We’d waited for more than a year and a half for Port Charles to finally learn what sociopathic Nelle did the night she gave birth to a perfectly healthy baby on the side of the road on General Hospital. She gave him to Brad in exchange for the lifeless newborn he had just adopted that set off a chain of events that have kept us riveted ever since.
General Hospital: A Richly-Layered Story
While we enjoyed most aspects of the reveal from the moment Lucas (Ryan Carnes) remembered, we knew the ultimate heartbreak would come when Chase (Josh Swickard) had to tell Willow her baby had died and the baby she’d bonded with all this time was her good friend, Michael’s (Chad Duell), and not hers at all.
Yes, watching Lucas’ life fell apart gave us all the sad feels, but he doesn’t have to grieve for a baby he will never see again. His life has completely changed, but he will still have Wiley in his life.
Gut-Wrenching Loss For Willow
But Willow never got a chance to grieve for her baby because she thought she was happy and healthy and in his life. As she comprehended what Chase told her, Katelyn MacMullen showed us what she’s got with ALL the emotions. All the thoughts, the confusion, and the realizations were in her voice and on her face as the moment we’d waited for with dread arrived.
We also waited in anticipation because this was what soaps are all about and also what they don’t deliver on nearly as often as they should anymore. Plus, the reason this worked so well was due to General Hospital choosing to go a different route with the birth mother in this dead baby switch. Rather than the birth mother turning out to be a character we knew, she ended up being someone we had to get to know.
The Ideal Character
As the baby switch often played in the background, we got to know Willow — a school teacher! The sweet elementary school teacher of third-graders who had escaped from a rapist cult leader and then fell in love with the good cop is just about the most sympathetic character you could get.
To Soap Hub, Willow felt like the worst victim in all of this. She never got to bury her child, never got to grieve him, and bonded with a baby who was never hers. THAT reveal was everything we hoped for and knew it would be. We’re always happy when soaps give us what soaps should be. General Hospital (GH) airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes.
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