Tuesday’s Will Trent doubled as an homage to General Hospital, complete with a main title sequence that inserted our title character and his beloved canine companion into the opening credits of the long-running ABC soap.
But these weren’t just any credits! Because they appeared during a flashback circa 2004, viewers were treated to a true GH throwback — the beloved “Faces of the Heart” opening, complete with Dave Koz’s soothing sax. In addition to “Will” and “Betty,” the retooled credits included “Monica” (played by the late Leslie Charleson, who died in January) and “Carly” (who, at the time, was portrayed by Tamara Braun).
The episode, aptly titled “A Funeral Fit for a Quartermaine,” paid a fond farewell to GH super-fan Miss Pearl (previously played by TV legend Marla Gibbs). An initial flashback revealed the day 18-year-old Will (Andres Velez, standing in for Ramón Rodríguez) went to live with future crime boss Rafael Wexford (Yannick Haynes, standing in for Antwayn Hopper) and his aforementioned grandmother (Roxzane T. Mims) after he aged out of the foster care system. Miss Pearl agreed to let Will rent her spare room, then invited him to sit down and watch General Hospital with her.
So, what inspired the GH tribute? Was it simply a case of network synergy, or was there a deeper meaning behind it?
“I watched General Hospital with my grandmother,” Will Trent co-showrunner Liz Heldens shares with TVLine. “I would spend summers in San Diego, and we’d go through [the ABC lineup of] All My Children, One Life to Live and General Hospital, and we’d eat buttered noodles and drink Diet Dr. Pepper.”
Prior to this week’s GH “crossover,” Will Trent in Season 3 paid its respects to another ABC classic — the Jennifer Garner spy drama Alias — a very meta hour of television that dove into a tangled case involving espionage, double-crosses and coffee ice cream mistaken identity.
Relive the iconic “Faces of the Heart” opening below, then hit the comments and tell us if you enjoyed Will Trent’s tribute to a daytime classic.
