37 minutes ago, titan1978 said:

I am shocked at just how many people they have gotten rid of this year. It felt like forever all we did was add characters left and right.

And I appreciate they are building a mystery for Liz, because that’s what a death should do. Propel story forward.

Well, it was about time and had gotten under way right before PM started so good for that.

 

Amen. But any Liz is usually good Liz.  

 

 

37 minutes ago, titan1978 said:

I am shocked at just how many people they have gotten rid of this year. It felt like forever all we did was add characters left and right.

And I appreciate they are building a mystery for Liz, because that’s what a death should do. Propel story forward.

Well, it was about time and had gotten under way right before PM started so good for that.

 

Amen. But any Liz is usually good Liz.  

 

 

58 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

I wish we knew which characters Mulcahey would have gotten rid of compared to who is going now. I know you've speculated on Sasha. I still think Ava too, especially as the show seems to have no real plans for her and are for now riding the wave of Ric's return and the Kristina mess. I'm not sure if that was planned under Mulcahey or not. I suppose Ric Hearst and Alexa Havins cost a bit, at least compared to a Dex. Ric probably won't last much longer, but Lulu is probably staying, so hopefully that means a few more exits, like Drew.

Like I think titan has said, my suspicion on Ava was 50/50 tbh. There are rumors about it this year and it could've ended in a whodunit, or I think Ava could've easily wriggled out again by having the goods on Valentin and pinning it all on him. I am somewhat agnostic on Ava - I would keep her as long as I can and I think she has longer still, but I also think you can't defang her anymore to do it. There are ways to preserve that a bit more even with a villain character so long-running (like OLTL's Alex), because Maura is versatile and a powerhouse and Ava can be brilliant in her machinations when she's written to be. But if she were to go sometime I'd buy it, just given the longevity and how much she's already done.

I agree they don't have a clue what to do with Ava now. Putting her with Ric is a bulwark until they figure something out and I don't think any of that was a PM thing. But Ric and Ava can work in its own right IMO, even if just as a B-story. I don't think Hearst is breaking the bank (if he's even on contract?) and I'm not convinced Alexa is either, and she is a permanent addition. I think the money issues come from the network just tightening its grip period, and probably the added fees for Steve and Jonathan Jackson. Jonathan is worth it, but Jason has nothing to do. Of course you could say that about at least half the cast.

I do think Sasha and any number of others could've gone in the spring. But here we are. I'll be shocked if Valentin doesn't come back for good, and he was clearly on the way out under Mulcahey.

38 minutes ago, ranger1rg said:

not when we get characters like the woman with the Euro-trash accent and a dozen jocks brawling in the park.

Dayplayers don't cost.

Edited December 13, 20241 yr by Vee

20 minutes ago, ranger1rg said:

I'm still not ready to blame the budget for these cast exits -- not when we get characters like the woman with the Euro-trash accent and a dozen jocks brawling in the park.

Those types of characters taking up oxygen are usually clear signs of budget crunching. 

4 hours ago, titan1978 said:

In other soap times, that video would have leaked at a huge event, with everyone dressed to the nines. Add in a tipsy Ava letting it spill that scumbag Drew slept with both mother and daughter, and we have Willow running away in tears (hopefully to be hit by a car and killed, maybe even driven by Kristina), and Nina eviscerating Drew in front of the room before running after her daughter. You know, an actual soap.

And Michael was the one to leak it, and only Carly knows it was him.

And that would have 3 to 6 months of story right there with the video leak during February Sweeps and everyone finding out that Michael did it in May Sweeps.  

 

And yes, that would be @titan1978 who had the theory about a whodoneit that started under PM. A great theory for Ava to wiggle around at that as Maura West was finally being written how she should be written. And then seeing Drew was thrown under the bus, it looked like it might be here next. So the fact this FINALLY appear to be happen (cutting dead weight) is manifesting at its best. 

 

 

Edited December 13, 20241 yr by Taoboi

14 minutes ago, Vee said:

Like I think titan has said, my suspicion on Ava was 50/50 tbh. There are rumors about it this year and it could've ended in a whodunit, or I think Ava could've easily wriggled out again by having the goods on Valentin and pinning it all on him. I am somewhat agnostic on Ava - I would keep her as long as I can and I think she has longer still, but I also think you can't defang her anymore to do it. There are ways to preserve that a bit more even with a villain character so long-running (like OLTL's Alex), because Maura is versatile and a powerhouse and Ava can be brilliant in her machinations when she's written to be. But if she were to go sometime I'd buy it, just given the longevity and how much she's already done.

I agree they don't have a clue what to do with Ava now. Putting her with Ric is a bulwark until they figure something out and I don't think any of that was a PM thing. But Ric and Ava can work in its own right IMO, even if just as a B-story. I don't think Hearst is breaking the back (if he's even on contract?) and I'm not convinced Alexa is either, and she is a permanent addition. I think the money issues come from the network just tightening its grip period, and probably the added fees for Steve and Jonathan Jackson. Jonathan is worth it, but Jason has nothing to do. Of course you could say that about at least half the cast.

I do wonder if they might consider writing Jason out next year if something doesn't improve. He did nothing for the ratings and Steve has no real connections now, unless they try Jason/Liz again. 

OLTL took the lighter route for Alex. I don't know if GH ever has for Ava (I don't think it's possible), but if they did want to try some sort of discount Keith and Gina from Santa Barbara route with Ava and Ric, it might work. 

(I know Mulcahey wrote a lot of that era...maybe they should watch some of the episodes before they are taken from Youtube again)

Edited December 13, 20241 yr by DRW50

Hmmmm

33 minutes ago, Taoboi said:

Yep. Which is why I hope he pulls a JG and they just find Charlotte off screen without Val having to appear at all.

I'd rather neither be found, and it be fixed that Charlotte was never Lulu's daughter. And we never have to see either again.

1 minute ago, Liberty City said:

I'd rather neither be found, and it be fixed that Charlotte was never Lulu's daughter. And we never have to see either again.

I would be down for that as well. But...if they must have Charlotte back...I wouldn't mind a jarring write-in a la JG like that. 

16 minutes ago, Vee said:

I agree they don't have a clue what to do with Ava now. Putting her with Ric is a bulwark until they figure something out and I don't think any of that was a PM thing. But Ric and Ava can work in its own right IMO, even if just as a B-story. I don't think Hearst is breaking the back (if he's even on contract?) and I'm not convinced Alexa is either, and she is a permanent addition. I think the money issues come from the network just tightening its grip period, and probably the added fees for Steve and Jonathan Jackson. Jonathan is worth it, but Jason has nothing to do. Of course you could say that about at least half the cast.

Rick Hearst if still recurring; likely a more long-term dedicated recurring player, which is fine, given his other occupation in realty, based in New Jersey. But the fact he's on the wall of cast members at Prospect Studios is a solid sign they're dedicated, right now, to keeping him on.

Just now, Taoboi said:

I would be down for that as well. But...if they must have Charlotte back...I wouldn't mind a jarring write-in a la JG like that. 

I would need another recast; I don't need/want the original actor back at all.

12 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

Those types of characters taking up oxygen are usually clear signs of budget crunching. 

Sorry, I don't understand this. How does adding a bunch of dayplayers show budget crunching? Yes, those actors are paid little, but they still add to the budget. They aren't free.

5 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

I do wonder if they might consider writing Jason out next year if something doesn't improve. He did nothing for the ratings and Steve has no real connections now, unless they try Jason/Liz again. 

OLTL took the lighter route for Alex. I don't know if GH ever has for Ava (I don't think it's possible), but if they did want to try some sort of discount Keith and Gina from Santa Barbara route with Ava and Ric, it might work. 

I don't think you need to go lighter with Ava nor do I think it would work, though some of her stories with fellow schemers can and have been fun sometimes. I do think she can insulate herself from consequences with power and money the same way Alex did (or Roger Thorpe, or whoever else).

The Liason fans are the vocal minority desperate to drive JJ off through lots of tweets but I don't think it's going to happen for them, especially with the general audience still responding to him and Becky. In their minds they came so close with Kelly gone only for a new impassable obstacle to appear. But I don't think it was ever actually an actionable possibility this year. I don't think it's been a serious consideration for any regime since before Steve left in 2012, I think they're dreaming (the same way the Jasam fans were this year). And I can't see GH or the network pitting Steve against Jonathan onscreen. So I think the weird Anna thing is his only current option. Steve claims he wants to retire in a couple years. I say let him do it.

5 minutes ago, Liberty City said:

I'd rather neither be found, and it be fixed that Charlotte was never Lulu's daughter. And we never have to see either again.

Please.

1 minute ago, Vee said:

Please.

Let's pray for a holiday miracle of never having to hear "papa" and "ma petite" again.

I definitely thought Ava was on her way out in the brief PM regime.

I say kill both Valentin and Charlotte off and make it clear it was not Lulu's daughter to begin with.

Hear me out though.  I actually felt bad for Eden McCoy to have to play out scenes of a second boyfriend dying, especially since she lost her mother.   I know her mom didn't pass away that recently, but I still sort of felt sad for her

1 minute ago, carolineg said:

I say kill both Valentin and Charlotte off and make it clear it was not Lulu's daughter to begin with.

I'll never be that lucky with all three.

I agree, I feel for Eden a bit given her IRL circumstances. But I'll admit my first thought at the news was 'Frank finds the nearest starving actor twink off WeHo Grindr to come in and be Oscar's headless ghost ushering Dex into the upper room.' He did it with Faceless Edward and Lila!

RIP Dex. I’ll miss ya, even though you were a little stupid and your taste was pretty horrendous. 

Seriously, I’ll never understand how all of these hot, hunky, himbos are dealt with on a Frank soap. They show up with such fanfare and then they’re gone in like two years. Dex/Evan Hofer wasn’t the first and I’m sure he won’t be the last. It’s almost like the way you treat an iPhone lol you get it, you use it for a while, then you junk it when the newer model comes out. I don’t get it. 

Each actor/character could have been so much more than that, especially in Dex/Evan’s case. Yeah, he wasn’t the best actor in the world but he was totally wasted on GH. They gave him such a strong background, with his family problems, his past as a mercenary, his future as a cop, yet in the entire time he was on, they mostly kept him trapped in bubbles with two of the worst characters on this show. He could have been so much more than just Joss’ sex doll or another one of Sonny’s bitchboys. Which we definitely saw in his scenes with Molly. With Chase and Dante. Even with Anna. An affair/pairing with Molly would have been so good for the fans and for the character. Same could be said for the hazing that he was receiving from the other cops, which clearly got lost in the shuffle this year. 

My hatred of Joss aside, that pairing ruined him. Similar to the way that the pairing with Ben ruined Ciara on Days. He had no identity anymore. And I never bought that Dex and Joss had some kind of strong deep love anyway. All they did was [!@#$%^&*] and talk about Sonny. Yeah, part of that’s nice lol but that’s not love. That’s obsession. Like I said before, obsession that makes Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction look tame. Sprina, they were not. 

As for Joss, all I saw of her today was just another awful character finally paying for their awful behavior. I have no sympathy for her whatsoever. Sorry guys, but that’s the just way I feel.

And because of all that, I’d also like to say, Merry Christmas, Cam. And RIP Britt. 

Edited December 14, 20241 yr by AbcNbc247