General Hospital Best and Worst of 2024

Writing a best and worst list for General Hospital was an interesting process given the year it just had. The revolving door of head writer teams plus a writers' strike led to a feeling of constant redirection for the sudser. Thankfully, GH still had its moments.

In all, 2024 will be a year remembered more for what happened offscreen than onscreen.  GH has yet to recover from the multitude of mistakes and odd choices that were made not only in 2024, but prior years. The gentlemen in charge have stated that they want to win back the show's once loyal viewers. However, nearly all attempts to do this have only highlighted a stubborn disconnect with the audience. There's a balance between pandering to fans and expecting them to watch the show even if it's bad. GH has not yet found that balance. Maybe they'll get closer to that goal this year.

Additionally, the cast underwent major changes. Robert and Holly reunited and bid Port Charles adieu, Dex became Joss' latest boyfriend to walk towards the light, Blond Jagger took a bullet, Valentin went on the run, Spencer died, Nik went to jail, the Chase family was disassembled, Blaze went on tour so we could all try to forget her mother is a bigot, there was another dead baby (because what year would be complete without one?), and longtime fan favorite Sam took her last breath. While other core families were being torn apart, the Spencers began reforming with the grand returns of Lulu and Lucky. Ric is back to cause trouble and breathe some air into a lifeless canvas. The Quartermaines are getting some long overdue attention.

Here are our picks for Best and Worst of General Hospital for 2024!

Worst Story - Pikeman

Jeff Giles: Remember when people were upset about the Fluke storyline crumbling into a meandering mess? That feels so quaint now that we've lived through eons of the Pikeman saga staggering around the canvas like a drunken party guest, smashing furniture and leaving messes that would end up being swept under various rugs in a mad dash to try and make everything look more or less exactly the way it did before. What was the point of any of this? 

Jenn Bishop: Can we even call Pikeman a story??? I can't recall a point during this all-too-long saga where any semblance of story took place. GH would have benefitted from dropping this story and pretending it never happened, yet it seemed to be a major focus every time a "new" writer took the reins. I'm not sure who behind the scenes thought that another "good mobsters fight mysterious bad guy to prove they are the good mobsters" story was so essential, but they were sadly mistaken. 

Dropped Story That Shouldn't Have Been - The Death of Jagger

Jeff: Credit where credit's due: In terms of dropped stories, 2024 was actually a far better year than the one before it. Last year, the writers decided to forget about Taggert, forget about Harmony's ghost, and almost completely ignore the murder of Austin Gatlin-Holt. This year, they mostly just forgot about Ava's stalker and Jagger's murder. Between those two, the choice is obvious: Sonny never, ever should have been the one to kill Jagger unless the writers were prepared to make him suffer the consequences. They tried like hell to make us see Jagger as a dangerous villain, and tried even harder to convince us that Sonny simply had to stay out of prison for the sake of his children, but that crap has long since stopped working on this show.

Jenn: I'm not sure if Blond Jagger was meant to be a petty jab at an obnoxious former actor or not, but if it looks like a duck... Either way, this character's return obviously didn't happen for the right reasons. He could have just as easily quietly gone on to the next big case in the next big town. Sonny killing Jagger didn't accomplish what the writers thought it would, despite heavy-handed attempts to turn a once heroic character — one with an autistic son who depends on him — into a villain. If anything, it made it look as though GH has run out of stories to tell for their lead.

Worst Couple - Natalia and Sonny

Jeff: The easy pick here is Drew and Willow, because that's gross, but at least their unwatchable dalliances have resulted in some genuinely soapy stories. Sonny and Natalia, on the other hand, are this year's version of Carly and Drew — you can feel how badly TPTB want us to be invested in this pairing, but there's no getting around how pointless and dull it is, or how much effort is required to try and paint bigoted, shrewish Natalia in a more positive light. They make the lukewarm Carly and Brennan seem positively sizzling in comparison.

Jenn: Spoiler alert! Unless something else really, really bad happens, Drew and Willow will be the worst couple of 2025. For 2024, Sonny and Natalia get the Razzie for Worst Couple. Eva LaRue has earned her star status and is a very likable actress, but Natalia's introduction was all kinds of ungood. Pairing her with Sonny isn't going to make her an instant hit when there is no spark and no story. It feels like Sonny is dating the woman who broke his daughter's heart simply because he needed something to do.

Best Potential Couple - Ric and Ava

Jeff: There are times when you can feel the writers flailing about in search of potential pairings. Other times, characters align so perfectly that you'd have to be dead to miss it, and that's what we have with Ric and Ava. I don't know how long Rick Hearst is sticking around, but I hope it's long enough for Ric and Ava to make suds fly.

Jenn: Ric and Ava teaming up so they can be deliciously naughty together is something that critics and fans have suggested throughout social media for years. Needless to say, it has not disappointed. Rick Hearst and Maura West have very natural chemistry together. With all of Ric's exes and rivals and Ava's many clashes with the citizens of Port Charles, there is plenty of exciting story that can be told for this duo.

Biggest Surprise - Sam's Death

Jeff: These days, it's fairly uncommon for soap stories to generate enough buzz to justify consistent coverage from the mainstream press; if nothing else, Kelly Monaco can take some small amount of satisfaction from the knowledge that her GH exit was big enough news to prove the exception to that rule. Of course, it received that kind of coverage because the fanbase was furious — and their fury ultimately proved justified, given that Sam's exit included her senseless murder at the hands of a character who's hardly ever on and whose motives remain murky at best — but the decision to get rid of her definitely came as a surprise.

Jenn: Sam being killed off was something I think nobody had on their Bingo card. I imagine nobody will ever know exactly what was behind the decision, but it's a sad way for Kelly Monaco's GH career to end. Had the decision led to an interesting storyline, it would have softened the blow for her many fans, but those closest to Sam appear to have already found other things to do and we've been left with a bizarre murder mystery that makes very little sense. 

The "Find a Cure For it Already" Award - Deadbeat Dads

Jeff: The two most underwhelming returns of 2024 came in the form of Jason Morgan and Lucky Spencer. Their stories have been more or less completely disappointing for different reasons, but they have one thing in common: They're both deadbeat dads, and the writers are bound and determined to portray both of them as heroes. Thanks to the chaotic writing that fueled the Pikeman story, Jason's absence basically came down to him being willing to sacrifice years with his own children in order to protect Carly from her own dumb mistakes; Lucky, meanwhile, is just a selfish dick who'd rather dodge bullets and drink boiled water than deal with the people who inexplicably love him. If Ric isn't allowed to walk six feet in Port Charles without someone accusing him of being a shitty dad to Molly, then neither of these jerks should ever stop hearing about the fallout from their absences.

Jenn: Look, none of these fictional dads need to be perfect. Let them be flawed! We don't need to see all of the father/child bonding moments — a lot of that can be implied — but it would be nice for GH to not act as if Jason and Lucky being fathers makes them less adventurous or appealing. Even Luke wasn't this bad! He loved being Lucky and Lulu's dad. The writers were able to work with his fatherhood while still having Luke be wild. Seeing Jason and Lucky never putting their families and romantic partners first is too hard for the audience to look past, especially given how we've seen their baby mamas struggle. GH needs to fix this.

"You Really Wrote That" Award - Sasha is Robert and Holly's Daughter

Jeff: The show made a huge unforced error when it fiddled with history in order to turn Ethan into Luke and Holly's lovechild. Fifteen years later, we're dealing with another painfully unnecessary Scorpio-related retcon in the form of Sasha suddenly turning out to be Robert and Holly's daughter. Everything about this storyline reeks of extremely little forethought, not to mention knowledge of GH history — and so far, it hasn't even given us anything in the way of satisfying drama. Mostly, all it's done is split up Sasha and Cody, who were arguably the only entertaining couple on the canvas.

Jenn: Sasha being Holly and Robert's daughter was just weird! And not in an interesting way either. Like JD Vance weird! There isn't even any real family drama to be had with Holly and Robert gone. There would have been more story benefit in making her Lucy Coe's daughter. If the goal was to break up Sasha and Cody, there were much more sensible ways to do it. Sasha and Michael used to have a relationship; they could have fallen into bed simply because their current relationship woes brought up some old feelings. This was unnecessary. 

Best Family - The Quartermaines

Jeff: The carnage of the Guza years has made it hard to cobble together anything approaching a semblance of the once-vibrant Q clan, but the writers have at least put in an effort over the last few years; with half the town currently residing in Monica's mansion, the family feels like more of a focal point than it's been in quite some time. Next step: Inject some new blood by bringing Lila Rae back to town, along with one of the many pissed off children AJ had to have left scattered around the world before his (most recent) death.

Jenn: There's still a long way to go to bring the Quartermaines back to their former glory, but all the messy drama at Monica's house that Alan gave her is a clear step in the right direction. While I could do without Gio's golly gee shucks expressions, Cody's whatever and Drew's Drewing, it's a delight to see Tracy and Ned snarking at the family dysfunction around them as only true Qs can.

Worst Family - The Chase Men

Jeff: Nothing against any of these actors, all of whom are talented in their own right, but if you've been watching soaps for any length of time, you're familiar with the feeling one gets while watching a hastily assembled family appear from nowhere and eat the canvas. The writers tried a lot of tricks — including connecting the Chases to Jackie Templeton, giving Gregory an incurable disease, and driving Finn to drink — but none of them really worked. Chase is the last man standing now, and it's been ages since he did anything besides offer advice or try to figure out how to have sex with his wife through three layers of clothing.

Jenn: Forcing a new core family on the audience at the expense of the longtime characters the viewers know and love has never worked, yet it happens time and time again. This was the case with the Chase men: The more Emmy reels and man pain that was thrown at these guys, the worse it got, and neither Chase's puppy dog face or Violet's precociousness could save it. Sending all but one packing was a wise and necessary decision. 

Character of the Year - Tracy

Jeff: God bless Jane Elliot. I hope her reasons for going back on her 2017 retirement are happy ones, because I don't want to feel guilty for being happy to see Tracy Quartermaine each and every time she's onscreen. One could certainly argue that the show has done a poor job of giving her a solid storyline over the last year, but it almost doesn't matter; virtually without fail, Elliot looks like she's having a blast playing Tracy, and that — along with her razor-sharp comedic timing — elevates every scene. Long may she snark.

Jenn: What is GH without Tracy Quartermaine? Every soap needs their entertaining grand dame and the Q matriarch provides that for GH better than anyone else. Without her feisty wit, the show would just be a bunch of whiny mobsters humping everything. I want her to stay forever.

Character We Could Care Less About - Gio

Jeff: Gio Palmieri has been doofing around Port Charles since May, and he's yet to do a single damn thing that a random day player couldn't have done. He's so pointless that he's starting to make me hate the violin, and I'm preemptively furious about him being used as a floppy-haired wedge to create a retcon baby between Dante and Brook Lynn.

Jenn: A violin is not a personally. Sure Gio is cute and sure he can play the violin but an attractive musician isn't anything unique to the soap world. He's currently just a plot point without a plot waiting to eventually become a plot point with a plot that nobody asked for.

Best Return - Ric

Jeff: Ric Lansing is one of those characters who seems to need a rest every few years, primarily because he tends to do things that make a lot of people hate him all at once. His most recent absence went on way too long, though, and part of the proof lies in just what a breath of fresh air it's felt like to have him arching an eyebrow throughout Port Charles since blessedly returning to us in August. Whether he's trying to woo Elizabeth, flirting with Ava, or trading barbs with any of his numerous enemies, it's always a pleasure to see our former DA; here's hoping his current stint lasts for a good, long time.

Jenn: I think one of the things that makes Ric's return work is that Rick Hearst is one of those sadly all too rare actors that understands his assignment is to entertain. No budget blowing reintroduction or special promotion was needed. He organically became part of the Port Charles canvas again without any pressure on the viewers or the writers to fit him in. There is tons of story potential for him. The best part is that it feels like his return was an audience decision rather than one brought on by executive panic.

Character Most In Need of a Makeover - Lucky

Jeff: It would be easy to focus this entry on Lucky's aggressively unkempt appearance, but this character's need for a makeover extends beyond his patchy beard and hair you can hear crying out for the tender touch of some shampoo and conditioner. Lucky really needs to be addressed on a holistic, fundamental level — and unfortunately, the longer he's back, the more it seems clear that the writers aren't interested in taking him anywhere new, but are instead convinced that the audience really wants a complete redux of his long-dead relationship with Elizabeth. I guess that'll be an improvement over having him wander around town while whining about his lack of purpose, but still.

Jenn: Lucky was never a character that I felt GH needed back. To be clear, I once loved the spunky and charming kid. However, his transformation from kind-hearted, adventurous teen to emotionally lazy douchebag was not a pretty character journey. Propping by the show's most beloved characters is not the way to solve this. Lucky needs some serious rehab and I'm not talking about the sex-with-Maxie-while-drugging-out variety. Dude needs to learn some responsibility and start earning back both Liz and the viewers' love.

Hit the comments and let us know what you thought GH's Best and Worst of 2024 was!