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GENERAL HOSPITAL: Dante Breaks The News To Lulu; He Is Going Undercover And Leaving Port Charles

Thursday’s episode of General Hospital gives us the exit story for Dominic Zamprogna, since he has wrapped his run as Dante Falconeri.

In story, an emotional Dante asks Lulu (Emme Rylan) to come home early.  Once together, he informs her he is going undercover to get Raj, the man that threw her off the Haunted Star over two years ago, and where she almost drowned.

He goes on to explain to a shocked Lulu that the WSB is putting together a task force to locate the guy and they have a new lead on him.  In fact, Raj is now heavily involved with major gun trafficking ring.

Dante says he has been invited to join the task force and he needs to leave Port Charles tonight.  When asked why he needs to be a part of this … Dante explains he is good at undercover work, and since Raj has never seen him, he could be the key to bring the guy down.  He tells Lulu he wants justice for what Raj did to her.

Lulu is worried about his safety.  Next, Chase (Josh Swickard) stops by Dante’s and he explains to his cop partner he’s leaving town for a while. and asks Chase to please look in on his brother, Michael (Chad Duell), for him.  Chase says he will not let Nelle hurt Michael.

When it’s time for Dante to make his quick departure, he has a heartbreaking goodbye with Lulu.  He doesn’t even have time to personally go and say goodbye to his mother, Olivia (Lisa LoCicero), and there was no mention of his father, Sonny (Maurice Benard).  However,  Dante professes his love to “Leslie Lu”, and remembers the first time they met.  In these scenes, Zamprogna once again had the ability to make us reach for the hankies, something he has done time and time again over his run on the ABC daytime drama.

Dante leaves their home, and thus leaving Lulu in tears.   On the same day, Zamprogna posted two heart-tugging tweets.  One that said, “The love you guys have given me over the years and continue to give is overwhelming. It is I that must thank YOU!”   The second, a shot of a sad-faced Zamprogna vat the PCPD set.

So, what did you think of Dante’s goodbye to Lulu? What did you think of what seemed to be a quick write-out of the character?  Share your thoughts and theories in the comment section below

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lulu was so sad and I felt sorry for her. Dante’s exit was just too quick

Can Raj come back to Port Charles and finish what he started, drown the insipid Lulu? This storyline was obviously written very quickly and not much thought was put into Dante’s exit storyline. What a disaster.

Totally agree

Ha ha! We lose Dante but are stuck with insipid Lulu-Hoop? Life is unfair.

This is at least as sloppy as the way they wrote Laura out, if not worse. Which would lead a Devil to believe that this was not exactly a long term planned departure, as we have been told. An undercover assignment to catch a long forgotten day player villain? What kind of dragonshit is that??

More evidence that this departure was sudden? Remember that cheesy “Summer Fun” promo that they put out a couple weeks back? Dante & Lulu were shown in that promo. Nelle (who is also leaving) was not. I suspect DZ got screwed over by this regime…. just like Genie Francis and several others have in the past 5 years.

Well, you know I gotta agree with the Devil I also have sympathy for him.

Oh, Harry, you Rolling Stone, you.

This all sucks…just because I hate to see him leave. I wish him well in whatever he does next. But secretly, I hope he returns to GH and they write great stories for his talents.

Horrible rush job. It’s like they made the story up on the fly due to a last minute decision.

Yup. Yet, an entire episode is spent on flashbacks of Nelle’s relationship with Chase. & #ParkingLotPeter is featured daily. Dante didn’t say good-bye to his mother (and, I’m not sure about his father). This show is not going down the tubes, it’s down the tubes, already.

Dominic leaving wasn’t surprising… he was simply toooo good for the lame storylines he was given. What was unforgivable on Frank’s part, is not giving Dante a chance to say goodbye
to Olivia, Sonny & Michael.

Exactly, and a last visit to Nathan’s grave, along with a visit to Maxie and the baby. Lazy writing.

Yeah, I did pull out my hankie. Tears were rolling down my cheeks. Oh no, not because Dante is leaving. Its because HE ISNT TAKING LULU WITH HIM!

FUNNY ‼️

I know, Timmm. Hard to believe the WSB doesn’t need an ” ACE” Reporter on the scene to divulge State secrets and the like. By the way, could ACE be an acronym for Amateurish Clumsy Egomaniac?

I guess lonely Lulu will have an affair with Chase….im so done with GH…Jason started out interesting only to rehash his old story…should had change him into the doctor he was going to be with very little memory of his bromance with Too Sonny In PC and his momma bear Snarly…soon as Nelle leaves im no longer a viewer…im still watching days!!!…Is Micheal reverse gaslighting Nelle???

It’s obvious the writers were caught off guard by DZ not re-upping his contract. Frank should have at least thrown LilLo in the episode to get one more Falconeri family scene.

The fake flashback scene lacked emotion as it was a retake of the scene that originally featured Julie Berman. No memorable scene in the past 4 years featuring Rylan? Sad.

The throwaway scene with Sonny and Dante at PCPD the other day felt like a goodbye moment with the hug.

So, is Lulu even necessary anymore? In the past few years, her father, mother, stepmother, both brothers and nephew have departed. Throw in Kevin’s peculiar recent scenes and it makes you wonder if her stepfather might be taking a break. Run, Rocco, run – before the curse gets you, too.

I still think its Luke in that other room…too bad it wasnt Tony Jones or the real Carly-lol

A lot of people think it’s Kevin, and his twin brother is impersonating him, also seemingly now a psychiatrist, when his specialty was pediatrics.
He supposedly died in a fire, but we know how magically this can be turned around. I am thinking its Morgan, who probably learned the Morse Code, somewhere along the way.I just can’t figure why if he was rescued from his own firey crash, why would he be held captive in a place like that, and by whom?

This was so contrived – poorly conceived and poorly written. God bless these talented actors who have to try to sell this material. The show should be embarrassed. Dante didn’t even say goodbye to his own children, let alone his parents! Maybe the person in the room next to Carly at Ferncliff is a talented and creative new head writer who wants to bust out and save this show. Long live GH!

LOL! Now THAT was funny!

The scene between Dante and Lulu was heartbreaking and well played by both actors. But where’s the goodbye scenes between Dante and his father? His mother? It was all too swift and indicative of how badly the GH vets are treated. Dante deserved better. Oh well, that gives more air time to Frank’s pets.

It was very sad but believable

I agree with dmr and some of the other posts. A rush job to sweep Dante off the canvas while saddling us with Lulu is bad enough. But now we have entire scenes of Peter the Puke hallucinating! Why? Do we need fill time? Meanwhile the goodbye scene showed DZ at his best. If he’d had more in depth scenes like this over the years, maybe he wouldn’t be leaving. Also, LOVING the Drew/Franco friendship. Talk about an embarrassment of riches–two great actors with sex appeal and talent to burn lighting up scenes together. What a treat that was on Friday…made up for the puke, sorry, Peter. BTW…do I dare hope that Peter’s surname might also be the month of his departure?

This is an honest question to Soaphound and others, who have expressed their dislike of Wes/Peter. I have liked this actor from way back on GL.I think he is a good actor, but do not hold his personal choices in life against him. So, please tell me what you guys don’t like about him.
Speaking of Carly, is anyone else as disgusted as I am always having to hear how much, she and Jason love each other? I guess they are supposed to love each other as friends, but it gets a little nauseating!

Many longtime fans of the show find it preposterous that Anna would have a child with Faison, a man she truly despised. Not ever mentioning such child in over 40 years was equally ridiculous. It goes against the decades old love story of Robert and Anna and how Anna hid Robin (probably the most beloved character in GH history).

The out-of-nowhere never-before mentioned adult offspring has also been done to death on this show. Monica, Laura, Bobbie, Alexis, Holly and Connie all had adult children appear after years of being on the show. But none of them had waited 40+ years!

Many don’t buy Ramsey’s portrayal of the character as a believable threat. Throwing him in with Maxie during her grief period didn’t help. The details of the parking lot conversations with Frank compound the issue that this character is really not needed on the canvas. I can’t speak for everyone, but I’d rather watch Mac reload napkins at the Floating Rib than anymore of this story.

In summary, Ramsey is just a part of the problem. Writing and ideation are probably bigger concerns.

Well, Violet, speaking for myself, I also liked Wes as Olivia’s brother on GL. I just feel he’s miscast in this role. He doesn’t seem to have the emotional resources that are needed to convey Peter’s suffering. When he recounts his emotional torture from Faison, he sounds like a nine-year-old who had his video game suspended. Not all his fault, he tries hard and isn’t a bad actor. And even Meryl Streep and Al Pacino get miscast occasionally. Add to that the Peter character is unneeded and annoying. But when I see the emotional powerhouses that Maura West, Billy Miller, Roger Howarth, Laura Wright, and others can deliver, Mr. Ramsey just seems like a high school drama student. But we all have our favorites…That’s the fun part of being a fan! CHEERS!

And yes, Violet, I just about hurled over Carly’s latest declaration of love (more like pathological obsession) for Jason. Enough already! This is what Steve Burton came back for? Jason is just Carly’s lapdog. Meanwhile, Drew’s life is growing and expanding in all different, positive directions. Guess it pays to avoid Carly and Sam.

Soaphound, first if all, may I ask if you are male or female? I’d assume male, using the name hound, but you know what assume means.Anyway, thank you for answering my comment, and about your opinion of Peter/Wes.I just feel for him, and guess I want to mother him, and get him away from the crazy and wacky (in that order) Dr.O and Nina. Considering, most of his scenes have been with them, and the other old timers, I feel like he’s held his own, even without L.W’s help. Speaking of witch, they should have let her keep her regular shoes, and she could have used them to answer her neighbor’s S.O.S. Thanks again, always enjoy your comments, even if I don’t always agree.

& yes, tired of the “Jarly” love fest. It’s nauseating.

Dmr,thanks. I am surprised that Kevin doesn’t think it’s a little over the top!

I hate to say this but sometimes a crappy exit story is the TPTB way of giving the finger to a departing actor for not taking the contract offered them. DZ’s exit reminds me the way Days handled the character Bo’s exit when PR wouldn’t take less money. It was so lame, and the character stayed in limbo for years until eventually they had PR back and wrapped up the character Bo in a more fitting way. Soap writers always have contingency plans for characters should contract negotiations tank or an actor decides not to renew or the show decides to drop their option– so this half a@@ goodbye smells fishy to me–its petty, but it happens.

Will have to look at the ep on abc.com…. but I’ll take a rush job of saying goodbye and a contrived reason over Dante’s sudden death. But, it’s hilarious that he’s looking into someone trafficking guns. Isn’t that what we’ve suspected Sonny’s business is? Perhaps, then, this is why he didn’t have a scene with Sonny. I’m hand waving it away and looking forward to the recast in the autumn. You know he’ll be back when Lulu starts looking at photos of him and it’s another actor.

Why couldnt this have been a bigger and longer developed story? Robin, Ana, Robert and now Dante have all just turned to their spouses and children and selfishly telling them that they are leaving.

For all the “soap heroics” there should be more to the story plotline than “im going so deal with it!”

Dante has always been a character written as being MORAL AND ETHICAL but has subverted the law for friends and loved ones (his dad for the most part) and his leaving is another example of how selfish he can be. I mean, did he or the wroters not think about how Lulu’s entire family abandoned her at one time or another? Her dad, mom, brothers, etc. Now her husband opts to do the same for a character we all forgot about.

Looks like GH gave him ( Dominick) the bum’s rush, and probably told him not to let the door hit him on the way out! They could have let the poor guy(Dante) say good by to the kids and his mom and Michael, who live in the same house.They left him sitting on the back burner too long, and he got sick of it.Don’t blame him at all for leaving without much notice. Hopefully, they now know what it feels like, when they dump someone, the same way, i.e,Laura.

Dante was not killed off and said he’d back, so a recast is possible.
I like the way he left, sweet and easy.
but– there will be a ton of Lulu drama from it– and she needs to go / Lulu is hard to tolerate.

Everyone is “deserting” the ship?

General Hospital

Nancy Lee Grahn’s Star-Studded ALS Fundraiser Reveals “I’ll Be There” Video Featuring Soap Opera Notables

Talk about your impressive line-up! It’s a soap fans dream and for a great cause. General Hospital’s Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis Davis) is prepping her one-night only ALS fundraiser which will feature many of her friends and co-stars.

The benefit is set for May 4th in Glendale, California. Slated to participate are Genie Francis, Jane Elliot, Peter Bergman, Maurice Benard, Eileen Davidson, Thorsten Kaye, Michelle Stafford, Stephen Nichols, Rena Sofer, Jason Thompson, Kelly Monaco, Melissa Claire Egan, Maura West, Kristina Wagner, Gregory Harrison, Trevor St. John, Kate Mansi, Kirsten Storms, Cynthia Watros, and many others.

On Wednesday, Grahn took to her social media and released an “I’ll be there” video shout-out featuring, Monaco, Elliot, Bergman, Bernard, West, Harrison, St. John and more. In a touching and important moment in the new video, Michelle Strogny, who is battling ALS, is featured.

Photo: ABC

Previously, in speaking with Soap Opera Digest on the impetus of the event, Grahn recalled, “I was actually doing Zoom events during Covid and I met this woman that I just fell in love with, Michelle Strojny. At the time, Michelle had been living with ALS for four years. Now, it’s five years. She is a mom of a teenage son, she has the most wonderful husband, and she has been dealing with this [disease] for quite a while. And obviously, there isn’t a cure yet. It’s not survivable yet. But as she says, it’s not incurable. Nothing is; it’s underfunded. But anyway, I just really dug this woman. She is so grounded and filled with grace, and she spends all of her time working to raise money for the cause. We did a fundraiser for her last year and then I thought, ‘You know what? The soaps don’t ever get together to do something for charity.’ Collectively, we have this amazing community and we don’t collectively use it for a good cause, and I think it’s such an easy thing for us to do and we could potentially really make a difference.”

As GH viewers know, Gregory Harrison is playing the character of Gregory Chase, who is also battling ALS in a touching storyline that is currently playing out shedding a light on this disease.

For information on Nancy’s event, including the stars who are s scheduled to participate click here. To purchase tickets to the event click here.

Check out the video featuring Nancy’s friends and co-stars below.  Now let us know, your thought son the line-up for the benefit and helping raise awareness and funds for ALS research via the comment section.

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General Hospital

‘General Hospital’ Writer Shannon Peace Let Go, and Shares on Sprina: “One of My Only Regrets is to Not Have the Opportunity to Develop That ‘Ship’ Further”

As General Hospital’s new head writing team of Elizabeth Korte and Patrick Mulcahy gets off the ground and running, there are still changes a foot on the writing team.

Now comes word via breakdown writer Shannon Peace that she is no longer on contract with the long-running ABC soap heading into its 61st season. Peace shared a heartfelt message on her Instagram, thanking the fans, and the show for the opportunity and the importance of diversity in the writers room.

Peace began, “After almost 3 years on staff and 106 episodes penned, I am no longer on contract with General Hospital. Writing for this country’s longest running television serial drama has been an education of epic proportions; I will forever be grateful that I earned my WGA card on a daytime fixture that holds memories for so many.” (Peace pictured below with GH EP Frank Valentini and script writer, Charlotte Gibson from about ten months ago).

Photo: SPeaceIG

Shannon added “Even more importantly, as the sole Black breakdown writer (and only POC in the writers room) during my tenure, I pushed for vital interactions and discussions that prioritized inclusion, visibility, and representation”

The writer pointed to the example of vital interaction when in story, “Stella and Portia’s frank July 2022 conversation about the role race played in Esme’s framing of Trina is just one example of the impact I’m gratified to have had.”

Acknowledging former GH co-head writers was also part of Peace’s farewell expressing, “Appreciation to my former bosses, Chris Van Etten and Dan O’Connor – not only taking a chance on me, but for valuing my opinion and championing my voice.”

Courtesy/ABC

Many GH fans know that Peace was key to the development of the love story between Trina Robinson and Spencer Cassadine as played by Tabyana Ali and Nicholas Chavez. Shannon gave a special shout-out to ‘Sprina’ fans, “I also want to thank fans who were supportive of my work, especially the recognition of my love for ‘Sprina’. One of my only regrets is not having to develop that ‘ship’ further.”

She concludes her statement with,”In the aftermath of a historic writer’s strike that shed new light on the troubling ways writers are regarded in daytime, my sincere hope is that General Hospital recommits to valuing staff writer efforts and input, with a more intentional focus on diverse viewpoints — and thrives for another 60 years.”

Accompanying her post, Shannon added, “Thank you all for the love and support these last few years. I hope GH fans get all they hope for and more!”

So, what do you think about GH not renewing Shannon’s contract? Will there be more continued changes afoot? What do you think is the future of ‘Sprina’ anyway at this point as viewers wait to see if Nicholas Chavez officially returns to the show?  Comment below.

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General Hospital

GENERAL HOSPITAL: Jason Learns Britt Died and Tells Anna He Has Been Working For Cates Since November 2021

On the Tuesday, March 26th of General Hospital, Anna (Finola Hughes) and the viewers learn about where Jason (Steve Burton) has been for over two and half years. However, Jason gets some news of his own.

Anna is visiting Jason at the PCPD interrogation room. She asks him if he shot Dante (Dominic Zamprogna), which he flatly denies. Anna believes him, but she tells Jason it doesn’t matter, because video footage shows him on the roof at the time of the shooting

When talk turns to Jason not willing to speak without his lawyer present, Anna can’t grasp why Jason would instead spend an hour alone talking with John Cates (Adam J. Harrington).

Photo: ABC

It is then that Anna brings up that John went by “Jagger” and that the two of them knew each other in high school. Jason doesn’t recall much of his time in high school following his brain injury, but then he gets furious realizing John knew about “Jason’s” past. That is when Jason slams the table and tells Anna, “I’ve been working for John Cates since November 2021.”

Next, Jason explains further that he has been working as an informant for the FBI. Anna wants to know how this came about and he tells her that after the tunnel collapsed, and he couldn’t make it to Britt (Kelly Thiebaud)… all of a sudden he sees Anna’s face drop.  Anna is the first person to tell him that Britt died and was murdered. She tells Jason the killer is in custody, but he continues to be shocked, overwhelmed with tears welling up in his eyes. Realizing he has to pivot to save his life, Jason continues telling Anna how he wound up working with John.

Jason explains that after the tunnel collapse in Greece, FBI agents grabbed him and placed him under arrest and took him to Quantico where he met John. At Quantico, John played a recording of RICO violations and offered Jason a deal if he agreed to be an informant against Pikeman, the illegal arms dealer.

Anna hears from Jason that he thinks Pikeman is selling illegal arms to anyone flagged by the NSA but has ties to the WSB which they needed a civilian to infiltrate their organization as a military soldier, a mercenary.

Jason tells Anna he was a part of the team brought into eliminate Sonny (Maurice Benard). Every time an attempt was made on Sonny’s life over the last two years, a different team was sent to do the job. Anna gets furious when she learns that John told Jason his job was to kill Sonny and she was with John at the warehouse that night. Jason ensured the sniper missed Sonny and left the rifle behind. However, they were supposed to meet an extraction team. Before he was shot, Dante saw it was Jason on the roof and when he turned around with his hands over his head, Dante was shot by the other guy. Jason says if Dante dies, he’ll be charged with capital murder and then will be useless to the FBI.

Photo: ABC

Meanwhile, John visits Bobbie’s and runs into Carly (Laura Wright). She learns Jason is in custody and is going to head to the PCPD. Before she does, Carly has some words with Cates when she learns not only does John have a vendetta against Sonny, but Jason too.  Carly tells John he should recuse himself from the case.

So, what did you think about the moment when Jason learned Britt died? What do you think of Jason’s return storyline thus far and what we learned about Jagger/Jason and more? Comment below. But first, check out a moment from today’s GH with Jason and Anna.

 

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