GH: Mulcahey OUT!

[MichaelGL]

This. I never really got all the fuss about Ava when she first arrived, other than the fact she's played by THE MAURA WEST. Dan and Chris then took her in a few interesting directions under their pen and I suppose she was ok. Under PM I really like the turn her took her character in, and disappointed that she's back to being...stupid, so to say. 

Edited August 9, 2024 by MichaelGL

[Liberty City]

I feel like Patrick Mulcahey re-purposed Ava and gave her some bite that the "writer" had for her when she first came onto the scene. Now... she's the punching bag for #TeamCarly.

[Taoboi]

Yep.

 

I know people hate when I said it, but I felt PM was really using those Rules of Marland to figure out what was working, what was not working, and what COULD work on the canvas before he was going to ship characters off. 

 

The best examples being Drew, Nina, Ava off the top of my head. Most of us went from 'when are they leaving' in the case of Drew and Nina to getting invested in their hate sex/blooming relationship. And then Willow made 3. PM very quickly gave characters purpose...some of which was soapy...and it showed. Ava definitely got purpose and that definitely showed. She was definitely a highlight under his run. From the flirtations with Sonny to her feeling hurt when it went nowhere to jealousy with Natalia to all the on-screen AND off-screen scheming she been doing. Under PM, I wanted to see what she would do next and also how she would be written out of the corner she was clearly being written into. 

 

But PM also saw his dead weight clearly so he was in the process of writing off characters with what would have been meaty exits. Finn's exit being a case in point. And regardless of the stalling, I felt he would have written just as meaty an exit for Valentin. That was clearly where the Pikeman story was going. But alas...

tbf he gave quite a few people some bite. But alas. 

[Liberty City]

Yes he did; he also infused some heart back in where it was needed, and the little pop-in of characters mid-episode was nice, as well. Felt more fluid. It's already feeling choppy again, and an ultimate drag to watch once again.

Oh, absolutely, and it helped me realize those rules could exist in modern soap times, whereas prior to his arrival I was questioning if they could. He listened to his audience and was giving us what we were asking for, and was slowly moving things around. I knew post-May Sweeps things would begin to truly show in terms of change, and they were.. unfortunately, it was too late at that point.

EXACTLY! That makes complete sense. And a lot of people said characters were being written out-of-character, but I felt the exact opposite. He was trying to find the root of who each character was, and it was clear there was pushback from those around him, which is very unfortunate.

[MissPhoenixGirl92]

So whose idea was it to have Sasha quit being a model and have her be the Quartermaine chef? Because that was utterly bizarre. It just doesn't fit her character. 

Also I would've been fine with the Drew/Nina hate sex thing being just that - hate sex, as long as neither of them were developing real feelings for each other especially since I can't see either of them ever growing to like each other for real, (well maybe not in Drew's case but I could see this happening for Nina mainly because she's a idiot and a complete moron and she really has no self-respect or any kind of dignity).

I mean, there is really no real reason for Drew to ever like Nina in any capacity, especially after the way that she supposedly had him thrown in prison for the SEC incident, (I don't actually buy this narrative, but this show insists on perpetuating it anyway, so...). My only complain was that there should've been a little bit more build-up to it. I'm still hoping that this whole Drew/Nina/Willow storyline eventually leads to a permanent exit for Nina and we won't have to see or hear from this pathetic waste of a character ever again. I never want Sona revisited in any capacity ever again. 

Edited August 12, 2024 by MissPhoenixGirl92

[Vee]

Maybe you should write in to warn Drew that Nina is an idiot and a complete moron with no self-respect or dignity, I bet he'll listen to you.

[Taoboi]

It sounds like someone missed the part of my post about PM figuring out what works, what is not working, and what could work. I never said all of his choices were good. I however  mentioned what I was drawn to in terms of the Rules.

 

He really did!!! Even if there were some episodes...and yes, I admit there were a few...that were boring, they were usually made up for by how much heart was clearly going back into the show. And characters were actually being fleshed out again. I even came around to liking some characters that I either felt nothing for like Dex to some I was indifferent to like Finn. And yes, I was pleasantly surprised when random characters popped up in the middle of the episode like the ABC soaps of old.

 

Yeah, that was my biggest disappointment as well. PM's version of GH was taking shape for sure during May as I can only assume was the sharp learning curve of not having 6 months to decide on what works and doesn't so PM went with his gut and made choices that included seeing Val, Finn, Austin for the dead weight they were and writing them exits, Drew/Nina's feelings deepening, what was about to be Anna/Laura vs Sonny with the slow planning of finding info to use on Sonny and having Molly be the persecutor. There was so much hitting the 'middle' of their arcs. 

 

Very clear there was pushback. Ava was herself again. I really was looking forward to Anna/Laura vs Sonny because there were ACTUAL stakes involved with characters that would have had the audience divided. And not to mention what Jason's next steps would be in life with his kids who were also divided over his return...and his love life cuz I...such a Liason fan. lol. 

 

 

[Liberty City]

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Even a boring Mulcahey episode is better than the mess that's airing right now. The only material that has rivaled his regime was the strike material (which moved shït along). He really was moving things in a good direction... and then the bomb hit, and now we're stuck with drivel piss.

Oh, absolutely!! And, as you previously noted, he was moving [some] pairings into the right direction. Notice, as soon as he's out, Joss & Dex were back together having sex, etc. But Mulcahey was trying to shake things up, and I liked that. It felt classic in modern times. Plus, I too loved the Anna/Laura vs. Sonny arc... it felt right. Absolutely right.

Liason was prior to my time, and while not a fan of Jason and not an immediate fan of Liz... their brief scenes were actually really nice and I feel like Mulcahey was making choices in the writing (re: Jason) that made sense, and I liked it, a lot. Now... we're back to the gruesome threesome, and I'm done with it.

[titan1978]

Just wanted to add that he was using the big talent they have for the reset when he was still steering it. Anna and Laura vs Sonny is far more complicated and could have had real depth to play for all three of them. You have some of the biggest guns in GH history on contract and are not using them for more than window dressing right now.

Even Dex was being given natural complications becoming a cop with a force that half enables Sonny/on his payroll and half knows he is a criminal and can’t do anything about it and we’re not happy about it.
 

Every story group and character was being set up with a point of view to drive conflict and more emotional stakes. Classic soap stuff like brothers not getting along, the Nina/Willow/Drew story, Ava back to being a villainous character, which puts her at odds with people like Nina and Trina, etc.

The show needed better stories, the Pikeman story should have been used faster to integrate Jason and some action into the show while they did the more delicate character work concurrently. Had Valentini allowed that I think we might have seen a much stronger show.

The problem with a writer like Mulcahey is that he doesn’t write the big story churning plot driven spectacle well. I think if he had been paired with a writer that does do that well, the whole thing would have ended differently. But the truth is FV never gave it a chance.

[Liberty City]

Whether paired with someone else or by himself, so long as Valentini & Varni/Disney ABC were controlling the strings, his vision would've never taken off. He's not a "yes" person, and that's ultimately what they are looking for.

[DeliaIrisFan]

I finally finished watching Mulcahey's credited episodes (since the news that he was out, I've been struggling to keep up on a rolling basis before they expired on Hulu).  I agree with most of this, although I can't say for sure about his capacity for plotting/spectacle because I don't believe he he ever got a chance.  That could very well be, but the stories that were being set up disappeared for weeks on end, and clearly did not end as planned.  I'm not sure how any writer could maintain a compelling pace with a cast this large, presumably with competing guarantees.

I'll concede that none of the stories that were taking shape in the past six months were very groundbreaking.  Was that on Mulcahey?  I don't know.  At this point, I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt for that, not least because all of the remaining soaps have had such dated approaches for ages.  I also know once upon a time, Mulcahey used what limited power he had as a script writer to push the envelope in positive ways, including with throwaway dialogue and short-term characters that validated my existence at a time when I was very young and that was virtually nonexistent on TV.

Anyway, I guess I'm weird because I definitely wasn't watching for the plots.  I was curious to see what he'd do/be allowed to do, and I still have an attachment to some of the characters and Port Charles as a community.  The show did seem to be getting back to that community feel, like you said, and it was nice to listen in on some meaningful conversations among old friends.  I'll miss that.

I did have a glimmer of hope that at this point GH wouldn't have rocked the boat if they weren't committed to letting Mulcahey do something more than that.  I thought after years and years of stable (if staid) regimes at the remaining soaps, maybe TPTB had at least finally learned what I could have told them 25 years ago: that disrupting story momentum on a daily soap just for the sake of change will probably do more harm than good.  Clearly not.

Edited August 18, 2024 by DeliaIrisFan

[Taoboi]

Now that you are making me think of it...did we ever find out who wrote during the strike. Because yes, that had good momentum as well. 

 

Yeah...it seem like Joss and Dex were making their way back to each other. But the writing change made their reunion so abrupt. Not helped that they stopped building up Dex's character which PM was trying to do. I liked that he had his own story, giving him and PCPD complexity. I liked his bonding with Dante and Chase. And now that seems gone. 

 

Yes! Classic in modern times. Showing that sometimes the old ways work best. I just wished it showed in the ratings more. It might have if given time. 

 

Yeah. Meh. I was shocked to see Jason and Liz (very) slowly circling each other again. Meanwhile, PM clearly paid attention to comments and fans because everyone had talked about Jason's parenting skills for years. That story of his kids and his return wrote itself. 

My apologies for looping around, but yes!! It was like a lovely case of building bricks and I really wanted to see the full picture of what PM planned to do with Anna/Laura vs Sonny. You had them separately call him out. You have the schism show. You saw Anna get a clear smoking gun per Dex AND the wedding attack. Laura maneuver Molly to take the case. It was building to be a classic umbrella tale and that whole town would have been divided and might have shed some light on who Sonny is now mortality wise. And bonus...all three are on contracts and should have been frontburner with no abrupt disappearances. Then tie in Ava with the meds or even Pikeman climaxing right before the actual Trial of Sonny and...just smh. And now we are back to meh. 

 

PM did such a good job making me like characters that I felt indifferent to before or not even like. I would have liked to see the rest of Dex hazing storyline. It gave the audience something to relate to ON SCREEN at that and gave him more character and more of a circle (Chase, Dante, Curtis) outside of Joss. And that was nice to see. Play that potential gray matter. 

 

I agree. During the run, you definitely got a feel of where everyone was coming from. And I mean everyone. You now make me wonder if anything would have come of the simmering resentment between Drew to Jason...which could have been a whole other storyline post-Pikeman. Though I would have thought they would shift Jason's story after that to his kids.

 

But like you said...FV didn't give PM a chance cuz the potential was there. 

 

[Taoboi]

Well said.

 

I always wonder at PM being picked up on as a HW since from what I've seen he has had interference every single time and/or not enough time to establish a clear presence. So how can one truly know if he would be a good one?

[Liberty City]

We never found out who wrote during the strike... but they had the ball rolling with so much story.

In time, I think it could have... but I also think the General Hospital audience is very... one-noted, especially on social media. Mulcahey was clearly shifting things for June/July, and by that time, he was gone... and it's disappointing, because people wanted change now now NOW, and were not willing to give it a chance.

Mhmm, and I feel like the audience received it quite well. Now, since Mulcahey's exit... Jason is out of that orbit and Lucky is coming back in.... ARGH!

[Taoboi]

Ah! Okay. Good to know.

 

Yeah, I agree with that as well. May felt like the middle of his arc...with June/July being where it was climaxing or turning into a new story or turn. Ava's visit to the pharmacist comes to mind when she told him to keep doing it with a smirk on her face.

 

Yeah...I'm still recovering from Sonny almost jumping off the roof Friday one week and not talking to Jason to starting Monday talking to Jason like old times. The definition of jarring.