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It is no secret that as a fan of good writing and good use of history, elements
that, in the context of General Hospital, Usenet fans on rec.arts.tv.soaps.abc
call SWATCH (Strong Writing With Attention to Character History), I have not been
thrilled with what has appeared on the screen over the months since the show's
production and writing teams changed. I like characters to be smart, dialog to
be crisp and character-savvy, and I want situations and storylines to be organic,
growing from sturdy foundations and plausible set-ups. Needless to say, I haven't
been getting much of what I want since the advent of Jill Farren Phelps and head
writer Meghan McTavish. Instead, I've been getting montages, an influx of new
faces, and an appalling return to the kind of science fiction gimmickry that went
out with the Planet Lumina. But sometimes, somehow, all the tricks, smoke, and
mirrors work, at least for a day.
The July 3 episode of General Hospital returned the show, if only for
an hour, to the realm of creativity, SWATCH, and charm. 24 hours before Independence
Day, GH resorted to a Phelps standby, the stand-alone episode, and, for
once, scored. While the gruesome twosome of Stavros and Helena meet on the GH
roof to discuss the past, Stavros's play with a rose triggered a town-wide series
of dreams in which his presence is felt and, in some cases, seen. I really liked
the way this episode pushed things forward emotionally and prepared the canvas
for what I hope will be Stavros's full and public coming-out to Port Charles.
Here are just a few of my favorite things:
In Luke's dream, Laura is calm and empowered, and Luke feels lost. She is a
guide, but always there ahead of him, even though in his waking life Luke sees
himself on top of his game and miles ahead of everyone else. When Laura tells
him she can take him no further because they are divorced and have signed the
papers, he cries out "We have to get the papers back." His anguish made
me think of "In Dreams," by one of his favorites, Roy Orbison. Very
cool.
In the rooftop conversations between Stavros and Helena we finally see Stavros
as he sees himself. It doesn't matter that we don't believe his picture of a contemplative,
romantic man who lost his wife, his son, his rose garden. He believes this
picture, not the brutal, vicious monster Stefan, Alexis, and above all, Laura
know. For the first time we see that Stavros views himself as a tragic hero, a
man disenfranchised and beset by enemies and not all that thrilled by his mother.
This episode has done much to wash away the bad taste the ridiculous sci-fi introduction
of a reanimated FrankenStavros left in my mouth. Now if they can focus on this
Stavros and not the one who reentered the 21st century with nary a blink...
Without so much as a kiss, Melissa and Roy are revealed through their dreams
as miles more compatible than Bobbie and Roy. They are mature and caring, not
two geriatric teenagers boinking like minks but with nothing to say. Melissa and
Roy's past enriches their present, not stagnates it. I like it.
Gia is a born survivor, so it was refreshing that of all the troubled dreamers,
her dream bore out her power. She helps her lover, defeats her foe, and aids Laura
in facing the spectre of Stavros. And in Nikolas's more disturbing dream she is
again his rock, even though he ends by facing the horror that he is his father's
mirror image.
Laura's dream continues the Dream Factory setting of her day in Hollywood with
Scott, but the ease with which Scott is supplanted by director/Luke says it all.
And the change between the two Lukes is exciting: as the director stepping into
the role, mustached Luke speaks the same lines Scott did, but with his own twist.
Suddenly, he is revealed as Luke in the here and now, departing from the script
as Scott notes and speaking from his heart. Laura, as author of her dream, has
the leading man she desires. Later, when she faces Stavros with her faux-wedding
day roses in her hair, her face reflects the full horror of recognition.
Like others, I liked Felicia's dream least. But I think its sore-thumb, James
Bond quality is intended to be out of step, reflecting how out of step her waking
dream of Luke is.
Stefan's dreams of Chloe and childhood were revealing and sad, foreshadowing
the destruction of any shred of happiness once Stavros reveals himself to him.
And how significant that the first sign we really see of Stavros's sexual power
(great leg, as "Small Things" maven Teresa Elaine Leslie remarked!)
takes place in his brother's bed, with his brother's current blonde. The sailboat
dream is very revealing, too, reminding us that whatever he thinks of himself,
Stefan knows intimately Stavros's brutality, self-absorption and insistence on
claiming all of his father's gifts, literal and figurative (and how significant
that they fight over their father's present, not Helena's). And Alexis's role
in Stefan's life, and possible role in defeating his brother in the walking world,
is beautifully shown, first as the unacknowledged child of Mikkos and then as
the strong woman she is today. In childhood Stefan was Alexis's protector, in
his dream life now, she fills that role.
Luke's final dream returns him to the maze we've seen before, now revealed
by Stavros to be a trap. The hands he has attributed to so many others-Felicia,
Bobbie, Lulu-now appear to him accompanied by Laura's comforting voice, and on
waking he asks "Laura, was it you?" The question has so much pathos
in it, and the question affects much more than the present peril.
This episode may have been a holiday present for fans hungry for some substance
after months of pap. If nothing else, it shows what this regime can do right.
Here's hoping it wasn't just a flash--or a rocket--in the pan. Obviously the dreadful
Megan McTavish didn't write this piece--the credits show a name I haven't seen
much, James Fryman. I hope he wasn't brought in just for this, because the guy
knows what he's doing. If it's back to the old tomorrow, I'll know it really was
all a dream.
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