Rating the Replacement: Tabyana Ali Takes On General Hospital’s Trina

Talk about being tossed into the fire. During her first week on the job on General Hospital, the soap’s new Trina Robinson, Tabyana Ali, found herself arrested for a heinous crime – posting a sex video of her best friends Josslyn Jacks (Eden McCoy) and Cameron Webber (William Lipton) online. Then the poor teen was in court pleading not guilty, anxious yet determined to clear her name.

Tabyana Ali Gets Trina in Turmoil

Daytime newbie Tabyana Ali hasn’t displayed any nerves in replacing fan favorite Sydney Mikayla, who left the soap to pursue her college studies at UCLA. Nor has she cracked under the pressure of being thrust into a front-burner storyline – a storyline she’s been tasked with driving. Instead, the young actress has embraced the enormous challenge, proving she is the perfect recast choice.

GH: Fire and Fear

Ali’s performance has been tempered and composed, grasping the true nature of the smart and levelheaded Trina. She displayed remarkable resolve when Trina opted not to take the district attorney’s plea deal and, instead, stand up and fight to prove her innocence, displaying her character’s fiery side.

She also aptly conveyed Trina’s fears and uneasiness, knowing that if justice doesn’t prevail, she could end up going to prison. The harsh reality of the situation is always hovering over the character like a dark cloud, and Ali makes sure viewers see and feel that in every scene.

Tabyana Ali Fitting In

In addition to her perfect take on Trina, Ali’s effortlessly fit into the Port Charles fold on every front. Her initial scenes with McCoy, who plays her bestie, Josslyn, were easy and natural. So, too, were her exchanges with Lipton, who portrays her pal, Cameron. She’s also forged an instant bond with her TV mom, Brooke Kerr (Portia Robinson), and dad, Réal Andrews (Marcus Taggert), and has totally connected with Maura West (Ava Jerome Cassadine) with whom she shares a special and unique mentor/mother-daughter-like relationship.

Ali’s first scenes with Nicholas Alexander Chavez (Spencer Cassadine) were spot on, too. The pair quickly “vibed” as friends with underlying feelings for each other. Yet, there was plenty of tension between them too, when Spencer stupidly decided to accept Trina’s guilt over the sex video scandal and ignore the real culprit, his vicious girlfriend Esme Prince (Avery Kristen Pohl).

Ali has quickly made Trina her own under some challenging storyline circumstances and should be commended for a job very well done.

General Hospital (GH) 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 that’s been posted on GH spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.