Returns, Exits and a Pair of Battles Royale! At Last, the ‘New’ General Hospital Is Taking Shape: Here’s What to Expect

After General Hospital shook up its writers’ room early in 2024, we’ll admit it: We had mixed feelings, for as curious as we were about what fresh blood would do once injected into ABC’s only daytime drama, we’d really liked what the previous tag team had been churning out. (In fact, they just won a Daytime Emmy for their efforts.)

As new material began to air, we started to wonder whether the switcheroo had been a good idea at all. Why was Jagger back in Port Charles, suddenly blond and calling himself John? How come Brennan was being set up to be basically the same suave baddie that Valentin had always been? Had anyone been clamoring to see Drew and Nina have hate sex? And why on earth was Ava tempting fate by withholding from Sonny that his bipolar prescription had been tampered with?

We weren’t excited, we were worried. Now, though, as the dust begins to settle, we’re starting to see what General Hospital 2.0 might resemble. Thankfully, it’s pretty cool. Read on, and we’ll go over what you can expect in the weeks ahead (and beyond).

More: General Hospital’s Jason problem? Solved!

Jason/Liz/Lucky

At first, we didn’t get why the new regime would friend-zone Carly and Jason rather than allow them to explore the feelings that had been reawakened in the lead-up to their “marriage.” What was the point of even bringing Steve Burton back if not to play Stone Cold in a red-hot love affair? Now it’s all becoming clear. With Michael Easton leaving as Finn and Jonathan Jackson returning as Lucky, Rebecca Herbst’s Elizabeth is being positioned for a triangle for the ages, and all we can say is, “May the best man win!”

Sonny Vs. Ava

After what happened when Morgan’s bipolar meds were tampered with, we don’t buy for a second that Ava would risk letting history repeat itself with Sonny (or, worse, putting Avery in danger, owing to his mood swings). Even if Ava was that cold, she’s not that dumb. But at last we can see where the show was headed: a massive custody battle over the little girl conceived when her parents had mausoleum sex. The fight is destined to be epic and ugly — and, best of all, it will put Maura West and Kin Shriner in a whole lotta scenes together. What will it take to convince the powers that be that Ava and Scotty have to happen?

Kristina and Blaze Vs. Molly and TJ

Less surprising than the looming custody battle between Avery’s parents is the one that seems to be in the cards for Molly, TJ and their surrogate, Kristina. Did anyone not predict that the sisters would wind up fighting over that baby? Of course not. We all did. The thing we still can’t wrap our heads around is, why would the show green-light what amounts to two custody brouhahas at the same time? Our fear is that after all these months, Kristina is going to wind up losing the child whose arrival she, Blaze, Molly and TJ have all been eagerly anticipating.

Brook Lynn and Chase’s Insta-Family

Credit where it’s due: It’s brilliant of the scribes to set up Violet to live with newlyweds Brook Lynn and Chase indefinitely. First of all, it means that we get to keep the adorable Jophielle Love. But on top of that, it gives Brook Lynn and Chase a super sweet obstacle to overcome together. How can they be there for this little girl that they so love? And how can they balance that with the lives that they expected to be living as a newly hitched couple? Amanda Setton and Josh Swickard are gonna knock this not just out of the park, all the way out of the parking lot!

Trading Places?

Honestly, we don’t see how Valentin gets out of the corner into which he’s been written as the mastermind behind Pikeman. It feels like Brennan is being positioned as, in essence, a new Valentin, a villain who’s charming enough to get away with it (most of the time). Working in Jack’s favor is certainly the fact that he’s captured Carly’s interest. Wherever her gaze falls, storyline follows. It would just be a terrible waste to get rid of James Patrick Stuart, who not only plays the last remaining Cassadine on the canvas, he excels at everything from high drama to swoon-worthy romance. Perhaps instead of being sent up the river, Valentin could become a new love interest for Ava? (Yeah, we know we just said that we wanted her with Scotty; it’s not our fault Maura West has chemistry with everybody!)

Trina’s Rebound Romance

Newbie Gio is obviously being pointed in Trina’s direction, but we’re iffy on the pairing. Aside from being cute and nice, what would she see in him? What would wow her after her great love affair with Spencer? Gio’s violin-playing? It also rather befuddles us that Brook Lynn’s cousin is so concerned about Sonny. If Gio follows in the footsteps of Stone, Jason, Dex, etc., and goes to work for the Mob boss, wouldn’t that just leave Trina playing the same storyline that briefly broke up BFF Josslyn and Dex? Trina deserves something better and more original for sure.

Mac’s Unexpected Father’s Day

Now that John J. York is back on the canvas as Mac, the countdown has really begun to the reveal that Cody is the son that he never knew he had. We’re 100-percent into it. There’s just one problem: Where’s the drama? Mac has already become a Cody convert — he likes the guy. And Cody admires Mac so much that he’s been reluctant to confess their connection. So what, exactly, is the conflict there? TBD.