Tag Archives: Roger Howarth

General Hospital: Glimmers of Hope?

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Glimmers of hope…I will admit that many of the things I was down on in my last post about General Hospital may have been by-products of the transitioning of stories from May sweeps and the conclusion of the Nurses Ball, not to mention the cast changes and additions. Now that we’re almost done with June and a few weeks past the comeback of the OLTL 3, I’m definitely seeing glimmers of hope. I just want the rotation of characters and storylines to continue so we don’t forget about characters we love and get bored.

First glimmer of hope: Elizabeth! I am partial to Elizabeth. Even when she got almost no airtime and was used to prop Lucky, she was a main reason I tuned in. The past two days GH has gone back to the AJ/Nik story and the cell phone recording of AJ and Tracy talking about when AJ slept with Carly. Finally! (Seriously – how long ago did that happen? The wait was too too long…) We saw Elizabeth confront AJ and Carly at the Metro Court while also being given the gift of Nik/Alexis scenes.

I think Tyler Christopher being on contract means great stuff ahead for Liz and if it means more Alexis, too? Speaking of Alexis, I’m in heaven with her having story with Nik, Shawn, Molly AND Sam! So many good ways to see her on screen. I love the possibilities with Sam and Silas, and Molly and Rafe have the makings of a longer storyline. What more could we ask for?

Well, I could ask for people like Lucy and Laura to be on more regularly. I don’t want to see them take over the show (please don’t let them take over!) but it’s weird to all of a sudden see them having a conversation about a make-up company called Deception with Scotty. I mean, it makes sense and the possible story itself fits my glimmer of hope theme, but when are they gonna pick it up again? I worry I won’t hear anymore about it for another week or two?? Or three??? Or maybe four????

My last glimmer of hope regards the Franco story. Wow, Roger Howarth has won me over and I love his interaction with Maura West’s Ava and the rest of the Quartermaine clan. I love how it ties in with Michael/Morgan/Kiki as well. There’s got to be more to this than meets the eye. Kiki and Michael can’t be related. Please find a way to really bring in Duke and Anna, and AJ and Tracy.

Now here’s a big question. Is there too much going on? Maybe. At least right now. If some of these stories connect then it could get better, but I haven’t even written about Sonny/Olivia/Connie, or Sabrina/Patrick/Britt/Felix/ his sister and TJ…oh and throw in Spinelli and Elli, and Duke and Anna? I say sorry, but ditch Sabrina and put Patrick with the Silas/Sam romance. Keep the Britch and make her part of the Duke/Anna story being that she’s Faison’s daughter, and…I don’t know what to do to keep Felix, but I want to.

I believe Ron C. has a plan and it’s all connected and I believe Frank V. CAN and WILL make good things happen. They’re good and the show is so much better than the past few years. BUT there are just so many stories up in the air right now and it’s hard to follow. The glimmer of hope is that I’m interested in them all (except Sabrina – who I DO like as an actress).

General Hospital: June 2013 – A Report Card…just ehhh

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So overall I think GH is earning a solid B. I’m not bored, and there are some really good things in process, but I’m not captivated either and that’s the bigger problem.

One of the things that’s been really bothering me lately is the rotation of storylines. How we get chunks of characters and stories and then don’t see them again for weeks. I’m assuming this has to do with scheduling actors and keeping down costs so I’m trying to ignore it, but it’s like I forget people exist.

I want to see Liz and Nik at least once a week. I need to see Anna more than I do. The scene with Anna and Duke babysitting Emma was one of the best scenes all month. Maybe that’s why they don’t show them…they make everything else look bad because they’re so good.

Anyway – here we go:

The return of the OLTL 3: B+
I think they’ve pulled this off. I like Kiki and the potential story between Morgan and Michael. Kristen Alderson is great with Maura West and Roger Howarth.

Roger Howarth as Franco is going to work…mostly because they’re totally changing Franco (or is it really Franco?) but whatever, it’s good and he’s good. The recent scenes with Carly after the shooting were brilliant. I can see a way for them to work together now.

Michael Easton? Where has he been? They haven’t given me enough of him. He’s my favorite of the three and I’m dying here! I like Silas. Please, please, just have him be a hard ass, unsentimental, jerk doctor that Sam can soften and not that psycho brother of his returned from the dead.

Quartermaine Mania: B
The relish stuff was fun for a while. I like the constantly changing loyalties based on who has the pivotal shares and Tracy/AJ competition is always fun. Bring Duke back into things please! Having Franco and Kiki move into the house was great. Can we get some Ava/AJ action? Their chemistry is fabulous and this AJ/Carly/Franco/Ava quadrangle could earn an A+ eventually!

Sonny/Dante/Lulu/Olivia/Kate: C
This is all just mind-numbingly dull for me. Connie vs. Kate for Sonny’s heart? Both characters are like watching paint dry. They don’t compare to his chemistry with Brenda. I love Emme Rylan as Lulu but there’s no real story happening. Even the stuff with their baby is boring and predictable. Maxie’s lying to them – yep – we know. Nothing’s happening. She got her memory back…great. Now what? I’m hoping we’re just transitioning storylines here and something bigger and better is coming for all of them.

Alexis/Shawn/Molly?Rafe/TJ/new Dubois chic (it’s bad if I watch everyday and can’t remember her name): Finally something real for Alexis and Shawn to play besides attraction. Him shooting Olivia is a great way to move their story along. I like the idea of the quadrangle with the youngsters but other than the fact that I love Molly from watching her grow up, and that Rafe and TJ are great actors, there’s nothing making me root for any of them. They’s so 2D.

Patrick/Sabrina/Britt/Felix: B
Ick. The Patrick Sabrina love scenes were cheesy and awkward. I liked her at first but she just takes away time from characters I really care about. Put Patrick with Sam and create a love triangle between them and Silas…let Elizabeth be wary of it. Anything – but I’m really tired of this whole thing. Except for Felix. Keep him and tell me more about how his sister’s blackmailing him because his parent’s don’t know he’s gay. That’s a good story.

Liz/Nikolas/AJ:B
I’d love to give this an A. This could engage me in the show, but I never see them so…whatever. Nik’s new hairstyle is awesome, but they’ve isolated them both from the larger storylines at hand. Even Nik having the dirt on AJ doesn’t seem to matter as much when we forget they exist.

Luke/Laura/Anna/Duke/Scotty/Lucy/Doc:D-
Where are they????????

As I’ve written this, I’ve decided I am much more upset about this show than I realized. I’m not connecting with these characters because I’m not seeing them, and when I am seeing them, what they’re going through isn’t resonating with me. I’m sad now. I need to stop writing.

General Hospital: Can this Franco thing work?

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Can this Franco thing work? Maybe. After watching two days knowing for sure that Roger Howarth is playing Franco, I’m still torn but optimistic. My first reaction of being mildly disappointed that they didn’t come up with a more creative solution has been tempered by the many attempts to explain on social media how Franco’s character can push the stories of so many of my other favorite characters further. I’m seeing a small but definitely present opening to being able to connect with Roger Howarth and still think Franco’s wacked out, and I’m trying to stay really positive because I believe there’s a plan. (And if that plan let’s me keep RH and maybe gives me some scenes between him and Laura Wright then I’ll be OK.)

Franco’s presence can give Sam someone to hate more than Dr. Silas, can make Michael question his future relationship with Kiki (Is she his cousin? Is Franco really Jason’s twin and Alan’s son?), and gives Sonny a new person in Port Charles to hate. He also gives AJ the chance at another brother. How will AJ respond to the fact that Franco asked for Michael to be protected, while Sonny and Carly were the reason he was in prison? Is it the enemy of my enemy is my friend scenario? And if Franco is connected to Ava Jerome and AJ and Ava cross paths (still hoping for romance there…), can we see a quadrangle with AJ, Carly, Franco, Ava? There are really lots of possibilities.

The thing I was most worried about was that there wasn’t anything about Franco that made you connect with him in the past. Sure, he was supposed to be rejected by Jason but mostly viewers just found him reprehensible. Yesterday and today, there were flashes (very small) where I actually thought, well maybe he’ll be OK. You see, there’s no way not to at least like Roger Howarth a little bit, so if he’s playing a character with nothing you can connect to, it makes you feel all wigged out on the inside. If it’s all been illusion stuff to hurt Jason then maybe…And there was a moment between him and Michael where I thought it looked like Michael wanted to find a way to forgive him – I could have been imagining it, but RH played that remorse really well.

It’s still just a wait and see game. We won’t be able to judge until we see the stories Ron and Frank have in mind and I’m cool with that. As I said before, I’m not going to quit watching – the fact that my soap is still on the air is an everyday gift. The fact that I can still watch talent like Roger’s on my television is enough. But, I am hoping for it to turn into more than enough…Come on GH – step it up and really make this good!

General Hospital Thoughts on Silas Clay, Kiki Jerome and ???

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So, if you’re a General Hospital fan you’ve no doubt been giving some thought to this crazy situation with the three characters brought over from One Life to Live. I don’t want to re-hash the reasons behind the decision to give the actors completely new characters…it was a legality issue and I support them keeping the talent any way they can. And if anyone can pull off bringing three actors back as three completely new characters it would be the team of Ron Carlivati and Frank Valenti. What I do want to weigh in on is the new characters themselves.

Let’s start with Michael Easton (because I confess to having been in love with ME since his “Days” stint as Tanner.) RC and FV were in a tricky situation. ME had already played the double role as the crazed Stephen Clay (vampire Caleb from Port Charles days). They couldn’t bring a potential romantic lead back as a crazed serial killer, so they went with the brother of said killer Dr. Silas Clay. So far so good. He’s an intelligent character with a reason to be in town (getting custody of his nephew Rafe), and he has already clashed in that “Oh yeah they’re gonna do it one day” way with Sam! Woo hoo! Unless they mess it up by making his identity questionable and hinting he could actually be Stephen, I’d consider ME a successful transition.

Then there’s Kristen Alderson. I have to admit to never really liking Starr. Even on OLTL, and I may have unfairly blamed the actress. I like this character Kiki – although the name is annoying. Her acting is as different as her hair color, and making her the lost Quartermaine heir is genius connection! One caveat – something’s gotta be up with that. There’s obviously a potential triangle brewing with Morgan, Kiki, and Michael, and she’s got great chemistry with both. BUT wouldn’t she be Michael’s cousin if she is really Franco’s daughter? Ick!

And Franco leads us to Roger Howarth, by far one of the best actors on daytime. I’ve loved him as Paul Ryan (ATWT), Todd Manning (OLTL,GH) and now as…well, I don’t know who. However, all signs point to Franco, another evil serial killer character. This is the only situation where I find myself praying that Ron and Frank have something up their sleeves. I want and need to like Roger and I can’t see how you ever redeem the character of Franco. As the show ended today (5/28), the characters assembled at the Haunted Star obviously recognized him and not in a good way. The previews showed Sam yelling, “Is my husband alive?” So, obviously not Jason. I’m still hoping against hope he could be Jerry, because for some strange reason I think he could be redeemed somehow, but Franco? Ick! Again.

It would have been brilliant to bring him back as Jason Quartermaine as opposed to Morgan…erase all memories from the past years since the wreck – put him in the hospital with Dr. Silas Clay, Patrick, and Elizabeth…but alas, it doesn’t seem to have gone that way this time. I still hope they go there one day with a recast.

So, two out of three isn’t bad – and I’m still hopeful that RH will be anyone but Franco. If he’s not I won’t give up. I think Ron can pull something off and I’m committed to GH no matter what. If I made it through Marlena’s possession story on Days of Our Lives I can get through anything – and so can most soap fans. We just love our stories!