General Hospital Plays Their Greatest Hit with Maxie’s Heart Attack

Maxie collapsed from a heart attack earlier this week on General Hospital, and while Port Charles tries to figure out how she went from healthy to at death’s door so quickly—is Sidwell responsible?—we’re cheering for this terrific use of thirty-year-old history.

Angels in the Outfield

GH fans got a sweet reminder of one of the show’s signature stories when, in the episode dedicated to Bobbie (and her late portrayer, Jacklyn Zeman), the mysterious Angela showed up, played by Brighton Hereford, making Maxie (Kirsten Storms) and Felicia (Kristina Wagner) realize that they’d been touched by an angel. BJ died so that Maxie could live when she received her cousin’s heart back in 1994.

Maxie vowed that she would live for both of them, not only for BJ, but for her dad, Tony (Anthony Maule), brother of Maxie’s dad, Frisco (Jack Wagner). (BJ also had a mom, Tania [Hilary Edson], but nobody remembers her, really, and Bobbie was the only mom BJ ever really had.)

The Best of Times is Now

Having Maxie collapse from a heart ailment to facilitate Storms’ own medically motivated departure was a brilliant way to remind viewers of the truth Maxie lives with every day: That she almost died, and everything that she has now is thanks to her cousin’s accidental death.

And longtime viewers can be reminded of the phenomenally brilliant story, penned by the phenomenally brilliant Headwriter Claire Labine, which pulled in not just Maxie and BJ’s parents, but also Mac (John J. York), Kevin (Jon Lindstrom), Alan (Stuart Damon), Miguel (Ricky Martin), Ruby (Norma Donnelly), and other beloved characters.

Take Two

We can only hope that this trauma will provide as much heartbreak, pathos and drama as the one 30 years ago. And even if it doesn’t, it nice to remember when a show was at the very, very top of its game….