When you combine superb direction, writing, production, and acting in a special episode of a daytime drama, viewers can see and understand the thought and care that went into it.
This was more than on display during Thursday’s highly-anticipated ‘Alexis-Centric’ episode honoring the 25th anniversary of Alexis’ portrayer, two-time Daytime Emmy winner, Nancy Lee Grahn, on General Hospital.

Courtesy/ABC
In the story, symbolism was apparent and used for dramatic impact and it worked beautifully throughout, and best of all, Nancy received a script worthy of her immeasurable talents, and showed us once again why she remains one of the gold standards of our genre. If you have not seen the episode DO NOT read any further as it contains spoilers.
It begins with an emotional Alexis looking at her mother’s watch which was still frozen from the time of her death. While playing one of her mother’s records very loudly, she recalls Mikkos Cassadine kissing and dancing with her mom as a young Alexis (Natasha) looked on from the staircase. When Sam asks her about it, Alexis shares that she sees the watch as sort of a representation for her own life being frozen over the last three years; which has included Alexis’ battle with booze taking over her life and her being disbarred, when being a lawyer was the way she identified herself and what gave her purpose.
Overwhelmed and anxiety-ridden, Alexis hightails it to Kevin’s office for a therapy session knowing she is going to Pentonville in the morning to serve her sentence. She says she does not know who she is anymore. Then, Kevin asks her how she spent her day thus far. She flashes back to lunch with the good men in her life, Finn, Valentin, Jax and Ned. Valentin tells Alexis she is proud of her for honing up to her mistakes.
Back at the therapy session, Alexis she was an attorney who stood for something and her life has derailed, and that she was a fighter, an idealist, and an advocate. She knows she has to find a purpose in prison to make it through the three-year term and asks Kevin to help her find one.
Kevin wants to go back to when she was a little girl and her memories that are flooding back to her of Mikkos and her mother. Just then, the younger version of Alexis is huddled in the corner of Kevin’s office, an image of her from the past. Alexis tries to come to terms with her father and the choice of dangerous men and relationships that have marred her own happiness … recalling Julian holding a knife to her throat like Mikkos did to her mother. She says he was one of the toxic men in her life, but Kevin reminds her all of the men in her life were not toxic.
Alexis starts with Ned as one who was good for her saying he was always stable, but she ruined that by recently sleeping with him and putting a wedge in his marriage to her long-time friend, Olivia.
We then flashback to earlier in the day, where Alexis ends up in an almost confrontation with Olivia. However, Olivia tells her she misses the Alexis Davis she used to be and to get her back.
Now back with Kevin, a guilt-ridden Alexis relays she feels responsible for Neil’s death. Kevin interjects she is not, nor what happened with Julian. When Kevin attempts to bring up Mikkos again, Alexis rejects it and is angry that he is making her problem about daddy issues; like so many other women. She vehemently shouts that the men in her life do not define who she is.
Then, Alexis flashes back to hurtful memories she has buried of a young Natasha witnessing Mikkos calling her mother a “greedy little bitch”. She recalls it was on Christmas Eve and that Mikkos stopped by to give them gifts. That is when he presented her mother with the watch. However, things took an ugly turn when he tried to leave, and she threatened to tell Helena all about her and Natasha. Next, Mikkos slapped her and that is when the watch shattered. As all this was going down, a young Natasha watched from the stairs and was horrified that she couldn’t stop her father from beating her mother and remembers how helpless she felt.
However, Alexis reveals to Kevin she thought this would be the last of Mikkos coming by, but he returned on New Year’s Eve and her mother took him back into their lives. Alexis is beside herself that she could not protect her mother, but Kevin reassures her to remember she was just a child.

Courtesy/ABC
It is then we come to the crux of the story. Alexis looks over in the corner and sees her younger self crying. She goes to her younger self and tells her nothing that happened was her fault, and that their father was damaged and cruel. She tells the young Natasha this shouldn’t have been her burden to carry alone, and that she deserves to be happy. Then in the moment of strength and coming full circle, Alexis introduces herself to the young Natasha, “I’m Alexis Davis, a fighter, an advocate, and an idealist … and I will take care of everything from her on out.” In that moment, Alexis embraced herself, and forgave herself, so she could move on with her life.
Alexis then flashes back to earlier that night, as the Davis girls gather for a faux graduation ceremony so Alexis could see Molly in her cap and gown and they hug. Back in her session, Kevin remarks that Alexis has repeatedly defined herself as a fighter, an idealist, and an advocate, and reminds her she has three daughters who have those qualities, and that all she needs to be is Alexis Davis.
Then, we get a heart-warming montage of Alexis though the years in honor of Nancy’s 25th anniversary with GH.

Courtesy/ABC
As the episode concludes, it is the next morning, and Alexis enters Pentonville and enters her jail cell. There she meets her fellow inmate, who is studying law books to prep for her upcoming parole hearing. Alexis introduces herself as “Alexis Davis” and as someone who can help her. We then go back to her mother’s watch which now begins ticking at Alexis’ home. The show fades to black.
Kudos to Daytime Emmy winner, Phideaux Xavier for his outstanding direction, head writers: Chris Van Etten and Dan O’Connor and script writer, Scott Sickles for the thoughtful episode, EP Frank Valentini and his production crew for putting it all together, and the one and only Nancy Lee Grahn for a performance that will be remembered as a classic.
Share your thoughts on today’s on Nancy’s ‘Alexis-Centric’ episode via the comment section below.
Sadly, I assume Ryan/Lucas’ appearance will be a simple family Xmas appearance and then he’ll disappear again. Hope I’m wrong…
Yes l am truly miss Robin and her hubby and child. Robin would be absolutely good to save Sonny from a lieing Nell so Carly and Sonny can keep their love alive they too are fantastic for each other as their Son Morgan comes home . Nell needs to be caught her cell smashed to pieces so she can’t hurt Sonny and Carly.Bring back all the fantastic couples again. Keep them l miss the original Jason too. Sam and Jason are perfect living family. Alexas needs to pull her shit together and get Julien out of her life. She belongs… Read more »
Sherrie I’m with you 100%, Well said.
I Love and Miss All three of them.I wish They will come back more often.
It’ll be great to see both characters back. Ryan has been gone too long.
Can’t wait to see them back.
Who is Lucas…gone sooo long i forgot…his father in alll that has happened and not around…nephew Morgan maybe dead and a funeral and Lucas not around comforting Carly…recurring or not he should be around for some of those stories…and where is Mac?
I do like seeing the characters return every so often. It was good to see Maxies mom this week.. I don’t see her too often and forget her name…. but still good to see her
Her name is Felicia (Kristina Wagner). She and Frisco Jones (Jack Wagner) were a huge phenomena years ago.
Where is Mac…
I know, Jim. Mac (and his portrayer John York) were just tossed aside. Horrible. I LOVE Anna (and Finola) but as soon as she became police commissioner they demoted Mac and basically left him in the dust. Totally disrespectful to a charming actor/ character sho was on the show consistently for so many years.
Felicia Scorpio (Mac’s wife). Formerly Felicia Jones (Frisco (Jack Wagner)’s wife and the bio parents of Maxie)
I’ve been wondering that too! Mac was gone for a good while, but then resurfaced to team up with Anna when she was investigating Paul Hornsby. Mac then disappeared when his brother, Robert, made a guest appearance to assist Anna. Then Robert left town, and Mac hasn’t been seen for what seems like a year! Felicia pops up occasionally, but it would be nice to see Mac back in action! Mac was a cop and Felicia a private eye! The possibilities are endless!
I like Lucus..
I want to see him with Felix, too..
The 3 (Brad, Felix and Lucus) were really great together.
0OOOH NO..
Robin returns on my Birthday…
whatta gift I hope the receipt is included.. lol
The writers sole focus are on a handful of characters and not a town full of citizens we all know and love..this is the Altman Passanante soap curse..write the show into a ditch..it’s what they do.
Everytime the writers put more people on the canvas at one time, all you hear is people complaing that there are too many story lines to follow. It doesn’t matter WHO is writing GH, they wrong, no matter what they do.
The constant whining and complaining gets old real fast.
I’m always up for a Robin appearance/return, but Lucas…heck yeah! Hope the writers actually utilize the character. He should be a mainstay in Port Chuck.
Michael Sutton would make an awesome Patrick Drake recast, just sayin’. We do know he has chemistry with Kimberly
Lucas? Never heard of him!
Kill Brad and let Lucas turn to Felix in his grief. Lucas and Felix would make a great couple, then give them some stories. (Maybe Lucas turning to Sonny to find Brad’s killer, against Carly’s advice.)
i hope theres a scene where lucas and carly talk, surely lucas must feel guilty by the fact that his nephew was killed for a bomb meant for his dad? he must have some kind of weird feelings about that if anything…
Always glad when Robin and Emma come for a visit. I hope Ryan pops up more often. I miss him as Lucas. Lucas should have been at Morgan’s funeral or at Julian’s bedside to shew him out. Dare I hope we see more of Lucas and Brad in 2017? For that matter, the entire nursing staff has been MIA since GH closed its doors. Only Liz shows up regularly and Amy showed up once. What about Epiphany and Felix? Oh, golly! They were the soul of the 10th floor nurses’ station for so long and now not to see them… Read more »
Would to see Lucas anytime, but in an actual storyline. Brad was far more interesting when he was a bad boy creepin’ on straight guys. Let him revert to that, and then the gay guys would all have story possibilities. Gay or straight, happy marriages on soaps are boring.
I miss Epiphany! She was always on everyones butt, including Drake Jr. as she called Patrick. I really miss both characters, although I do see the good Dr. as Billy Abbott on Y&R, but I still miss him as Dr. DRAKE.