Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Before we get too far, I have a complaint. I’m not sure if it’s a writing issue or a final editing issue, but was I the only one feeling kind of ripped off to see Patrick, Robin, Lulu, and Dillon on a plane with absolutely zero back story? Patrick tells Robin the only reason he agreed to come along is because she was such a big help with his father. I would have liked to see her asking him to come. There is a similar exchange between Dillon and Lulu, and when the scene cuts back to Port Charles, Georgie is complaining about the huge fight she and Dillon had before he ran off on a big adventure with Lulu. What was only referred to would have made interesting viewing.
This isn’t the only time they’ve referred to big scenes instead of shown them. Robin moved out of Mac’s, got an apartment, and furnished it but the only mentions of it appeared on Robin’s Daily Dose, the character’s blog on ABC‘s website. It was only when she invited Patrick to dinner did we actually learn on screen that she wasn’t living with her uncle anymore.
But on to what we’ve been seeing on the screen. The young foursome jetted to the Maarkam Islands to save Robin and Lulu’s aging fathers from Holly and themselves. While there were some cute moments: Patrick whining that he would never forgive Robin if anything happened to his hands, the group of four pairing off and posing as two young couples to sidetrack the bounty hunters, and Holly flirting mercilessly with any and every male to try and make her escape with the found jewels; the real fun began when Anna made her huge entrance, scaling down from a helicopter to greet Robin with a hug and Robert with a round house kick to the chin.
Without a doubt Anna is back and it’s the Anna of old not a caricature of the former great persona like what has happened with Robert, Holly, and to an extent Luke. I can accept it’s been twenty plus years since the duo, trio, or group (depending on the summer and the opponent) were outwitting their evil counterparts. I can appreciate them not being as quick on their feet as they use to be, but at times the writers are making WSB agent, or as Dillon refers to him, world renown super spy, Robert Scorpio, out to be a few cards shy of a full deck.
Anna, on the other hand, was quick to keep Holly in check, stay two steps ahead of Robert’s and Luke’s scheming, and almost successfully pulled off acquiring the jewels for herself before Tracy showed up authorities bribed, bounty hunters called off, and return tickets to Port Charles in hand.
In the end, it was Anna who foiled Holly’s master plan and stowed away on her escape plane. Once she had secured the jewels for herself, she jumped from the plane. I think Dillon’s got it all wrong, Anna deserves to be dubbed “super spy.”
There were two touching moments on the island with the newly reunited Scorpio family. In an intense moment, Robert and Anna reassured the young doctor for all the problems they had and as insufferable as they considered the other, they adored her. It was something Robin needed to hear after her last argument with her father, and it was a first tiny step in father and daughter making peace.
The other was when Anna and the young ones were leaving for the airport. Robert hugged his daughter and told her he was glad she came out for the adventure. By far the highlight was finally getting to see Dr. Robin out of her normal element. It’s going to be a little hard for either Patrick or Robert to say she keeps herself sheltered from life now.
Patrick left the island in a rush when he received a phone call from Elizabeth telling him Sam’s life depended on him performing a dangerous operation. Alexis believed Noah’s evaluation that the brain surgery was too risky for Sam and they should give medication a chance to work. Jason on the other hand felt helpless and wanted to do something, so he signed the release and instructed Patrick to operate.
Noah pleaded with Patrick to not risk Sam’s life or his career; Alexis pleaded with Jason to give the medication time to work. Neither listened. While Patrick prepped for surgery, Alexis got an injunction and the surgery was halted…temporarily. Both hotshot young surgeon and the new mob boss were infuriated by the meddling and preceded with the surgery anyway. Elizabeth and Epiphany assisted and all four were arrested shortly after.
The senior Dr. Drake tried to smooth things over for his son by telling Alexis that Patrick’s surgery was nothing short of brilliant, and he had certainly saved her life. Not buying the sudden change of heart, Alexis realized what was going on. Noah admitted he didn’t want to see his son in jail, but stood by the assertion that Patrick had saved Sam. As time passed, Sam remained unconscious, and even though Alexis dropped the charges, when Jason wouldn’t back down and admit his mere presence in Sam’s life put her in danger she moved Sam to a different, undisclosed hospital.
When everyone told Alexis that she was being unreasonable, she returned Sam to General Hospital. At the end of Friday’s show, Sam finally awoke and it would appear she has no ill effects from the surgery. Sonny and Alexis both pointed out to Jason that he is being the king of hypocrites by staying with Sam, while insisting Sonny give up Emily. The former mob boss also thanked Jason for taking his business saying because he is no longer living a dangerous life he and Emily can enjoy their time together. He warned Jason he and Sam no longer have the same luxury.
This week we saw Sonny at the heights of euphoria, giving Emily a room full of roses and himself a brand new Maserati; and the depths of despair; smashing the dishes and flipping over the table after he burned his famous pasta sauce. Once again Emily got a first hand peek at what Jason has only referred to as “When Sonny gets the way he gets.” This time, however, she did take her concerns to Lainey, GH’s resident therapist.
Lainey advised that he seemed to be displaying Bipolar symptoms, but added it was unusual for someone Sonny’s age to go so long without being diagnosed. She gave Emily a handful of pamphlets and advised her to keep a close eye on him. Of course, Sonny soon found the pamphlets. We’ll have to turn in next week to see how he reacts.
Maurice Benard, the actor who plays Sonny, has long been open and upfront about his own Bipolar disorder. It was he who pushed for a storyline that would actually deal with Sonny’s outbursts and I had been curious to see how it was going to play out. I had hoped they wouldn’t gloss over it or just drop the story unresolved as can sometimes happen in fictionalized portrayals.
I was really happy to see Emily confide in Lainey for two reasons. It’s about time this intelligent young med student did something smart instead of just turning a blind eye or saying something moronic like “Oh it’s just how Sonny gets;” and it set in motion a storyline which could very well result in Sonny being diagnosed and seeking treatment. This is a story line that would not only be powerful but also offer information and hope to fans that are living with the condition. Sometimes the most comforting thing in the world can be the knowledge we are not alone in our struggles, and if done correctly this could be a storyline with a purpose.
As Emily was displaying signs of maturity, Maxie was sinking to an all-new selfish and immature low. Having intercepted the paternity test that Dr. Meadows ordered, she learned that Nickolas was John’s father. Instead of immediately turning to the man who had saved her life during the epidemic and had been a shoulder for her to lean on after losing Jesse, she instead tried to blackmail Jax.
Jax was having none of that. Only when she realized she wasn’t going to profit financially did she decide to do the right thing and tell Nicholas. However, she decided to do it over a romantic candle light dinner. Seeing the setup when he arrived at a closed Kelly’s Diner, he immediately told Maxie he didn’t hold any romantic feelings for her. In typical scorned woman fashion, she withheld the paternity information and instead delivered it to Robin who was horrified to now possess a secret she didn’t want to know.
Poor Robin has been crucified for divulging Michael’s true paternity years ago and is now sitting in the exact same position. In this case she considers both Nicholas and Jax friends. Time will only tell how she chooses to handle the secret this time.
Next week on General Hospital: Patrick and Robin turn up the heat, Jason cools things off between him and Sam, and Lucky’s jealous suspicions continue to consume him.
