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A Critic’s Review of General Hospital: Vindication and Validation

The author’s opinions on GH are hers and hers alone. Just know this: everything’s based on pure emotion, be it right or wrong, wacky or tacky.

general hospital critic's review for january 22 – january 26, 2024, nina, curtis, esmeNina Reeves, Curtis Ashford, Esme Prince.
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When it comes to General Hospital, every fan has their own opinion — and Soap Hub is no different. For five days, we sat and watched the good, the bad, and everything in between. Here we lead with optimism. Unfortunately, we don’t always get what we want. So here’s a review of GH’s week that was.

What I’m Feeling This Week: Validation (Laura Spencer Finds Out Old Esme’s Back)

I’m not going to lie, once Laura (Genie Francis) found out that Esme (Avery Kristen Pohl) actually did have her memories back, I felt a sense of satisfaction, vindication, and validation. I do feel bad that her husband Kevin ended up being collateral damage. Laura’s a good person, but I thought she was sensible and discerning as well. In this case, she had blinders on.

I don’t see how she went all in a hundred percent on Good Esme. To the point, she defended the girl, protected her, and set her and Ace up in a new apartment. She basically gave Esme a whole new life simply because she didn’t remember who she was. The nature versus nurture argument does not work here. Not when Esme has the lineage she has with Ryan (Jon Lindstrom) and Heather (Alley Mills) making up her DNA. And certainly not when her past actions caused hell for so many in Port Charles including, Spencer, Trina, and Ava.

I feel bad Laura had to receive such an awful wake-up call but, in this case, that was the only way she was going to realize she backed the wrong person.

Other GH Thoughts

Hard Pass: Jordan (Tanisha Harper) and Brick (Stephen A. Smith). Brick spreads his flirting game on thick…real thick. I’m still stuck on Jordan and Zeke (Gavin Houston). And I don’t think I’ll be leaving them anytime soon. I don’t understand why that pairing never happened. There was instant drama considering he’s Portia’s brother. Portia (Brook Kerr), who’s now married to Jordan’s ex-husband, Curtis (Donnell Turner).

UGH: Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Diane (Carolyn Hennesy), for separate reasons. Diane, because I don’t get the argument that she had with Robert (Tristan Rogers) over Sonny. It was way over the top, and it just made me want to side with Robert. I normally like Diane’s fierceness, but her energy with Robert isn’t working for me at all during this banter that has turned into berating.

As for Sonny, I guess I’m disappointed that he’s not even giving Nina the time of day. That is all.

Favorite Interactions: Nina (Cynthia Watros) and Valentin (James Patrick Stuart) as well as Nina and Olivia (Lisa LoCicero). Even though Nina did what she did for shady reasons, I’m almost always going to be for the underdog who’s fighting to get their life back. It’s hard to watch one person get knocked down by everyone over and over even if they deserve it. So when Olivia came at her peacefully and didn’t pile more drama on Nina, I appreciated it. Which is a bit crazy considering how the entire scandal affected her husband. I hope Nina listens to Olivia’s words of wisdom about moving on gracefully.

What do you think? Post a comment!

And Valentin being Nina’s ride-or-die was fantastic, too. Carly (Laura Wright) has an entire village around her. She has great support and now a new company to run. I’m interested in seeing how Nina digs her way out of this hole as well as the people who refuse to kick dirt on her grave. This week, Valentin offered Nina a way to stick it to Carly, but so far, she’s not taking him up on it. I did love that he said this to her:

“Sometimes the best revenge is good business.”

valentin to nina, general hospital 1.26.24

Part of me really wants Nina to team up with Valentin, but I’m glad she’s trying to learn a lesson from this whole matter. She needs to sit down and sit back for a minute. And breathe….

New Commissioner Talk: I have no problem with Laura talking to Anna (Finola Hughes) about taking the Commissioner spot. She could do it in her sleep. However, didn’t Jordan talk to Taggert (Réal Andrews) about the job once upon a time? Where is he? He should have been at Trina’s going away party. An explanation was needed.

Portia Praise: So, even though she has her moments, she really seems like she’s softening towards, or at least tolerating Spencer (Nicholas Alexander Chavez) in her daughter’s life. But when Laura apologized to Portia about her rigorous defense of Esme, I related to Portia holding on to the hate she has for Esme.

The Surrogacy Story: I’m happy for Molly, TJ (Tajh Bellow), and Kristina. But, the storyline is also feeling really fast. I feel like the show needs to wait for me to catch up. I’m still working on buying the connection between these sisters. Kate Mansi are Kristen Vaganos are wonderful in their roles so far, but I’m not feeling any feels. I hope that the show will figure out a way to hook me.

She Can Come Back Anytime: Alley Mills. As Heather Webber, Mills fits the role so perfectly. The scenes between Laura and Heather at Pentonville were stellar. She had Laura shook almost the entire time. All she had to do was blurt truth and facts about her daughter. She did this in order for Esme to end up in prison where she could watch out for her. And also, to prevent her from ruining her life over the need for revenge. Only a twisted mom like Heather could come up with that kind of logic.

General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Port Charles, check out all the latest GH spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.

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