Deadly holidays and honeymoons

Kiki's murder sent shockwaves through Port Charles, but has Ryan overplayed his hand by framing Griffin? And now that Oscar has had a change of heart, will it be left in tatters when he finds out that Josslyn and Cam kissed? Love is grand until it turns deadly or fate cuts it short.

Ryan strikes again, and this time, his victim was much closer to viewers' hearts. His treachery didn't end there. After stabbing Kiki, framing Griffin, and dumping her body on the Haunted Star, Ryan paid Ava a visit, and, with Kiki's warm blood practically dripping from his hands, he seduced Ava.

It was chilling and difficult to watch.

I felt violated on Ava's behalf. Like her or hate her, Ava loved Kiki in her own twisted, dysfunctional way. No mother -- not even Ava -- deserves to be violated like that, and as far as I'm concerned, that's exactly what Ryan did to Ava. He violated her.

Ava consented to sleep with Kevin Collins, not Ryan. It's no different to me than if Ava and Kevin had agreed to have sex, he had stepped out of the room, and Ryan had entered, taking his place without telling Ava. Legally, what Ryan did to Ava might not be classified as rape, but morally, I think it is. Like I said, Ryan had Kiki's blood on his hands.

Maura West was absolutely incredible in the scenes following the revelation of Kiki's shocking murder. I knew Maura would be, but she blew way past my expectations when she hovered over Kiki's body and yelled, "Lauren Katherine Jerome! You open your eyes and sit up! Please, Kiki!"

It broke me. The floodgates opened, and I wept like a little baby.

Maura's scenes at the Haunted Star and later, when she woke up in bed after a night of drinking, surrounded by the scattered pictures of her daughter's childhood, were gut-wrenching. Even Ryan, unfeeling sociopath that he is, appeared momentarily taken aback by Ava's profound grief -- or perhaps it was just wishful thinking on my part because I want Ryan to see the devastation that he's wreaked and to feel some guilt or a sense that he did the wrong thing.

Ava's anguish was palpable, and knowing what else awaits her down the road when Ryan is exposed made it worse.

How do you even begin to wrap your head around the idea that the man you took into your bed touched you intimately with the very same hands that only hours earlier ended your daughter's life? That's sick and demented, so I fully expect Ava to snap when Ryan is unmasked. I expect that to happen far sooner than later because Ryan might be a diabolical serial killer, but he's not exactly Dexter.

Maura's performances were flawless, gripping, and definitely Emmy worthy, but Ryan's murder spree? Not so much.

For starters, I feel a bit cheated by Kiki's murder because all we got was Ryan appearing on her doorstep and Kiki looking at him with big doe eyes. I wished that we had had more. I would have liked to have seen Kiki's last stand with Ryan, minus the grisly part. Blood spray is not my thing. However, I would have liked to see the moment that Kiki realized that her life was in peril and a glimpse of the struggle that she put up as she tried to defend herself against Ryan's murderous intentions.

It would have been far more compelling than the hide-and-seek game the writers played with the body for most of the episode as Griffin returned to the apartment, looking for Kiki.

That brings me to the violent struggle between Ryan and Kiki, and 21st century forensics.

We saw Ryan pull down his shirt cuff when he was on the Haunted Star with Ava, suggesting that Kiki had managed to get in a few good scratches and hits before he overpowered her. That means that Ryan's DNA will be all over her, under her nails and on her clothes, because murder -- especially a violent one -- is messy business. Kiki was found wearing the same clothes that she greeted Ryan in, and I doubt that he took the time to run them through the wash to rid them of DNA evidence before he dumped Kiki on the Haunted Star.

The same goes for the knife. Ryan wore gloves, but those fibers would be all over the knife. If he left the gloves with the knife, then his DNA is inside the gloves. If he didn't, then the police are going to wonder why Griffin kept a bloody knife but not the bloody gloves. They will want those gloves and will be on the lookout for them.

Finally, are we truly expected to believe that Ryan managed break into Griffin's apartment to steal a knife, stabbed Kiki, returned to Griffin's apartment to plant incriminating evidence, hauled Kiki down to the Haunted Star, and slipped away completely unnoticed and evading all security cameras along the way? Not likely.

It's for these reasons, and more, that I believe that Ryan's days are numbered, and he will soon be facing the wrath of Kiki's homicidal mother, uncle, and second-father. There's no argument that there's a long list of people who are going to want to see Ryan dead, but Ava earned the right to be at the very top. I hope she's the one who ends his miserable life once and for all.

But I still want Laura to rescue Kevin.

I'm sad that Kiki is dead, but it took a very long time for me to warm to her as a character, in part because she was conceived in the eleventh hour when ABC was forced to swap out the One Life to Life characters for three new characters. Kiki was Starr Manning's replacement.

I loathed Kiki at first because she had zero ambition, beyond mooching off of others with Morgan. She also didn't score points with me when she cheated on Morgan with his brother, which is why I always thought she had no reason to judge him about his relationship with her mother.

However, that was all in the past, and I began to warm to Kiki once Morgan was out of the picture. I know many believed that Kiki was the love of Morgan's life, which she might have been, but I don't think he was the love of her life. She didn't begin to shine until he was gone. Her relationship with Dillon was the healthiest one she had, even though it ended with him taking a long-distance job and cheating on her. When they were together, she and Dillon were happy and brought out the best in each other. The same wasn't always true for Kiki and Morgan.

I liked the idea of Kiki entering medical school. It was a good direction for the character, even if it didn't match up with the character that we were first introduced to. However, people change, especially on soap operas. I grew to like Kiki, and even though I think she was all kinds of wrong for hooking up with Griffin, I understood what drove her, and I couldn't blame her for reaching for love, even if it wasn't under the best of circumstances.

Had Kiki lived, I do believe that she and Ava would have worked things out. It would have taken time, but Kiki and Ava would have eventually forgiven each other. They always did.

I don't blame the writers for killing off Kiki. It was a good move because it gave several key characters tremendous storyline opportunities. I look forward to the coming weeks and Ryan's eventual downfall. It's shaping up to be epic.

I did feel sorry for Jordan and Curtis, though, because not only did they have a beautiful wedding, but Stella finally came to her senses and made peace with Jordan. It was a wonderful moment, but sadly, it was upstaged by Kiki's murder and Oscar's decision to drop his lawsuit and seek treatment for his cancer.

What is wrong with the adults in Josslyn's life? Why would any mother allow her child to tie herself to a terminally ill boy?

Don't get me wrong! I understand that there is no way to stop Josslyn from caring for Oscar and vice versa. That isn't my issue. My problem is that Oscar is putting a lot of pressure on Josslyn by making his treatment all about her. I would never allow my teenage daughter to be put in that position.

Oscar should be getting treatment for himself -- not for Josslyn. Josslyn is a kid who doesn't have the coping skills or the maturity to deal with a dying boy, much less be the sole reason that he seeks treatment. What if he dies?

Obviously, Kim won't say boo to Oscar now that he's doing what she wants, but Carly is Josslyn's mother, and she should be setting Kim and Oscar straight about his expectations and Josslyn's role in his treatment. Carly's job, first and foremost, is to protect Josslyn, and that poor child is being set up for a world of hurt and heartache if her mother doesn't set some ground rules about what Oscar can expect from Josslyn.

I'm sure that everyone is looking at this from the aspect that Oscar will now be able to fight the cancer, but the truth is that there are no guarantees. That's especially true in Oscar's case because he's entering the unknown with the experimental treatment. True, on a soap opera, his chances of a miracle cure are far greater, but Oscar's health isn't the only problem that Josslyn is facing right now.

Josslyn has romantic feelings for Cam. I'm not talking about the kiss they shared, although it certainly wasn't platonic or one-sided. No, I'm referring to her conversation with Cam when she stopped by to blast him for not telling her about Oscar's illness sooner and Cam pushed back by making it clear that he's done with their games and being monkey in the middle.

I was so proud of Cam for standing up for himself not only with Josslyn but also with his mother when he revealed that he knew about Oscar's brain tumor. He has quickly become my favorite teen on the scene. Judging by the dejected expression on Josslyn's face as she left Cam's house, she feels the same way.

Cue the guilt trip that Oscar will undoubtedly put on Josslyn to keep her firmly by his side as he fights his cancer and she longs for Cam. I feel bad for Oscar, but I think that Cam is a much better fit for Josslyn because there's a fire inside him that Oscar has always lacked. Oscar has his good qualities -- he does keep Josslyn grounded -- but Josslyn is young. She wants someone who challenges her and encourages her to fly because she's eager to experience what life has to offer.

Oscar can't give Josslyn that, especially now that he's ill. Of course, he does live with a cult, so there is that.

At the hospital, Anna was busy setting a trap for Liesl and using Britt as bait. Finn injected Britt with some sort of cold virus that apparently will linger for months if left untreated. Ethical much?

I love Finn, but I have a big problem with him injecting people with viruses to help the WSB catch bad guys. If he's going to do that, then he should go to work for the WSB, not General Hospital.

Yeah, yeah, I know that Britt agreed to be injected with a virus, but I'm pretty sure that she didn't agree to undergo treatment for six months. And if Finn lied about that, then shame on him. He's a doctor. He should at least be honest with his patients.

That said, I am happy that Anna has figured out where Liesl is. I miss Liesl. I'm not worried about Liesl going to jail. She has always managed to land on her feet -- and out of jail. I'm sure the writers will find another clever way to keep Liesl free as a bird.

I'm also looking forward to finding out what Hayden has to say to Finn. Will she tell him about their child -- or will she remain silent when she realizes that Finn has moved on? Will we see Rebecca ? Fingers crossed that we do. I'm a Hayden fan, and I would love for her to return, but I'm not sure that I want Finn and Anna to end.

The truth is, Hayden did Finn wrong in the most horrible way imaginable. She allowed him to believe that his child had died. Died. Finn was crushed, and he deeply grieved for that baby. Did she do it because Finn was an abusive boyfriend? A deadbeat dad? A pedophile, killer, or wanted man? No, no, and no. None of the above.

Sure, Finn is a flawed man. He needs a therapy lizard, he had a drug addiction, and lately, he's been playing fast and loose with viruses, but she didn't tell him that awful lie for any of those reasons. Finn loved her unconditionally and wanted to start a life and family with her, but she didn't trust him enough with her secrets, panicked, and fled. It was all on Hayden, not Finn. He was an innocent party, just like the baby.

Granted, Hayden couldn't exactly leave the baby with him, since she was pregnant at the time, but she didn't have to tell him that the baby had died. I know she didn't want Finn to follow her, but that doesn't make the lie okay. It's still wrong, and Finn didn't deserve to be hurt like that.

I love Hayden, but I would prefer that Finn have nothing to do with her beyond amicably raising their child together. His relationship with Anna is far healthier, and there is real trust between them. Anna proved that by encouraging Finn to go to Italy.

If Ryan stabbed Kiki and planted the bloody knife in Griffin's apartment, then where did all the blood go? How did he get her from the apartment to the Haunted Star without leaving a trail of blood behind him? And why wasn't there a pool of blood in the bed where Kiki was found?

Why wasn't someone sent to notify Ava about Kiki's death? I was stunned that the prime suspect was able to get there first and break the news to the murder victim's mother. Shame on Jordan for allowing that to happen.

While we are on the topic, why didn't Jordan and Chase issue an APB for Griffin when they thought he'd gone on the lam?

This might sound terrible, but I liked Sam's sick look. Her hair was fabulous, and she actually wore color -- a pink robe!

Who goes on the lam on THANKSGIVING?? That's the worst travel day of the year, ESPECIALLY if you're in a hurry. Of course, Ava didn't have much choice. As far as evidence against her, I'll bet her fingerprints are all over the bottle she used to knock out Griffin, and that there are traces of her DNA on their clothes. She was right to try to run. She's looking at some SERIOUS time in Pentonville! -- Scrimmage

For me the highlight of the week was the real classic episode they showed on Thursday. What a treat; Lila, Edward, Reginald, Tony, Alan, etc. Such a great gift to the viewers, if only we could have that GH again -- nancejb

Charlotte told Val that he'd do anything to get what he wanted, and I think that's a clue that the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree...she's also on a mission! -- lovethosedimples

Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. I love hearing from readers, so please feel free to email me or leave a comment below.

Take care and happy viewing,Liz Masters

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