Jonathan Jackson Burns Down Port Charles
By J Bernard Jones on January 25, 2010
"You're maudlin and full of self-pity. You're magnificent." — Addison DeWitt, All About Eve, 1950
Jonathan Jackson is an arsonist.
How else can one describe the blazing inferno the actor set off on today's episode of General Hospital where Lucky (Jackson) directly confronted his lifelong love Elizabeth (Rebecca Herbst) and his brother Nikolas (Tyler Christopher) about sleeping with each other behind his back?
Jackson elevated his performance to epic proportions that might as well have been from the stage of a Greek tragedy, Tennessee Williams or August Wilson play in this episode. It wasn't just good; it was electrifying. After Monday's performance, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences should just put an Emmy for Jackson on layaway and call it a wrap.
From the moment Lucky caught Liz and Nik doing the funky chicken in flagrante delicto, GH's writers and Jackson ratcheted up the tension with a high wire act of jangling nerves, a virtual cat on a hot tin roof. Alone, Lucky was a hot mess, trashing the house he had shared with Elizabeth (formerly the home of his parents, Luke and Laura), oddly confiding both police secrets about the investigation into Claudia's death and his own emotional turmoil to Jason (Steve Burton), and generally was a emotional wreck, careening all over the place like a pinball.
On the other hand, whenever Lucky was with Elizabeth or Nikolas he was cold and detached, imbuing just enough of Jackson's trademark sincerity (some would say over-earnestness) to knock the two cheatin' hearts off-kilter. Whether prodding and poking Elizabeth about her feelings with not-so-subtle rage boiling beneath the surface, or asking Nikolas to stay in Port Charles instead of flying off to France, Lucky kept non-suspecting viewers guessing. What was he planning? How much revenge would he take and in what deliciously twisted form?
GH could have played this cat-and-mouse game for weeks or months on end to draw out (or diffuse) the tension, or they could have had Lucky concoct a cockamamie, convoluted scheme which would have likely threatened the patience of everyone involved. Instead, the writers wisely cut to the chase. On the Friday January 22 episode, Lucky walked in on Elizabeth andNikolas sharing a moment and detonated a cliffhanger bomb of epic proportions:
"You don't love me, Elizabeth. If you did, you wouldn't be screwing my brother behind my back."
In what can only be described as emotional brutality, Lucky ripped the two cheaters to shreds, Elizabeth being the target of his rage much more than Nikolas. Lucky called her everything but a child of God and effectively branded him a true Cassadine, Prince Cain to Lucky's betrayed Abel. Through it all, Jackson was magnificent in every conceivable way.
While Lucky didn't appear drunk, Jackson's bloodshot eyes made it impossible to tell the difference between Lucky's inebriation or his raging hurt and anger. Every choice word he said was practically (and sometimes literally) spat venomously. At any minute, Lucky looked like he could have beaten both Nikolas and Elizabeth half to death in that living room. As Lucky repeatedly called Liz out for "screwing" and "nailing" his brother (we ain't talking about carpentry, folks), Jackson looked like he was barely in control of himself in the same way that Kim Zimmer frequently has described how she lost herself in her legendary character Reva during the infamous "Slut of Springfield/Fountain Scene" on the late, departed Guiding Light.
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Comments
28 July 2009
2 days 22 hours
OMG..this is SOOO Emmy material for Jonathan. Don't think Greg could have pulled off this stuff....
Loved how Carly ran straight to Jason to tell him about Elizabeth. Such a little gossip our little Carly
Looking forward to the end of the week with Sonny & Dante...LOVE DANTE!!!
25 June 2009
2 weeks 4 days
JJ becomes the character in the same way that Roger Howarth became Todd Manning on OLTL. Other actors have said that when RH walked out of his dressing room, he was no longer Roger, he was Todd. Today no other actor who has played Lucky, could have read that script & poured themselves into the scenes the way JJ did. Just hand him the emmy now. So glad he's back.
1 January 2009
4 hours 42 min
JONATHAN JACKSON HIT IT OUT OF THE PARK as LUCKY!!!
Too bad he had to do it in scenes with two mediocre actors. The difference in talent was glaringly obvious!
Loved that Luke was there for him. Again, how enjoyable watching two top notch actors hit it out of the park!
8 November 2009
1 day 18 hours
JJ f*cking killed today! i was only 20 min. into the episode & i shouted "EMMY!!!" to my tv. He officially came back today. This is the best acting I've seen in any medium in a long time. I was squeeling like one of those freaking scary Twilight girls when he tore into them today.
31 July 2008
16 hours 25 min
JJ was amazing today. I was on the edge of my seat watching. I also liked how RH played her scenes with Lucky and telling Nik she hated him. All except the end were she curled up on her couch crying, that was some fake ass crying but the rest of the scenes she did were good. TC, what is up with him, he was like sleep walking threw everything. I'm not trash talking the actor, but TC just hasn't seem like he's into his job for months now. It's like really hindering his performance and the story. Everybody else around him is putting their best foot forward, he needs to step up.
9 July 2009
1 day 17 hours
JJ blew up the Mfing building today what an amazing performance I haven't seen that level of performance of pure anger and betrayal on soaps in decades what a power keg of emotions! Dmn boy Dmn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The whole GH set should have bowed downed to you today!!!
8 April 2009
6 hours 48 min
I concede that JJ has had a banner day but, for me, it was overshadowed by the level of vitriol directed at Liz. GH has a HUGE problem with it's depiction of women--at this point, their show makes Tyler Perry's depiction of women look nuanced--and this scene only fed into the stereotypes the show perpetuates.
24 March 2008
14 hours 55 min
I've always been a big fan of Jonathan Jackson from his first turn on GH to all the other stuff he did. I really liked him in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and just when it looked like he was going to get a bigger part, they canceled the show.
Anyways, today's performance earned him an Emmy and if anybody else gets it, it would be a travesty. His rage, anger and hurt looked so genuine it was scary. I believed every word coming out of his mouth and I thought at any moment he could snap and just pull out his revolver and go to work on both of them. It was that level of rage.
I didn't think the comment about the rape was out of line...he was just referencing back to a time when Liz was so innocent and they were so much in love. JJ better earn some serious acknowlegement for that performance. He out acted James Franco by leaps and bounds and he was the Hollywood guy slumming with the soap stars.
20 February 2008
3 min 33 sec
J Benard — awesome analysis, especially the Kim Zimmer comparison!
Nel
21 July 2008
5 hours 23 min
I'm telling you, Nik's got his coming. Just you wait.
But JJ? God he was so good.
21 February 2008
2 weeks 5 days
It's not just GH. Days, at time, isn't much better. I often wonder if they forget who their audience is. I dont' want to see women called bitches, whores and sluts or think they all need to be protected or rescued. But here we are in 2010 and the shows are still being written that way.
22 December 2008
7 weeks 5 days
JJ is head and tails above ANY actor currently on canvas at GH. It's so nice to have the real Lucky back. Smart, HOT as HELL and intelligent.
LL2 is perfect. I sure hope this is being done to rebuild them, if not, it was a waste to being him back with ratings this bad and the show probably this close to cancellation.
3 February 2008
7 hours 37 min
JJ is and has always been the only Lucky for me. Today's scenes were stellar. I'm just hoping the destruction of Elizabeth and L&L's relationship will be worth it in the long run. I'm an L&L fan first, and if I can't have them, I'll take Liason. But at this point, the writers have so completely destroyed Elizabeth's character that it's hard for me to root for her at all. If Nikolas Cassadine was THAT good, women would've been fighting over him, rather than leaving him for Lucky (Sarah), Stefan (Katherine), Jason, Jax, (Courtney) Sonny (Emily) etc. I'm hoping in the long run, Liz will see the error of her ways (PLEASE no WTD s/l for her w/ RH's pregnancy!) and will help Lucky get back his sobriety. I'm also hoping GH will wise up and do whatever it takes to get Genie Francis to return. Lucky's gonna need his momma!
6 January 2008
21 hours 18 min
Lucky was great today. JJ did an excellent job.
That whole scene was good because JJ showed all the emotion in his face and BH was just there crying and showing the fact she knows she lost it all.
Like that scene where Lucky holds her face and says what happened to the little girl I found in the snow, I will always love her. They both rocked that scene. Lucky showed all the hurt in his face and Liz showed the disbelief in hers. She knows she lost everything and Lucky was just broken.
TC looked like he had gas.
This is the perfect setup to reunite LL2 after a long time apart.
9 September 2008
10 min 2 sec
Thank you, Hunter!!
2 January 2008
32 min 10 sec
j bernard i think this inferno will rage for weeks.He sure did put pc a blaze
2 July 2009
2 weeks 2 days
Hell at one point I thought I was watching Vampire Dairy and he was about to turn and start eating thier ass!! LMFAO!!! That one vain on his forhead I swear was about to pop out when he was spazzing.
today show was truly amazing!!!!!
29 December 2009
1 day 3 hours
Yes, Johnathan was amazing yesterday but I agree with the comments about the dialogue towards Elizabeth. I realize ABC Daytime is the machismo network but do they not realize that women are their target audience? I understand the venom spewed to a degree but there seems to be a habit during these confrontations where the male character only categorizes the woman who scorned him as a slut. Also, are we supposed to forget that Lucky the lush and junkie cheated during their marriage with Maxie? Was Lucky a slut or a manwhore when confronted by Liz?
Excellent article J Bernard. Just as good as your write up about GL's botched Natalia wedding and Olivia's declaration of love.
26 January 2010
6 weeks 5 days
I THINK THE LINE ABOUT THE GIRL CRAWLING IN THE SNOW WAS NOT MEANT TO BE HURTFUL. HE BROKEDOWN CRYING WHEN HE SAID THAT AND WHEN HE LOOKED INTO HER EYES IT WASNT HATE I SAW AT THAT POINT IT WAS HURT. THAT A LONE MADE ME CRY AND IT SEEM TO SHAKE LIZ AT HER CORE.
23 July 2008
3 hours 14 min
It's just time for Tyler to leave. I'm sorry, but... I don't even know what else to say. It seems like Jonathan may unanimously win Performer of the Week but Tyler just as much deserves to be unanimously given Dishonorable Mention. He's an actor that knows better. He's not one of those babies that just got off the turnip truck. He's been doing this long enough. It time to GO, GO, GO!
18 January 2008
3 days 2 hours
I give the vitriol spewed at Liz a pass for two reasons. One, it's obvious that Lucky was meant to still be drunk, or at least completely out of control in those scenes. Since those words don't eminate from Lucky's mouth as freely as Sonny's, I know that they were coming from an unstable place. Two, the writers at least had Lucky acknowledge surprise at saying things like that, which is both surprising and welcome for this writing staff. Frankly, I was more insulted at Sonny calling Maxie a ditz and insulting her. But admittedly, I get insulted by most of the things that come out of Sonny's mouth.
18 January 2008
3 days 2 hours
Amen. TC's a perfect example of the head-scratching that goes on when the male actors constantly get courted to re-up their contracts, and the female actors get the shaft. As I said in Perkie's column, I'm not a BH fan, but I can at least acknowledge that she is engaged in her scenes and she tries. TC looks like he can't be bothered anymore.
4 December 2009
20 hours 54 min
I HEARD that TC did not renew his contract, so we may get our wish when the other Cassadines come to town, maybe he will leave with them!
14 July 2008
4 hours 21 min
I think you are all right about T.C but i wish they would also fire S.B because he is the other BAD actor on the show. It looks to me like those 2 are just tired and bored so they just "phone it in" most of the time. Plus there is really NO NEED for Nik or Jason on the show anymore!!!
25 December 2008
1 hour 16 min
Great article J Bernard. Your comparison to Kim Zimmer's Slut in Springfield monolulgue was spot on. Both actors completely lost themselves in their part.
I wasn't offended by the language, Liz IS a slut and a whore ,even she has acknowledged that in her daydream. Sometimes I think we get a little too PC.
The line about Liz being in the snow was a perfect example of LnL2 and their messed up dysfunctional relationship. Lucky loves the girl that was hurt and vulneralbe and Liz loves the guy that helped her and saved her when they were 15.
Times has changed and they both need to move on and not be so stuck in the past.
No performance this year will match Jackson's bravura yesterday, none...except Jackson kicking it out of the park in future scenes.
I've been waiting for these scenes since I heard JJ was coming back and they did not dissapoint.
TC needs to change jobs if he is so bored with his material. Besides what is their to be bored about? He is in the best storyline on soaps right now, be a proffessional, dude.
5 August 2009
4 days 2 hours
The Cowboy rides again. Johnathan Jackson hit it out of the park today. He was raw, gritty and tragic all at once. I literally held by breath when they would cut away from his scenes afraid they would suddenly come back to his heart wrenching verbal attack.
He took no prisoners and by the end of the show my eyes were nearly as red as his. He was utterly fantastic and if that is where emmy gold goes I will wholeheartedly be in favor of that.
RH did a good job of looking busted, ashamed and flabergasted. She was literally left with nothing to hide behind for cover.None of her excuses played not even her usual trump card ..."think about the boys" Lucky put her on notice that whatever the boys know or think of her one day rest squarely on her own actions not anyone else.
Line of the Day: "You have cheated,you have lied and you have given yourself away like candy."
I must also say as a woman I didn't find Lucky mentioning Liz crawling in the snow after her rape as a negative or a particularly low blow mainly because Liz herself has not been above using the story of her rape and what Lucky did for her thereafter to illicit the desired response namely getting someone to shut up about her current misdeeds or to ease Lucky back into his role as her savior. I did find it a sad moment for her to realize that Lucky would always love that girl more than what she has now become.
25 June 2009
2 weeks 4 days
IA. Up until that moment he only had eyes for Sarah. it was finding her after the rape that made him fall in love with her. That's what he was remembering & why he brought it up. I too, started crying with him at that moment.
I'm a 48 yr old woman & I think she deserved every bit of that blasting. Lucky being with Maxie, while he was drinking & taking pills can not compare to what Liz & Nik did to Lucky, sorry. I'm glad they didn't whitewash it.
4 May 2009
1 week 1 day
"You're MAUDLIN..."
Is that what Addison says to Margo at the party for Bill? I had always wondered what George Sanders was saying. Thanks.
5 August 2009
4 days 2 hours
Meant to ask: Does anyone know who wrote this episode ? Is Guza writng this Lucky storyline mainly ?
17 January 2008
1 week 3 days