GH: April 2024 Discussion Thread

[carolineg]

I don't think Lesli Kay did a bad job exactly although I do think she was miscast.  I just hated the writing for her Lois in general.  Her being this overbearing stage mother that was smothering Brook Lynn felt off and I don't know if it was the material or LK not knowing how to play it.   You can still see the thread line of that overbearing behavior in Rena's Lois now, but it doesn't seem as stifling.  And, yeah, I have no idea what anyone was thinking with Alcazar/Lois lol.  It seemed very OOC for her to date a mobster although they did make an attractive couple.  After that I don't think Alcazar was ever a true main player even if he lasted a few years longer and did some nonsense with Skye.

I know you and I were sure they were testing Sonny/Lois and there was a different vibe to the dialogue and the way they played off one another in the 90's.  Lois almost seem too invested recently.  I never got anything more than friendship from Sonny/Lois back in the day and I don't think it was just because of Ned/Brenda.   Anyhow, it doesn't look like PM/EK are taking in that direction so it doesn't matter.

I don't really mind Olivia.  I don't really care much about her either.  I wish the show had done a bit more to differentiate her from Lois years ago.  Olivia has carved a decent enough niche on the show and I don't even know if LLC is on contract, so she's not at the top of my list to go or anything.

[dc11786]

A lot of random comments from this week...

I enjoyed the parallel betrayal conversations between Carly / Sonny and Ava/Nina. I didn't expect Nina to sign the divorce papers. That was a pretty nice shock for me. I didn't mind the montage, but the song wasn't for me. 

I think the show is planning an immediate triangle with Nina / Drew / Jordan with the story being set in Drew's work to help the city change the image of Port Charles. There seems to be a slowly building campaign to clean up PC which I expect will also involve the arrest of Sonny. The clincher for me was the Jordan / Drew flirtation at the bachelor party where Jordan made it clear that she doesn't need a man. This is a direct contrast to Nina, who needs Drew to help her. Playing the dynamic between the clingy Nina and the independent Jordan is intriguing, but I imagine that Jordan will be the loser. The potential of Drew/Willow is good, but I think it will be the second arc of the story between Nina and Drew because for the Nina / Willow conflict to have real meat I would expect there to be a relationship between Nina and Willow first. 

@Khan I was thinking of you when Brook Lynn pointed out that Natalia's concerns about Blaze's sexuality is outdated. It seems pretty clear to me that the impact on the career is not the real issue. I thought the back and forth over Blaze wanting Brook Lynn to focus on her wedding was a great contrast to the Brook Lynn / Natalia confrontation earlier in the week. 

I think the wedding preparation was fine, but something is missing. These sorta nice everyday gatherings are more meaningful when there is something on the horizon ( an ex returning to town, a secret). It just seems to be present without the dramatic tension that would make it pop. I thought the blending of stories in both settings was nice. Josslyn and Kristina's confrontation was a surprising highlight. I enjoy the animosity that is building almost as much as I enjoy Kristina honing in on Ava's duplicity. I know some people think Ava will cause Kristina to miscarry, some think Josslyn will, but I am of the camp that Ava will somehow manipulate the situation so it looks like Josslyn is the cause. Especially if Nina and Carly come together to go after Ava now that they know that Ava has set her sights on Sonny. 

Kristina going to Molly for the truth about Sonny was a smart move and allowed us to play the dramatic irony of knowing that Molly knows all about Sonny / Cyrus and will have to prosecute him, which will only piss off Kristina. I liked the ensuing conflict between T.J. / Molly. T.J.'s point of view on this issue has remained pretty consistent since Dante's shooting; the presence of Sonny is a threat to his unborn child has been the topic of most of T.J.'s limited scenes. I was happy we finally got the conversation between Molly and T.J. after it being between T.J. and Jordan and T.J. and Marshall. 

I also thought the T.J. / Trina / Ace scenes weren't about Trina being a nanny, but rather setting up a dynamic where Trina is involved in Ace's life as a springboard for T.J. and Trina to interact more if Kristina were to lose he baby. I felt it was more a chemistry test, but no one else seemed to feel that way so maybe I'm wrong. 

I know the reaction to the Gregory story seems mixed, but I find it rather emotional. The paralysis moment was rather dramatic. I keep wondering when this is going to end, not because I want it to, but just because I am invested. I thought Finn / Gregory's conflict over the caregiver made sense. Both men want to be in control. Tracy's intervention was also smart both in the officiant conversation and in the caregiver conversation. I like the chemistry between Gregory / Tracy and I think their romance has twinges of tragedy that I think that Jane Eliott is going to play the hell out of when it reaches it climaxes (hopefully on trial for easing Gregory's misery).

The Finn / Alexis scenes seem to be leading to some sorta of connection. I think the fallout of Gregory's inevitable passing has the potential to create enough dramatic ripples to carry the show for a bit. The potential of either Alexis or Finn falling off the wagon works for me and I like the potential of Finn once again going after his father's woman, even though they seem to be leaning more into Gregory/Tracy than Gregory/Alexis. 

Laura turning down the donation of art from Sonny was good. I feel like Ava is being set up to take over the powerbase once Sonny is sent to jail with the potential for Sonny to go straight (have they done this before? does anyone else think they might go in this direction?) In the end, I think Sonny will end up back on top of the mob, as he always is, but I can hope to see the elimination for at least a little bit.

Sasha the cook seems like an attempt to do some Upstairs/Downstairs set up with the Quartermaines. I do feel there needs to be a bit more work to make the Qs a strong force again, and I don't have a problem with using Cody/Sasha until they can actually build a stronger presence. 

[Vee]

I think so too, but I really don't need Jordan around period; she's a dead character. I do suspect that in the short term she may be in the mix a bit to seem like the respectable option in his life vs. Drew's messy, dysfunctional fascination with Nina, but I think Drew and Nina is where it's going. I also think they have begun to build Nina up to not needing a man again (maybe for the first time in her life).

[John]

This is all well thought out. 

[Planet Soap]

I liked Sam's assessment of Jason to Dante. "His openness and honesty draws Danny in which makes him a threat." Looks and the whole badboy aesthetic baside, this is clearly why Jason has continued to be a woman magnet for years.  Not to mention playijg the role of captain save a h*e -- befriending troubled women and pretending to be the father of their child (Sam, Carly). It's also why he comes off as more likeable/sympathetic at times than Sonny.

Edited April 28, 2024 by Planet Soap

[Vee]

That's very true. I was thinking how astute that line was, because it's what has sold Jason to women despite his being a professional killer for years. His 'purity' which too often suggests something unattainable for most of us. Unlike Sonny I don't think Jason is a predator to women - I think he can go without women or sex - but he is what he has allowed himself to be made into, what he has embraced and he has never seen much reason to stop, even after having children. His latest attempt to go legit with his piece of the coffee business may or may not be a feint; it did surprise me. But it won't last.

Edited April 28, 2024 by Vee

[BetterForgotten]

I found this interesting - at the fan event Taby, Laura, Finola, and Cynthia did this weekend, someone asked Cynthia about the scenes between Nina and Ava this week and someone else posted this audio along other actor Q&A’s on her Twitter account. 

It’s interesting how Cynthia talked about choosing to interpret those scenes in a specific way and not playing them as they were written on the surface.

https://twitter.com/ariana_puzzo/status/1784344601827905803/mediaViewer?currentTweet=1784344601827905803&currentTweetUser=ariana_puzzo

Edited April 28, 2024 by BetterForgotten

[Vee]

She's a smart cookie. And that version of their future rivalry works.

[Contessa Donatella]

I don't know if it's been taken down or what but it's not there, although many of her recordings are still there.

[Planet Soap]

Yes, he's a very Jack Bauer from 24 like charachter (or vice versa since Jason came first). Sexually disciplined, non chalant, strong but silent. Sonny is an erratic mess. Both men dealing with a neurological issue.

[titan1978]

The whole besties thing with Lois and Sonny doesn’t make sense to me anyway. Back in the day they were increasingly estranged as Sonny gained more power with the mob. She was trying to extricate him from L&B due to his mob ties.

 

[dc11786]

I don't know what to think of Jordan, to be honest. The actress doesn't wow me, but the writing hasn't really made the character pop either. I could take or leave Jordan. At present, she feels like a piece of the bigger puzzle. I suspect she will be around for a bit (at least a few months) with the surrogacy story in place, the hint of a romance with Drew, and the focus on the activity in the mayor's office. However, given that there was a focus on having Laura and Jordan reveal their tax information, I could totally see someone using that information to create some sort of corruption scandal that would knock Laura and/or Jordan out of office especially since Laura has now declared war on Sonny. 

I was referring specifically to the fact that Nina has asked Drew to help her rebuild her relationship with Willow. Like most of you, I agree this will ultimately come to bite Nina in the ass when Drew decides that he can have both the mother and the daughter. I see the potential of the Nina/Drew/Willow/Michael quad being a variation on the old Tracy/Paul/Jenny/Ned story. 

Overall, right now I feel like there is a real attempt to make all the pieces fit on the canvas in order to build a level of cohesion that wasn't present several months ago. Some of those pieces might be removed as time goes on, but if Trina and T.J. end up becoming a thing (which I think they might), I think Jordan might have a position. The potential Ashford family drama would benefit from Jordan's presence given the family's history of paternity for both T.J. and Trina. I'd also bring back Marcus Taggert to help in the takedown of Sonny, toy with a relationship between Jordan / Marcus post-Jordan/Drew, and let the drama hit the fan. 

[BetterForgotten]

The link still works for me.

https://twitter.com/ariana_puzzo/status/1784344601827905803/mediaviewer

 

[Faulkner]

While she doesn’t blow me away, thankfully Tanisha Harper has grown a bit as an actress. Oddly, I thought Briana Nicole Henry was finally settling into Jordan performance-wise right before she left. But they need to commit with a characterization and a direction if they plan to keep her. If not, just kill her off at this point.

Speaking of stepping it up, I’m enjoying Eden McCoy more than like… ever.

I thought Rena Sofer and Michael Easton had some chemistry too.

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I enjoyed the Nina/Ava and Carly/Sonny fight scenes. Both were well-written and acted.

 

[Vee]

The link worked fine both times.

Jordan just has never worked as a character for me. Vinessa Antoine was very talented but the character has always been merely functional, caught between loyalties and entirely plot-motivated. There's no there there and never has been. The last recast was bad and Tanisha Harper can't act at all. I'd dump her with along so many others (including T.J. and Molly) and find better Black characters to invest in. I also think/hope the surrogacy story is not long for this world. I am also pretty sure Trina and T.J. are related, or at least treat each other like close cousins and have for years.

I have my doubts Drew will squire around both Nina and Willow - he has always had chemistry with KMM (just as she has with Steve), but I thought that scene with them was largely Drew doing just an unselfish thing for Nina and surprising himself, jut as he did the other day in the office scenes. I guess we'll see.

I do think she is working hard.

Edited April 28, 2024 by Vee