GH: 51st Anniversary Episode

On April 1, 2014, the 51th anniversary of General Hospital was celebrated. Here is a short summary with comments about the episode.

The main stories shown were Sonny dealing with his past with Carly and his feelings over AJ's death, the friendships among Kevin, Lucy, Felicia, Mac, Bobbie and Scott, and AJ going to heaven. I did like that the characters focused on weren't all new to the program. That said I wish it was more of a feel good episode, as it made me kind of depressed.

As part of the special episode, Sonny (Maurice Benard) spoke with not just the current Carly (Laura Wright), but also two of the actresses who played Carly in the past Sarah Brown and Tamara Braun. The way this was done was interesting, but it felt almost like a DVD special feature instead of part of a soap opera episode. Important clips from the characters' history and commentary in character was also included.

Kevin, Lucy, Felicia and Mac hung out and spoke about what was going on in their lives. Bobbie and Scott also caught up as she revealed that Noah broke up their relationship and is now seeing Annie Logan off camera. Of course, most viewers have no idea how Annie is, but that's okay I guess. I only know from random old episodes and how Susan Pratt played the role. Susan Pratt had much more significant roles on All My Children as Barbara, and Guiding Light as Clare. Felicia and Lucy spoke about Lucy's feelings for Scott, and Bobbie figured out that Lucy and Scott had an affair. I wish this part of the show had been more light-hearted as in many stories these were the "fun characters".

The AJ death portion made me melancholy. It made me sad seeing Leslie Charleson play another death, even if Emily came from a ghostly visit to reunite AJ with his other dead relatives. We saw the backs of his grandparents Lila and Edward and his father Alan. Of course, I wonder if this will be the last Monica story ever, which is a depressing thought. The voiceover in the hospital and the mention of late cast members, was a big sigh of a moment as most everyone shown has passed away in real life. One of the greatest things about soaps is watching for years and being emotionally invested, but at times it is one of the hardest.

While it wasn't an uplifting episode, at least GH's anniversary was celebrated. I hope the 52nd anniversary has a more upbeat tone.