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How about that Anniversary Episode? Well, you know I'm talking about that today along with the rest of the show. I'm back in "please fix this" mode! My excitement lasted about 4 months I guess... from October to January. Then, seemed like another 'reset' happened. I swear I can hear TPTB saying "calm it down" or "get back to what we do best-- having too many stories chopped up and way too many characters isolated". I'll try to be gentle since this is Easter.
I'm having my fave EGG-Salad.
Let Us Begin.
Let me put this bluntly. I loved the new co-writer switch and felt the show had really stepped up everything from pacing to editing to story quality. The air went out of the balloon right around the time that Genie was let go. Not sure if it was a psychological thing for me or the fact that the story had to switch because of her departure. Whatever the reason, I just wasn't as excited as I was to come home and watch.
The saving grace has been the Mike story. Other than that, pretty predictable. I'm SO tired of the JaSam Dream on going SAGA that I could bore my eyes out with a spoon. Almost the same with Julian and Alexis. Either cut them loose or say Fk it and have them own their dysfunctional lust and move on. Maybe then we could have time for the Brad Lucas adoption story? Lucas IS a Spencer--and he IS connected to a hell of a lot of people on the show. So...?
Let's face it-- the 50th year anniversary show was pretty spectacular with all the vets coming back and new blood at the helm. Five years later and at 55, was bound to be more subtle and shorter. I didn't expect it to be totally Sonny-Centric though. Yes, it was framed around Mike's memory loss but in the end, CarSon took the last dance and Sonny toasted himself. Maybe we can wait until the 60th for a bit more substance.
This was a show based on the child/parent relationship. Jason called Monica "mon" and flashed back to when he first held Michael. Monica reflected the time Jason saved her from herself. Sonny remembered he shot one of his kids and was honoring his father by recreating a special night for him. Scotty thought about Lee--Anna remembered her child running into her arms. Bobbie and Felicia with their heart-wrench when on lost a child and another was saved. I got the "Circle of Life in Memories" theme right away which is why the insertion of some clips (ie: Nurses Ball) instead of others (no Liz child scenes?) was puzzling.
Besides the flashbacks, it was a night of immersion therapy for Mike, to help him remember the good old days when he was a bartender at Luke's. I would have absolutely shown old Mike clips even though there's a recast. If you're going to use memories, you have to USE memories. Wish it would have started with an old clip of Mike washing off the bar. Just a few minutes of it. Have some Luke's Club memories. They didn't even need to be big ones--just enough to show the feel of the place.
Remember when she was the police ...oh never mind.
Ned singing was... expected. Still enjoyed it. Wish Brooklyn had popped out and done a duet.
I was also secretly hoping Brenda would come around the corner when Mike mentioned her. THAT would have been epic. Just have VM on for this one show. "Hey, passing through town--how ya'll doing"?? giggle
I just didn't find the episode that great or memorable--and it should have been. I was also hoping for something a bit more unique like Nate's funeral. Yes, the actors were great and yes, thank you to ABC for acknowledging the milestone. I'm not a total brat.
REST OF THE WEEK:
Oh, Sam..what's wrong?
I can't decide... I can't . It's so damn hard! I just don't know what to do....If I choose Jason, the Dream fans get all pissed off and if I choose Drew, the JaSam fans are mad as hell. It's all so hard! I wish Lucky would come back. Or Patrick. Or... Silas. Hell, I'd even take Ric right about now!!
So, wanna sleep together?
I don't see why not!
Me either!
Let's go!
Great...it's you.
Yeah, you...me....me, you...
So.
So.
Wanna Fight?
Yep.
NOTE: They DID fight... but it was off camera. We jumped to them at the PCPD sporting black eyes.
This story was just written so ... back over top wise. We lived through the Scarecrow mess, and finally get some payoff and it's falling flat.
Ok, there may be some promise here, although geesh--don't be subtle there Dr. Handsie-Onsie. Kiki's a pretty strong girl and yes, I know this can happen to strong women, but I hope she handles it by punching him in the face and going directly to Monica. That won't happen tho-- it will be a story about conflicting angst of her being a doctor vs outting the guy. Let's hope he doesn't send her nude you-know- what pics. I also think I said this before but damn, if Kris Alderson was playing Kiki still? I couldn't watch this. Nope!
I need that meme of Gwyneth Paltrow screaming WHY?? WHY?? over an over. The only time I really liked this guy was when he was being nasty to Faison in the hospital bed. This character is...puzzling. Anna never once thought about the baby boy she gave up until now (maybe off camera but??). If he would have had the gene for Huntinton's it may have had some interest?? But he doesn't so?? Why is he still in Port Charles anyway? This Valentin connection is thin and just weird. Don't get me started on Maxie. Thank GOD she was in the 55th episode without him. Their attachment and talks 1:1 outside of everything and everyone else bores me to no end. The rumor about Dante being front and center for Maxie (Nate did ask him to look out for her) would have been the more logical way to go here. That and the fact Dom is a kick-ass actor that seems regulated to--showing up at events and having 3 lines. *sigh*
That's about it! The Silas Anna Dance is still churning. The Ava Griffin thing is-- what it is. By the way, she COULD have helped him with the dilemma of telling Anna who Pete really is. Sometimes an ex-priest turned doctor needs someone to push them into the real world.
Well, that's that!! RUMOR ALMOST CONFIRMED PATROL: Kin Shriner had some strange tweets after his live tweeting this Friday. They seemed to suggest he was leaving GH--and Jackie Zeman was wishing him well "in your new stage in life". Wally Kurth chimed in and was basically shocked. Billy Warlock tweeted: "Today is the first day of the rest of your life, my friend" to which Kin replied: Yep. That's the most confirmation I've seen.
So, is Scotty off the show?? Kin is not on contract, he's listed as recurring. I haven't seen anything from the more well known sites that usually confirm this and ABC has been silent. I sure hope not. The Franco/Scotty duo is one we can all enjoy, no matter how you feel about the characters. Kin and Roger just deliver fun. I'll try to keep you updated.
RATINGS PATROL: Well, GH hit number one last week in 18-49 demo.
I have this week OFF work!! BUT--can you believe a dental appointment 2:00 Monday ?? Geesh, who made that appointment ?? DERP.
First, happy Easter and Passover to all! Karen, thanks for a great SS, you pointed out some really good stuff, including the theme of the 55 show, which I (der!) hadn't realized. Maybe the Kin tweets mean something else, maybe he is not leaving? Like you, I love him with Roger, but he is great with EVERYONE, he is one of the characters that are the heart and soul of GH, like Monica, Bobbie, Kevin, Laura, Lucy Coe and Liz. He CANNOT be gone.
ReplyDeleteI think you might be wrong when you said that they didn't show Jason and Drew fighting, I think I do remember that scene.
We should have had flashbacks of Tracey, Laura (not just a newspaper clipping), Lucky, Nicholas, Tony, Lucas, Tiffany, Sean, Holly, Robert, Frisco, original Amy, Emily, Georgie, Heather, Rick Webber, Ric Lansing, Lesley, Aunt Ruby, Jake Meyer, Duke, Jimmy Lee, Blackie, etc and WAY less Sonny.
ReplyDeleteAlso why wasnt Sam or Lucas there? They are veteran legacy characters and Sam has a connection to Mike, and could have fabricated a connection for Lucas as a doctor.
I am just VERY thankful no Franco, Silas, Nina, or Kiki. For me the demise of GH did not start with the recent release of Genie, it started with the slow takeover of the show by OLTL actors, relegating GH vets and core characters to the background or propping up the OLTLers. Nina does need to exist, Lucy can fill that role. Alexis and Anna propping up boring as all holy hell Silas or McBain or whatever that stiff characters name is now. And for God sake, free Liz and all of us from Franco! Nothing against the actors as they are all great but the characters are either boring or not needed
The newspaper clipping was MY photo I put up here and on twitter-- they didn't have ANYTHING with Genie!! I put up a bunch of things I liked over the years. I started watching right about the time Laura killed David.
ReplyDeleteThe fight scene was Drew "punching" Jason-- and that was it. Then they were in the PCPD.
The Kiki/Dr.Bensch stuff bothers me that people think it's not that big of a deal. This is a man that she looked up to as a mentor and holds a lot of power over her future. Her reaction wasn't out of character, she was trying her best to avoid the situation by switching shifts and refusing his previous offers to be alone with him. Should she have hit him? Probably. But she was shocked at his actions and her first instinct was to run. Not out of the ordinary. Yes they are both adults, but he is way older than her and had already proven that he held influence over her future at several instances. It was a big deal what he did, and no he didn't rape her but she felt violated. I felt violated just watching it. I have no doubt she'll eventually tell someone, I kind of hope it's Franco. He views her as a daughter and his reaction would be great to watch. In the words of Sonya "Bob Todd is going to be pissed" yeah, he is.
ReplyDeleteI hope Roger kicks the crap out of him too.That would be great.
DeleteTotally agree Alicia. I said the same thing the other day about wishing she had went to Franco instead of the stairwell. He made me sick inside. I've been there and just recently found out my sister has as well. Hope they can tell this storyline well.
DeleteAlicia, I totally think it's a giant deal, which I have said several times here. I'm sure that others feel the same way.
ReplyDeleteKaren: Grest SS as always. Do you see Kin leaving as a hint that Roger is leaving the show? Most of Kin's interaction is with Roger over the past year. Is Roger under contract only year to year?
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter an Passover to all!
friscough said...I am just VERY thankful no Franco, Silas, Nina, or Kiki. For me the demise of GH did not start with the recent release of Genie, it started with the slow takeover of the show by OLTL actors, relegating GH vets and core characters to the background or propping up the OLTLers.
ReplyDelete*** I agree.They seemed to want to bring OLTL back in our show. And they're still focusing on them and slowly trying to get rid of all the GH vets.They never seem to have trouble keeping them on contract or paying them what they want.
And Lucy is soooo much better than Nina.I'd love her at crimson or running that spa she talked about. lopts of people could meet at the spa.
Yes it's definitely OLTL's fault.
DeleteI guess I am weird - I LIKED the 55th anniversary show and until I read all of the posts, it never occurred to me it was about Sonny......hmmm...
ReplyDeletethis Mike story IS the best - HOWEVER in real life most people don't have lotsa money and they deal with Alzheimers every day so please GH - DO NOT just write this story with a blunt ending - Mike in a fancy place - let's keep in going - loving NO MOB story
this Kiki thing is TOO forced -it's like the writers said, "we gotta be hip and do the 'me too' movement kinda thing ------ because it was NOT a building story - just WHAM - forced on us.
I'm glad I am not the only one. Sure I missed no Laura flashbacks or no this or no that. But good gravy it's hard to add in a 5 day a week show of 55 yrs in an hr show. I'm not a Sonny fan at all but I enjoyed the idea behind it. So yeah I along with you (Barbara) enjoyed it.
DeleteBarbara, I always thought that Dr. Bensch was suspect in his interest in Kiki. When he came on to Jordan, and then Alexis, I thought that maybe he will try to be with someone more appropriate, whom he does not have power over (although Jordan is much too young for him), but I always felt that the Bensch/Kiki thing was ambiguous. I do not feel blindsided by his recent behavior, rather I feel he was grooming her all along. I think he went after Jordan and Alexis because he is a general letch, and likes beautiful women.
ReplyDeleteFinn (McBain) is lucky to be on 5 minutes a week so he sure isn't taking away from anyone else. The show is swallowed by Sonny, Carly, Jason and Sam. And to a lesser extent Drew. Letting both Genie and Kin go is absolutely crazy. CVE seemed like he was making a difference, I'm guessing someone tied his hands
ReplyDeleteI agree. I don't know how OLTL is killing it, or whatever. Like you said Finn is barely on and I'd rather see Sonny any day. As for Kin, I'm ticked, but it's not OL fault. It's the dead weight and the bloated cast, ie:newbies.
DeleteI think that none of the fans, including me, like the Carly/Jason/Sonny/Sam show (and this coming from Sonny's #1 fan!). GH has SUCH an amazing cast, it is criminal that most of them are underused or pushed aside all together. I wonder why they continue to do this?
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter Karen and everyone!!!!:)
ReplyDelete"I was also secretly hoping Brenda would come around the corner when Mike mentioned her."
When Mike mentioned her, and they showed Sonny close up, I thought they were going to have a flashback.
"THAT would have been epic. Just have VM on for this one show. "Hey, passing through town--how ya'll doing"?? giggle"
And have her be petty with Carly? Yeah no thanks.
"Oh, Sam..what's wrong?
I can't decide... I can't . It's so damn hard! I just don't know what to do....If I choose Jason, the Dream fans get all pissed off and if I choose Drew, the JaSam fans are mad as hell. It's all so hard!"
ROFL!
Sam: I should just live in a convent and be a nun.
"I also think I said this before but damn, if Kris Alderson was playing Kiki still? I couldn't watch this. Nope!"
Yuck!!!! Glad Kris Alderson wasn't playing Kiwi!!!
"So, is Scotty off the show??"
DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!!!! I can't believe this is happening!!!
"can you believe a dental appointment 2:00 Monday ?? Geesh, who made that appointment ?? DERP."
Your puppy? ROFL!
"Alicia said...In the words of Sonya "Bob Todd is going to be pissed" yeah, he is.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait for the scene when she tells him!!! He is going to want to kill him!!"
I thought reoccurring meant they could be off the show for months and then contacted to see if they can come in for a couple episodes, get paid for that and be off again. I also thought Kin was reoccurring because he was on like that. He didn't have a real story. So how does one leave or be let go if one is already reoccurring? Like, they are never going to use the character/actor again? How would that help the budget? With a contract, they have guaranteed numbers of episodes or weekly stuff and are on salary. I guess I was wrong about reoccurring, maybe they are on reduced pay???
ReplyDeleteI liked the suggestion Dominic should have a story, one in which he could use his talent. He is way too good to always be 'color'. Maybe the story could come with the newby, Chase.
Most upsetting event this year was the firing of Genie Francis, the iconic Laura, who helped make GH what it is, who along with Geary, was a major turning point in the history of GH. They gave her that lovely wedding and then put her into a very promising storyline and suddenly!! she's gone. It was most jarring and inexplicable. I can't watch with the same satisfaction... I can still feel the anger.
I do wish viewers would stop complaining about OLTL actors. Other actors are hired from other shows; in fact most actors hired are from another soap. Laura Wright is from Guiding Light (I think), Nina is from Y&R, as is Drew. It's the nature of the business. There are only 2 OLTL alums--big Damn deal. (Well, 3 if you count DR Bensch, played by an actor who hadn't been on any show for many years.) At least they are some of the very best of GH's many excellent actors.
Amen on OLTL
DeleteMy biggest problem with the Dr. Bensch/Kiki story is that we are (rightly) supposed to be horrified that this sexual predator is harassing Kiki, yet we are also supposed to be okay with sexual predator Franco as a romantic hero. We're supposed to be angry that Bensch gets to be anywhere near Kiki, yet should be fine with rape-survivor Liz basically telling Sam to get over what Franco did to her. You don't get to have it both ways. Either Bensch is creepy & sexual predators are bad or you're going to romanticize them.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes the 55th angered me on so many levels. First, remember how good GH used to be? Second, look at all the stories that were character driven and not plot points. And really why spoil in multiple places that Liz & Jason are going to interact and then either cut or not have them even speak. It just really served to piss off a fanbase that was generating a great deal of buzz for the episode on Twitter.
As for Kin, the only thing that I can think is that he has taped something that sends him offscreen. Maybe he's going to take the fall for something Franco did. Or he kills Harvey before Franco does. Or maybe Kin just decided he wanted to stay in Florida.
The original Franco character was horrible, and I always thought it was a bad idea to bring him back. Roger looks nothing like James Franco, so the whole thing just makes no sense. Roger is funny, and is great as other characters, just not Franco.
ReplyDelete