It’s rare to see a soap create a brand-new character around an unforgettable actress and completely blow it, but General Hospital (GH) managed it.
In 2015, GH featured Chloe Lanier as a young Pat Spencer, Bobbie and Luke’s older sister who sent them off to Florida after Luke accidentally killed both of their parents in a moment that changed all of their lives forever.
Lanier did such an incredible job that fans were mesmerized, and the soap knew it had to use her again. It created Nelle Hayes just for her, a character who also turned out to be known as Nelle Benson and Janelle Benson.
It was easy to tell ‘sweet’ Nelle had a secret and an agenda from the start, and we knew for sure when she gave her signature Nelle look after listening to Sonny and Carly bask in their happiness.
When she drugged Sonny and made him believe they slept together, we couldn’t wait to find out why and what Carly ever did to make Nelle so twisted and vindictive. Then came the reveal and our jaws dropped to the floor… because it was THAT lame.
Ok, so Nelle was a perfect match and kidney donor for Josslyn and just so happened to be the biological daughter of Carly’s adoptive father, so that makes the match make sense.
Uh, not. That didn’t stop Jax from buying the kidney anyway and Nelle angry that her adoptive sister she never knew always got everything… including her kidney. WHAT?!
Right then and there it was ALL downhill and there seemed to be no saving this character at all. We never saw any chemistry …continue reading on the next page —>
Right then and there, it was ALL downhill, and there seemed to be no saving this character at all. We never saw any chemistry between Michael and Nelle during the few months GH attempted to make Nelle sympathetic.
When that didn’t work, they teamed her up with Ava, and we couldn’t wait to see what happened. Somehow, Nelle turned out to be more twisted than Ava, and we never thought that could happen.
Lanier played her to perfection, but by the time she got pregnant, the entire show seemed to revolve around her… and THAT’S where it all went wrong.
Nelle was a new character nobody really liked with absolutely no true connection to anyone. She should have been removed from Michael’s orbit immediately, but instead, GH tried and tried with a pair that was NEVER going to work.
When Nelle began her gaslighting scheme and her over-the-top baby shower produced a penguin mobile and a tumble down the stairs, we were done… and so was Nelle. She’d been written into a corner and Lanier seems to have realized that.
After winning a well-deserved Emmy, she opted to leave the soap before things got even worse, but Nelle is still nine months pregnant and something has to happen here. The question is… what?
At this point, Nelle losing her baby would be way too tragic, but with the character gone (now that everyone has figured her out), the baby has to end up somewhere.
Will Michael become a single father? Will the child end up with Lucas and Brad? Will Nelle reveal Michael is NOT the father and just take off with him or her?
Nelle might even manage to switch places with Carly and end up in Ferncliff although she things she’s getting married this week. Will she?
Whatever happens, it can’t happen soon enough. While we’ll miss Lanier, it’s time to finally end the PC Nelle Hell.
General Hospital (GH) airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes.
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