Well, it's that time of year again as we assess the best, worst, and most of GH in 2004.
Before doing so, it needs to be stated that, despite the naysayers on the message boards, General Hospital remains a very popular show and does not seem to be in much danger of being canceled. That honor belongs to One Life to Live, a show considered by the pundits to be in trouble. This makes me tremble for OLTL, because if there was ever a show that looked like it was in trouble, it's GH. GH's debacle reminds me of an old story about Mohammed Ali when he lost against George Foreman. People weren't sad because Ali couldn't fight; he could. He just wasn't Mohammed Ali anymore. General Hospital still has its great moments. It just isn't the old General Hospital anymore. Unlike the aging Ali, GH can come back. The question is, will it?
That being said, let's go to this writer's picks for best and worst of 2004:
Best Scenes: Luke believing it was Laura in the grave; Sonny and Alexis arguing over Kristina in the hospital; Skye and Faith's catfight; Lila's memorial service and tribute to Lila/Anna Lee; Nikolas regaining his memory (one of the best-done scenes of the whole year; as he sank to the floor, images of his life flashed by as his memory suddenly returned), Ric and Alexis picking out a Christmas tree; Ric and Alexis in the cabin; the death of Sam's baby; Carly and Sonny breakup over the Kristina reveal. Wonderful acting, all.
Plotlines:
The Kristina Reveal, the Teens' Murder Mystery (hey, I know a lot of you hated it but I liked it), the Port Charles fire (a camp classic), Ric and Alexis, Mary taking advantage of Nikolas' amnesia, crazy Heather's return, the Carly-Durant storyline.
Most Lively Newcomers: Mary Bishop and John Durant.
Most Missed: Zander, Sage, and baby Lila.
Best New Couple: Ric and Alexis. Runner-up: Jax and Courtney, who have great chemistry but whose storyline took forever to develop.
Funniest (but not intended to be): Nikolas attempting to carve the wooden duck. A classic.
Worst:Connor's appearance as a double of Nikolas. Cheap, cheap, cheap. The storyline was never set up originally with Connor as a double of Nikolas.
Tyler Christopher's dual accents as Connor. Which is he; a farm boy or a Bronx boy?
The Diego storyline; full of large holes someone could; and should; fall into.
Dillon in Drag; This was not just bad for Dillon being in drag. It was bad because this whole Brook's career/Girl Band/studio thing was picked up anddropped like a hot potato.
The Helena curse and Mighty Aphrodite; Hey, give me a break.
Officer Murphy; So the winner of I Want to be a Soap Star learns love scenes, fight scenes, and is coached in dramatic scenes, so he can win a 13-week contract as an elevated extra. Rip-off. Next time, write the winner a decent role.
The Treasure Hunt; I want to know why the Quartermaine ancestor looked like Emily when Emily is adopted.
The Recasting of Edward Quartermaine; We miss John Ingle, though Jed Allan is handsome, does a good job, and mourned the death of Lila beautifully. He's just not Edward.
The Port Charles Casualty in the Basement that was supposed to be Zander; A joke. Scott Baldwin switched dental records? Did he put his teeth in the guy's mouth? If he didn't know the person's identity, where did he go to replace his own records with the victim's?
Courtney and Jax's Convent Sex Games; Ridiculous.
Overdone Couple of the Year: Nikolas and Emily. A coupling that started out like gangbusters turned into one gag-me scene after another.
What's Needed:
More use of the vets, especially Bobbie.
A hot, fresh storyline.
Less use of retreaded storylines ; evil twins, car accidents, fires, DNA switching, who's the daddy.
Let's have some excitement in 2005!