Does it feel like the writers have suddenly shifted gears, scrapped storylines, and put a reset on some of the characters? It was a week of change. While some of it was for the better, other parts felt a bit like too little, too late. Let’s discuss in this week’s Two Scoops of new tomorrows.
Change is in the air as Chris Van Etten marks his return as co-head writer alongside Elizabeth Korte. I have to admit, it’s been interesting to watch the last few episodes, as some storylines were quickly wrapped up. A shakeup was needed, so I’m not complaining. Much.
The biggest development was the unexpected breakup of Kristina and Allison “Blaze Rogers” Ramirez. It all started when Blaze was given an opportunity of a lifetime to go on tour as the opening act for Port Charles alum Miguel Morez (Ricky Martin)—a wonderful nod to the past that made me smile.
The timing couldn’t have been worse, though, because Blaze was expected to pack up and leave for Hong Kong immediately. Naturally, Blaze balked because Kristina was still recovering from the fall and losing the baby, but Brook Lynn didn’t make it easy. I was kind of taken aback by Brook Lynn’s assertion that Blaze should go because Kristina had people who loved her that would take care of her. Excuse me, BLQ, Blaze is one of those people. I applauded Blaze for putting Kristina first, but then Natalia slithered in, turned on the waterworks, and begged Kristina to let Blaze go. Kristina agreed because Kristina is currently mired in grief, anger, regret, and revenge. There’s no room for romantic love in that toxic mix.
I’m going to miss Jacqueline Grace Lopez, but I’m quite annoyed that we are stuck with Natalia. Nothing against Eva LaRue—she’s a wonderful actress, and I’ve dearly loved her since her days on All My Children—but Natalia is not a nice person. In fact, she’s a pretty vile human being. She justifies her hateful views by blaming it on her upbringing, yet she makes no real effort to open her mind and her heart. Her attitude seems to be “Accept me as I am, even though I don’t accept you.”
I also felt that Natalia was emotionally abusive and manipulative during most of her interactions with Blaze. Natalia cared more about Blaze’s career than she did her own daughter’s happiness. It’s why I was thrilled that Blaze fired Natalia and warned her mother not to follow her. It was the best thing that Blaze could have done for herself.
I don’t know the plans for Natalia, but I hope a redemption arc is in her immediate future because Eva deserves better than being stuck playing a miserable creature like Natalia.
That brings me to Sonny, who decided that he felt sorry for Natalia and gave her a reason to stay in town. Bad Sonny. He set her up as CFO of Deception, overseeing his investment in the cosmetics company. I loved that Lois called him out on his real motivation for the stipulation—Sonny has a new conquest in his sights.
Sonny’s recent descent into bipolar depression was also quickly resolved. One day, he was spiraling into the deepest depths of despair and contemplating ending his life, and the following morning—after a dose or two of bipolar medication—he was right as rain and mending fences with his loved ones, starting with his main man, Jason Morgan. And just like that, the bromance picked up right where it left off. I do feel cheated, though, that the viewers weren’t privy to Sonny reaching out to Jason for a lift home from the hospital. Of all the people on Sonny’s apology tour, it was his mea culpa to Jason that I most looked forward to.
Jason has only ever been loyal to Sonny—to a fault—yet Ava was able to easily manipulate Sonny into thinking the worst of his best friend. For the first time, it truly made me question if perhaps Sonny truly did view Jason as just a foot soldier who was only of consequence as long as he was loyal. The accusation had been bandied about for years by several people, but I always dismissed it, in part because it was never really tested like it was this time around.
When Jason resurfaced and it was revealed that he’d been working for the FBI, Sonny immediately assumed the worst, even though Sonny was actually being protected by the FBI at the time. In fact, Sonny and Jason had mutual goals—to find the head of Pikeman—yet Sonny considered Jason a Judas. Sonny’s medication had been lowered, but the paranoia never extended to Ava. Instead, those who had repeatedly proven themselves to Sonny had turned into the enemy.
Even after, when Jason explained that he’d been cooperating with the FBI to protect Carly from facing RICO charges, Sonny felt betrayed because Jason hadn’t gone to him as soon as the FBI offer was made. While I do agree that Jason should have called an attorney because that deal with John Jagger Jingleheimer Schmidt was sketchy as heck, Sonny should never be anyone’s first call when they land in hot water with the Feds. What was Sonny going to do, anyway? Cut off their coffee supply?
I didn’t mind the quick reset with Sonny’s mental health. It was a good move, but Ava should pay a price for what she did. Not with her life, but she should be held legally accountable. It was shameful, especially since Sonny was trying to help Ava when Austin’s killer began to leave ominous messages.
Folks, I’m over Agent John Cates. It’s disappointing, because there was so much promise when John first arrived in town, but all of that has vanished. He’s gone rogue and is willing to break the law to avenge a woman long dead. Worse, he accuses Sonny of being the devil incarnate, while sleeping with a woman who has done just as bad as Sonny. Ava is no victim, and it’s insane that John would ever see her as such.
Let’s be clear, Karen made peace with Sonny and forgave him long ago. John is not doing this for Karen, and she would definitely not condone John arresting Kristina for attempted murder a few days after losing a baby just to save Ava from criminal charges. That move made John no better than Sonny, and a bad cop. The ends don’t justify the means, especially in this case.
Ava is a scrappy gal who has more lives than a cat. Kristina’s fall was never going to end in a criminal conviction for Ava because it was an accident, a terrible tragedy. Ava didn’t push Kristina, and those photos actually prove that because Ava and Kristina were standing in the middle of the room, not by the window. John was right about one thing: those photos also make a good case for self-defense because Kristina’s fury was crystal clear in those snapshots as she yelled and stuck her finger in Ava’s face.
Even Molly realizes that there’s more to what transpired in that room than meets the eye, because she knows her sister has a fiery temper and a tendency to be reckless in the heat of the moment. We also haven’t seen Kristina questioned about the events in the room, not even by the police, despite Ava being arrested. You’d think they would want a statement from Kristina, but no one has paid her a visit that I know of. Does Kristina even remember tripping over the bag?
If Kristina does recall that very important detail, then she has to know that Ava didn’t push her. Of course, if Kristina acknowledges that she tripped and stumbled backwards out the window, then she will have no one to blame for the baby dying. It’s easier to direct all her rage at Ava than to look at her own actions and how they might have contributed to the horror that unfolded. Before anyone fires off an angry message, I want to clarify that I’m not blaming Kristina. I’m just pointing out why she might not want to remember or acknowledge that she tripped.
Unfortunately, Molly and T.J. are also grieving the loss of the baby, and they, too, want someone to blame for the awful injuries that killed their daughter. If they can’t blame Ava, they will blame Kristina, because they’ve been worried about Kristina’s lack of care with her personal safety throughout the pregnancy. It’s why T.J. didn’t want Kristina around Sonny, especially when there were people gunning for Sonny.
I don’t know if the plan was for the baby to die all along or if the writers changed gears because they saw how universally hated this storyline was. Everyone knew it was headed for a custody battle the first time Kristina felt the baby flutter and whenever she stroked her belly while smiling wistfully. However, I don’t think Kristina is winning over fans with all her “my baby” talk. I know it’s not moving me, because all I can think is that it confirms that Kristina never had any intention of handing that baby over to Molly and T.J. if the babe had lived.
Now, let’s talk about Drew. I don’t know what’s become of Drew, but he is nothing like the man he once was. He’s a complete cad. I’m convinced that he’s working a long game of revenge to punish Nina for the role she played in his incarceration and Michael for his decision to keep that information a secret. That’s the only explanation I can come up with for his decidedly dishonorable behavior and low-key seduction of Willow. He can’t seem to stay away from her, showing up wherever she is, even though she is making every effort to keep her distance from him. The elevator stopping was fate, but I feel like the rest of it was Drew stalking Willow.
Like after the elevator ride when Willow excused herself to catch up with Michael at the hospital. Not longer after, here comes Drew on the pretext of straightening out a snafu with Monica’s medication. My suspicious mind immediately wondered if Drew had offered to take care of the problem because he knew Willow would be at the hospital. Why did anyone even need to go to the hospital to straighten things out? Were all the cell towers down? My husband gets his transplant medications shipped overnight from the hospital, and if need be, they can have one of their couriers here within an hour. All it would take is a phone call, especially for Monica, who is an legend at that hospital.
Drew’s smug smile every time Willow fidgets and stammers nervously because she suddenly can’t stop thinking about how much she desires him is also annoying. He loves that she wants him, which is not how someone with integrity should feel about the wife of his nephew. I don’t see a smidgen of guilt in Drew, even though Willow is drowning in it. He looks pleased as punch with himself whenever Willow tells him that she wants him. All the while, Drew is sleeping with her mother.
Willow doesn’t get a free pass, either. Willow owes it to Michael to be honest. This wasn’t a heat-of-the-moment thing. Willow is lusting after Drew and can’t stop thinking about him. It’s gotten so bad that she stepped down from a job that she only accepted a few months ago just to get away from him. She’s not returning to nursing because she realized that she made a mistake. She’s desperate to escape her feelings for Drew, so she’s hoping to throw herself into a job with long hours that requires dedication and focus, giving her little time to think about anything else—like Drew. At least that was the impression that I had when she had her epiphany during that visit with Kristina.
Willow thrives on angsty situations because she’s always creating them. She gave her baby up for adoption to keep him safe, but she couldn’t stay away from him when she figured out that Lucas and Brad had adopted the baby. She ended up taking on a motherly role with Wiley, unaware that he’d been switched with his dead cousin. Willow also married Chase under false pretenses, martyring herself to grant a dying man his last wish, even though she was very much in love with Michael at time. It was deceptive and cruel, and it absolutely served her right when Chase made a full recovery.
Did Willow learn a lesson from all the heartache her choices caused? Nope. When she was diagnosed with late-stage cancer, she kept it a secret because she assumed that Michael would pressure her to end the pregnancy. She didn’t respect or honor Michael’s rights as a father—or their connection as equal partners in a marriage. It was duplicitous, yet when the shoe was on the other foot and she found out that Michael had kept the secret that Nina had tipped off the SEC and used that information to blackmail Nina into staying away from Willow—which Nina pretty much ignored—Willow was ready to divorce him.
Willow holds everyone to an impossibly higher standard than she holds herself, and I’ve really grown to dislike her for it. People are flawed, especially on a soap. I have no issue with that, but I see the writing on the wall here. There’s no way the writers set all this up only for Willow to do the right thing by talking to her husband and perhaps going to couples therapy. I’m resigned to the fact that Drew and Willow will sleep together, but I wish she would be honest about what’s really going on with her.
Willow is drawn to Drew because she’s not happy in her marriage. She can blame Michael for being distant and keeping parts of himself closed off, but that’s hogwash because Michael has shared some of his ugliest traumas and deepest secrets with her. From where I’m sitting here on my comfy couch, Willow is the one who is closed off and distant, playing the loving wife and mother, but all the while searching for fulfillment and longing for something more. She thinks Drew can give her that, but he can’t because he’s a player, and she’s going to find out just how much of one he is in the very near future.
I know I’ve been hard on Nina in the past, but I’ve warmed back up to her in recent weeks. Her scene with Michael in the kitchen, when he invited her to a Quartermaine family function, was a breath of fresh air after so many years of animosity between them. I hate that Michael and Nina are finally moving to a place that is healthy, while Drew is in the background, ready to undo all the progress and blow up their lives.
Finally, Jack Brennan is back, and he’s in charge of the brand-new WSB field station in Port Charles. Jack told Anna that the WSB decided to open a new field office in town because Port Charles has been attracting a criminal element. I cracked up. Where were they when Helena Cassadine and Jerry Jacks were on the loose?
Obviously, Jack has another reason for being in town, and I don’t think it’s wooing Carly. Oh, he will do that, but he has another mission. Is it taking down Sonny? I don’t know, but I do know that Jack can pave the way for Valentin to return just in time to face Sonny now that Jason knows Valentin was the one who initially tampered with Sonny’s medication.
Charles Mesure is everything that I love in gray characters. He’s dastardly, charming, handsome as sin, and chock full of secrets. I look forward to seeing what the writers have in store for him. Hopefully, his first order of business will be to rein in Agent Cates and send him packing to Quantico for a long overdue meeting with his superiors.
Random thoughts and observations
The writers should really consider bringing Morgan back from the dead. I would love to see Morgan return as a mob boss determined to take over Sonny’s territory. Bonus points if Morgan has amnesia.
I think T.J. and Molly should name the baby Irene.
Why did James go to the boathouse to look for Cody instead of straight to the stables, where Cody works, lives, and happened to be?
A personal note
On a personal note, I would like to take this opportunity to bid a farewell to Dan J Kroll, the man, the myth, the soap legend. Dan created this wonderful website more than 30 years ago as a fan page dedicated to his favorite soap, All My Children. By the time I stumbled upon this wonderful site a few years later, he had message boards for each of the soaps, recaps, news, spoilers, and pretty much everything you could ever want as a soap fan.
Within only a few weeks of discovering SOC (the site was then referred to as Soap Opera Central), I ended up emailing Dan about an issue, and he immediately responded. We’ve been the best of friends ever since. I was a stay-at-home mom at the time, who loved writing and soaps, so he gave me an opportunity to follow my passion—and make some money while I was at it. I will forever be grateful for that because it has brought me so much joy.
Dan’s incredible guidance helped me become the writer I am today. His kindness, support, generosity, integrity, and incredible sense of humor have gotten me through some of my darkest hours, including the night Dan sat up with me on the phone for over four hours while my husband underwent a life-saving transplant and I was unable to be there because it was at the height of COVID restrictions.
I’m happy for my friend as he embarks on this new chapter of his life. He deserves it because he has given us so much of his time through the years, working tirelessly to provide us this safe haven on the Internet. I’m just thankful that he will continue to be a part of my life and that his legacy will live on here at SoapCentral.com. Thank you, Dan, for everything.
PS Now, you’ll have time to remodel the pool house for me. Just saying.
Reader feedback
Jack is Back! Love the Aussie accent. See, he's a dirtbag, too, but he's not a whiney, snively, tantrum throwing dirtbag like some *other* guys we know. (NotJagger, Sonny).
— MissezPremise —
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I sooooooo hope they abandon the current Drew storyline and representation of his character as soon as possible. Am I the only one who immediately and consistently experienced a visceral and major Ick when they took the Drew-Willow dynamic in a romantic direction? When they kissed I literally (and involuntarily) let out a loud EW! And experience the same feeling every scene since with the furtive and supposedly yearning behavior these poor actors are being forced to portray.
— CeeGee —
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So Jason explains to Sonny that he missed almost 3 years with his kids and family to protect Sonny & Carly and Sonny is still making everything about “poor me”? Carly is apologizing to Joss for getting arrested. Has she ever apologized for raising her children in the MOB?
— LkyLdy —
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What are your thoughts about what's happening on General Hospital? I love hearing from everyone and reading your thoughts, so please drop me a comment below.
Happy viewing,
Liz Masters
