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Just in case some of you are coming to me through means other than <A HREF="http://www.eyeonsoaps.com/announcements.htm ">Eye on Soaps</A>, you can now read my musings in my new column at EOS, <A HREF="http://www.eyeonsoaps.com/sherrysjubilee.htm">Sherry’s Jubilee!</A> (click on the name to get there)! Don't want to lose even one of you!

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Today, it happened. I reached my limit. Most of the time, I was watching just so I could write this column and it was still worth poking fun at so I hung in there with hopes of a better tomorrow. Today I realized that it isn't fun anymore and it has become unwatchable.

Many of you have already stopped watching, others are on the brink and today's show may or may not have affected that. For me, it did. We all have our limits and it's only natural that they come at different times. Personally, I'm glad of that because it means there are still people watching, and I want to thank the recappers out there in advance, as I will most certainly be utilizing your services.

I've loved GH for a long time now, and like any great love it has let me down from time to time. I've forgiven it and even made excuses for it, but I'm just too tired to continue with that at this point. Overdramatic you say? Certainly, but realize, this show has been a part of my life for a long time and I'm gonna miss it. I spent the last hour, since the show ended, slowly facing up to the fact that I can't spend precious time watching it anymore, that I don't want to. It's tough to face, it hurts, but it's the truth.

If you didn't see today's show, the scene that broke the thread I was dangling by included Sonny, our "resident hero and misunderstood sorta bad guy with a heart of gold…he gets mushy over babies, doesn't he?" manhandling Faith, our "resident bad mobster who dares to seek revenge for her husband's death by the hero's hands". "Bitch, whore, slut, streetwalker", etc were tossed about (as was Faith) and we even got yet another hate kiss, followed by the spit of disgust. Was it worse than other things we've seen on daytime television? Nah, probably not. I'm not sure it was even worse than last weeks naked choking while kissing scene, or Faith sitting on Benny, or Alexis being reduced to nothing...while her baby is ripped from her. Ric messing with Carly's mind, Summer being a pawn that deserves to be manhandled as well, so Nik can keep her in line...there's a lot to choose from. Maybe not the worst, but it was the scene that ended it for me.

Just for the record, I've long believed that if GH is going to bother with a mob storyline, then they should strive for a bit more reality. I loved Sonny once. I have called for Sonny to be more "mob-like". To those out there that are claiming that is what we got today, I respectfully but vehemently disagree. A real mobster would have quietly, quickly and cleanly killed Faith the moment that sound died down from that fake machine gun blast awhile ago. A real mobster would have removed the threat to his family. A real mobster is no hero. Not that I think that is the kind of thing that soap opera viewers are tuning in for, I believe the opposite actually. I believe they should have delved further into Sonny's mind, not further into his mobstering. But alas, no one fricken listens to me. So, we got Sonny the hero. To all of you who feel that the mobster is back, let me just say that it doesn't take a mobster to manhandle a woman (any woman), all it takes is a weak, cowardly man who wants to make himself appear strong by attacking a woman. Period. It summed up perfectly what this show has turned into...and it isn't pretty.

Like I said, today wasn't necessarily worse than several other days, but as I sat there watching I realized that I just don't need it. I don't need to watch one day (yesterday) and feel heartened that maybe we are getting a few more characters on screen and a few more stories to play out and then watch today and be disgusted again. I don't need it. I don't need to watch OLTL directly before GH and see the cops on that show acting smart, making lists -doing something about crime…and know that I'm excited to watch because I'm not sure who will get the better of whom. On GH, I already know the answers. And I already have been shown and told the answer to whether this will change with our current regime. So, it is with great regret that I say goodbye to this column for now. I'll read the recaps, I may even tape a day or two here and there and ff to watch the Alexis/Cameron scenes (because I love Cameron and I hate ABC for taking that away from me!), but it won't be enough to comment on. I could probably just guess and do a decent commentary on the recaps, lol, but that would be cheating.

I'll be waiting to hear that something has changed, that someone at ABC cares about who their viewing audience is, and as soon as I hear it has you better believe I'll be right back watching my GH. I'm not in anyway encouraging anyone else to stop and I hope there is still a show left for another regime to repair, I really do. In the meantime the very least I owe ABC for taking my favorite show from me, is a note out to each of their GH sponsors with detailed information about why I won't be catching their commercials that hour and why I won't bother with their products.

I'll miss all you guys and your great comments, you can still feel free to email me anytime. Actually, I'm shocked by how much it hurts to give this up, but I'll still be doing my Port Charles writing and I'm considering trying a column on OLTL on occasion. Hopefully, change will occur and I'll be right back here in no time…in the meantime, take care all! Thanks for reading.

<ADDRESS><A HREF="mailto:sherry@eyeonsoaps.com">Email Me!</A></ADDRESS> </P>

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Does anyone understand why Sam, the worst shot in the East, had to hide her gun in pieces all over the bathroom? If someone found and removed a piece, then the gun would be rendered useless anyway, wouldn't it? Why take it apart and have to put it back together? Just wondering.

Hey Jason, since Liz is at the hospital with a gunshot victim, and you and Courtney are just there to stand around and fret over a perfectly healthy Sonny, why don't you two go ahead and wait somewhere else instead of demanding that Liz do so? I mean really, it seems only logical. Hah! I get it now…logic was involved…

A very special thank you goes out to Dr. Meadows for taking such great care of her patients…preemptive care even! Instructing Sonny to make sure his pregnant wife isn't shot at again during her pregnancy was a brilliant piece of advice…and she even delivered it with a straight face.

So, how smart is that Sam anyway? She runs out of the club and straight to another public place, the grille, wearing the same exact clothes and everything. Of course, Faith is obviously closing in on being just as stupid since she met her there in plain site, apparently not noticing Sonny's sister sitting two tables over. Gee, get linked to a crime much?

Sooo, Ned didn't sign on for violence? What the heck did he sign on for then? He was providing the monetary backing…what did he suppose Faith would provide? This from the guy who has had the most weapon aided sex EVER on this show. "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to actually hurt anybody!" Whatever.

I want to commend Carly on her foresight. Taking Michael out of school to send him to the island would be a grave mistake. The worst thing that can happen to a kid is to have people at his funeral whispering about how much school he missed. Thank goodness and Guza that Carly really understands such things!

I had stars in my eyes watching Jason do such a heroic job of protecting Courtney from the cops! He's so tough and smart, and he wouldn't let Scott get the best of Courtney and infringe on the investigation whatsoever. Good for him! Now if he can figure out how to protect her from kidnappers and the hit woman two bar stools over…we'll be all set.

When exactly did Courtney become such a complete idiot? I know I've mentioned how much I dislike her numerous times, but now I'm wondering just when exactly the complete change in personality happened? She sat in the police station and rolled her eyes at every question the DA asked, and none of this was even in an attempt to attack anyone she cares about, he was trying to get info on a crime against her family! She sat there, refusing to answer and being a total smart ass, all because she is now one of those that feel it's necessary to thwart the cops at every turn. I have no idea why Jason would have been allowed to be in there, but the entire thing was ridiculous and frankly, offensive (once again). She witnessed a death; she can answer a few questions without being a bitch about it. When she asked why the police weren't trying to protect Sonny instead of accusing him of things, I just wanted someone, anyone, to explain to the little idiot that Sonny is a criminal and the police tend to not mind all that much when one criminal takes care of another criminal for them. What the heck? I'm gonna be completely uncooperative just like my brother, my sister-in-law, and my boyfriend…but you'll still be out there protecting their criminal asses, right?

Uh Ned? No one broke into your house so shut up already. He knows the baby wasn't home alone, so does he really think they came in through some way other than the front door being opened to them? He gave me the creeps during that scene. If he came home and Alexis was there alone, then fine, be very concerned. But she was with her doctor, and it's her kid…I'm telling ya, Ned is gonna be a big problem sometime soon.

Yes Jason, your logic follows and since Faith's Grandma died of drinking sherry I can see why you'd conclude that Faith also killed the shooter with poisoned sherry as well. I do have to wonder though, why you didn't just show the bartender a picture of Faith and just, I dunno, ask him outright if that was the lady sitting next to the sherry drinking (how convenient was that?) hit woman? I would think the bartender's testimony that Faith ordered them both a drink might just link her to the hit woman and therefore the shooting at the club. Just a thought.

Wow, that sherry glass has sure gotten some airtime lately…it's racking up the travel miles as well. I don't think it has quite the intrigue of <a href="http://www.livejournal.com/users/sherrygh/?skip=20">The Chairs</a> (that link works, but you'll have to scroll down to the 8-17-02 entry to find the story of "the chairs"...I suck at these html links, sorry!) yet, but it is closing in. It's a toss up really because while we aren't really sure of what the chairs are up to, the sherry glass has been involved in several homicides already. Keep your eyes open because I'm fairly certain Sonny will need to break things soon and it will really be sad if the sherry glass falls prey to one of his fits. I would say that there is no way they would do that to something as useful and intriguing as the sherry glass, but we all know nothing is sacred on this show. Soap gods bless and keep the sherry glass, may it live long and hold poison for many.

Sonny Sayings (My interpretation):

"Carly, I promise I will NEVER let anything happen to you or the baby. NEVER EVER. People may shoot at us but there will always be some dumb schmuck to step into the line of fire because I'll never allow you to be shot. Fired upon repeatedly maybe, but never shot."
"Carly, I know who my enemies are and I will eliminate them. These things have to be done at the right time and in the right manner, but I will do it at some point. Sometimes it's best to wait and let the other guy have the next move because it makes it a lot easier to threaten him when he's done something to you first…but I'll do more than threaten at some point, I really will. They'll be eliminated when I'm ready."
"Carly, I know you just saw that woman shoot at us and Ric got shot, but you believe that I would never allow it to be you that got hit, right?"
"Carly, Ric got shot because he was too stupid to move and that is not our problem. He should've ducked so that one of us could've been hit because then we wouldn't have to listen to him go on and on about saving our lives."
"Sonny, I know you will always protect us. Michael, the new baby, and I are completely safe here with you. That bullet may have been aimed at us but it didn't hit us, and that's because you protected us all. You know who your enemies are and you will eliminate them for me, right?"
"Carly, I will eliminate them. It is what I do. I haven't done it lately, but when I'm ready they better look out because I'm going to go on an eliminating spree that will impress the hell out of you and give Jason a…well, he'll be impressed as well. Trust me. I can take care of this…and I will eliminate my enemies."
"Faith, you can go easy or you can go hard. You decide, and I'll be back later on to do away with you. But believe me, it WILL happen…just not right now."
"Faith, you tried to kill ME and MY WIFE and you missed…big mistake! I'm gonna take you out, and I'll be back really soon to do it, I mean it!"
"Look Faith, I'd kill you now but everybody knows you can't just walk into a public place and do away with someone. That's just not how it's done and it never works. Someone might have noticed me come in here, so I gotta go now without eliminating you. I will be back though, and I will end this, in my time, on my terms. Uh…in the meantime I am ORDERING you to stay off the streets and to not let my wife see you…uh, I mean; you don't go near my wife…you got that? If Carly comes home wondering why I haven't eliminated you yet, then I'm gonna have to tell her that I know who my enemies are and then I'll have to come and eliminate you immediately, do we have an understanding? Good, now the next move is yours."

Ric certainly looks like he should still be in the hospital; the poor guy looks whiter than a tampon commercial.

Please, someone make them stop saying "Killing Sonny would be too easy"…I mean it - I can't take it anymore. It's ongoing torture.

So apparently all the extra money this week went to hiring in the Five Family actors which explains why Dara is the best attorney Jax's money could buy. She's consulting with the top experts?? So the heck what! It's the lawyer who is actually out there doing the talking that matters, right? I was thrilled to see Dara, don't get me wrong, but since she has lost many a case to Alexis I would think there should have been some hesitation about her being the best attorney for the case…in fact, it was just stupid. This would be a very high profile case…a crack-shot defense attorney now the defendant in a murder trial, with DID involved? There is no way I believe that one of those "top experts" wouldn't have been chomping at the bit for a chance to fly in and work on this case.

Hey Nikolas! If you were even slightly involved in your aunt's life then you might know that she actually likes Zander. Telling him to leave when you haven't even visited her in the hospital is just ludicrous. That said, I loved Zander's "At least my father isn't a psychopath" line! Cameron's comeback was great and it gave me renewed hope for their storyline. It's been slow moving, but hopefully it will be worth it in the end. And let's be honest, it is a story that is unrelated to the mob, so we're lucky it exists at all.

All right, someone forgot to let me know this was Man Fantasy Week on General Hospital. I should've known something was up when Ned was kissing and choking naked Faith while backing her up against a wall, but I thought maybe it was a fluke…I dunno, all the female writers that still have the guts to speak up were off sick that day or whatever. Then Faith straddled Benny in front of a room full of mobsters, and started whispering "lick it up and swallow it whole" and I realized I'd been had! Great joke ya'll, but next time warn me about these special theme weeks so I can decide to tune out like I should have with the Fan Fantasy episode.

I loved Alexis' trial! This should answer those of you who have asked me about why I pick this show apart so much and why I expect things to be realistic when it's a only a soap. I do expect a certain amount of reality, but I'm also willing to suspend reality if the show is entertaining enough. The trial is downright ridiculous in it's plot (Is it a competency hearing? A trial with no jury? What the heck is the purpose of this thing because I didn't hear much talk of the actual crime involved), but it was a lot of fun. Alexis attacking Scott, stabbing Cameron and being tricked (quite cleverly) by Edward - all great soapy twists (for the spoiler free anyway)! The histrionics were over the top, yet appropriate, given that she is faking the whole thing. Jax getting thrown out, a judge finally mentioning cell phone usage in court, the reactions of the crowd when Alexis went berserk on Scott…I enjoyed it all in that "eye rolling yet grinning at the same time" kind of way. I swear I heard Zander yelling "Dad" repeatedly in the background when Cameron dove into the fray and I found that intriguing. The people that were at the trial made sense, and for once, there was subtext (Ed's plot, Jax and Skye, Zander and Cameron) without constant interruption of the flow of the scenes. We weren't hit over the head repeatedly with everything going on around the main attraction so the scenes really had a cohesive quality to them and that doesn't happen very often.

How in the heck did both Jason and Sonny, coming from different places even, manage to beat the ambulance to Benny?

I think I saw some chemistry between Liz and Ric. I don't understand why this relationship makes any sense at all for the character of Liz to pursue, but I guess I'll take chemistry and romance where I can find it. Seriously though, can we just go ahead and send Liz to nursing school? She has played nurse with every injured hunk in town, what are we waiting for? At least the hospital will be back into play a little more - just assign her a broom closet for when she wants to apply her special form of healing to whichever hottie is up for shirt removal this week.

I wonder if the writers realize just how much they have damaged the character of Carly, simply by allowing her to know too much about Sonny's business? It used to be that Carly was sent upstairs, kept in the dark, and basically only knew what she knew by lurking around eavesdropping. Over the last year or so, Carly has become increasingly aware of and involved in "the business". The meeting she attended with the five families and her dealings with Tagliati were a result of Sonny's "death", and somewhat explainable I suppose. There have been many little things, but what stands out to me lately is the fact that Sonny now openly discusses his enemies with Carly. He stands next to his pregnant wife (in the open, on the street, alone…directly following being shot at) and tells her that he'll "take care" of Faith Roscoe. And Carly nods in agreement. Where am I supposed to find sympathy for a character that is this unsympathetic? She is pregnant mother who should be scared out of her mind, but all we get is Carly telling Sonny it will be fine. Carly telling Sonny she wants to stand by him at all costs. Carly nodding in agreement that Sonny will take out his enemies and keep her safe. Where is the story in that? The only story I see is that they are both incredibly stupid and incredibly selfish, at the expense of their own children. If Carly were in the dark, unsure of how serious the danger really is because Sonny kept his business under wraps then there would at least be wiggle room for Carly to choose her great love over fleeing. As it stands, she couldn't be more aware of the truth of mob life and she's choosing it anyway. Had they left Carly childless, okay, but with one child and another on the way I'm left with no way to find sympathy for her character. She has even refused to allow Leticia to take Michael away to the island…what is that? Bravery? I call it knowingly placing a child in danger, which is a very unsympathetic position to be in. The writers should have left Carly in the situation of having secret hope that someday Sonny will leave the business - they took that away back when the Carly/FBI story aired and they've done nothing to build that back up again. It shouldn't be all that hard, we all know that mob wives DO know what their husbands are up to, but that ambiguity that is provided by the secrecy and decisions to keep it removed from the family and the family home, allows the wives to tell themselves that it isn't what it seems or what other's think it is. It gives them wiggle room, to convince themselves that they are safe and that their husbands are semi-legitimate…that's their story and they stick to it. We can allow them to be blinded by love, money and power. Carly, however, is not blinded by anything. She sees the entire picture. She knows how serious it is when the #1 enforcer quits, she knows the danger, she knows it is unending, she knows her husband is guilty of what the PCPD and the public accuses him of and she just wants that life anyway. I think that is a really big mistake and part of why the mob story has become completely disgusting. Watching a mob wife struggle to balance her husband's secret life with her family's public one is part of the intrigue and provides emotional outfall that is worth watching. Watching pregnant Carly pat Sonny on the back while he plans how to kill the woman whose husband he killed, is not worth watching.

Hey! You grab one end, I'll grab the other and we'll take care of the little "Journey" problem right now!
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What can I say? Characters that boring should not be allowed to wear ropes around their necks.

I can't believe they killed Benny to further the Jason/Sonny feud! Benny deserved better and I'm gonna miss him...I take serious comfort lately in seeing the usual people where they're supposed to be, given the current rate of disappearance of some of those "usuals". I guess Sonny will have to yell at someone less familiar from now on.

Hang in there guys! It just can't get much worse, right? I know there is a lot I didn't cover this week - some I don't even care enough about to pick on and some I can't bear to discuss yet. This was one of those weeks where there were actually a few interesting things happening, and while that seems like it should make it easier to be upbeat, it really doesn't. It is almost harder to watch a bad show that is sometimes good than it is to watch a completely bad show. In a matter of minutes, the glimmers of hope can turn to doubt and regret over what could be. Gets a girl down sometimes. I'll get around to commenting on most of it eventually, I'm sure. Sometimes one must let these things simmer awhile to get to an honest and intelligible opinion to come out. Take care…always love to hear from you!
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For once, I will be keeping my mouth pretty much shut today so that some of you can do the talking. If you're here for my most recent column, scroll down to the next entry (after you write me a 100 word essay on why you are so behind on reading, lol!). For now though, I thought it might be fun for you all to get a look at some of the great mail I've been receiving lately. I am honored to receive emails from some of the most intelligent and witty GH viewers and these particular ones are so good I can't in good conscience keep them to myself any longer. These viewers love the show as a whole, but no character is safe from their opinions, particularly if the character isn't performing up to par; so you may want to skip this if you have a favorite that you cannot see any faults in. All are printed with the author's permission (and edited to remove some nice personal comments that might make me appear self-serving, lol!) and I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

<u>From No Name:</u>

<i>"I have to say that I agree 99% with everything you have said. The only thing I have to disagree with you on is Faith. I hate her! Faith (or Eyebrows as my friends and I like to call her) is like nails on a chalkboard to me. She is too pale and way too predictable.

But I am loving Ric at the moment. The conversation with Carly when he let it drop that they had unprotected sex was priceless. Of course he is slime, but he is entertaining in a Snidely Whiplash kind of way. Maybe he needs a mustache to twirl.

Coleman is hands down the best male on the show right now. His comment to Skye that they could play some pool had me in stitches. He doesn't need a makeover, just more air time.

I am also truly fed up with the "Fab Four" aka Sonny, Carly, Courtney and Jason. I didn't think anything could make me hate Jason but the current storyline has made me wish he would get shot or just die. I actually was rooting for him to die during the car accident episode. If they are going to keep him on they might as well just marry him off to Courtney. It will save us from more of the same repeated conversations, and marriages don't last long on the soaps. I can see it now - a St Patrick's Day Wedding at the Cellar. Michael could be dressed as a leprechaun/ring bearer and Rosie can be Maid of Honor. A month later Courtney and Jason are sitting at the loft, or wherever, and Jason drops dead of boredom.

Sorry to go on, but the current writing on the show makes me furious."</i>


<u> From Faithful2002:</u>

<i>"Humorously and directly, you have described the GH that has daily been on my screen since it was hijacked by the urrent regime of Guza, Pratt & Frons. A sad day, indeed.

I would have been long gone last winter, except for one thing only.....the coming of Rick Hearst!

He has applied his genius to Ric Lansing and deftly constructed an intriguing man of many faces and layers. I give NO credit to the writers for this mysterious man....quite simply, it is a staple of RH's work and is a testament to his skills as an actor. His scenes with Rebecca Herbst have shown a chemistry and attraction we have not seen from her since the one and only Lucky (JJ) was killed. I am thrilled for her and her many fans that we may just have an honest to God Romance looming on General Hospital.

Jason and Courtney??...I'd rather watch paint dry! The good news is I can FFWD them together, which saves screen time for most of the canvas, although it has been backburnered permanently these days.

Sonny and Carly....ITA with your assessment...and Carly pumped full of estrogen is more that I can bear. I start each viewing day with a silent prayer, .......that the show I enthusiastically watched for over 25 years might somehow be returned to me.

I'm not holding my breath!

Your column gave me great satisfaction that I AM seeing what's on my screen. It's not just a nightmare."</i>


<u>From KellyB:</u>

<i>"…what prompted me to write today is that you guilted me into it. You see, I am one of those freeloaders you referred to. Now, I'm not embarrassed, I think most long-time GHers can understand the need to drift away from our favorite soap from time to time. In fact, sometimes it's the only way to make it slightly bearable in the watching. I remember a time when you only had to watch the occasional Friday show to catch all that you might have missed. I applaud the fact that now certain key plot points surface mid-week, but when the remainder of the week's episodes contain a hodge-podge of recycled dialogue, what's a girl to do?

The point of this missive however, is to put out some of my thoughts on the current story lines (if you can call them that). So for your criticisms, laughter or groaning enjoyment, here we go:

Jason/Sonny/Carly/Courtney
Here's the deal, we are expected to believe that Sonny is this multi-layered, excessively deep persona. That's why we are supposed to be able to swallow a mob boss as our hero - right? Well, I just don't buy it in the context of the current story line. Luke was the anti-hero, he made mistakes, he did good things too and we bought it because the whole time, he made us root for him and the unattainable things he desired. Now Sonny doesn't seem to get that other people have lives, feelings and dreams. Obviously Jason has never said shit with a mouth full of it to Sonny, but couldn't Sonny at least pretend to consider the love that Court and Jason might have before issuing his decree from on high? Oh no, he just got that Moses on the Mount look and told Jason it was not going to happen.

Everyone jokes that the real love story in this quadrangle is the "man-love" between Jason and Sonny. We'll that may be, hell - it is. But to slough it off in such a cheesy manner isn't the pay off I would have chosen. I agree that they've rehashed the same conversation/ultimatum way too long, but Sonny never once looked like he was even slightly guilt ridden over the choice he was making. It would have made him more sympathetic to the masses, instead of an S.O.B.

As far as Carly and Sonny, they've got a mutual worry thing going right now instead of a marriage. It's boring. Even with the non-chance that Ric is the father of Carly's baby, it's boring.

I'll throw in a little Liz here, since she really doesn't fit anywhere else... I liked Liz and Jason. I'm not sure about Liz and Ric. She came on the show and was piss and vinegar, now she's just pissy. Her little barbs to Courtney just make her look pathetic, not sassy or clever. And while I don't expect her to have the chemistry with every actor that she did with Jonathan Jackson (Please God) at least he was semi-close to her in age. Now I almost get a creepy dirty-old-man vibe from the Ric/Liz combo that I can't seem to get past.


Luke/Lucky/Summer
O.K. I get the Laura-doppelganger aspect of the Luke attraction, but Lucky too? Can you say Oedipus? Yikes - this is icky in the extreme. Again, Summer is way too young for Luke and way to old for Lucky. Now she's going to be with Jax (and get paid!). I'm not sure what the standard benefits are for a ho these days, 401K, dental, whatever - but I'd trade it all to knock boots with Jax. Luke's finally getting called on the carpet for his irresponsible behavior with regard to Laura and (hello!) Leslie Lu. 'Bout damn time, and now it looks like Nik has got some 'splaining to do about the power of attorney thing. Good thing he's looking out for his mommy instead of trying to date her.

Ned and Faith
At least he's getting laid

The Q's
I'd pay money just to hear Monica tell Edward "It's MY house!"

Skye/Coleman
I want her to bounce back and be tough and smart again instead of being stupid over Jax. And as for having hot sex with a totally unsuitable stud to get your groove back- you go, girl!

Alexis/Cameron/Zander/Gia
I hope NLG is getting paid triple for this stinker of a story line - and that wig! We were promised big things with Zander and his dad.so far it's been like watching paint dry. Gia, NuGia - who cares. Now that your brother is leaving, we'll expect that you won't be too far behind. Besides, how can Alexis afford you when she's practicing law out of the psycho ward? Scott's crossed over from boyishly smarmy to just plain pathetically needy. I'm hoping to see more of Mac. I would've
liked him to hook up with Summer, which might've made for good story, but P&G wouldn't know good story these days if it sat on their faces and wiggled."</i>


<u>From Smileyny:</u>

<i>"I especially love your description of Jason jogging into the cellar looking for Carly or Sonny (like 27 times last week) Did he never get his cell phone fixed after the accident? Why didn't he just call to find out where they were?

You've covered perfectly all the repetetive conversations. When Courtney said to Liz to "go over Jasons for like the 9,000th time" I was waiting for Courtney to say something else along the lines of "I love Jason infinity more times than you EVER will" She is such a brain dead child. I also wonder why, if Liz is going over there 9,000x, we never see it? Don't you think we would have a better understanding of the constant bickering sessions between the two if we knew that?

I forgot all about Carly's bitchiness to Penny. What was that all about? Why doesn't Penny start reporting to Bobbie all the crap she has to put up with in a day's work? And now that Courtney has another job, why doesn't she quit? If she hates working with Liz so much. It's not like she needs the money, she was living on the money that she made from Kelly's (which I'm sure we're all well aware wasn't much since she was never at work) Is Jason still paying for the loft? She seems to like this job alot more, she actually goes. She still hasn't got that "staying" part down. Don't you wish you had a job where if life got in the way, they would let you go home?

Love your take on Leticia. So true. So good.

I'm also glad I was not the only one who noticed Nik's hair. Ugh, I've never seen anything THAT bad.
Also, Lucky and his backpack. I'm tired of watching this kid pout. Either keep your hooker or move on. Don't take it out on the trash can. I thought he like never went to school anyway.

I absolutely LOVE Faith. It took me a while to warm up to her, but I think she's one of the best things they've got going right now, next to Ric of course. You should check out <A HREF=" http://www.cynthiapreston.com/">Cynthia Preston’s</A> web site, it's great. It's very explanatory. I also can't get enough of Ric. HE is my favorite man right now. I hope he sticks it to Carly and Sonny really bad.

As much as I laughed at your thoughts of what the opening of GH might look like, I couldn't help but be slightly nervous that there will be truth behind it VERY shortly..."</i>

<u>From: Wendy</u>

<i>"OLTL is gearing up for some good stuff but I'm just bored, bored, bored with GH. Occasionally I can watch it and enjoy it, if I'm watching it like episodic television and not considering its history, but overall I just can't get into it anymore. Apparently, many people appear to be watching since the ratings went up for awhile, but I don't think I'll be one of them.
I'll check in every now and then but I'm not going to schedule it in my days anymore. It used to be my escape but now it feels like listening to a friend who only wants to complain about the same thing over and over and never move past them. Never finds a solution. Eventually you stop spending so much time with said friend.

The good news is that I've discovered reading again. Real books. Whoda thought? If I can't escape in the soaps then at least I found another medium in which to do so. The sad part of that is I love reading other people's opinions, ideas, rants, and raves about the soaps. I don't get that with a book. I've been making myself stay with the soaps far too long because of the fun of reading about them, but it's time to find other hobbies. They are just too draining. It will be sad to say goodbye to some characters I call "friends", but it's a relationship that has gone past its time. I can only get beat up so many times before I have to leave to save my sanity.

My parting comments:

Sonny: Call me when someone brings you a reality check.
Carly: Sleep with Ric for real this time. I'll schedule time to watch that.
Scotty: You don't make any sense as far as character goes but at least you're interesting. I don't know if you're written as a serious character but I see you as welcome comic relief.
Skye: You're looking very good these days. Keep up your dance with Coleman.
Coleman: If Skye is busy, I have some extra time these days from not watching soaps. I won't even steal your gun.
AJ: Join Scotty's team. You two could cook up some fun stuff together and since things don't need to make sense you two would be a great team.
Allan & Monica: Find other people to have sex with so you can have SOME sort of interesting fight. Maybe you could compare notes as to who found the best lover.
Faith: Jump in bed with Edward so you can throw more people over the edge. There would be no more question about watching or not. TV's all over would be clicking off.
Liz: Shut up.
Courtney: Go to college - or anywhere. I'm so disappointed in what they've done to you that you should just go away for awhile.
Jax: Don't care what you do. No need to call me - ever. (Never thought I would say that.)
NuNuLucky: Thanks for not being JY.
Alexis: At least you have a story?
Cameron: You were the last one to keep me hanging on as long as I did. I will miss you but you aren't compelling enough to take up my time.

So, I'll keep taping and see how many I can get to. Reading others' opinions will keep me as well informed as watching with no wasted time on my part.

Wow, didn't know I had so much in me."</i>


<u>"Jessica from New Jersey" says:</u>

<i>"Just wanted to let you know I love your column, as usual. But I do have to disagree with on one point. Jason and Courtney should be together. Really they should. Because now they will stop having that same conversation. And if they are kissing, she can't be talking. I don't tape, so I can't fast forward, and sometimes I can't get to the mute button fast enough and....

Sorry, I had to stop for a second because I was shuddering at the memory of Courtney's quavering, high-pitched whine.

As for Ric, I love him to death. I feel bad about it, not because he's against Sonny, but because of the whole did he rape her or not angle. But the thing is if you're going to like anyone on GH, you gotta put your normal moral judgements aside. Is a guy who let's a drugged woman think he slept with her (which I assume is what happened) worse than a guy who kills people (or has people killed) as part of his job?

And as for Faith, I really agree with you about her acting. She's interesting, which is more than I can say for, oh, I don't know, off the top of my head let's say, Courtney. You know why she had to kill her grandmother? It had nothing to do with her inheritance. She had to do that so she would be evil. Because otherwise she'd just be a grieving widow trying to kill the mobster who killed the man she loved. That's too murky. This way she's the evil, psychopathic, grandma-murdering blond who's gunning for the wonderful, dynamic, powerful, family man, Sonny."</i>



<u>From: KellyB (again!)</u>

<i>"Like they say in the Trident gum commercials: Chew on this

1. Why is it Felicia Scorpio-Jones and not Jones-Scorpio? Mac was the last hubby of public record, wasn't he?

2. If they were set on pairing Lucky with an older blonde, why not Felicia? You would still have the father/son thing, plus with Maxie's unrequited crush on Lucky, you'd have tension on both sides. Better yet, have Flea get off on the idea of a younger guy paying attention to her - tadpoling anyone?

3. Saw Bobbie today looking well rested - smirk, smirk. Oh well, if you've got the money honey, who am I to judge. But this sorasing of the juvies has got to be controlled. Did anyone read the script to JZ and remind her that she's supposed to be a granny? Now would be a good time for Jerry Jacks to use his "get out of jail free" card or come back from wherever the hell he's been to enjoy the newly nipped and tucked Nurse Spencer.

4. Jason Nipple alert -- I guess there's one fan fantasy that actually has had some major payoff - yowza.

5. NuNuLucky = PULucky - Jonathan Jackson has been busy yes, but I hear he's got a bambino on the way and no steady gig. Playing the Whisky and the Roxy isn't exactly a bona-fide steady income. He's got to start thinking of college funds and stuff like that. If he's too expensive, I'd gladly chip in weekly to see him back where he belongs... besides, what happened to all that cheese that they don't have to pay VM now?

Oh well - it's only a soap opera!"</i>


So there you have it! That mail alone should help explain why I'm still bothering with something that has become less than entertaining, at best. I'll be back at the end of the weekend (or thereabouts) with some of my own comments - take care!

I would be happy to forward any comments you have on to the individual authors, or you can use the comment feature below and they'll be able to go in and read it themselves.
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I watched and took notes…I'm afraid you can't ask me for much more at this point. This is one of those weeks where I don't have time to sit down at the computer and start twelve different columns, continuing to plug away at it until something semi-entertaining comes out. So, who knows what is about to happen (isn't this exciting?) because I'm just going to go through my notes, pick out comment-worthy material (my guess is this could be a short one…) and type it up however it comes out the first time. Grammar and punctuation will suffer even more than they normally do and cohesiveness will be nonexistent. Yeah, yeah…I mean it will be about like normal minus my couple extra hours of switching commas from one wrong spot to the next, and minus my re-reading it twelve times in an attempt to understand what I meant. I'll hire an editor when GH writes a scene where a hired gun actually hits what he/she is hired to hit. Till then, we'll both keep living in our own little worlds, pretending we know what we're doing. Unless someone wants to volunteer for the job in which case I'll pay you half of what I don't make. It's a big opportunity…think on it.

Speaking of opportunities, has anyone had the chance to count the repeat conversations floating around town? Let's take a quick inventory:

1. Sonny and Carly fight about Jason and Courtney. In case you haven't been watching (You freeloader! Depending on us schmucks to be willing to suffer through watching and give you the gist of what you missed…that's just wrong!) here's the basic premise of this much re-aired conversation. Carly thinks Courtney is giving "pour out her heart" pleas to Sonny and Jason - though that's debatable in my opinion since I haven't seen Courtney say much that looked real since she moved out of AJ's sphere and into the Mobsketeers. Carly also thinks that Jason should be with Courtney because he can't choose who he is in love with. I have major, major issues with Carly and Courtney being friends and particularly with Carly being a cheerleader for a Jason/Courtney (or Jason/Anyone, for that matter) relationship. (Scroll down to Dec. 2 entry for more) It's not in Carly's make-up to want Jason with anyone…I don't care what the argument or how much she's "changed", it makes no sense to me whatsoever. Sonny, on the other hand, thinks that he didn't demand Jason do anything and that Jason needs to stay away from his sister in order to keep her safe. True, in theory. The same argument, over and over, between them is getting so very old. Why Carly doesn't just stop one day and say "Hey Sonny, how selfish are we to be bringing a new baby into this life when it's not a safe place for your grown sister to be?" I'll never know. They can stop spatting about this already - we understand that they are on different sides of the issue and we don't care to watch him yell at her or demean her any further. Honestly, I'm no Carly fan these days but if I were I would be completely incensed at the way that man treats her. When he turned around with a downright hateful look on his face the other day and basically spit out "I just heard a speech from her and I don't want another one from you" and then stomped off…sorry, but personally I'm taking that from no man. It's not so much what he says but how he says it…must be true about the thin line theory, because I could swear he detests her about half the time. But I was gonna rant about Sonny later, so I'll save the rest.

2. Jason and Courtney have "heartbreaking" conversation about whether they should be together. Fifty freaking times! Over and over again, they say the same darn crap. Let me just solve this matter. NO. NO, you shouldn't be together because you each have more chemistry with your ex's, your friends, and your own family members. Together you are as flat as a pancake (something that is obviously difficult for Courtney to achieve) and you bore me to tears. There is no dog, child or touching photo in the world that is going to make me see a spark. Although, I still ponder the picture thing because I am curious about where they got those…are they using a timer and posing around the apartment or what? They had no friends that could take a picture of them together, yet they have several. In fact, I think maybe they have more pictures than they do actual memories of time spent together…there's an interesting phenomenon. We'll just take lots of pictures where Jason (he of little expression) is smiling away nestled up against Courtney and *poof* you have a relationship. Whatever. Frankly, I'm glad they're together again. I can fast forward them easier and maybe they'll stop yammering to everyone else in town and just keep it all in that little blur of a loft (trust me, ff A LOT - it all looks better at warp speed).

3. Carly and Courtney talk about whether Courtney should fight for Jason. Puh-leeze! I pretty much covered this above. If Carly is supporting and even encouraging it, then something is very wrong. Their scenes are cringe worthy for several reasons and frankly; it's ruining both characters. Carly doesn't support other women in their attempt to land Jason in bed or worse yet, in marriage. She just doesn't and I fully support that aspect of the character of Carly because that is part of what makes her Carly. I've got no problem with Carly having a friend, but Courtney is the worst possible choice, period. Carly needs someone who can give as good as she can, someone she can have a uneasy friendship with, because uneasy is the only type of friendship Carly should really have. No matter how close she gets with someone, there should always be the uneasiness. Skye would be a much better choice. Courtney is also being ruined by the friendship because Courtney started out seeing right through the mob violence and the life her brother leads. Now she's suddenly blinded by love, thinking Carly is a "great soccer mom", oh slay me now. These two in fast forward mode make an interesting blur of platinum on top with a weird, almost creepy blur of suede and leather surrounded by pastel and corduroy on the bottom. Reminds me a bit of Liz's painting of the wind…you're looking at nothing but a lot of empty space with bursts of hot air blowing around.

4. Sonny and Ric. Enough already. "Do you think I can't see right through you?" Uh, yeah Sonny, I think you obviously can't. "I don't want you in my business, there is no place for you here" Uh, yeah okay. I wonder just how long it will take Mr. Corinthos to realize just how stupid he sounds repeating those two phrases over and over to the SAME person?

5. Liz and Courtney throwing darts at each other over Jason. This is the most contrived thing I've seen in quite some time. There is no conflict between them that makes sense…and it's like they are making things up to manufacture conflict. "Oh Liz, why don't you go over to Jason's apartment for the 5,000th time…" Um, how did I miss Liz going to Jason's apartment since he and Courtney have been together? And how would Courtney know since she has barely ever been there herself? It's all ridiculous and I'm really getting tired of cringing every single time two women are left alone in a room together on this show. If the goal is to make me hate them all, then success is looming and victory will be theirs.

How about The Cellar? Can't you just see this place becoming a raging success? Opening night lasted five minutes and resulted in everyone being thrown out. The original proprietor of the club dropped dead while having a drink a week later. Then, Carly decides to close the club on a Friday night for a private party-wake for the person who died there, because she knew her for five minutes. Way to remind people that the place is a bit unlucky so far! She invites people who have no clue who the dead honoree even is…why not just make it an open party and at least not alienate patrons in your first month of business? She invites the Quartermaine's…why again? She doesn't like even one of them, they don't like her…I'm at a loss to explain their presence there. Interesting though that she apparently didn't even invite her own family (Bobbie??), but she invites AJ's. She also invited Scott…good idea to make sure the law is involved, I guess.

I mentioned last time that Courtney has no business being a waitress since she refuses to wait on half the town. It's downright hysterical that she has joined forces with the other intolerants of PC. Between her, Carly and Sonny the Cellar will be free of patrons in no time flat. Carly spent the majority of Catherine's "wake" trying to throw people OUT of the place. AJ, Ned, Faith, Liz, and she was even snarky to the hit lady. "Hey you, yeah YOU…go back and be frisked please"…I mean, yeah, she's a hit lady but to Carly she was supposed to be a paying customer. I think Carly ought to reconsider her line of work; she'd make a much better dock foreman. Then Sonny comes in and proceeds to throw Jax out (apparently he has no problem with Ned…the guy who is working with the woman who wants to KILL HIM)…though he'll have to be quicker if he wants to beat his wife to the punch, she had already questioned Jax's presence. See, I'm thinking…the only logic for inviting the Q's is to have some power and money present, but Jax would be an even better choice if you were going for generating some positive press. He is the owner of a rival club, can't beat that for advertisement. I'm also guessing that Jax has more young, hip friends than the Q's.

How do the Q black sheep manage to find out about the family invitations, anyway? AJ and Skye always come into these gatherings and say "Well, the Q's are invited, right?" and I'm wondering if there is a Q bulletin board at the mansion where they post all the invites for the month? Do AJ and Skye sneak in there and write down all the info off them so they can crash the party, or what?

We have a hit man whose face has never been seen, and only deals in wire transfers. Isn't it odd that Sam chose this particular hit at this particular time to go ahead and meet face to face with a client? She obviously doesn't normally do that or else by now, someone would have seen her face and lived to tell about it, right? Also odd that someone who doesn't allow their face to be seen would agree to do a hit in the middle of a crowded club…someone is bound to see where the gunfire is originating from, particularly when you shoot wildly around the room, giving time for everyone to find the source. The funniest part though was Sam insisting on more money and almost backing out because Sonny is "impossible" to get to. Uh…right. He wanders all around town with no visible bodyguards (and c'mon…if this was gonna be the story why not stick two extra's on him 24/7…why not see them always lurking around when he's wandering around smooching women on the docks and such?) and he vacations at a remote cabin alone with his wife. He also went charging up to that other cabin just because someone called and told him to, bringing along two or so guys with him for protection. Come to think of it he did that at the church when he met Brenda as well. Let's face it; all you need to get Sonny is a telephone, an unfamiliar voice, and a convenient meeting place. It's a soap, and drama is great and all, but why bother with statements like Sam's when the entire viewing audience is wondering how dumb the writers must think we are to buy that load of crap? Toughest hit ever? Yeah right, but then she obviously hasn't actually used that gun before so what does she know anyway?

How about that Summer? She professes love to Luke and he turns her down so she heads on over to Lucky's place and asks for another chance with him? Quick recovery on the heartbreak there, hooker! What? She's made it pretty clear that she likes to refer to herself by that name so why can't I? Nah, actually, I still like Summer. She's not mean, catty, snotty, crazy or drunk. What's not to like?

Pregnancy apparently makes Carly grouchy. Surprise, surprise. It amazes me that every soap opera pregnancy begins with dizzy spells - usually about five minutes after the actual conception takes place. I'm sure plenty of women get dizzy while pregnant, but the odds seem a bit high in PC. Carly has been trying to peck other people's eyes out even more than usual; apparently she's nesting already. Liz I could probably understand, but her overall nastiness to Penny at Kelly's was completely uncalled for. I'm also curious about her inability to get herself a cup of tea downstairs in her own beverage joint. They must have hot water down there, right? Grab a handful of teabags from Mommy's stash and get the heck out of everybody else's face already.

The staircase incident was the topper this week though. She (someone who fell down a flight of stairs and lost a baby) goes down the stairs and has a dizzy spell (it looked more like a cramping spell to me, but I think it was just supposed to be dizziness), wisely sits down on the stairs and gathers herself for a second, and then unwisely starts a snottyness throwing contest with Liz. Once she gets rid of Liz, she stands up, and finishes the walk down the stairs. All good. Liz goes upstairs, tells Courtney about Carly and Courtney turns around to see Carly, back upstairs. What the heck? After almost losing her balance on a staircase she turns around and heads right back up by herself, not even stopping to maybe I dunno, have a glass of water or a cup of tea and making sure the dizziness thing has passed completely? She came up for no apparent reason (unless you count the chance to be bitchy to Liz again as good reason) and only stayed up there five minutes before turning around and running right back down again. Ugh. I guess I just expected a little more staircase sensitivity would be in order.

Thank goodness Courtney slapped AJ. It's been ages since we had any good open-handed action around here.

I'm glad to see that Luke's months of drunken "coping" came back to haunt him. He couldn't have held power of attorney then and whether I think Nikolas should give it back now or not is irrelevant. It makes sense that Luke should have to deal with how inept he was for awhile there and at least we get a nod to reality every so often.

Why the heck am I watching Skye tell Jax how great he is? I realize she wants him back but if she's gonna be that much of a pushover to get him then I've got more interesting things to watch.

Like Skye and Coleman. I love Coleman… "Man, I just don't get modern art" Did I mention that I love him?

Why hasn't Nikolas gone to see Alexis yet? Why isn't he the one offering to get her an attorney? Not that I mind Jax being involved, that's actually the only time I am interested in seeing Jax, but I don't understand why Nikolas is all over the Spencers but not Alexis. It makes no sense. He's supposedly wanting Gia back, what better way to gain some points than to help out Alexis, Gia's employer? He knows Gia has been worried about the situation and he has ample reason to be involving himself…I just don't get it. And please, Hair and Makeup, God, whoever…do something with his hair. This Frankenstein look is even worse than the fiasco he had last month. It's frightening me.

I found it somehow comforting to watch Edward do the "take over the grandchild" thing this week. I dunno, I'm desperate for something that makes sense I guess.

I understand why Ned thinks Faith killed her Grandmother, but why would Sonny jump to that immediate conclusion? It would take a really cold person to do it and I really can't picture that Sonny should believe she's capable of that with what he's seen so far of her. Ned has inside info, like Faith's "Nobody lives forever" statement…Sonny doesn't. The lady was OLD…I just think that maybe the first assumption would be that she just died. Not that I think he should've been consoling her or anything, but I was a bit surprised by the outright accusations…way to play it close to the vest Sonny. I know some of you loved the NYE episode, but I didn't so forgive me when I say that I'm not buying any of this "grieving Carly" stuff either. If she was so touched by Catherine, why hadn't she had the woman over to see the new place yet? She wanted Sonny to meet her? Well she was right across the street! They spent an hour together, max, and it was an hour that part of the viewing audience probably missed since it was stated that it was NOT going to further the story, it was a stand alone episode. If you missed it, I'm sure you're wondering how Carly knew this person and why she chose to keep it to a one time event…up until she could throw a wake-party that is. Not to mention that I don't think I would want to be "like Catherine" since she gave up her kid for no discernible reason right before she apparently gave up the mob life and wrote off her husbands business and fortune as tainted. Could she not have done that while keeping her child? If Sonny gets to be a mobster because of his childhood then I'm guessing Faith has ample reasons as well. Your sweet little old grandma was a mob moll who gave up your father when he was young and now denounces the mob life…except of course, for when she became fast friends with the wife of the mobster that killed your husband. Am I supposed to be watching this and thinking Carly is angelic for honoring Catherine and Sonny was right to kill Roscoe, but Faith is wrong for trying to kill Sonny? At least Faith owns her crimes. I give her credit for that.

So now that Jason and Courtney are back together does this mean we don't get anymore of those scenes where Jason comes jogging into the club and stops cold with a look of pain and longing at a scantily clad and overly made up and coiffed Courtney? Can't we get just one more? Please?

Oh gosh, Lucky, put down the backpack. This is so ridiculous. I saw this guy on a sitcom not two weeks before he started as Lucky and he was HOT! Whatever they did, they need to undo immediately. I'm allowing more time for the acting to come along and for him to get the feel of the role, but the outfits, teeny-bopper props and the hair have got to go, now!

So, Carly and Sonny come home and Michael is sleeping. Wouldn't it stand to reason that Leticia might be off duty by that point in the day? Why exactly does she want to run Carly a bath? Would it be because Carly had such a rough day watching her kid? No, that doesn't really fit, now does it? Sure, go get Leticia since she's done with Michael for the day and now make her run Carly some bathwater. Give me a break. Does Sonny not remember how to turn on the water? Get the Corinthos' a maid already. Sure, the idea of someone at my beck and call to run bathwater day or night sounds great and it certainly can add to the fantasy of watching the show, but because most viewers probably relate more to Leticia than Carly it might be best to spread the workload out a bit.

So, leaving out the whys and wherefores of Alexis faking DID (because I'm just not ready to address the stupidity of the situation at this point), I need someone to explain to me how Scott suddenly saw that she was faking? What exactly did he see on that tape? And why exactly did the chimes play while he was playing it? Those damn chimes are really ticking me off already.

I was really saddened watching Jason and Sonny break up. It was heart wrenching - the begging, the pleading and the turning away. And just when I thought it was over and I could dry my eyes for the last time…Jason turned back toward the door and the tears began flowing down my face again as his Sonny slammed the door right in his face. *Sob* See, I still can't even talk about it. I really couldn't believe it when he went for consolation (or is it revenge?) sex with the sister…ah, the drama. Poor Sonny too! I know he may have been acting like an ass but I could tell he was really torn up about it. The way he raised his voice 50 decibels above Benny's, just to tell him to keep his voice down…well, he's obviously distraught. There's no other explanation for his attitude and short temper with others afterward because, hey, Sonny is just NOT like that. *Sigh* Yep, it was a really sad day in soapy land.

I'm a bit worried for my sanity. The characters I currently enjoy watching (besides Cameron, Alexis and Coleman) are Faith and Ric. This seems a rather bad sign really, since they are basically rather evil at the moment. Cynthia Preston impresses me more every day and her scenes following the murder of her grandmother were perfect. We watched her kill the lady and yet somehow, I still felt bad for her that she *had* to do it! The nail filing in the chapel, followed by the crying on Ned's chest…it was all just too deliciously perfect. She's dead on in every single scene she's in and I find myself watching for every little expression she makes. Even in the icky sex scenes with Ned, she manages to make the characters thoughts and intentions clear. I really can't say enough about what she has managed to do with what could have been a very one-dimensional character. Someone just get her a gun, because I believe that woman could actually take Sonny out if she stopped using incompetent help to try to do it! As for Ric…well, what can I say? I cheer out loud every time he gets a good jab in on Sonny or Carly. I may be turning evil, but I'm fully enjoying his ability to twist everything around until it ends up serving his purpose and keeping one or the other of the Corinthos' at a disadvantage. If I were Liz, I'd be turning my back the next time he comes simpering around after that little display at the club, but overall, he's performed up to my expectations. I fear he will someday be nothing more than another mob minion, so I am enjoying this side of him for as long as possible. He and AJ were great together as well; I've been missing AJ.

Nancy Lee Grahn did a great job with Alexis during the scenes with Ned while she signed the papers to let him take Kristina. Again, not commenting on the stupidity of the mess she's gotten herself into, I felt for the woman who was giving up her child, albeit temporarily. She was heartbreaking and I also found myself liking Ned for a few minutes again - that doesn't hurt either.

It's probably a good thing that Alexis is in the psych ward…they don't usually allow pens and such in there so that should keep her from writing down her next list:
1. Get Cameron a thank-you card for covering for me.
2. Try to bribe guard at door to go buy me some wind chimes to keep pretense up.
3. Rearrange hospital room and claim it's Feng Shui.
4. Practice my shocked expression when Scotty accuses me of faking.


Is anyone else the least bit concerned that we may turn on GH one day and find that the opening has been changed to include only Sonny, Carly, Jason and Courtney's faces inter spliced with scenes of shootouts and limo sex? I am.

Love to hear from you!
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Opinions, everyone has them. Last night I was feeling very under the weather (still am so bear with me) and felt like just relaxing on the couch with a few of my favorite fluffy comedies. All was well until I had to leave the room for a few minutes to take care of some preparations for my daughter's day at school today…when I returned, the channel had been changed. "We" were now enjoying <A HREF="http://www.rush.com/"><u>Rush</u></A> Live on <A HREF="http://www.vh1.com/channels/vh1_classic/channel.jhtml"><u>VH1 Classic</u></A>. I made some groaning noises, complained lightly and then gave up since I know how much he enjoys such things and well, that's just the kinda girl I am. Okay, so there may have been a foot rub in it for me as well…but still, it was a foot rub obtained while listening to music that just isn't my thing. That's nothing against Rush fans or Rush's music. I can see they're talented and I can see why others like them but, save a couple songs that I don't mind, I just really don't get anything much from their music. My husband, knowing this, still tries to convince me every time this situation arises (the TV mysteriously changing to <A HREF="http://www.vh1.com/channels/vh1_classic/channel.jhtml"><u>VH1 Classic</u></A>, <A HREF="http://www.thehistorychannel.com/"><u>The History Channel</u></A>, <A HREF="http://dsc.discovery.com/"><u>Discovery Civilization</u></A>, etc) that I'm just missing the one bit of information that will make this as enjoyable for me as it is for him. Following the course then, he starts in as soon as <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000001F8E/qid=1046209824/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_2/103-1897643-8044654?v=glance&s=music&n=507846"><u>"YYZ"</u></A> starts…the version with the extended drum solo, of course. He's talking about "most talented", "four different beats at once", "patting your head and rubbing your stomach", etc. Forgetting somehow that I can recite this litany on my own because I've heard it a thousand times since I met him waaay back when he used to play <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000001F8E/qid=1046209824/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_2/103-1897643-8044654?v=glance&s=music&n=507846"><u>Exit Stage Left</u></A> as loudly as possible. Then again, that's probably fair since I admit I probably pretended I was a bit more into it back then than I really was…just like he probably pretended to hear something profound in whatever was coming out of <A HREF="http://www.islandrecords.com/bonjovi/home.las"><u>Bon Jovi's</u></A> mouth. The other thing he forgets though, is that despite hearing this often enough to be able to give the same speech to someone else with enough feeling that they might believe I mean it, I still have not developed an enjoyment for the music anywhere near equal to his. He really seems to think though, that if he keeps saying it that someday I'll just "get" it and we can travel the world hunting down Rush concerts. Screw the house, kids, jobs, etc…it's just RUSH…all the way baby! (Except that band is only one of many that he finds mesmerizing on VH1 Classics, so we'd probably have to change our travel plans every time he flipped by that channel, lol!)

Sometimes it feels like that is exactly what is happening with GH. I feel like someone thinks that if I'm just presented with the same thing on a different day, in a slightly different way, that I might just suddenly be riveted by it. This is all a personal experience and the things that feel like they are being force fed to me might be different than what you feel you are being force fed, but I'd be willing to be that the majority of you feel like you're being force fed something on this show. It's impossible to avoid really because the redundancy is becoming too obvious to ignore. Once you get into the rhythm of it, at least you know what to expect, right? A "shocking" murder of a not so important at the moment character, a long-winded, twisted up mystery that usually ends up to be not nearly as confusing as we were led to believe (always end with a whimper they say…) and preferably it will be a woman who "did it" (look at the last several…Angel, Laura, Alexis). In order to make it twisted up, long winded and confusing it's important to add a lot of little details that will, of course, turn out to be relatively meaningless. Reaching a conclusion for the mystery should really entail taking one of the heroine's down to straight-jacket status at some point and if you can "hang" an old lady or two along the way (for storyline purposes, of course!) then all the better!

So, as it appears that our current "whodunit" is coming to a close, albeit with fallout yet to come, it's time to look forward to the next one. At the core, where love, betrayal, and family once were, now resides murder and mystery…technically I think the betrayal still exists…score one for us. Around the core, we still have some bit players from the old days and they even get a day or two a week on air sometimes. I'm beginning to think their airdates are the best kept secret because it means that we, the viewers who are still watching mainly for glimpses of what used to be, have to stay somewhat involved on a daily level so we don't miss seeing the reasons we are still watching. On most soaps, you would have the intertwining story factor that would prohibit you from just skipping certain days when your favorites weren't on, but GH doesn't really play that game. The only intertwining story is surrounding the Corinthos family. Jason and Courtney (don't care), Ric (I care, but suspect I won't shortly), and then twelve people working to "bring them down" though they unfortunately don't actually DO much toward that end that is worth watching. Sometimes it is hard to know whether I should want more airtime for some other characters because to get that means they have to be more involved with the core, which will put them in the unenviable position of being props. AJ, for example, has all but disappeared because his only real story involved Courtney (he has no friends and his family is backburner at best). So, he appears from time to time to prop up the core. He verbally attacks Jason or Courtney, or he on occasion is spotted following his family around town. Apparently we aren't supposed to notice that the relationship he had with Skye somehow just went up in smoke. Maybe all that work they did trying to get "the core" convicted of murder just tainted their relationship beyond repair. I know some of you are thrilled with where the show is centered and I'm glad to hear it! If the core characters were still among my favorites to watch, I'd be right there with ya. Enjoy it to your heart's content…it's only fair really because at some point things will probably shift and I'll get my turn again as well. And hey, I swear I wasn't using "the core" as an analogy because it's the part that is usually thrown away when you're done…

Enough with the rambling already! Let's move on to disjointed thoughts, shall we?

Strange how after the bad guy put the drug in Carly's drink, all the other patrons disappeared. As he was trying to basically carry her kicking and screaming out of there, not a soul seemed to notice! Besides Ric, who has a knack for noticing things, it seems.

I was glad to hear them mention that The Cellar was getting a second chance with the critics…here's hoping the patrons are as generous! If I went to opening night somewhere and was unceremoniously dumped back out on the street with no explanation I might not bother going back. Was there really nowhere else for Jason and Sonny to talk? "Hey everybody, OUT!! We need a moment alone…" Whatever.

Why was Brenda waiting on the floor outside Jason's door after her non-wedding? Sonny came by, she acted surprised to run into him, they talked and then she turned around and went right into Jason's apartment. I know it means an extra set for the day, but maybe next time they could just run into each other in the elevator as they're heading up to their respective destinations? It would look less contrived then having her sit outside for no good reason…unless that was supposed to be a clue in the "who the hell does Brenda really love" saga? There's a mystery for the ages, let me tell ya.

Hey! Did you all notice that the little, cramped storeroom that Carly and Ric attacked with an axe has tripled in size? It also grew a balcony…how cool is that?

Tamara Braun was absolutely excellent in the scenes of Carly waking up with Ric. She was flawless and I felt I was really watching Carly…something that sometimes eludes me lately. Kudos goes out to both her and RH. I find Ric to be very compelling in his machinations.

Cynthia Preston is also wonderful as Faith, and I enjoy watching her scenes. The character of Faith, however, is proving less interesting than I had hoped. She's little more than a one-dimensional villain, perfectly well acted but being written into a corner as far as I can tell. We need a Faith-like character that has ties to the community, a long standing history, the ability to revive a family that is actually getting story at the moment that incorporates that history, and a vendetta that can be all inclusive to the canvas …hmmm, it's too bad GH doesn't have any characters like that laying around!

How great was it that Brenda was able to get a few last words from Yoda, I mean Lila, before she left town? It's really too bad that Skye can't seem to get that benefit from time to time.

Yeah Sonny, you're right. Carly would never "do that to Michael"…can't you just imagine little Michael, all grown up and able to use the microfiche machine at the local library? Scrolling through the articles about his mommy's death and subsequent return: "What do you mean you just needed some time alone, mom? Was there a reason you couldn't just say so instead of pretending you were dead and putting Grandma through a funeral and all? And hey, WTF was up with that crown, anyway?" Jason and Sonny stand around talking about how PC's best mommy would never stay out all night unless evil forces were involved, and I'm thinking someone should really just get on the phone to all the local dives and find out who ingested the last order of chili dogs and cheesy fries (or whatever the heck the great tip off was last time…).

Jason hangs up with Carly, and Sonny says, "Where is she" or whatever mobbie version of that he was using that day, and then we have this long dramatic pause where we are supposed to (apparently) be wondering if Jason will give up Carly's location to his master. I know I'm not the only one though; who was waiting for them both to crack up with the realization that there is no way Jason has a clue where she is! I'm thinking "blooper reel" and they're moving on with the drama already. *Sigh*

Coleman, I enjoy. I cringe when they insist on involving him in every nefarious plot this side of the Mississippi, but hey, I still love him. Scenes like the one where he came to the cottage asking for his gun back "If you're done with it", are priceless on today's GH! He may be smarmy but he's got smart dialogue and he and Skye sizzle for me. More, more, more!

Sooo, Ric had to put two bullets in to fill his clip. Do you suppose that means anything? Didn't think so…

Okay, it's time for a little Sonny talk. I used to LOVE that man. LOVED him. And there are still moments when it comes back to me in full force. But I have to say that someone needs to remind Mr. Corinthos that you just cannot talk to people the way he does and expect to have a long happy life. Even when he's being "sensitive and loving" he comes across as mean, nasty and so self-serving that I cannot stomach it. It used to be, that Sonny had the appearance of being that way all the time but he showed moments of vulnerability, usually with Jason, Brenda and later, Carly. Now, even when we are supposed to feel his vulnerability he manages to throw out something that basically negates anything nice he says. Sometimes it's the words, sometimes the delivery and sometimes both. His complete impatience with Carly over the Brenda kiss is a prime example. Every time he tried to explain it to her or anyone else, there was a complete ignorance to the pain he had inflicted. "I want you - can you get that or not?" What the heck? Why not just say: "Carly, you moron, so you saw me kissing someone else…I'm telling you that I want you. Are you intelligent enough to hear me and "strong" enough to believe me or not, because I've just about had it with the explanations already." Or how about "Don't run. You can fight, scream, break things, and whatever…but no more running"? Uh, gee thanks Sonny. It really is to bad that everyone doesn't have the fine, upstanding practices that you have for dealing with angst. Break something, yell, kiss someone you aren't married to, explain it all to a dead ex, and whatever…just don't run away. For Pete's sake, even the makeup lovemaking that she said she didn't really want to have, ended up with him laying out on the bed and her having the privilege of hopping up on top. That whole scene was creepy and gross. Carly deserves more and Sonny deserves to truly understand what he has. Goodness knows if she had kissed Jason (ya know, to say goodbye since he's in love with Courtney now and all) he wouldn't be forgiving her, and she'd have to grovel, scream and cry before she even got the chance to explain herself.

I thought the disintegration of the Brenda/Jax relationship was actually very good. Personally, I think the "it's over but we part as friends" thing would be impossible given the history at this point and I was glad to see a bit of reality in the pain and brutal honesty they gave to each other. It hurt, but it should have. They were angry, disillusioned, and hurt. Looking at everything they have counted on, fallen back on, and used as a crutch for YEARS completely fall apart around them in one single moment of truth. These two had love, they abused love, and they are paying the price for that. Sure they lost trust, but you know I am not really sure they ever had it. I think she completely trusted that he would always be there and when he finally called her on her intermittent flights of fancy with Sonny (in his mind), it caused a rebellion in her the likes of which she hasn't felt in years. It was fitting, given Brenda's rebellious start on GH and I enjoyed seeing her give Jax a bit of what he deserves for the way he has blown through several lives all in the name of Brenda love. Brenda never fostered trust in Jax though, and he would have to be a fool to be able to fully trust her, just as Carly is a fool for fully trusting Sonny. Broken trust can be worked through but not if it's buried under false bravado and excuses, and certainly not if it's a repeated behavior. Sooner or later, it will wear down the best of us and Brenda and Jax finally wore out. He was nasty to her afterwards and he lashed out in very unattractive ways, but then, we have seen Jax's unattractive side quite often lately so Brenda was the only one surprised by it being turned on her. He can't get away with blaming her for their relationship's demise because he is just as guilty. She nailed him on the damsel in distress thing, and we may never know how their relationship would have fared long term when Brenda became just his wife, instead of his never ending search and rescue mission. Given the events that transpired since her return, I am happy with the way they ended this. It was a situation, right from the beginning, that was doomed to end with no winner and honestly; I'm surprised and impressed that it ended up playing out as such.

Poor Brenda has had an even more limited existence than I thought if she thinks Jason deserves love and happiness over anyone she's EVER met. I was quite ticked to hear her change her mind and try to sentence us to a "forever" of Courtney and Jason. Nice parting gift!

Brenda and Jason were great during their goodbye scenes and I am really going to miss their interaction. Of course, we didn't actually see her get ON the plane so who knows where she's lurking around. Maybe I'll just imagine that Jason stashed her somewhere nice and when he visits they giggle about how he pretends to love Courtney just to keep Sonny all in a tizzy.

I know someone out there must have counted how many Brenda flashbacks were of Sonny and how many of Jax. So c'mon spill! Who is the real "love of her life"?

Audrey lives! Liz is taking classes! Thank God for newsflashes.

Can Summer please have that same "I'd probably quote him a price" type conversation just one more time? I don't think I have fully digested the trajectory of this story yet. Maybe if I could meet a few more people from her past…

A waitress who can't wait on half of the regular customers is in the wrong line of work and Courtney has more enemies at Kelly's than she has coats. Besides AJ and Coleman, now Jason decides he needs a different waitress? Um, what? She should have told him to find another restaurant. He walks into a place he knows she works; he sits down alone and then treats her like crap for assuming maybe she could speak to him? I don't have much use for Courtney these days, but I would have loved to see her tell him where to stick his request for a new waitress. That was just uncalled for and all too typical of the unnecessary humiliation of women that's going around town.

Lucky to Summer: "I'm not standing here with expectations or assumptions beyond tomorrow. I just want to know where you and I might end up" Um, okay. And I am absolutely not robbing you, but give me all your money anyway.

How sweet of Sonny to admit to using Carly to keep Ric "close by". Safety first, right Sonny?

I'm not really going to comment on the Alexis story until it plays out further. I am enjoying the performances. The supporters of the story lately, Cameron, Scott, and even Jax, have all been good in their reactions. I haven't watched most of yesterday's show or any of today's show and something tells me I really may not want to. We'll see…hey, maybe we should start a support group where one of us "takes one for the group" and actually watches the entire show and then sends out email notices of who is on screen for the hour and if there are relevant details spewed by those that were that might affect those that hardly ever are. That would save the time many spend browsing the message boards trying to figure out if they should watch a particular episode or not.

Soap gods save me; I'm foolishly looking forward to the fan fantasy episode tomorrow. Maybe I'll up the cold medicine dosage a bit and that way I'll be sure to enjoy it on some level, or, I'll fall fast asleep and dream up my own fan fantasy!

I'm all for putting up with a little to make someone else happy sometimes. The problem last night was that he (the husband - I'm back from soap land now, lol) promised he'd give the dog a bath before I took her in for her vaccinations today and he watched that concert until 11pm without having done it yet. I'm not moved enough by any drum solo in the world to want to take a smelly, ratty looking dog out in public - not on the one day a year when we pretend that the poor thing hasn't been relegated to last place since the kids were born (the dog, not the husband!). I bided my time and kept quiet and for once it paid off. He was quite grateful for his concert time and washed the dog afterwards, despite the late hour. Then he proceeded to really score some points by taking time off today and taking her to her appointment since I'm sick and the kids are teetering on the edge of sick. I came out looking generous and didn't have to go out in the snow. It doesn't get much better than that. If only GH loved and appreciated me for putting up with the intermittent (Oh, if only!) crapfest, we might be able to work out an arrangement. But somehow, knowing that the network's main goal is to snag a dumber, and more importantly, younger version of me always just makes me think that I "gotta know when to walk away, know when to run!" Then again, <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000068TMX/qid=1046210352/sr=8-4/ref=sr_8_4/103-1897643-8044654?v=glance&s=music&n=507846"><u>Kenny</u></A> is always waiting for when "the dealin's done", and soaps almost always have another hand to play, now don't they?

<ADDRESS><A HREF="mailto:sherry@eyeonsoaps.com">Email Me!</A></ADDRESS> </P> Love to hear your thoughts!

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I wish I could tell you exactly how many times I've sat down to write a column over the last few weeks. I've once again taken all sorts of notes, jotted down all kinds of witty (well - okay…but there were a few that seemed somewhat funny anyway) things to include, not to mention being so far behind at one point I thought I would never catch up (or maybe I thought I'd never find the desire to catch up…)! I've started several columns, and depending on my mood that particular day, they varied in content. I never got beyond the first paragraph in any of them before I decided to abandon ship and try again another day. Here, let me offer you some proof:

This from February 11th - "I've been working on some tips to help enhance your viewing experience. For instance watching snow melt always helps! During scenes at Kelly's, pay special attention when a character enters with "snow" all over their hair and shoulders. Then count how many commercial breaks come and go before someone thinks to brush that plastic crap off him or her - thereby effectively "melting" the snow. I believe Nikolas holds the record at the moment, but you should have no problem coming up with winners of your own. I've also found that imagining Summer will end every sentence she utters with some variation of "I'm a HOOKER" is quite entertaining as well. For example when she says something along the lines of "I love Thai food!" you imagine it really came out as "I love Thai food, but I doubt you'd be asking me if I weren't a HOOKER!" Get the idea? "I'd love to go out with you on Thursday, but I'm a hooker." "Your little girl is adorable, I hope she doesn't turn out to be a hooker like me!" "Lucky, you have fake snow on your eyelashes…is that so when you look at me you won't notice I'm a hooker?"


And this from February 15th - "I have no idea where to start today, so I guess we'll start with a bit of honesty. I have been completely uninspired to write a word about GH for…well, for however long it's been since I wrote last. The main problem at the moment seems to be that I really cannot take the show seriously. No, I don't mean seriously like I think Sonny is real and that maybe I can snag him myself, I mean taking it as serious entertainment. There was a day when it was so entertaining to me that I would forgo most anything else on television rather than fall too far behind watching my tapes. These days, honestly, I sometimes find myself watching something I've never even watched before, as an excuse to NOT watch my GH tapes, how sad is that? General Hospital has become much like my cable or Internet bill; I'm glad to see it but only because it is the link to other things I enjoy, so I'm willing to pay my dues. Painful though it may be to dole out the payment, it would be even more painful to lose the benefits, so while I may complain and balk a bit for awhile, I eventually pay up."

See? I really have been trying. Neither one really inspired me to keep writing so I realized it just wasn't going to happen at that moment, and I gave up and waited to try again later. Sometimes I wonder if some of what we see on our screens everyday comes from exactly that, a poor, tired, depressed writer's random attempt at getting anything down on paper. The only difference is that I don't have anyone grabbing the paper out from under my pen and delivering it as finished before I've had a chance to think it through. This must be the explanation; because I KNOW there isn't anyone thinking through the stuff I'm seeing everyday. There can't be!

Look at the Alexis story as an example. How much sense does it make that Kristina puts her wig in Alexis' purse and then Alexis carries it around all day without noticing? But hey, who cares right? At least it's readily available when Alexis turns back into Kristina (by the way, stop with the chimes already - we aren't stupid and we shouldn't be judged as such just because we are still watching this crap!) on the docks…because, well, she needs it then! Kristina also can't seem to make up her mind; she hates Ned and orders him far away from the baby when she sees him at Kelly's then she tries to climb up him in the middle of a roomful of wedding guests. I also really have to question the wisdom of having Kristina/Alexis confront Dr, Feelgood with a knife during her confession. "Yes, I confronted Alcazar with a knife - much like this one actually, and then I stabbed him just like I'm gonna stab…huh? How'd you get me in a headlock so fast? Wow, it's really a good thing that Alcazar didn't move as quickly as you just did or I guess my knife would have been useless against him as well…!" What the heck? Alcazar's greatest shame is not that he was an arms dealing, murdering meany - it's that he apparently was beat up and stabbed by two different women over the course of three minutes. Then he tripped and fell over a railing, which, frankly, sounds hard to do. Well thought out?

How about that exciting drug bust? The cops burst in to Kelly's, rush around a before unseen corner and come racing down the main steps at the club. Yes, apparently the "Cellar" guests will be coming through Kelly's to get in or else someone needs to draw me a map so I can understand the entrance set up around there. Anyway, they rush in, find the drugs and have playful verbal sparring with Ric the superlawyer. Sonny and Carly are called back from a cabin that is apparently five minutes away, unless of course you take the route Courtney and Jason took. Sonny and Carly go straight to the club, are informed of the trouble and proceed to get into an argument about Jason and Courtney that lasted about five days. It was a good argument, but I'm wondering why no one gives a crap about the drugs anymore? Aren't the cops going to arrest someone? Did the whole problem just go away because Ric threatened Mac? Can the bad guys not even count on the cops to get a search warrant and appropriately conduct a drug bust so carefully set up? Doesn't Sonny care who set him up? Did everybody just forget about the drugs??!! What was the frigging point anyway? Wait! Maybe it was so we all see that yes, Ned can sink lower yet. I liked his nice little hospital bedside "if you touch the stuff again" speech, right up until he hand delivered the crap to his favorite little junky workhorse. Moron.

Nikolas and Gia: "I don't want to lose you" "That's not going to happen" "It's over!" "Sounds good, see ya!" Well, to be fair there was that catastrophic fight that led to his moving out…there was build up at least, right?

Here's one line that I think might have been very well thought out actually! Courtney (to Jason): "I can't do nothing!" Hee…I'm sorry, to be fair I think she meant that she didn't want to sit around doing nothing instead of helping him. But, uh, well…I just enjoyed it in it's purest form and imagined that she was a bit rattled by the accident and decided to admit to him just how stupid she really is.

Let's talk about Jason's injuries. So, we've got Jason and Courtney involved in a serious (but not too serious, no airbag deployment) accident. Jason is very injured; yikes, he might even die! He's rushed to GH where his loving parents are both by his side as he undergoes difficult, life saving surgery. Why, WHY did we get nothing from the Q's about being in this place again with Jason? Why did Carly act like she was more interested in snarling at Liz and Brenda than worrying for Jason? Why is Tony suddenly someone Carly and Sonny want anywhere near Jason or Courtney? Don't get me wrong, it was nice to see Tony but there is a "history" there and all and it used to matter. It was like Sonny and Carly already knew Jason would be fine, they were just hanging around waiting for the chance to confront and comfort, respectively. Thankfully it was a quick surgery, Sonny didn't even get his gloves off before it was over. Even better, it turns out that whatever the frick they did to heal Mr. Morgan was downright miraculous because he has yet to rip out the stitches even with all that bike riding and chick slinging. Makes you wonder a bit about all those weeks he crybabied on Liz's studio couch, now doesn't it?

How is this for a well thought out line? Faith (to Ned): How are we supposed to work in stealth when that harpy swoops down on us all the time?" (Not exact quote…but close) Here's an idea: Stop. Going. Out. Together. In. Public. If. Your. Partnership. Is. A. Secret!

If an annulment can be granted by mail (or whatever) in a matter of days then why did Jason and Brenda fly there to begin with?

This just in! Jason Morgan, long speculated to hold a number of positions of importance to mob boss Sonny Corinthos, has now been confirmed to be an Enforcer by an enemy, a family member, an ex-girlfriend, an ex-wife, his boss, his bosses wife, and his bosses wife's attorney…all in one week! Yes folks, it looks like it's official so it's time for everybody to pay up in those office pools!

Well, I suppose I've wasted enough time on the inconsequential chitchat. Time to get down to it. I'm gonna try to make this brief! I don't care one iota that our resident Alpha Male has separated Jason and Courtney. I find their lovelorn looks to be downright laughable and I feel nothing about either one of them at the moment. When Jason drove his big ole bike up to the edge of the cliff, I silently (oh, okay - I said it out loud!) encouraged him to drive over it. When he just sat there I started to ponder his face and wonder why I used to think it was so sexy…now it just bores me. It's not unredeemable, but it's getting close. I did, however, enjoy the scenes between Jason and Sonny at the hospital. The acting was okay (wait, if Jason was supposed to be acting like a whipped twelve year old - then he was GREAT!) but what most fulfilled me was watching Sonny go ahead and be the hypocritical, self-absorbed jackass that a mobster really must be if he's going to be successful. I loved that and supported him in his hypocrisy 100%. He was, after all, annihilating something that I have wanted to see annihilated since its very inception so it would be hypocritical of me to feel otherwise at this point, now wouldn't it? It was definitely the most mob related activity I've seen Sonny practice since around 1999 (just pulled that year out of my you know what, but you get my point) and I found it enjoyable for a change. I also enjoyed the fighting between Sonny and Carly, and thought much of it was well acted. Personally, I hope that Sonny's comments to Jason inferring that Carly thinks only of herself, along with Brenda's extremely apt description of Carly as cold and hard, herald a return of the Carly of old. You remember, back when she wasn't the head cheerleader? Carly looked and acted more like herself this week, not putting up with Sonny's decisions just because he said she had to. I don't think I heard her tell him he is awesome all week.

As for the kiss, well, what can I say? As someone who has always enjoyed the pull between Sonny and Brenda I will admit to enjoying the kiss and the conversation surrounding it. It pretty much cements to me that Sonny will always want Brenda and Brenda will always want Sonny, but they are priding themselves now on being smart enough to know that they aren't good for each other. This way, they are both still the center of the universe you see, because they are making the supreme sacrifice for the betterment of humanity. If they hook up, get married and try to live happily ever after then they will destroy each other because both really do require being the center of their universe. If you need evidence of that just look at their reactions to their significant other's reaction to the kiss. They both acted like they were shocked that Jax and Carly would jump to the wrong conclusion when all they were doing was saying goodbye…how could those two not trust them? Not for one second was it ever about anyone but them. I'm not knocking it, I'm gonna miss Brenda (and VM who I believe delivered some really solid work this time around) and I'm finding a bit of long lost Sonny-love in my heart at certain moments, but good relationship material they are not. If Carly needs any further proof above that kiss that she is not now, nor never will be, first in Sonny's heart then I offer her what I consider even more damning evidence. I offer her his "after all these months of fighting myself" comment at Lily's grave. I would be crushed if my husband kissed his long lost love, but I would be completely devastated and our relationship would be beyond repair if I found out he had been having sex with me while "fighting" being with her for months. I also offer Sonny and Brenda's conversation about Jason and Courtney and how she believed he did the right thing breaking them up. He told her that he didn't know if Courtney was strong enough to give Jason up…implying to me that he was acknowledging his own and Brenda's strength in doing so, and how they naturally saved the universe by having the strength to be apart. Courtney doesn't have that strength (apparently) and neither does Carly, at least not according to Judge Sonny. So there you have it, it is over. They should part ways and honestly, I think I'm up for a Carly/Jason pairing (unless tptb want to send Carly off in a hail of bullets - it's all about the same to me).

That brings us to Jason and Courtney. First thought is: who cares? Second thought is: now wait a minute, there might be a point to be made here! Mostly the only thing I'm noticing is that Courtney is decidedly not upset with Jason and I find that a bit odd. It would be nice if we could see a moment, just a flash even, of Courtney thinking "wow, AJ gave up his family and fortune for me - we lived in squalor (*snort*) in that crappy little apartment that had absolutely no frills (*snort*) and he worked as a fork lift driver to help support my stripping habit. But Jason won't risk angering his boss for the love of the likes of me…wtf?" In addition, I'm fairly certain that I saw Jason grow some rocks on Sonny when he caught wind of the fact that Sonny was lip reading Brenda down on the docks. He didn't snivel, tear up or sniff even once, he just went off on a rant about how important CARLY is and how he gave her and Michael to Sonny to take care of and if Sonny damn well wasn't doing it then he was gonna just take them back since they were the family he wanted to begin with…or something like that. He stood right up to him like nobody's business and I can't be the only one who got the impression THAT could be a deal breaker! He didn't even show a flicker of guilt at jumping Sonny for kissing someone else while married when he and his beloved were doing the very same thing a few months ago, back when she still thought she was happily married to his brother. Way to go Jase - work that hypocrisy baby! You saw it with your own eyes; Jason jumped right up there in defense of Carly's happiness. Courtney just doesn't rate folks, my apologies to the fans of the couple, but the writing is on that wall if you ask me. (And yes, I hid the eraser!)

Are you people praying to the soap gods to end this stupid Alcazar crap? Because seriously, this has gone on so long that I think the statute of limitations might be running out by now. Did the cops not check the lobby tapes to see who exited the building in the few minutes after Al fell? Because she must have taken the elevator down since there was definitely not time for her to run down fourteen flights of stairs and still be the first one to notice the dead guy on the alarm blaring car, right? Since she said she was passing through and saw him, when they spotted her exiting the building wouldn't they have been suspicious? What the heck? I do think Nancy Lee Grahn is doing a good job with the story so far. There have been moments when Kristina is truly creepy (that'd be the alter one, not the baby) and I enjoy most of her interaction with Cameron because I still love him. Usually when you have these alter stories the second personality is vastly different than the first, so the actress portraying them can easily show the differentiation. On Port Charles, for example, Kelly Monaco is playing Tess and Livvie and you can't get two more different personalities than that. She does a fabulous job with both characters and they are written to act very differently. NLG is dealing with two characters that frankly aren't all that different in ways that can be shown outright in a simple "standing on the docks talking" scene. Kristina was quirkier, arranged rooms, wore trendier clothing, talked a lot, etc., but she wasn't evil or bitchy nor did she have any obvious attitude or trait. I suppose that is why someone decided we need chimes to signal a change, but they are wrong about that. There have been no scenes where it wasn't easy to tell which character she was playing and I give her credit for that. I know nothing about alter personalities (well, besides what I've seen on soaps that is) but it seems really weird to me that Kristina's personality is apparently altered as well. I would spend time considering all this on a deeper level and try to analyze what's going on, but I see no point in doing so. I'm so far not as upset by the story as I thought I would be, but I'm not exactly enjoying it either. Its just sort of there - it's evoking no real emotions either way from me at the moment, which is probably just as well.

Like I said, I am still enjoying Cameron and I've seen moments between them that tell me they (the actors) still have chemistry but I'm not holding my breath for it to play out in a palatable manner. I'm lost as to why Cameron is Zander's dad though; the only thing they've used it for so far is to provide Cameron with a reason to help Alexis so she won't lose her child like he lost his. That's great but it doesn't seem like the kind of story that should be pushed aside and used only as a prop for another story. It gets really tiresome to get excited about a story (Cam and Zander, Alexis and Baby Kristina, Ric and his mysterious past…) only to find out it was really only a flash in the pan sideshow, providing a moment of clarity in a surrounding story and then falling by the wayside. Oh, it'll probably all get picked up again later but I always thought the beauty of soaps was that several stories at once could be consistently juggled and the threads remained constant. The threads being family, intrigue, romance, etc., but we don't get consistent juggling on GH. We get big reveals that either lead to nothing or lead to something so far down the road that we don't care anymore.

The big question I have at the moment is what are they doing to AJ? He's been almost non-existent lately and then he shows up at Jax and Brenda's wedding? Huh? Why the heck would he be there? Why is he suddenly following the Q's around again like a lost puppy dog? What happened to Skye and AJ having a relationship? Is AJ just fading away into oblivion or what? I miss him.

I thought the scene between Brenda and Courtney was good. Great parallels running through it and VM especially did a great job of conveying a lot to those of us that have lived through that life with her. The eyes said it all.

It was good to see Luke interacting with Lulu. I also enjoyed his interaction with Scott. I think maybe its time for Luke to get back out into the PC world a bit and shake things up a little. I'm also enjoying Ric, because I find the way he is pulling strings and playing with everyone rather interesting. I even think the sucking up is calculated and intentional, and I hope they don't disappoint me when his purpose is revealed.

I think you can assume a wedding is doomed when the groom mentions "all the people we've hurt" to get where we are. It's just not a good sign. It's also not a good sign when your parents show up to each wedding as though it's your first. "We wouldn't miss this occasion for the world" Uh, yeah - as though you won't get another chance in the near future! "We loved Skye, and we loved Alexis…Chloe, not so much, Miranda was okay and we love Brenda each and every time as well…but we're really happy when you use one up, dump her and move on too because we only want what's best for our little raider…" Whatever.

The club opening was a complete let down, not that I actually had my hopes up or anything. I did like Carly's little tantrum and the throwing of the bottle - that rang pretty true to character. I also can understand avoiding Sonny because I can't see how she could expect anything but the bad news she thinks he's going to deliver. What else could he be planning to say? "Yeah, I kissed her because I needed to know if I'm really over her after all these years of being with you. But yep, now I know you are the right choice so c'mon baby, time for you to make me feel better again"? Not to mention the fact that he has already kissed her since she returned…apparently it takes a few tries to get the right result?

The Brenda/Jax wedding fiasco was interesting. After hearing Jax's explanation to Ned I would have to agree with him, he should've been scared. I don't really know why he waited until the vows but I'm fairly certain it had something to do with the clause all GH guns have in their contracts. ABC doesn't comment on contract specifics, but I have it on good authority that the Gun Users Network Union (GUN U) wrangled a "matching clause" with wedding dress and sex scenes. In other words, for every wedding dress or sex scene, we must have a gun scene. Skye and Coleman have had two gun/sex scenes. Sonny and Carly were almost gunned down before they ran off to have sex in the cabin. Skye and Brenda donned wedding dresses and were promptly stalked by gun toting lurkers. Faith and Ned…well, they're the darlings of several of the weapon's unions. It's all about the politics and the backstage fight for airtime.

Well, I'm off for now. I have some serious thinking to do because I really must figure out how the coaster off my coffee table ended up on a strap hanging around Brenda's neck.

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