Final destinations, endgames, and blue rooms

It was an eventful week with secret trips, unlikely alliances, an unexpected declaration of love, and a little kidnapping thrown in for good measure. With so much going on, our columnist ponders the endgame of some of the storylines in the midst of behind-the-scenes upheavals.

Before I begin, I would like to take a moment to send my thoughts, love, and prayers to everyone touched by the awful tragedies in Orlando, Florida, this past week from the senseless massacre of innocent people out having fun and dancing the night away to the heartbreaking slaying of a rising star and the horrific death of a toddler who was on a dream vacation with his family when an alligator snatched him from his father.

It was pretty difficult to watch the news this week, so I turned to General Hospital as an escape because my heart felt sad and heavy thinking about how cruel real life could be.

I've been watching GH since I was young because the bus would drop me off just as the show began. I'd grab my snack and curl up on the sofa with my mom and spend an hour watching the stories unfold. To this day, those moments are still some of my fondest memories because it was just me and my mother bonding over something the two of us enjoy to this day.

It was a pretty interesting week to watch GH because there was a lot going on, starting with Andre's completely unexpected declaration of love for Jordan.

I was genuinely gobsmacked when Andre appeared in Jordan's office to tell her that he loved her because he'd just come from Anna's house, where he'd confessed that he had romantic feelings for Anna and had to sever all ties -- including their friendship -- because he wasn't strong enough to fight temptation if they continued to see each other.

If Andre's feelings are that strong for Anna, then how can he be in love with Jordan?

As I tell my children, there's a reason that people date instead of jumping straight into marriage. Dating is an opportunity to explore an attraction and compatibility. Sometimes it fizzles out, and sometimes it turns into more. Regardless, you should always be honest about your feelings, which I don't think Andre was when he confessed his love for Jordan.

Bluntly put, Andre did a piss-poor job of "shrinking" himself, and he was less than forthcoming with Jordan. He never mentioned his visit to Anna's house or acknowledged to Jordan in any way that she'd been right to be concerned about his feelings for Anna. Instead, he focused on how great he thought Jordan was and told her that he couldn't imagine a life without her in it. It was deeply disappointing, especially since Jordan had explained why she was so guarded and afraid to open her heart to someone.

Despite my annoyance with Andre, I was happy that he validated what I'd seen for months, including those long glances between him and Anna. The attraction is real -- and apparently reciprocated -- which leaves me wondering why Andre is determined to move forward with Jordan. It seems unfair to both Jordan and Anna.

Folks, is anyone else confused about Paul? I sure am. One minute he's neck deep in the mob and up to no good then the next moment he's finished with being a kingpin and in love with Anna. He's so in love with her that he foolishly took her suggestion to share all the details of a police investigation with known mobster Sonny Corinthos. Why? According to Anna, Sonny would have found out anyway because Sonny has several police officers in his pocket.

My jaw dropped at Anna's rationale. I don't care if Sonny helped the police capture Carlos and has cops on his payroll -- he's a criminal! Admittedly, I'm touchy about this subject because my brother is a police officer, and I hate the way the police are portrayed on the show.

Everyone talks about how hard Jordan works, yet she's arresting the wrong person for murder. Alexis has an airtight alibi because the night of Carlos' murder, Alexis was at the police station, was accompanied home by two police officers who conducted a thorough search of her home, and then Sonny showed up. Sonny stayed with Alexis until they arrived at Crimson to check if Julian was really there. If the police trust Sonny enough to include him on their investigation, then surely he could provide someone with an alibi.

I honestly can't imagine the justification for arresting Alexis. She freely admitted that the dagger had been a gruesome gift to her from Helena, which Helena had used to slit Alexis' mother's throat when Helena found out about Mikkos' affair with the famous opera singer. Of course, Alexis' DNA would be on the knife. Just because Carlos' blood was also found on it (I'm assuming that's the basis for the arrest warrant) doesn't mean that Alexis killed him. Two other people live in that house, and others, including Sonny, stroll in whenever they please.

The police should be the heroes in this story, not a group of bumbling fools who can't see past their own noses. Perhaps Curtis can whip the police department into shape because it's frustrating to see Sonny, Jason, and Sam solving crimes instead of the police.

This week, Jason and Sam managed to remain in hiding and not only figured out that Nikolas wasn't dead but also what his alias was, where he'd gone, and what hotel he was staying at.

What happened to the 24-hour detail Dante had put on Sam when she left the prayer service for Nikolas? More importantly, how do Jason and Sam think they can force Nikolas to return to the United States when there's an arrest warrant out for Jason -- not Nikolas -- and neither Jason nor Sam has` any legal authority to take anyone into custody? I have no idea where this storyline is headed, but I am happy that Nikolas told Spencer about his plans.

I had suspected as much when Spencer had been far too accepting of Nikolas' death, but I became certain of it when he gifted Emma with a handmade token of his affection, complete with one of Hayden's sparkly diamonds hot glued to the top. I really didn't need that phone call when Spencer left Nikolas a voicemail to confirm it, but it was nice.

The question now is why Nikolas did it and what he hopes to gain by faking his death. Sure, he owed money to the Internal Revenue Service, but as it's been pointed out time and again, both Wyndemere and the castle on Cassadine Island are filled with priceless artifacts and heirlooms. I can't imagine that it would have been that hard for Nikolas to pull enough money together to pay the tax man.

Despite the plot holes, I was quite amused that Ava ended up seated next to Nikolas on the flight bound for London and promptly snapped a selfie with him. He kind of deserved it because he was a fool to think that a beard and sunglasses would be an adequate disguise. I also cracked up when Ava advised him not to adopt an accent because they were more trouble than they were worth.

I have to admit that as unlikely as Nikolas and Ava seem as allies, they are interesting. I don't sense any sexual chemistry -- not even with the temporary replacement -- but that's okay. Not everyone has to be a romantic couple. Sometimes it's fun just to see two people forge an unexpected friendship.

It turns out that Ava is quite lucky to have bumped into Nikolas because Huxley Lynch is after her, and I suspect she will need the help of a Cassadine to get out of the mess she's in. If I had to hazard a guess, I would say that Hux's interest in Ava has to do with the recently acquired "rare antiquity" she told Julian she was eager to show in Europe.

I swear, I hear the faint sounds of Benny Hill's theme music playing in my head at the thought of Ava, Nikolas, Jason, Sam, and Hux running around England.

Moving on, I was grateful that the writers patched things up between Nathan and Maxie before Kirsten Storms took her short leave. I don't expect any soap opera couple to last forever because happily ever after never works on a soap opera unless the couple rides off into the sunset and leaves the show. However, I hate when couples end for stupid reasons or it seems forced.

Maxie ending things with Nathan because he shot a man in a jealous drunken rage years earlier seemed contrived. She has done equally bad things, and I doubt that Nathan knows all the ugly details of all of her transgressions. Happily, Maxie acknowledged it was wrong of her to react that way when she kissed and made up with Nathan.

In other couple news, it appears that Franco and Liz are heating up -- and not as friends.

At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about Franco and Liz as a couple because Liz is my favorite character, and I want her to find someone who can make her happy. However, the more I see Franco and Liz together, the more I like them. I especially liked it when Franco confessed that as much as he was tempted to lie to her about something, he realized that he wanted to be honest. Good instinct, and he definitely scored points with that.

Admittedly, part of the appeal of a Franco and Liz pairing is the effect that it will have on Jason. Ever since Jason learned who he really is, he's slowly morphed into a bit of a tool. I preferred him much more as Jake Doe. I look forward to watching his head explode over the idea of Franco and Liz knocking boots. But, that is not the main reason that I like Franco and Liz together at the moment.

Simply put, Franco is more likeable and normal around Liz.

I give Franco the benefit of the doubt with the brain tumor defense because I haven't seen any sign of the serial killer since it was removed. He's been scheming and quirky, and he is painting again, but to my knowledge, he hasn't slain anyone.

When Franco is around Liz, he's more centered and mature. Yes, he plays head games with people, but that isn't a crime, and some of those people deserve it. I also see genuine chemistry between Franco and Liz, so I'm willing to be open-minded. They might not go the distance, but I think Liz could use a little fling to spice thinks up and shake Jason off. Jake's fondness for Franco is an added bonus.

Honestly, I would have preferred that Liz had moved forward with Nikolas, but the time isn't right for them. Perhaps the writers can explore a romance between Nikolas and Liz once things settle down for him and his wits -- and Tyler -- return because I still think they could be interesting because of their long history and the rivalry between Spencer and Cameron.

I feel like Lucas and Brad were robbed. Their wedding was lame, not romantic. The police were searching the house, and the only people present were Lucas' parents, Carly, and Alexis -- who was as skittish as a cat dangling over water filled with hungry sharks. Sheesh, why not just go to the courthouse?

I found it odd that a low-tech hotel like the one Nikolas and Ava checked into in London kept such meticulous records of their guests, including their flight information.

I wish the writers had had fun with Nikolas' alias and had him go by Tyler Christopher rather than Niall Carradine, which is completely unimaginative. Heck, he still had the same initials, and the last names were nearly identical.

I'm happy that T.J. learned that Shawn was his father, but when will people learn to close doors when they discuss private stuff?

Desperate to save his marriage, Julian makes a hilarious proposalJulian: "Okay, well, how about we -- we go see a marriage counselor? How about that?"Alexis: [Laughs] "Seriously? A marriage counselor?" [Scoffs] "What are we gonna say? That we're -- we've reached an impasse because of your tendency to murder people?"

I often talk about the great messages and thoughts that readers share. This week, I wanted to include some of them in the column!

• Liz - in the future, PLEASE refrain from putting UNMARKED SPOILERS regarding COMINGS AND GOINGS of characters in your column. It ruins the surprise for dedicated SPOILER FREE viewers like myself who don't want to know in advance that someone is leaving or a veteran character is returning to the show. -- Scrimmage

My apologies. I often refer to articles on the site in my columns; soapcentral.com had already broken the news about Ingo Rademacher's return, and it had appeared under the news banner at the top of the page and the Soapularity: What's Trending box on the side of the page. My comments about Jax's return were opinions, not actual spoilers. I only shared information that appeared in the article's title.

• Anna spent the last year whining about Duke's killer and Dr. O the woman that made Robin's life hell is still walking around without a care in sight. -- Liason4Real

• It's way too obvious that Griffin is the man who was sleeping with Nathan's wife, and the man that Nathan shot. Hopefully, that was before Griffin became a priest. -- Britt Reid

Now, I turn the spotlight on you, dear readers. Please, share your thoughts about the show in the comments section below. I love reading what everyone has to say.

Until next time, take care.Liz Masters

What are your thoughts on General Hospital? What did you think of this week's Two Scoops? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.