General Hospital Diagnosis: The Best & Worst of 2021

Writing a best and worst list for General Hospital was a bit of a daunting task this year. The show needs to lighten up. All the doom and gloom made GH a very hard show to watch at times. However, despite all that is wrong with GH, there is still much to adore. 

2021 was a weird year for the daytime drama. The bold move was made to break up nearly all the couples and try out some new ones. While a refresh was needed, the experience had less than favorable results due to GH’s ongoing issues with writing romance. Peter is still alive and eating up precious screen time regardless of the awareness that the character has ruined the show. Bizarre rewrites and story decisions were made that seemed to have no real purpose, such as Hayden's previous attempted murder and Franco’s brutal death. 

We said goodbye (for now anyway) to Jordan and welcomed Mac back as the head of the PCPD. Alexis spent the better part of the year behind bars reconnecting with her past love Shawn and striking up a new friendship with Harmony. Sonny forgot who he was for nine months and turned into a gentleman cowboy. Nina got her revenge on Carly and a better love interest. Carly was...all over the place. The Quartermaines and the Cassadines soaked in family disfunction as long-lost relatives returned, rivalries were born, and secrets were kept. Spencer stalked Ava with the help of his girlfriend, Esme. Ned and Olivia’s marriage continued to be tested when Leo was diagnosed with autism. Maxie and Brook Lynn pulled a baby switch because what the world needs is more of this tired trope. Brando and Sasha’s baby died on Christmas. Britt and Terry had a Mean Girls-inspired battle for Chief of Staff that ended up amounting to very little drama. Brad finally got out of jail thanks to his crime boss aunt. Curtis’s dad returned from the dead. Jason returned to the dead. And some beloved vets found love again. 

For better or worse, here is my best and worst of 2021!

Best Couple: Valentin and Anna 

Allegedly the success of Valentin and Anna’s new romance was a bit of a surprise for GH. After all, Anna had just ended her popular pairing with quirky Dr. Finn. But the soap opera aficionados who have been watching at home were not surprised even a little bit. What’s not to love about an exciting affair between a badass heroine and suave bad boy? Of course, the fact that Finola Hughes and James Patrick Stuart have smoking hot chemistry is just icing on the cake! 

The couple’s admiration for each other is nothing new. It’s always been there—even when they were with others. Anna isn’t a stranger to men who are on the naughty list—she’s had popular pairings with David Hayward and Duke Lavery—so this match has a very in-character vibe to it. Valentin has loved Anna since the beginning (back when he was a young hunchback), and his taste in willful women who like to take charge was apparent during his relationship with Nina and even his one-night stand with Brook Lynn. Whether it was ever intended for these two lovebirds to get together or not, the viewers have been treated to years of a slow-burn that so far has paid off. 

Sexiest Couple: Liesl and Scotty 

Liesl and Scotty did not have a slow burn like Valentin and Anna. They mostly just knew each other via their mutual connection to Franco. But ever since they hopped into the sack after a few too many sips of alcohol, these two have been doing it like bunnies all over Port Charles. Their infatuation has been a lot of fun to watch, and us fans who spent years suggesting these two entertaining characters hook up have been enjoying the ride. 

Best Potential Supercouple: Spencer and Trina 

Despite having a mostly likable cast of characters for its teen set, GH never really seemed to settle on any young romance outside of Joss’s not brief enough courtship with uber-annoying little Oscar. That changed this year. While the writers finally put Joss and Cameron together, Spencer made his way to town and caught the eye of the lovely Trina. 

Trina and Spencer have the two critical (and necessary) ingredients that make up a supercouple—chemistry and writing. In a genre that relies way too heavily on actor attractiveness to sell a pairing nowadays, it’s refreshing to see a young potential pairing that is not only visually appealing but played by two actors who have the charm and talent to generate proper chemistry. Their story is classically soapy in the best way, with the nice girl slowly winning the heart of the arrogant prince. The addition of Spencer’s gold digger girlfriend Esme provides a solid obstacle for the future sweethearts to overcome. We can’t wait to see the moment when these two finally get together. 

Worst Couple: Everyone Else 

Yes, you read that right. The one word that best describes all the new pairings GH gave us this year is “random”. When you pair two people who aren’t an obvious pairing or who’ve had little interaction before, your goal is to intrigue your viewers and make them curious about the new couple. That can’t happen if the initial coupling isn’t built on a solid foundation, or you never explain why these two characters would become attracted to each other. For example, Sam and Dante did gain some following with the more recent romantic beats played. But that was only after GH wasted everyone’s time focusing on the fact that they share a brother, not to mention a sister, something that should be a non-factor on a soap. 

Jason and Britt’s story started okay. But is okay really good enough for the next “hot” couple? There were undoubtedly some issues at the beginning that impacted the audience’s enjoyment, such as the vibe that Britt was taken out of her natural element as hospital troublemaker and just being used as “Sam 2.0” to better fit into Jason’s world. However, it was refreshing to see someone who wasn’t afraid to call Jason out, and initially, they had chemistry. But Jason’s fake marriage to Carly was an enormous obstacle and much too heavy to be thrown at such a new couple. Once that was over, so was any spark Jason and Britt once had. 

After the powers that be made the perplexing choice to kill off Franco, thus ending one of the all too few pairings on GH that had any chemistry, what followed can only be described as an unorganized mess. Liz’s story skipped over her mourning period to rush into a Groundhog Day romance with Finn. Liz and Finn’s story has been played on loop ever since—not killing Peter, caress/almost kiss/kiss that is flashbacked to multiple times, friends and family encouraging them to start dating, agreeing on a first date, then going back to the beginning...rinse, repeat. I’ve never seen a couple written this way before and hope I never do again. 

Roger Howarth’s new character Austin hasn’t fared any better in the romance department. Six months in, and the only hint at a pairing has been a meaningless crush on Maxie. While I buy Austin and Maxie as friends, there was never any commonality between the two to get them to the next level. Austin running around the woods half-naked and then Maxie giving birth wasn’t exactly the sexy meet-cute that the writers thought it was.

The few pairings that survived the great couple shakeup were the ones that shouldn’t have. Michael and Willow continue to be awful, entitled, and unaware. While the duo seems to have a Facebook following, a lot of fans are tired of their endless conversations about Wiley (which seem to serve as foreplay) and judgmental attitudes. 

The “You Really Wrote That?” Award: Jason and Carly’s Wedding 

With no clear story transition, Jason and Carly suddenly were forced to get married for reasons that still remain unclear, leading to Jason humiliating his current girlfriend, Britt. Then, out of nowhere, Jason and Carly suddenly declared they’d really been in love for decades, but pesky Sonny was always standing in the way. This storyline completely nullified all Jason and Carly’s past declarations of love (and there were plenty). Sorry, Sam and Liz, Jason was just using you. Thanks for taking care of the kids! Sorry, Sonny! Carly has just been secretly wishing you would get out of the way this whole time. Swoon. Oh, and Carly even took custody of Robin’s bridge, turning that iconic spot into just another place for Carly to cry. 

The wedding took up multiple weeks—no doubt costing the show a pretty penny—only to provide zero payoffs when Sonny returned before Jason and Carly got horizontal. Then Jason quickly ran off to Europe while Carly reassured Sonny she loved him. 

The fallout of what happened in Nixon Falls is still playing out, and the triangle between Carly, Sonny, and Nina is good soap. But all that could have been accomplished without wasting everyone’s time with a fake wedding. 

Find a Cure For It Already: Amnesia 

No, I’m not talking about Sonny’s time in Nixon Falls. They say that soap fans have long memories. But, unfortunately, the same can’t be said about GH’s writing staff. Time and time again, the GH writers kept forgetting what they’d already written. The most extreme example, of course, is the confusing case of Hayden’s shooting. While a lot of that story arc seemed like intentional rewrites, there didn’t appear to be any point to it in the end. Unless the intention was to give the audience a headache as we tried to figure out exactly what was going on and why it didn’t match up with what we already knew. 

Bringing on soap star Cameron Mathison as a recast Drew was a bold move, and I’m all for him making the role his own. But I still want Drew to be Drew. Drew is a savvy businessman, heroic Navy Seal, and loving family man. The rewrites to make him more “Jason-like” are making him look like a dipshit. Jason is everything Drew despises, not admires. Carly and Sonny were not his nearest and dearest friends; Franco and Elizabeth were. Drew left to try to save Franco, and yet, upon his return, going to see his widow wasn’t even on his radar? But comforting Carly and Sonny were? Okay, Ferncliff.

Best Performer: Nancy Lee Grahn in the Standalone Alexis episode 

Nancy Lee Grahn is one of the best actors in the business, and it’s always a treat to watch her breathe life into any role she plays. GH has shown other standalone episodes before, but none of them felt quite as soulful and emotional as the episode produced for Grahn’s 25th anniversary for her role of Alexis Davis. 

Alexis is the most human character on GH. Sometimes you adore her; sometimes, you hate her. But she’s always very real. The credit goes to the perfect acting choices Grahn makes with every story she’s given—whether she’s being a tough-as-nails lawyer or the Quartermaine’s butler. For her special episode, we were treated to one hour of Grahn playing the many layers of her character, showing how the frightened daughter of a notorious madman turned into a strong seeker of justice. She effortlessly made us feel it all.