For 25 years, General Hospital fans have followed the captivating journey of Elizabeth Webber. From a bitter teen to a resilient nurse and dedicated single mother, Elizabeth’s story has been filled with twists and turns. Yet, the question that has lingered in our minds all these years is: Where are her parents? Why did they never visit or support her? And why was she left in the care of her ‘Gram’ Audrey Hardy at just 15 years old? Finally, we have the answers we’ve been waiting for, and unfortunately, they are not what we expected.
Table of Contents
Elizabeth Webber is Better Off Without Her Parents
Elizabeth’s father, Jeff Webber, portrayed by Richard Dean Anderson in the late 1970s and early 1980s, was a beloved character on the show. He was a good guy, someone we thought would never abandon his children in pursuit of his career. When GH brought back Jeff (now played by Falcon Crest’s William Moses) with his previously unseen wife, Carolyn Webber (Denise Crosby), we hoped to understand their actions. But what we discovered left us shaking our heads in disbelief.
Upon reuniting with their daughter, Jeff and Carolyn showed no remorse when Elizabeth confronted them. She poured out her heart, expressing the pain of their absence during her darkest moments, including her rape in high school, her weddings, the births of her children, and even her husband’s brutal murder. Their excuses were endless, and it became clear that they were not the loving parents Elizabeth had yearned for all these years.
What Was General Hospital Thinking?
Earlier this fall, there were hints that Elizabeth’s backstory might be connected to Hamilton Finn, a character she has been reluctantly paired with. Their pairing has faced criticism from fans, as Finn had to be told by Elizabeth’s son to give her space and let her find her own way. Now, we discover that Elizabeth’s reason for being in Port Charles is tied to Finn, a character who only arrived in town in 2016 and paid little attention to Elizabeth until 2021.
If that wasn’t enough, GH attempted to force a connection that didn’t quite fit. Elizabeth’s parents’ actions became even more questionable and painted them in a worse light than we could have imagined.
A Convoluted Plot for Elizabeth Webber that Makes No Sense
It turns out that Jeff is a serial philanderer. He not only had an affair with Naomi Dreyfus, resulting in Elizabeth’s half-sister Rachel Berlin (Hayden Barnes), but he also had an affair with Finn’s late wife, Reiko Finn, when Elizabeth was just a teenager. Moreover, it seems that Reiko was not the only one. Elizabeth was aware of her father’s behavior from a young age.
Back in 2016, Finn arrived in Port Charles as a drug addict battling the fictional Blackwoods Disease. This disease, contracted by Finn and his wife while working for Doctors Without Borders, claimed Reiko’s life. Finn was searching for a cure, injecting himself with an experimental drug containing the narcotic he was addicted to. The cure was discovered when Hayden almost lost her life to Blackwoods.
Now, we learn that during a confrontation with Reiko, Elizabeth threatened to expose her affair with Jeff. A struggle ensued, resulting in Reiko falling down the stairs, suffering injuries that required a blood transfusion and ultimately causing her to contract Blackwood’s disease.
In a panic, Jeff and Carolyn left the Mariana Islands with their two daughters. Elizabeth started experiencing nightmares and sleepwalking, prompting her parents to give her sleeping pills and coach her to forget the traumatic ordeal. When Elizabeth nearly endangered herself by attempting to throw herself down a flight of stairs, her parents decided it was best for her to be without them. They left her with neighbors before Elizabeth headed to Port Charles, and they never looked back. Their parenting skills are certainly questionable.
The General Hospital Numbers Don’t Add Up
Let’s do the math here. Elizabeth arrived on Audrey’s porch in 1997, meaning Reiko contracted Blackwoods either that year or in late 1996. Fast forward 20 years, and Finn arrives in Port Charles, talking about his late wife and revealing his own battle with the disease. So, we are expected to believe that Finn endured Blackwoods for two decades, injecting himself with a homemade experimental drug all that time.
Now, let’s dig deeper. For Finn to have been working with Doctors Without Borders 25 years ago, he would have needed to be at least 30 years old, having completed his medical residency. Reiko appeared to be around 35 in flashbacks. Yet, Finn has digital photos of her on his phone, as if he hadn’t seen her since the 1990s. Does this mean Finn is 60 years old or older? And how is it possible that he knew Elizabeth when she was 15 but never mentioned it?
The plot holes here are enormous. Before this long-awaited plot to honor Rebecca Herbst’s 25 years on GH spirals even further out of control, these inconsistencies need to be addressed.
General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s happening in Port Charles, stay tuned to the latest GH spoilers. And for a comprehensive understanding of the show’s history, visit the 5 WS article.
Join the conversation on our Facebook Page and follow us on Twitter for updates. We also share exciting updates on our Instagram stories. See you there!
