The road less travelled

Sam talked to Jason about her regrets and how she envisioned their future if things had been different. Todd enlisted the help of several wealthy citizens to pay Jerry's ransom demand, Jerry kidnapped Alexis, Molly and T.J. made a responsible decision, and Heather escaped from Ferncliff. It's time to catch up on the latest happenings in Port Charles with this week's Two Scoops.

Our lives are filled with choices that we make every single day. Do I have a donut or a bagel with my coffee? Get gas now or later? Cash or charge? Should I cook something healthy or order pizza?

Often, we make these decisions without giving them a second thought. It's only when something goes wrong, like suddenly being ten pounds heavier or stranded on the side of the road, in the middle of nowhere, that we look back and think, "If I'd just had that bagel" or "I should have stopped for gas when I passed that station in town."

This week, Sam looked at the road not taken and imagined what it would have been like to have travelled it. She envisioned a happily-ever-after that would have made Sherwood Schwartz proud.

In Sam's fantasy, she would have walked away when Heather had offered to tell Sam everything for a price. Sam would have gone home and had a perfect life with Jason and their two children, Danny and Emily.

However, it wasn't all that realistic, because Jason and Sam would never have been able to live that carefree life, even under the best of circumstances. Jason's life is extremely mercurial and filled with danger. That's one of the things that drew a self-proclaimed danger-junkie like Sam to Jason in the first place. It's also why she is a private investigator, not a business woman or television host.

If Sam had to do it over again, she'd make the same choices, because she thought that she was doing the right thing.

Thursday's episode was a nice gesture to the Jasam fans that will hopefully give some of them a little bit of closure. It has become clear to me, as I watched this week's episodes with Jason, that the scenes are being written with Steve's departure in mind.

There wasn't an ounce of jealousy in Jason when John appeared in the doorway with Sam plastered to his side and anxiously asked Liz to give Sam medical attention. Jason seemed to be all about Liz, a fact that Sam quickly picked up on as she watched Liz tend to his gunshot wound.

By the way, I have a bone to pick with the medical consultant for General Hospital. Why is Liz wrapping Jason's injury without cutting that denim pant leg off or making Jason change into a snazzy hospital gown? It can't be good for his injury to be wearing those dirty jeans, no matter how many shots of antibiotics Liz gives him with that huge syringe of hers.

I'm not sure how I feel about Jason toying with Liz's heart right now. If Steve Burton were staying, I might be interested in a relationship that blossomed organically between them, but I'm not really keen on watching Liz get set up for heartbreak once again, especially with Jason. I'm a Liz fan, so I want to see my girl happy.

Sam gets to move on with John, Carly has her pick of three guys: Todd, Johnny, and Jax, and even Monica gets a bone thrown her way when it's revealed that Jason is the father of Sam's son. What does Liz get? A dead son and a broken heart. That's just not cool. Liz hasn't seen any action, besides a handful of dates with Ewen and a sloppy drunk kiss from Matt, since she got pregnant with Aiden in 2009.

Listen up, Cartini...I want a man for Liz and a juicy storyline. And I wouldn't be opposed to having little Jakey resurrected, especially if one of those adorable Nigbor twins returns to portray him.

Meanwhile, at the lake house, Molly and T.J. were hanging out in Molly's bedroom and going over their bucket lists, while slowly growing weaker from the pathogen. I was absolutely delighted that they had decided not to have sex just so that they could check it off of their bucket lists. However, I did find it somewhat odd that Alexis would allow Molly to have her bedroom door closed while T.J. was there.

I chuckled when Molly barked at Alexis for knocking, and then entering without waiting for Molly to invite her mother in. A similar thing happened to one of my friends, when her son made a slightly more colorful complaint about mom walking in uninvited. Dottie smiled at him, went to the garage to fetch a screwdriver, and then proceeded to remove the door, hinges and all. "Problem solved," she told him as she carried the door away.

The door stayed in the garage for two weeks.

However, Alexis didn't have time to unscrew door hinges, because she was busy being kidnapped by Jerry, who has decided to whisk the love of his life away at gunpoint to live a life on the run with his $88,111,000.00.

I wasn't surprised to learn that Jerry and Sean had history, because Sean had operated outside of the fringes of society in the past with Theo Hoffman, a.k.a. the Balkan. What I found curious, though, was that Sean apparently has a reputation as a sniper. Does this mean that Sean might end up being the new Jason? Time will tell.

As for Jerry, I suspect that Jerry's ultimate plan is to die in a blaze of glory rather than to waste away from whatever disease is causing that nasty cough of his. Kidnapping Alexis ensures that half the men in Port Charles will ride to her rescue with guns drawn. Sonny, Jax, Sean, and even John and Jason would want to save Alexis. If they don't kill Jerry, then Alexis surely will. All she needs is a convenient balcony.

My gut tells me that Jerry didn't snatch Alexis because he's looking for a redo, like Heather is with little Victor in Llanview.

Hey, Ferncliff, your idiot nurse is dead in the visitor's room.

Why exactly is Heather allowed to roam around an institution for the criminally insane, unfettered and not medicated, just a few weeks after being captured for causing mayhem and murder? Is the place being run by a bunch of Pollyannas?

Heather is an infamous homicidal maniac -- like Jason Voorhees and Michael Meyers -- who has spent a large majority of the last few decades in Ferncliff. Every single staff member and a good portion of the inmates should easily recognize her instantly. And why in heaven's name would anyone be alone with Heather in a room? How many people does Heather have to murder for someone to realize that Heather belongs in a straitjacket when she's not locked in her padded cell?

It's really no wonder that Heather walked out of Ferncliff and picked up where she left off.

Little Jason Victor Daniel Edward, and whatever Heather decides to name him, has been passed around like a hot potato between Sam, John, Todd, Heather, Ta, and now back to Heather that it's no wonder his gorgeous blue eyes looked so big when Ta handed him to Heather.

I'm not worried that Heather will hurt the baby. All that crazy rambling from Heather will probably lull him to sleep, but I am growing a little weary of this storyline, so I'd rather see Sam quickly reunited with her baby and moving forward than for this to drag on much longer.

I want this monkey off of Todd's back too.

I have no doubt that Heather will sing like a canary about her partner in crime, Todd, when she's caught, so there will be repercussions for Todd. However, I'm certain that most will understand and even forgive him. Todd has been forgiven for far worse, as have most of the people in Port Charles. We have murderers, rapists, terrorists, mobsters, swindlers, and drug dealers as romantic leads, so it's doubtful that people will hate Todd for long.

Soaps are about people finding redemption after doing very despicable things. That's why we tune in day after day. It's the battle between good and evil for the souls of our favorites that has us rooting for them when they fall from grace. We cheer when they succeed and cry when they fail, but we seldom give up on them.

Todd didn't act out of malice. Heather lied like a rug, while Ta practically ripped the baby out of his arms, because she was overcome with relief and joy at seeing her baby alive. It was Heather who acted out of sheer evilness. She is the one who changed the paternity test, who preyed on Todd's guilt and persuaded him to pass Sam's son off as Ta's. Heather was the one who talked Todd out of righting his wrong when he had the opportunity to tell the truth. Most importantly, Heather is the one who has taken pleasure in seeing Sam suffer, while Todd was tortured by it.

Todd did wrong, so he does have to pay. I just don't think that he needs to pay as much as Heather does.

This week also heralded the return of Kirsten Storms as Maxie Jones. I think the timing was wrong, like when they recast Carly with Jennifer Bransford on the day of Michael's memorial.

Jen Lilley's Maxie knocked that valve open and made all of those terrible self-destructive choices because of her guilt, so she should have been the one standing in the hallway with Patrick outside of the rebuilt lab.

I adore Kirsten Storms, but I also adored Jen Lilley. Kirsten should have returned after the crisis, not in the middle of it. It just didn't feel right to me when she and Patrick were talking about Robin and the fallout from Robin's death.

There were some light moments this week. The scenes at the police station were the most fun.

Todd's entrance with his posse was a riot, "Hey! Policemen and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce the rest of the band! We are Port Charles and the One-precenters, and we're here to see Jerry Jacks." The expressions on Tracy, Carly, Johnny, and Sonny's faces were priceless.

The dialog between Todd, Jax, Carly, Johnny, Sonny, and Tracy was brilliant. I had a smile on my face the entire time, because I just loved seeing so much of the cast together and interacting.

The laughs didn't stop with Todd and the gang. Later, I howled when Dante strolled into the squad room, suddenly sporting an impressive chinstrap beard on a face that had been clean-shaven just hours earlier. I was in stitches when Dante asked if Todd was involved, and John responded, "Yeah. Don't you know it's the Todd and Jerry show? Find one knucklehead, you're gonna find the other."

I also loved Dante's reaction when John told him that Todd had gathered a group of wealthy citizens to pay the ransom. "So, who else is in this merry band of thieves?" Dante asked, to which John replied, "Oh, the usual suspects, including your father." Classic!

• I am so excited that Ingo is back!! I love the character of Jax!! I think that Ingo and Laura have wonderful chemistry as CarJax. That is my favorite relationship for Carly. - Kristy

• OK, I've figured out why Jerry took Robin. We now know that Jerry wants to kill everyone off in PC with some sort of biological weapon/virus. Robin is a lab research genius, excelling in solving medical mysteries and finding miracle cures. He needed to get her out of the picture in order to proceed with his diabolical plan. Once he releases this deadly virus in PC, who will find the cure? - Mandy

• Whatever happened to Bobbie Spencer? I don't remember her having a specific exit. She just disappeared. There have been so many storylines when you would expect to see her. It would be great to bring her back. Especially with Jerry back in the picture. It's been totally forgotten that she and Jerry were once an item. Wow, I must be showing my age! - Becky D.

• I love the direction of GH and the story lines are intriguing! I wanted to say that Joe Jr. plays the role of villain excellently. However, I can only watch his scenes in short spurts because I almost feel seasick with his bobbing back and forth. I nicknamed him Mr. Bobble Head. I also want to say how much I enjoy your Two Scoops columns and writing--way to go! - Laura L.

• I'm going nuts over here. Who are these people? This is not the Jason and Sam I remember. Love has always been their strength and I don't recall Jason ever being such a jerk! - Deserie

• I sadly completely agree about Jason & Sam's marriage, though at this point I do blame Sam. Not that Jason was entirely blameless in all of this but Sam was the one who took it upon herself to move out instead of staying and fighting for her marriage and she's the one who has become emotionally attached & attracted to someone else. Yes, Jason has spent time with Liz but that's a friendship that goes back almost 15 years and they had a child together. Sam just met John McBain like 5 minutes ago! There's simply no excuse, and if she says that kiss didn't mean anything or "we were drunk" one time I'd like to slap her! Gah - Lyndsey

• Yep, loved the column as usual though GH has been usurped by the Olympics for past week and Time Warner screwed our DVRs. As for Sam and Jason, why marry them in the first place, just to break them up? Ditto, if Liz/Jason didn't work before, why would it now when, as you've pointed out, nothing's changed. And, regardless of Sam's baby issues, I think she would have had the same reaction and actions with John if she had never been pregnant, since she seemed interested from her first meeting with him...Yum, yum, Jason who? - Monique C

• After all these years, I still see the chemistry between Liz and Jason, so I'm rooting for them. I know that the odds are against them, but I've always been a sucker for the underdog. - Kitty

• The newest villain in Port Chuck; Todd. What can I say I love the guy! Good, bad, semi-evil or full blown demon Todd Manning is one funny, suspenseful and downright scary, at times, guy to watch. And I have to agree with several fans analysis that Carly, dear Carly, does not know Todd Manning and does not know what he's capable of. - Nonniepat

Thank you for taking the time to email me. I wish that I could have shared all of the wonderful emails with you, but there were simply too many. However, I loved reading what readers had to say, please keep emailing, and your thoughts may appear here in my next column!

And please remember to tune in to watch General Hospital in its new time slot, starting Monday, September 10, at 2:00 p.m. ET/1:00 p.m. PT/CT