Considering majority of “Smash's” fan-base are Broadway enthusiasts, they likely won’t agree with most of my season 2 grievances because I'm from the “American Idol” side of the viewership.

I started watching this show because Katharine McPhee (“Idol” Season 5 runner up) was billed as the star. I knew Debra Messing and the epic Anjelica Houston, but I mainly wanted to hear Katharine sing again. For two seasons, I've waited for her to become Marilyn and actually sing on more than just a song or two in the sassy, versatile voice I heard on “Idol;”not the vanilla, soul-less one that unfortunately fits her character, Karen (I didn’t start getting life from Karen’s vocal until “That’s Life” & “Don’t Let Me Know”). Additionally, I wanted to see Karen fully triumph over her antagonist, Ivy. Yet, after all this time and “Bombshell’s” many hills and valleys, she still isn't Marilyn. It's made the series frustrating to watch; not to mention her character is an even bigger push over than before, her storyline is drab and her school-girl fascination with the insolent, spoiled, selfish, arrogant and immature Jimmy is nauseating and doesn't make sense to me. The writing has yet to give a vivid illustration of why Karen would be attracted to him. Jimmy’s contention doesn’t function as well as Ivy’s because he has 0 likability. In order for the audience to be engaged in any type of adversary, he or she must have some endearing quality. Getting back to the “Idols” of the show, I thought Jennifer Hudson was a great addition to the cast and I was disappointed to learn that she wasn’t supposed to be a series regular.

On another note, it seems there is less musical- or at least traditional Broadway- numbers this season and the storyline tempo is at times very slow and winding. And why is Ivy so nice now? Yeah, I wanted her to have a humbling moment, but lose all of her bitchiness? Come on. In addition to too long of a hiatus in between seasons, I  believe these are the elements that smashed “Smash.” Thoughts? Oh, and the above picture came from a BEAUTIFUL "Entertainment Weekly" photo-spread that you can view here.

Let's talk GH'ers. It seems that with even a brand new writing and production team (Ron Carlivati & Frank Valentini, formerly of "One Life to Live"), "General Hospital's" path is still working in extremes. Around 2007, "The Mob Era" wore out its welcome, the writing became stale and characters who were an asset to the show got cut (ex. Nikolas Cassadine & Jasper Jacks). Fans loved the mob-clique characters (i.e. Sonny Corinthos, Jason Morgan, Sam McCall, Carly Benson, Damien Spinelli, Johnny Zacchara, etc), but yearned for flexibility and diversity in the storylines so everyone could have a chance to shine. For a second there, Carlivati & Valentini provided a happy medium; we had our mob, we had our hospital and ratings were greatly improving, but eventually, things went completely left. Jason (Steve Burton) was presumed dead and Carly (Laura Wright) and Sonny's (Maurice Bernard) storylines were reduced to chasing after their ill-reciprocating love interests. Since when in GH history does Caroline not have a real storyline (by the way, I've always felt the writers have not taken full advantage of Wright's talent and ability)?

There are some other plots of interest, but fans are somewhat indifferent about them (ex. Tracy vs. A.J., Connie vs. Kate, Sabrina vs. Britt), while major talents are being underutilized (ex. Rebecca Herbst, AKA Liz Webber). No one said eliminate the mob clique; just make camera time more even! Plus, it seemed like the writers switched focus from one group to another as “One Life to Live’s” refugees Todd (Roger Howarth), Starr (Kristen Alderson) & John (Michael Easton) became major players and plot-lines from the series were reincarnated on GH (as one fan put it “the role of GH will now be played by OLTL”). Just like character centralization hurt GH in the late 2000’s, it might sting again now; OLTL is returning as a web-series and due to character licensing issues, Todd, Starr & John may have to permanently leave Port Charles.  What the GH team has chosen to do as a result of the negotiations between ABC and OLTL’s new home, Prospect Park, have yet to unfold on-screen (Howarth, Alderson & Easton return reportedly as new characters May 10th). The writers/producers have tried to rebound by bringing back characters from the much beloved 90’s and the spin-off “Port Charles,” but even that has come to be frustrating to the current generation of fans. Again, extremes aren’t going to work. The future of GH lies within its current characters and its youth.

Usually on soaps, the youth are the heart of steamy and intense plots, but on GH, the youth are painfully boring and/or immature. Michael, for example, is spineless, inconsistent and easy to manipulate; he was edgier as a child. The return of Michael’s previously presumed dead biological father, A.J. Quartermaine presents a number of storyline possibilities by itself, as A.J. has surprisingly lured Michael into ELQ. Which, am I the only one who thinks they too quickly made A.J. a redeemable ‘good guy’? Anyhow, bring back Michael's easily-SORAS-able half-brother, Morgan, and give us the dynasty war we've been waiting on. Now that Michael wants to ride the fence between being both a Quartermaine and Corinthos heir, it would be delicious to see him take on Morgan, who’s the real Corinthos. Yes, Morgan was primarily raised by Jasper Jacks, but who’s to say he won’t want to get know his father for himself outside of Carly and Jacks’ opinion? As for the other younglings, Kristina Corinthos Davis is part mob-princess, part Cassadine. HELLO?! Need I say more? Now that Stravos is back and wiped Lulu’s memory (I don’t believe for a second we’ve seen the last of him), things can get interesting really quick. Let’s not forget that Kristina’s sisters, Sam and Molly, are part Cassadine as well.

Coming back to AJ, I'm sure while he was cozying up to Michael, Liz and even Sam, Jason was tumbling in his watery grave, so how intense would it be for Jason to resurface (which really should've happened soon after A.J., showed up, but what do I know?)? Some fans were eager to see what a few call "The Holy Hitman" go, but the majority- especially those who started watching GH in the late 90's and early 2000's-lost their reason to tune in, as Jason and Sam's complicated marriage was a key plot in 2012.

Whether you're a JaSammer or not, I think everyone can agree that the show's pace and the roll Carlivati and Valentini were on has dramatically slowed down since Jason left the landscape last October. 
Recasting a role defined by an actor like Steve Burton seemed impossible then, but now seeing the depth of the hole in the canvas, especially in terms of Sam's storyline, I think fans are more open to the idea. Carlivati and Valentini said they didn't have any immediate plans to recast Jason because it "opened up fun opportunities for Sam," but all I've seen for Sam is ridiculousness (i.e. being attacked by men parading as vampires). A recast should happen now (it would've been a great way to cap off the anniversary week in addition to the return of Robin, but again, what do I know?). Coming down from the high of the 50th anniversary (the anniversary week was absolutely splendid!), I hope GH’s team has some great material to keep our engines hot. Don’t get me wrong, I think the team has no doubt turned GH around for the best in the last year and I’m more addicted to the soap than I have been in awhile; these are just some points I wanted to throw out. What are your thoughts? 

Okay, I just wanted to highlight and rant about some things. First, this show keeps me on my feet episode after episode; it's so addictive. Between the great writing, wonderful music and it's focus on the inner-workings of music industry, my interest has beyond sustained. The frequent hiatuses only exacerbate my hunger. I have a theory that they didn't expect the show to be such a hit, and therefore filmed only enough episodes for the winter season. Next:

Hayden Panettiere: I've watched this girl grow up on-screen (she was Coach Yoast's little girl in "Remember the Titans," the cheerleader needing to be saved on NBC's "Heroes" and took on Beyonce's little sister, Solange, in "Bring it On: All or Nothing); she's a fantastic actress and I'm such a big fan of hers. Her "Nashville" character, Juliette Barnes, is the best kind of villain: one you love to hate and secretly root for. I think it's a testament to the script's quality that you never see Juliette be a 100% tender or vulnerable; there's always a little bite, which, to me, is more realistic. No one's long-built emotional walls come down quickly or easily. Just when you thought she was going to try to soothe ex-fiance` Sean's wound and offer him clarity on her actions, she coldly told him "just sign the divorce papers." 

Connie Britton: Also a NBC vet ("Friday Night Lights"), Britton delivers as the seasoned country queen Rayna James (although out of the whole cast, her singing voice is the weakest and her faux stage presence is terrible). I actually hate Rayna more than I hate Juliette. At least Juliette owns the fact that she's a bitch with skanky tendencies. Rayna is so pretentious; she believes she an honest person who makes innocent mistakes, when really she's a self-absorbed, manipulative liar. Yes, she's all those things. She makes everything about her and is well aware of how she has every man in her life wrapped around her little finger. The scene where she discovers Deacon has come on tour with Juliette was a great example of her egotism. Of course she assumed he was chasing after her, even though she knew he was without a job and had been co-writing with Juliette. The way she pushes and pulls on Deacon makes me sick, because she knows how he feels about her. As for her husband, she had the audacity to want a separation because he "lied" (about an extortion situation that had NOTHING to do with her), when she's been concealing the true paternity of her eldest daughter (of course Deacon is the baby-daddy)! She's such a hypocrite. Also, her artistic criticism of Juliette makes no sense because she was in the same fix when she started out as a singer and her wealthy father practically paid for her first record.

Teddy (Eric Close): The poor chap. I don't blame him for filing for divorce from Rayna, nor sleeping with Peggy the first chance he got. He knew Rayna never really loved him. I do wonder how the storyline will work out now that he and Rayna have split though.
Gunnar/Scarlett/Avery: I have to say I'm the least interested in this trio. Avery (I love seeing Jonathon Jackson-shout out to "General Hospital" fans) is a relentless butthole with none of the aforementioned redeemable villain qualities (although I kind of feel bad for him being black-listed), Gunnar (Sam Palladio) pretends that he's best for Scarlett, but he's just as obsessive and controlling and Scarlett (Clare Bowen) is....just kind of boring to me. Oh, and how dumb was Gunnar for letting Hailey (Chloe Bennet) go? She was a little hottie.  Fun fact: Clare is an Aussie and Sam is British. They pull off southern accents well, don't they? Another fun fact: Bennet is half-Chinese, had a single called "Uh-Oh" and used to be a Nickeloden brat. Anyhow, those are my thoughts on the stars of Nashville. Do visit "the music city"- it's just as amazing as it seems on the show.