It’s Only My Opinion: The Best and Worst of 2025 on General Hospital, Young & Restless, BTG, DAYS and B&B
Soap Opera Digest named its Best & Worst of 2025 for each of the shows but Carolyn Hinsey feels that additional picks are needed to complete the list. Check out her thoughts and see if you agree with her takes on General Hospital, The Young and the Restless, The Bold and the Beautiful, Beyond the Gates and Days of Our Lives.
Beyond The Gates
Most Believable Couple: Naomi and Jacob
Naomi was shocked to discover she might be pregnant, but Jacob was thrilled — which opened a very unusual door for soaps: A married woman who doesn’t want to be a mom. Naomi laid out how having a child would impact her career but not Jacob’s, and the two entered couples counseling to work it out which is so refreshing.
Worst Use Of A Soap Trope: Fake Flashbacks
BTG has good actors playing their top characters, so there’s no need to “flash back” to the past with young day players acting out the fake mini scenes the principals are talking about. Honestly, it takes us out of the action. When Bill and Dani reminisce about the important events that made them who they are today, the performances and dialogue are strong. Just let them tell their stories.
Bold and Beautiful
Best Drop-In: Nick Marone
We knew Ridge and Brooke were going to be end game, but it sure was fun to watch Nick try to woo his ex-wife back last summer. Bringing back Jack Wagner for a visit provoked memories and flashbacks from Brooke and Nick’s courtship and wedding 20 years ago, name checked their son Jack (who’s apparently working at Forrester International in Paris, who knew?) and sparked predictable jealousy in Ridge. Every soap heroine should have a dashing sea captain pining away for her — even if he only appears once a decade.
Dumbest Twist: Bill Springs Luna From Prison
Why doesn’t B&B ever hold a trial? They’re so soapy and fun! A jury could have found Luna “not guilty” in Tom and Hollis’s deaths because of a lack of concrete evidence or something, and she could have just walked free. Instead, Bill “made a deal with the authorities” for Luna to live on house arrest in his mansion (!) and then he got her state pardoned on federal murder charges, which is impossible. The soap had a well-crafted villain here (played by powerhouse actress Lisa Yamada) but the implausibility of this story — combined with Luna’s “death” and sexual assault of Will — boxed this promising character into a corner.
Biggest Matzah Ball Hanging Out There: Where’s RJ?
Luna’s sudden decision to go on a crime spree obviously meant she couldn’t keep frolicking with RJ Forrester at the beach house. But he’s supposed to be the cherished only child of Ridge and Brooke, so it’s not plausible that he simply disappeared over a year ago. Is RJ still an “influencer”? It’s hard to influence anything when no one is talking about you.
Days of Our Lives
Most Tortured Couple: Xander and Sarah
On the plus side, he’s a caring father, likes to eat ice cream in bed, and his sessions with Marlena have been heartfelt. Conversely, he’s a nasty bully who almost killed Brady and beat his brother Philip to a pulp, then lied about it for months. Making Xander so violent was a mistake because it would be irresponsible for Sarah to let him around Victoria. But DAYS plays their longing well… which is what makes these two so effectively tortured.
Worst Dad: Chad
The mother of his children was violently murdered so he kissed the woman who impersonated the dear, departed Abigail. That upset Thomas so much he decided he wants to go live with his grandparents Jack and Jenn.
Gabi: “What is Jennifer thinking?”
Chad: “That I’m a bad dad.”
Exactly.
General Hospital
Best Unintentional Consequence Of An Exit: Tristan Rogers’ Last Scenes
Even if Sasha had just turned up in Europe with Robert and Holly and her new baby, her exit would have been a well-crafted and heartwarming surprise. But the fact that Tristan Rogers passed away so soon after they taped the scenes makes them solid gold for longtime fans, because they were his last. “Hello, Luv,” greeted Robert as Sasha settled in with Daisy. The thought of former WSB agent Robert Scorpio and con woman Holly Sutton living together with their new daughter and granddaughter somewhere out there brings a welcome smile when we lost so many beloved GH icons this year in real life.
Best New Villain: Jenz Sidwell
“Jenz is a powerful man,” said Ava, who has known some powerful men. Is it overkill that he’s the bad guy in so many current stories? Probably. But we’ve still got Jordan working undercover to bring him down, and Sonny and Laura temporarily appeasing him until they can beat him at his own game. I stand by my prediction that Sidwell will turn out to be a Cassadine — he sure found the secret rooms at Wyndemere in a hurry, and what was up with the dagger? That would make him a value add to an important family (Alexis, Valentin, Charlotte…) that has been causing trouble in PC for 50 years.
Worst Matzah Ball Hanging Out There: Jagger’s Murder
I know famed mob boss Sonny Corinthos gets away with everything, but he shot Jagger Cates in cold blood in front of Michael on the Quartermaine Estate which we know has cameras because they 1) employ a crack security team and 2) busted Willow having sex with Drew using one. Can Jack Brennan at least say that Sonny is a suspect in the killing of a United States FBI agent?
Best Matzah Ball Hanging Out There: Anna and Jason
They kissed when they were locked up in 2024, and that is major unfinished business. When not being held captive, Anna lives with her granddaughter Emma who would definitely have thoughts about her grandma kissing her mom’s ex-boyfriend. And Jason is pursuing Britt, the most insecure woman in Port Charles, who overreacts to everything, when he shares an easy shorthand with Anna.
Jason: “I need your help.”
Anna: “Are we speaking again?”
Don’t leave us hanging, GH!
Best Use Of The Younger Set: The Scooby Kids
No other show comes close to the high bar GH sets with Danny, Rocco, Gio, Emma and Charlotte, who all have active parents and/or grandparents from A-list families. They also do a much better job of talking about off-screen kids (like referring to Aiden traveling the world with Lucky) and give them at least some stories rooted in reality, from Rocco’s alcohol poisoning to Danny’s ongoing efforts to navigate his grief around the loss of his beloved mom, Sam. Each kid also has an edge, which bodes well for drama.
Danny: “Your parents have no idea how much trouble you are, do they?”
Charlotte: “They’re on a need-to-know basis.”
Watch out if Charlotte and Emma ever team up…
Young and Restless
Best Coming Of Age: Claire
Yes she implausibly went from attempted murderer to quiet, tentative virgin, and yes her origin story made no sense. But here we are with a retconned daughter of Victoria Newman, and the minute Claire started sparring with Victor I was in. Claire was overdue for an “I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar” moment and she found it by dumping Kyle, standing up to Victor, and battling Audra. Claire Newman is a player now, and it bodes well for future story.
Worst Turn To The Dark Side: Victor
Why was The Mustache so mean this year? Supposedly, he’s still mad that Jack joined Nikki in her 2024 alcoholic slide to get her to kick the bottle (which worked, by the way) and his anger propelled him to spend 2025 relentlessly trying to bring down Jabot and every member of the Abbott family. He also lied to his “darling” Nikki about his nefarious actions and treated the ever-loyal Michael Baldwin like absolute dirt. The best thing about Victor Newman was that he always had a method to his badness and a twinkle in his eye. But there’s Nikki upset with Victor for destroying a family she loves (“Are you proud of yourself?”) and him nastily responding he doesn’t give a damn. It’s Christmas, people. Please lighten up our favorite mogul in 2026!
Hey. It’s only my opinion.
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