, Terry, and even Vince) would have centered Russ in a way that would have played into Chris Rolland's strengths. Russ going into the mob was an inevitability from September, 1981. I just don't know if that's where I would have centered him. I do wish we had gotten visits from Louise and Tony Cardello. I think they would have allowed us to explore some interesting dynamics given Louise's ties to the mob and Tony's sexuality. I also would have made Carrie Weaver a more permanent fixture in Kingsley. Preferably as a member of the church board for the house of worship that eventually hired Jeff Cummings.

Episodes 411-413: I very strong set of episodes. The key standout to me was the one-off return of Dennis Fraser, the drunk driver who had caused Nora and Scott's death a year earlier. Dennis arrives on New Year's Eve to update Terry what he has been doing since their last encounter. He and his family have not only embraced God, which Terry had stated to the Davidsons back in the spring, but also that he is working with an organization to prevent drunk driving and has convinced others to see the light. I think its a nice way to revist a story that was so critical to the family history of the Davidson clan as well as a way to resolve some of the issues I had with how Fraser's original story was resolved. The fact that Fraser was taking action steps, and not just preaching, felt like an important story shift. Fraser's return set off some nice ripple effects. Peter takes his old standard highly emotional, suggested of low level violence approach, which emphasizes how impulsive he still is, whihc makes sense. He's only 18 I think. Lori's response was also very representative of the person she has become. She has an emotional moment because she unable to comfort her mother because of her own mental health issues. I appreciate how Lori's story is playing out. There was another minor moment where Peter was recounting how the "crazy neighbor" was caught stealing from the store and Lori lambasts Peter stating that the woman deserved respect, clearly connecting after her own experience. It was a very strong moment. There was some nice light hearted comedy mixed in with Nancy. She goes to visit Gil at the office to make a play for him to be interrupted by Amber only for Gil to literally use the same routine on Amber that Nancy used on him to equal success. Then, out for New Years' Eve at the Castaway, Nancy is again hit on by Fred Winthrop, an older gentleman who recently came into money. In addiition, there were some nice cracks made by Alex Greeley about Lester Lewis in his conversations with Dave, who is trying to get back on staff at Kingsley General. I'm finding myself a bit bored with the Marianne / Russ stuff. I really liked the Vince / Becky dynamic and Marianne seeing Vince as the problem is a bit much for me. Vince is definitely problematic; a gangster who was cheating on his wife and had a child by his mistress who he continued to emotionally support. Marianne's own father Jason was so problematic to me with his holier than thou routine while also bedding down with Sharon Landers and romancing Terry Davidson. I don't think Marianne has asked to give back her commission for the paintings that Vince bought for the Hollister Mall. It just feels very insincere. I don't hate Marianne, but I can see why this dynamic didn't last long. Marianne's desire to show Russ the joy of faith when Lori couldn't is a bit repetitive, but at least that's addressed onscreen by Terry. I know Doug Hughes, the younger attorney of the people, returns later, but I would have had him as the other man in Marianne's life. The Miriam kidnapping stuff is well done with lighting and Miriam's dynamics wiht both Blue and Lance being so different. I thought the Blue / Miriam friendship was a nice touch that I don't think is often playe dbecause Blue is being used by Lance and Ronnie who are now setting him up as the fall guy in the kidnapping by having him pick up the ransom. Blue's downfall cannot be too far off with Dave and Ben talking about the newspaper article Gene's writing which would feature Blue's picture. I also feel there is a deep disconnect in the philosophy on this show in the sense of theory verse reality. At the clinic, Ben and Dave have another discussion about abortion leading to the discussion of government funding vs. private funding. The key to the plot is the need to fundraise, which I imagine is how we will see Kate Phillips, Dave's ex-wife, reenter his life. In a sense, I think the fundamental idea of Dave and Ben wanting to run the clinic their way without bureaucratic hand tying is appealing, but I don't personally accept their point of view. I am also starting to see a bit of a deep disconnect in the abortion debate from the show's foundational level. Dave states he saw two young women that morning seeking an abortion, with the allusion a third might be in the reception. In his recounting of the morning patients, Dave states how he encouraged both women to give the baby up for adoption. Yet, we also have a fundamental view that adoption / surrending a child has had negative outcomes. While not written by Vinley, Becky's adoption left her seeking approval and love in ways that were deeply complicated. Simutaneously, some of Nancy's issues seem to stem from the fact that she also wasn't raised by her biological mother, though I suspect the show sees Nancy as evil by birth rather than by the uneasy environment she was raised in. Though, most recently, there was a rather intensely emotional scene where Blue Noble goes on an eloquent (for Blue) exposition dump about how he was raised and dehumanized in foster care. It's hard to accept one preaching for life while simutaneously making all the villains have issues stemming from parental abandonment. I have finally made it into 1983 and looking forward to some of the stories from that year.

The Santa Claus drag king act is worth it. Its also just a very nicely done sequence outdoors. While I'm not 100% thrilled it was played for laughs, having Harold and Santa kissing on a Christian soap in 1982 is mind blowing. Babs and Harold are the show's super couple. I just adore them. There is the added bonus of Harold deducing that Vince Cardello was the Prince, which is a lowkey way of resolving the earlier conflict between Harold and Babs where Harold thought Babs was hooking again and Vince was her john. Christmas 1983 is a little splashier I believe with a lot of musical numbers. There is a song or two, but it is much more calm and quiet evening. There is always so many what ifs with "Another Life." I'm curious what would have happened have Vinley launched the show if it would have had such a rocky beginning, or if that was inevitable due to the nature of the production launch with CBN. Winsor was a fairly decent writer and what I watched in his waning days was not quality. I also wouldn't let go of that brief headwriterless period where Nancy is launched because it is so powerful and so different from the period before and after. I have to wonder if Metromedia's decision to launch "Rituals" had any impact on clearnance for the show in its final year. I can't remember if anyone was even syndicating "Antoher Life" at that point, but I believe the Metromedia stations initially had to air "Rituals." I'm curious how Vinley would have done on a network soap. Maybe "Loving" in the post-Marland period or even "Captiol" in the post Henry Sleasar run. I watched a couple more episodes (through 410): I believe the highlight remains on Edye Byrd's Ione who had two fairly strong sequences in two very different stories. First, Ione goes to visit Charles Carpenter to offer her positive thougths and prayers for Miriam's safe return and Charles lambasts Ione blaming her for the kidnapping and saying there is no way that Miriam will return to Ione's when she is returned. Ione holds her own without stooping to Charles' level. In the other, Ione visits the clinic that has just opened and offers to be a receptionist for the day to Ben and Dave. Ione is a natural fit with her connection to the community, her general positive energy, and her giving spirit. I fear what this means for the boarding house, but I love having Ione so firmly entrenched into so many parts of the canvas. She's such a presence on the show. One thing that I noticed, especially with the presence of Ione, is how lily white Chesterfield has become in reference to the clinic. I hope there is a conversation about the black community's concern about the clinic due to historical medical racism, but I am not sure that will be addressed. Though, this is literally the only soap that I think might address it. Ione has specifically stated her connection to the community and I'm hoping we will see a bit more diversity in who comes through the clinic given how they have described Chesterfield in the months leading up to this. Continue on the Ione Redlon love rant, she addressed a very subtle issue with Ben, how many of the patients are unable to read and right. Blue also is unable to read and write well. I have to wonder if there wasn't a plan at some point to have Lori back in Chesterfield having adult literacy classes. Or if it is just a red herring by Jason Vinley on how the canvas will learn that Blue, not Monk and Fernandiz, was the one to attack Lori. Gene's role is also beefing up a bit. He wants to do a story on the clinic and its first patient, Blue, which I imagine will lead to Blue's identity being revealed to the important players. I also feel that the show has painted Blue in a much more complicated light, which I don't necessarily hate. It's compelling. Back to Gene, Gene has also spoken to Carla about supporting Monk because he sees a lot of himself in him. This is a great way to touch upon some of Gene's identity issues in a way that is uplifting. There was also some nice beats between Carla and Gene about the baby and Jimmy's possible resentment. I don't remember Jimmy's exact reaction, but I loved that this was touched upon. There are so many soap opera super couples in the modern era with age gap children (especially on "Days of our Lives") that this would be an interesting issue to explore. The only one I can think of is Sami and Belle, but that was obviously much more complicated than just the age difference. I'm surprised by how much Vinley is able to pack into each episode. There was some Amber / Gil banter which was nice, but not super memorable. I do wonder why Peter Davidson doesn't make the connection that Amber might be Dave's daughter, but Vinley seems to hint that people think it could be a professional name. Almost into 1983.

I watched 401 - 407 (Christmas 1982). It is nice to revisit my friends in Kingsley. I forgot how good the show is, and the Christmas 1982 episode is a real highlight. Leading up to Christmas, we have some very well done moments. Jason Vinley continues to deliver a strong set of stories, characters, and interactions. Among the most noteable in the set was Blue Nobles visit to the clinic where Dave Phillips is treating the scar received months ago when he was attacked by Lori when he was attempting to rape her. Dave inquires about the nickname Blue and Blue goes into a maudlin tale about growing up in foster care and no one knowing his name. There were multiple kids in the home and they were all designated a color. Blue was his. It is a tragic backstory for a piece of work character that suggests that things are less about sin and more about circumstances. Blue was created, not born that way. Chandler Hill Harben does a spectacular job. Debbie McLeod is impressing more as Lori in this set. She has the heavy task of dealing with Lori's return to Kingsley. I think some of her realizations about things range from mildly poignant (her realization she doesn't have Christmas presents to give) to borderline devastating (getting upset with Terry because she wants to be able to comfort her mother on the verge of the anniversary of her father's death). I just wish some time was spent revisiting Lori and Russ because a broken Lori might find some sympathy from an equally complicated Russ. Maybe in later episodes. The kidnapping story is incredibly story with various threads tying together. You have Charles reading the letter from his grandson Eric, who has commented on how much his mother has changed and wants to reconnect with her. The letter is poignant and breaks the usually very stoic Charles, who has already had a beautiful and deep conversation about faith when Charles retreats on his interest in God after recovering. There is Blue agreeing to photograph Miriam for the ransom after Lance discovers Blue's shrine to his "girlfriend" Lori. By the time that Charles receives the phone call, everyone has said repeatedly it can't be a kidnapping because they have waited too long. I appreciate that beat being played. Then, you have Vince visiting Ron Washington to inquire about what Ron knows about Miriam's kidnapping and Ron playing the fool. I'm not completely aware of the trajectory of Ron's story, but I think that he is setting himself up with the double dealing. It's very intriguing. On the lesser intriguing, I'm not big on the Peter / Vicki angle. It's functional given the role Prescott Development plays on the show, but it's not as compelling as I think it could be. I did appreciate a very subtle nod to the Vicki / Peter story when Lori returns home and Peter apologizes not directly saying he failed to pick her up because he was out with Vicki . That was a crucial beat that would be lost on today's soaps. I'm glad we are shifting Gil towards Amber Phillips, who owns the modeling agency. There is some fun lighter domestic moments with Carla and Ione preparing for Chirstmas and Terry preparing dinner while Marianne Prescott stops by for the millionth time to complain about her relationship with Russ. The dinner prep is peppered with a bit of family backstory involving a family recipe that the late Scott Davidson wasn't very fond of. It all is much richer than the material from the first half of the year. Though, the best material of all has got to be Christmas, which opens with some beautiful exterior and outdoor shots set in Hollister Mall while Harold Webster walks through the shopping center while a familiar mall Santa collects for the less fortunate. As we hear Santa speak more and more, it is clear that Santa is the on-the-run Babs Farley. Babs' drag king Santa act is delightful culminating in the reunion of Babs and Harold in a very queer moment where Babs and Harold share their first kiss while Babs is still in her Santa garb. To make the beautiful reunion a truly "Another Life" moment Gil Prescott comes across Webster and Santa kissing completely bemused by the entire scenario. Harold and Babs' reunion is a true joy for the most unusual of couples. Harold telling Babs to leave again to stay safe is devastating. Harold going to the Redlons to share the news of Babs' visit was also poignant. I cannot wait for these two to be together again permanently. Also, another only on "Another Life" moment occurs when Dave Phillips joins the Davidson family for Christmas and tells Ben about a young woman seeking an abortion at the clinic. In what could have been a heavy handed moment, in turn it becomes a bit more embedded in Dave's personal history how his past involvement in government funded clinics required him to provide abortion services. The conversation ends with Ben and Dave discussing the need to maintain private donorship so that they aren't required to provide this service. While I completely disagree with the politics, I thought it was well done for the charactesr involved. Also, given the story of the young mother Mary at Christmas, I felt this was a well done moment. As a contrast, we also get the revelation of Carla's big secret: she's pregnant, which seems very much in the spriit of Christmas. In addition, it secures the end of marital hostilities between Gene and Carla as this is proof that they have resumed marital relations. "Another Life" continues to be a surprise. I'm not sure if it is just good TV or good because there is so much time away from it and the lack of connection to what was available in 1982. Either way, I'd recommend Christmas 1982.

They started a Olivia / Buzz / Frank love triangle at one point (February 2006). I thought it was a terrible idea and stopped watching again. Others may have loved it

I bought Chances a few years ago and made it fairly far (maybe into the early 110s) but didn't finish it. I found the final arc was less fun than the show was at it peak insanity (85ish-100). The show starts off very slow. I'd say the first couple episodes are fairly unmemorable other than the lotto and the ending to the first episode. The show picks up potential a bit with some interesting additions (George Mallaby's gangster character) that doesn't really go anywhere. I think by 18-20 I found the show was finally finding its place. Jeremy Sims is very good as the young male lead, Alex Taylor. As the show slims down its cast and centers on him, Sims continues to maintain the energy and momentum from those earlier episodes. Sims is a good sport and ends up being the focus of a lot of the nudity (backside only) though there was a fair bit of female nudity as well. I thought the pre-reboot episodes were my favorite (18-60 I think) with some clunkers in there, but mostly an enjoyable story involving a murder and a secret from the past that blended into a couple other stories. Connie Reynolds, the nurse sister, was one of my favorite characters. She was the very working class put upon sister more reserved than her hot headed brothers, Dan and Jack. Her ex-husband Eddie Reynolds pops up fairly early on and adds a lot of drama. Their oldest son, Chris Reynolds, is involved in a sexual exploration story with a gay character that leads to a gay bashing and Chris' later affair with another character. It's probably a daring story for the time, but it wasn't amazing by today's standards. Another Taylor son, Ben, is a hairdresser so everyone assumes he is gay. The best queer content is from later when Alex and his business partner Angela and jack of all trades Cal end up in a situation that suggests Alex and Cal may have gone to bed together. It's never confirmed completely, but the insinuation is heavy. Annie Jones pops up with a very different look than I was used to. Briohey Behets pops up for a couple episodes as a doctors between seasons of filming Families. On occassion, I consider revisiting it because I never did finish (same with Eldorado) and I want to see if I would still enjoy that earlier part of the show as much as I did the first time. Often, the show had really interesting potential that it never capitalized on during both its traditional and its Aussie take on Twin Peaks meets Soap. That level of insanity was really hard to maintain and its last lap about a vampire with a lisp didn't really work as well for me.

Monty's attempt at EastEnders boiled down to everyone naming their ethnicity. The Eckerts were German. Angela and Joey were Italian. The Spencers were Irish. Everyone's favorite Connor Olivera (Michael Lynch) was Mexican-Scottish. If the characters had been richer in characterization, it would have worked. She really did see what had been coming down the pike with a more grounded reality needed for soaps as the 1990s came around, though I also have an unhealthy curiousity about how she would have produced a show in the post- JER/possession era. Monty went through so many co-writers with her sister. You had Norma Monty, Gene Palumbo, John Whepley, then you had Monty and Whepley, then you had Monty and Arthur Bernard Lewis, and then you finally had Monty and Linda Grover. Robert and Anna's departure reduced the cop shop element. Riche didn't keep Guy Lewis around or Remi, the female cop who basically replaced Sam Welles. I'm not sure if you could have had all those cops on the canvas without increasing the criminal element a little bit. I could see Anna / Robert fitting better into Labine's world than in Levinson's. Though in watching some May, 1992, episodes I see Anne Howard Bailey listed as a consultant (and John Porterfield and Linda Schreyer listed as storyline consultants) so maybe Howard Bailey could have made that work, but probably not well. I think others have suggested that Robert could have worked as Luke's voice of reason or an antagonist in the relationship between Luke and Sonny. I do think there was something to explore there, and a part of me would want to know if Anna and Robert could have survived as a couple Stone and Robin's HIV diagnoses. I think viewers would have stayed if any of the stories had been maintained prior to the boating accident. You cannot drop every single story at the same time and keep the audience. The Eckerts were more than likely developed for the soap that Monty was shopping to ABC in 1990 set in Portland. She was trying to develop a film studio in Oregon in order to produce the show as well as some of her other projects. Maybe she was hoping she could land Geary to star in that. I found early Monty 2.0 fairly dull after the initial disaster story, which wasn't even something I was that enthralled with. There was some fun comedy bits with Mac and his community service work, but so much just faded into the woodwork for me. Monty just takes such a wide swing from that to telling the story with Cartel and them getting people sick that it's very much about whiplash. By the tailend of Monty 2.0, the show is better, but nothing to write home about. Even Riche's early plotless months are more engaging to me, though I'm not sure that was the view of the public at large based on the ratings.

I believe Jenny had a miscarriage. There was a congressional hearing about the whole incident and Jack Kensington tried to paint Jenny as some sort of Lolita-type who had been seducing him in order to extort money. I believe part of the ruse was that Jenny had aborted the baby, but Jenny's truth was that it had been a natural miscarriage. The abortion may have been the final straw in Ned and Jenny's marriage. Jenny also doesn't know why she lied about being a virgin. To save you the burden of watching a fairly long Jenny scene (over 5 minutes), Jenny says that she said it so that they wouldn't have sex before marriage because she didn't want to ever be in that position again. Ned makes the point that he could just said she didn't want to have sex. Jenny admits what she says sounds dumb even as it comes out of her mouth. The episode also includes the first time that Bobbie is reunited with Lucas after Cheryl's passing. Nothing is more telling to me about Monty's view of the Eckerts than the staging of Dawn and Decker's engagement in the Eckert bakery where you basically get the POV of Fred and Angela watching the engagement occur rather than focusing on the actual engagement. In all my years of hearing how shows have been invaded by new families, I've never seen new characters completely eclipse the established characters in the established characters own story climax. I half expected Angela to give a eulogy at Dawn's funeral. Also, after the initial flop of the Eckerts, the proposed Eckerts are basically abandoned. Even as Jenny recounts the pregnancy saga, it was just Angela and Jenny who knew even though there was at least a younger sister, Ava, who should have been around for the drama. And brother Mario also wasn't mentioned again. With all that said, I do like the more thinned down Eckerts (Bill, Jenny, with pop ins from Angela) because they were part of the fabric of the community and not the entire dress. I think the angle that connected Kensington and Jenny was Jenny's friendship with his daughter Betsy. They could have linked the multiple backstories by making the connetion related to Jenny's environmental activism. Jenny ends up being gone within a year or so. I guess it really didn't matter in the end.

I think Sean and Tiffany had talked of having a baby in late September a week or two before Cheryl's car accident and they are caring for Lucas. Lucas' custody puts a halt to the baby plans and when Sean refuses to go along with Tiffany in the custody case, which torpedoed Tiffany's chances in court their marriage was in such a tough spot. I think Jessica's child would have been the next step in that process after the miscarriage and Sean not wanting to have 2 under 2 with his and Jessica's baby. I also assumed this may have caused Tiffany to pull away from Sean, but under Riche, it may have made them stronger. Tracy's abortion stance. I'm not sure if we have ever pinpointed when this occurred in the story. We always assume it was Tracy's views of Jenny's teenage pregnancy during the Jack Kensington story as I think everyone was led to believe Jenny aborted the baby rather than had a miscarriage because Kensington had the hospital records expunged. Tracy / Paul / Jenny / Ned is very late stage Monty 2.0. Tracy learns she is pregnant at the very end of January and Riche starts the first week of February. Ned and Jenny marry in February. This story plays out for most of 1992 with Levinson and Thoma adding the Julia / Ned angle in June / July and Levinson (solo) leading the charge with the Jack Kensington scandal where it was revealed a teenaged Jenny had gotten pregnant by family friend Jack Kensington, a senator, and later miscarried the baby. This story basically ends Ned and Jenny's marriage which united Paul and Jenny leaving Tracy in the wind while playing Tracy against a lovelorn Marco Dane. By May, 1993, Ned and Tracy are seeking revenge on Paul and Jenny and set up Paul on theft charges and then Tracy runs over Jenny in the parking garage. Levinson's work is seedy. I think what differentiates his misogyny from later General Hospital misogyny and Levinson's victimatization of women is meant to elicit sympathy for the female characters whereas JFP and Guza's was more about showing the strenght of men. I never get the sense that when A.J. and Jason Quartermaine are slut shaming Karen because of her relationship with Jagger, and her eventually stint as a stripper, was intended to make the Q boys look good, but rather make us feel for Karen. And during the custody battle, Bobbie and Tiffany bringing up each other's sordid sex worker pasts shows how far the women are willing to go, and highlights how far from the original goal they have gotten. Wyatt plays Tiffany's pain so well. In particular, the scene in the hospital where Tiffany is rejecting Sean's attempt at reconciliation is so emotional from everything that Sharon Wyatt emotes in her body language to the classic melacholy GH music cue to the emotionally heavy dialogue. I think the script writers really embed some beautiful subtext with Tiffany questioning why Jessica would lie (Tiffany's a reporter and would pick up on the "lack" of motivation) emphasizing how Tiffany is still unaware of Jessica and Sean's dalliance even though Stevie wonder can see Jessica fawning over Sean in front of his wife. In some ways, Tiffany's redemption starts to happen in waves with the pregnancy, and then she relapses when she learns of the affair and the miscarriage occurs. Doesn't Sean try to help clear Tiffany of Jessica's murder start the new reconcilliation? I agree with those who say they didn't go far enough to rebuild Tiffany. Palumbo's Tracy was fun, but not as well layered from what I recall. Her relationship with Scotty was more light hearted than some of the nastier elements Tracy had embodied before and after, but I don't remember her having as much humanity as she did in later incarnations. I haven't seen a lot of Monty 2.0 (all scattered), but I definitely thought Tracy was a more complicated character by the end of Monty's run where she briefly attempts to make a society girl out of Jenny so that her marriage to Ned will work out and it keeps her away from Paul. In the final month of Monty with Linda Grover as a headwriter with Norma, there was a brief set up for a rivalry between Tracy and the newly fabulous Angela Eckert, who had returned from her sabbatical in Italy as a buyer for a famous fashion company owned by her cousin. Carol Lawrence vs. Jane Elliot would have been fun, but maybe not sustainable. I can't see Tracy ever really letting "the baker's wife" have the upper hand. I find Tracy's position as head of special projects in spring 1993 more heartbreaking than comical, as I think it was intended. Like you said, Edward always underestimates the business accumen of Tracy. Caroline and Bobby Chandler were created by the Hollands, I believe, and were basically cribbed from their radio soap, To Have and To Hold, which premiered around the time that they started at General Hospital. On their radio show, Robert Carter, a lawyer, was married to a wealthy widow, Caroline, his second wife, who had a daughter from her previous marriage, Ann. Robert's son, Jason, was a doctor at the local hospital who's wife, Emily, had started experiencing unexplained headaches and aural hallucinations that suggested a brain tumor. I think the Hollands tweaked a lot of this for General Hospital.

I know that Elliot and Riche didn't see eye to eye, but that never came across on screen to me. Tracy is such a layered character in that period. I definitely see a lot of the open wound, but I also think that her intelligence was often so overlooked by the general canvas. There are moments during the summer of 1992 where she has deduced that Tracy has deduced that Paul and Jenny spent the night together at the lighthouse during the blackout and that Ned and Julia spent the night at the Port Charles Hotel together. There's almost nothing she can do about either situation because her marriage is so precarious and the pain just sits below the surface. The writing in general under these early Riche years is just phenomenal. Another great Tracy and Monica playing nice scene from shortly after Dillon was born. I appreciate the fact that you have so many emotions playing out in the course of a single scene and how this scene, like their final scene, echos how each woman has different levels of turmoil in their life and that they don't really have to be each other's enemy:

This episode features a bunch of Tiffany related scenes that frame the context of the Sean and Tiffany scenes in the June 14th episode: Sean and Jessica had just begun their affair and I believe Sean insinuates to someone that he was using the relationship with Jessica in order to ensure he could continue his unorthodox methods involving Felicia / Mac / Ryan, which we see culminate at the end of the episode when you have Jessica inform the hospital crew (all of whom are in on the scheme except Ryan) that Felicia is dead. I enjoyed Tiffany's crash out over losing custody of Lucas leading to the drinking and DUI that is blatantly referenced and the pill popping which was set up in this episode. It's definitely a darker turn for a more light hearted character. I think @carolineg shared some insights on why they also don't love it. I think the biggest issue I have is these stories need to spend enough time with the redemption arc, which we never really get with Tiffany and Sean. Jessica dies in early September 1993, I believe, only weeks before Labine arrives. The natural conclusion should have been Tiffany and Sean raising Jessica and Sean's child wondeirng if Jessica's genetics would influence it. I think emphasizing that Tiffany is so uncentered at the start of the dead Felicia scheme that she was missing meetings with Lucas helped to justify Jessica's demands, which Sean also agrees with by the end of the April 23 episode when chatting with Tony.

This is Monica and Tracy's final scene in 1993 before Tracy's exile from the Q Mansion and Port Charles. I really appreciate how Monica and Tracy could find a common ground at times during this period. It probably helps the Tracy is purposefully evasive about the reasons behind Edward declaration. Monica suggesting that the entire Q clan can be self-destructive is more poignant and reflective than hostile and aggressive as it might have been penned by the 2000s.

I think there were hard decisions to be made in late 2008/early 2009 especially since the show was on the verge of being cancelled. This was the time of the infamous "Days won't be around in 2010" line from Jeff Zuker or some other NBC honcho. I don't think there was any way to feasibly go forward with all those vets leading story. I am always curious if the show could had kept John and Marlena around in a more supporting role in this period (limited guarantees or recurring) if the audience would have accepted it. I've always felt them being gone for a bit made people more accepting of the more supporting role in those mid-2010 years. The super couple fans were definitely treated badly. The comments about just seeing their favorites at fan events and then writing those books with the gone characters. It wasn't respectful. Steve and Kayla's non-exit as well. I don't love the way it went down, but it also didn't have the impact people thought it would. The numbers actually went up in this period (2009) without the fired vets and mostly carried through by the baby swap storyline. It definitely seemed that a strong story with an emotional climax could maintain the viewers even without some fan favorites. That's not to say that John and Marlena couldn't have carried one of those stories, but the guarantees in that era were tight. Peter Reckell's PR person loved to go to SOD every time Reckell's guarantees were up and he was sidelined for a few weeks. The ratings may not have gone up substanitally, but enough that they staved off the original cancellation. I definitely feel this was a love it or hate it period and was part of a very tumultous couple years with highs and lows (you and I would probably disagree about which was which and probably already have lol). The 2011 reset of course was then undone by the 2012-2013 reset which was undone by the 2015 reset and so on and so on. I think Ron Carvilati's work did manage to save the show from yet another cancellation precipice and I would say that he used John and Marlena pretty significantly. I am not sure it was the only way to survive, but it did. Do you feel the same about Vivian's 2009 return?

I love beating a dead horse so I'm not offended. I don't know of any archive for this. I would love to rewatch 2008-2017 again to see how things evolved. I got a drive years ago that had most of this, but it would only work on certain devices which was a pain so I just stopped trying. Cody Longo was good as Nikolas. I know people hated Quinn as Vivian's son, but having a situation with Vivian having to deal with the boy she considered a son and the man who was her son would have been great. Since I suspect that the show was originally going to have Gabi get pregnant in 2011, slipping Longo's Nikolas into the role later filled by Nick Fallon as Gabi's faux baby daddy would have been interesting. Vivian's grandnephew raising the child of Kate's grandson would have just continued to fuel the drama especially with Melanie paired off with Gabi's brother, Dario.