Everyone Needs a Liesl

General Hospital Recap: August 3-7, 2026

Jason quit working for Sonny this week, and Sonny told Dante he's stepping away too. Curtis Ashford's assault trial got underway, Willow served Jacinda with a restraining order that came back around on her, and Josslyn got a job offer from an unlikely source. Listen to this week's Pier 54 episode here:

Jason Quits Working for Sonny, Who Tells Dante He's Doing the Same

Jason told Sonny he was done working for him. He walked Sonny through everything that had happened the day the WSB took him into custody: the rooftop standoff with Cullum, how Brennan kept getting in his line of sight, and how he chose not to take the shot rather than go through Brennan to get to it. He had promised Danny he'd make it to his basketball game before leaving town to help Britt. He got as far as the parking lot before Dante showed up with a WSB warrant. Jason handed Dante his gun, then headbutted him to get away, with Danny watching the whole thing happen.

From there Jason went to the pier, where Cullum had Britt unconscious and was about to kill her. He and Cullum fought. Cullum knocked the gun loose and raised a steel baton to finish Jason off, and that was when Rocco, who had followed Britt to the pier, picked up the gun and shot Cullum. Jason told Sonny that seeing Rocco holding that gun made him think of Danny in the same position. He said something broke in him in the back of the WSB transport van, with Danny pounding on the doors.

Jason told Sonny he can't keep telling Danny to make good choices while he's still making dangerous ones himself. Sonny gave him his blessing. Jason also went to see Tracy and told her the same thing. She told him he was saying the same things Monica and Alan once said about him, and that they would be proud of him.

Later, Dante told Sonny he'd been struggling with who would be looking out for him now that Jason was gone. Sonny told him he was walking away too, framing Sidwell's fall as an opening he intends to take.

Curtis Ashford's Trial Begins

Curtis's assault trial against Isaiah opened this week. Before it started, the prosecution offered him a plea deal: two years, with parole possible in as little as eight months. Curtis turned it down, unwilling to miss the first eight months of his newborn son Desmond's life.

The prosecution's opening argument framed the car accident that nearly killed Curtis and Jordan as a distraction from the real issue, arguing that punching someone is illegal regardless of intent. The defense argued Curtis acted on a reasonable belief that Isaiah was involved in that accident and was trying to push him out of his own family.

Detective Fitzpatrick, the arresting officer, testified that he didn't witness the punch itself but arrived to find Isaiah injured on the floor and Curtis still goading him. Portia testified that Isaiah had been trying to leave before Curtis kept pressing him, and that Isaiah did not swing or physically threaten Curtis before being hit. She also testified that the injury has ended Isaiah's ability to perform surgery, including a liver transplant for a pediatric patient that had to be cancelled.

Isaiah testified that he drives a black BMW SUV and had it repaired around the time of the accident, though he would not name the patient he says he was visiting that night, citing HIPAA. Jordan testified about her facial scarring and about Isaiah visiting her in the hospital.

The prosecution called Drew to testify, expecting him to support the theory that Willow was the other driver. Instead, Drew testified that the police report was based on a miscommunication while he was still locked in and could only blink to answer questions, and that Willow was actually home with him that night, which ended up helping Curtis's case instead.

Curtis took the stand and laid out three reasons for his belief that Isaiah was involved: Isaiah was on the road that night without a confirmed alibi, he drives the same make and model of vehicle that struck the guardrail, and he had bodywork done on his car shortly afterward. He also cited Isaiah telling him he would make a better father to his child. The prosecution confirmed through Curtis that Isaiah never swung at him or threatened him physically. Molly declined to predict the verdict.

Anna, Valentin, and Carly

Anna went to the Metro Court Gardens to talk to Valentin and found him kissing Carly instead. Startled, she crashed into a server on her way out, which drew Valentin and Carly's attention, and they invited her to join them at the table. When she learned Valentin had made a deal with the WSB to get his assets unfrozen, she scolded him for risking his freedom again, certain the WSB would use it against him eventually. Carly pushed back, calling Valentin proof that someone can walk away from the WSB, and said she believed Josslyn would be able to do the same one day. Anna said she thought it was too late for Josslyn, and told Carly she'd known Josslyn was WSB since the previous summer, which was why she'd sent Jason to find her and Britt.

Valentin also warned Nina that her continued closeness with Brennan would cost her. Nina brushed him off and left.

Ava, Ethan, and Hudson

Hudson caught up with Ethan at a hotel in Oslo, Norway, demanding to know what happened to Delilah and her baby. Ethan told him both had died, which wasn't true. The two got into a physical fight, with Hudson beating Ethan and threatening to go after his mother and sisters if he found out Ethan had lied. After Hudson left, Ethan called Ava and made her swear to keep quiet about his connection to the baby. Hudson had planted a listening device in the room and overheard the whole call.

Ava went to see Sonny, who wanted to know what she'd done to drive Ethan out of town. She insisted she'd done nothing and told him about Ethan's call. She turned the question back on Sonny, suggesting he might be the one who ran Ethan off. Sonny warned her there'd be consequences if anyone came after his family. Ava also spent time with Drew, and the two found common ground over their shared frustration with Sonny.

Josslyn and the Jasper Jacks Enterprise Offer

Hudson, identified as the vice president of operations at Jasper Jacks Enterprise, approached Josslyn at the Metro Court Gardens. He told her Jax wants her to become the company's new CEO while he's sailing around the world and difficult to reach.

Josslyn pushed back, pointing out she has no business background with the company. Their conversation suggested the two may already have some history connected to her WSB work, though what that is wasn't made clear.

At breakfast with Carly and Michael, Josslyn told Michael she's a WSB field agent. Michael was fully supportive, which wasn't the reaction Carly was hoping for. Carly later pushed Josslyn to tell Michael the rest, and Josslyn told him she'd been shot on a recent assignment, which he hadn't known about. Josslyn also walked in on Brennan and Nina kissing in his office.

Willow, Jacinda, and a Cup of Coffee

Willow served Jacinda with a restraining order that morning, barring her from being within 500 feet of Wiley and Amelia, citing her arrest record. Michael told Jacinda he believed his attorneys could get it thrown out and that Willow only got it because she's in Congress.

At Nina's, Willow wanted her mother to stop confiding in Brennan about the kids. Nina explained that Willow's push to reopen the investigation into Drew's shooting risked exposing Brennan, since he was the one who made the traffic camera footage from that night disappear. Nina was also mortified to learn about the restraining order against Jacinda. Separately, Willow, Liesl, and Nina had cocktails together, where Liesl corrected Willow for using "exonerated" and "acquitted" interchangeably.

Jacinda arrived at Nina's with dry cleaning and snarked about the restraining order. Willow headed into another room, and Nina stepped out to grab something for her assistant. Alone with the two coffees, each labeled with a name, Jacinda drugged Willow's.

By Friday, Willow was watching Wiley and Amelia at Nina's after the nanny called in sick. Wiley nearly drank from Willow's iced latte, and Willow took the cup back and drank it herself instead. She suggested an arcade trip and grabbed her keys, and the episode ended with her and the kids heading out.

Separately, Jacinda hinted to Michael at the Metro Court Gardens that trouble was coming for Willow, which left him suspicious of what she'd done.

Serena, Lucy, and Michael

Lucy asked Serena to get close to Michael at the Metro Court pool as a way to pressure him into giving up the Deception shares he acquired from Maxie. Serena approached Michael, first landing in Brennan's lap after slipping on water, then deliberately taking Michael's poolside seat. The two had a straightforward conversation. Serena told him she wanted to work at Deception alongside her mother, and Michael said that wasn't his call to make but he had no objection.

Separately, Lucy had been planning a surprise reunion between Serena and Kevin, only

to learn from Laura that Kevin is staying in Dublin through the fall semester.

Phoebe's Adoption Is Finalized

Alexis met with Brook Lynn and Chase to finalize Phoebe Jacqueline Chase's adoption. She confirmed Phoebe would never have access to information about her birth father, and gave them a letter written for Phoebe about her late birth mother, Delilah, to give her when she's older. The papers were signed. Gio raised concerns about how Phoebe would process learning she was adopted later in life.

Trina, Gio, and the Music Deal

Trina and Ava had breakfast at the Metro Court Gardens to celebrate Trina's graduation. Ava's gift was an offer to make her a full partner, with a plan to eventually rename the business the Jerome Robinson Gallery. Trina was touched but turned it down, choosing to focus on her new record deal instead. Ava kept the offer open and agreed to keep Trina on part time.

Record executive Simon met with Brook Lynn believing Trina and Gio were a couple, and told her his marketing plan for the pair was built around promoting them as young and in love. Kai Taylor, Trina's boyfriend, arrived and introduced himself, and Simon left abruptly to catch a flight. Trina and Gio refused to fake a relationship for the label. Brook Lynn told them she'd work it out with Simon and asked them not to invoke the 90-day exit clause in their contract yet.

Separately, someone was shown with a board of Trina's photos, digitally removing Kai from one of the pictures.

Port Charles Pipeline

Cheri followed up on last week's Valentin coverage with a correction. When we questioned how Charlotte would have had access to hotel security cameras, Cheri pointed out that Nina owned Carly's half of the Metro Court from July 2022 to April 2024, which explains the access.

Phyllis sent us a photo from Epiphany's fireworks display on the GH rooftop, which is where we got the idea that Sonny might deal in fireworks. Epiphany apparently put him in charge of making sure those happened, and we're only half joking about what that means.

Kate Mansi commented on Cameron Mathison's Instagram this week that she's watching Desperate Housewives for the first time and didn't realize he'd been in it.

We're also looking to bring someone on to help us grow the show, things like sponsorships, marketing, and social media. If that's something in your wheelhouse, or you know someone who might be a fit, reach out to Shannon directly at Shannon@pier54podcast.com (the numbers five and four, not spelled out).

Send your messages to hello@pier54podcast.com and you might hear yours on a future episode.

Reality Check

Shannon's daughter wrapped up her two week camp and is eager to get back to work once her hours pick back up. Work was steady this week after a rough one last time around, and Shannon gave a presentation on how to start a podcast. JD has been working on installing a mini split in the sunroom, and heavy rain this week revealed they'll need new gutters out there sooner than planned.

Amanda's daughter Madeline spent the week with her dad in Harrisburg while he taught a training course, and came home having gone swimming and school shopping. Amanda's mother was hospitalized for most of the week and was released Thursday, and Amanda is navigating some stress with her siblings on top of it. Dance season gears back up soon, with payments and shoes already in motion even though classes are on hold for the month.

This Thursday on the Port Charles 411

With Serena back in Port Charles and in the middle of everything, we're doing a take two on her history. Our original Serena Baldwin episode ran back in September of 2022 and barely scratched the surface. This time we're giving her the full treatment. Our fan round table episode has been pushed to August 20 to make room for it.

New episodes every Monday and Thursday at GeneralHospitalPodcast.com or wherever

you listen.

We'll meet you at the pier!