Agent Rayner is making his return to Port Charles! Soap Opera Digest reports  Mark Pinter will reprise his role as the FBI agent on January 26th. Does his return have to do with Franco, or the town's resident mobsters Sonny and Jason? With Bob Guza at the helm you never know.

For almost 32 years, she's dazzled As The World Turns audiences as the unforgettable Barbara Ryan. On this episode of the Daytime Confidential podcast, it's Luke and Jamey, Colleen Zenk Pinter has under her spell. The soap superstar joins the guys to talk about her amazing daytime career, working opposite the likes of Anthony Herrera (ex-James) and the late Benjamin Hendrickson (ex-Hal), and how she balances it all with her real life love affair with husband and fellow soap veteran Mark Pinter.

Zenk Pinter also talks about what it's been like to finally have Babs back front and center, in a steamy, comic, cougar storyline with Trent Dawson's Henry and Lynn Herring's Audrey. She also shares how her oral cancer diagnosis has changed the way she looks at her life and career. It's an interview Oakdale lovers won't wanna miss!

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I'm back, gentle readers, and not a moment too soon. Since we were last together, real life has provided more plot twists than an episode of Lost, but I've still managed to faithfully watch the stories day in and day out. While there are a few larger topics that I'll be addressing in the next few days and weeks, it turns out a little time and distance provides the opportunity for a bit of clarity and perspective on issues that one might have been previously too close to appreciate. In that spirit, here are a few completely random observations about the five soaps I normally watch that I've noticed in the little over a month since I last posted. These observations generally are not a part of the usual list of talking points, but just a number of things that have popped in my head. Without further ado... READ MORE

Yes! They have undeniable sexual chemistry.

As long as Sam showered before sleeping with someone else, they might be the next big couple.

No! Agent Rainer is too old for Sam.

As the World Turns is something of a mystery to me these days. I haven't been blogging regularly about the show because, honestly, I am kind of flummoxed about what to actually write about from day to day.

I love ATWT. The show is blessed with some of daytime's strongest actors. In this age of massive cost cutting, ATWT found an arguably better production alternative than Procter & Gamble sister show Guiding Light. Speaking for myself, I find most days, most characters, most stories and most events to be sufficiently captivating to keep me coming back.

Nonetheless, something is badly amiss in Oakdale. The usual criticisms of ATWT are all-too-familiar: far too many recasts, underused vets, storylines that turn on a dime, compressed storytelling and ever shrinking production values to name a few. While those issues are real and important, they are only symptons of several larger problems that encapsulate the issues that I, other Daytime Confidential bloggers and commentators all over the internet have found themselves dismayed about over the last several months. After trying to put a finger on these issues while attempting to "figure out" what's going on at ATWT from a larger perspective, several things have jumped out as serious structural flaws, like a cracked foundation in a beloved old home. READ MORE

Here's the Scoop! 01.23.09

Not much out there today... typical Friday.

Nikolas "sees" Emily. It's Rebecca and he drops the phone to chase after her.

Kate is sneaking around Sonny's... She' s there looking for the DVD's and Kate wants Olivia to help her warn Sonny about his wife. Kate gets all the goods on Claudia and heads to the fundraiser to tell Sonny. Road blocks? Of course! Olivia gets in Kate's way at Carly's request. Kate asks Lulu to get to Sonny for her, but we all know Lulu is not a stellar employee. More fighting for the Falconari cousins. Kate goes down thanks to the toxin but what happens to the DVD she has with her?

Who will live and who will die? Leyla and Trevor are the two names that have popped up over and over again. Dr. Andy from Night Shift is a casualty and one more person should be taking a dirt nap. Most likely an extra/day player but we'll be lead to believe that a few characters are knocking on heaven's door.

The Jackal is SUPPOSED to get the goods that clears his name and gets the feds off Jason 's back. Will he offer to work for Agent Rayner?

Questions I didn't get to yesterday...

Do we know anything more about these two Regan? How their story lines cross through out this crisis?

This question was about Jason and Sam… They’ll work together to figure out who is behind the crisis. READ MORE

Here's the Scoop! 01.14.09

Be sure to check out the montage for the crisis kicking off on the 15th! Is that a DVD in Kate's hand? Is that the secret Kate spills? Claudia better watch it. Kate's a woman scorned and Claudia married the man Kate was supposed to be with.

Sonny and Jason... I'm generally bored with GH right now but this whole turn in Sonny to save Spinelli storyline would be good if we didn't already know that Spin will be fine, Sonny won't go to jail and Jason will skate through this as always. That's what bores me. Could the middle be good? Sure, I suppose anything is possible. According to SPOILERS, Jason is taking the deal but will he save Sonny in the process?

Jason's new role as FBI Informant... Anyone buying it? I'm reserving judgment as I love Mark Pinter's addition to the cast. Jason needs Bernie to provide him with as much information on Anthony Z. that they can come up with. The two men in yesterday's SPOILERS MAY be terrorists dealing in biotoxins. READ MORE

Here's the Scoop! 01.08.09

ABC's official word on the stunt hitting GH:

NO ONE IS SAFE... THE CLOCK IS TICKING... A DISASTROUS CRISIS HITS ABC'S "GENERAL HOSPITAL"

Viewers Will Need to Watch Each Episode as Clues Are Revealed After Time Is Turned Back; Storyline Will Coincide with the Return of Emmy® Winner Natalia Livingston to Port Charles

On the Thursday, January 15 episode of ABC's award-winning "General Hospital," Dr. Patrick Drake (Jason Thompson) will rush into the operating room yelling to colleagues Dr. Monica Quartermaine, Dr. Matt Hunter, Nurse Elizabeth Webber and Nurse Epiphany Johnson, among others, to stop a pending surgery with a mysterious patient. Without giving away much else, the clock will be turned back nine hours and each subsequent episode for the next nine days will begin with scenes that will reveal more clues to what is about to happen in the hospital. On Wednesday, January 28, the reason for Dr. Drake's ultimatum to his staff will be revealed and, from this point through February, medical staff, patients and visitors will be affected as a major disaster will strike the corridors of the hospital and make its way throughout Port Charles. In addition, this medical crisis storyline will coincide with the anticipated return of Emmy® winner Natalia Livingston as Rebecca, an entirely new role, on January 15. Both announcements were made by Brian Frons, president, Daytime, Disney-ABC Television Group. READ MORE

Yes! I'd love to see Alexis and Agent Raynar.

Oooooh, Alexis in a triangle, imagine the possiblities.

No! I don't need to see Alexis in a romantic storyline.

Here's the Scoop! 12.03.08

Sam saves Jake... Is this redemption for all that's happened in the past? It looks like that's the intent as Jason puts his son in further danger with guns blazin' and causing the cabin where Jake is being held to explode. When he thinks his son is caught in the burning building, here comes Sam with Jake safe in her arms.

Jason tells Elizabeth all the gory details. He wants her to know just how close they came to losing their son. The feds interview the foursome regarding all the mobtacular activity that surrounded Jake's kidnapping. Elizabeth and Jason call it quits. Jason tells Spinelli he's lost everything. RUMORS say he tells the Jackal he lost the only family he ever wanted.

The feds... aka Mark Pinter when he checks in as Agent Rayner have questions and Sam tries to take the heat off of Jason. She's not lying, she tells the truth that she worked for Karpov and the Russians could have been/were looking for her. READ MORE