… and just like that, she was gone. General Hospital kicked off November sweeps with the death we all knew was

coming. Dry your eyes and let’s talk about the final hours of Sam McCall’s life, Kelly Monaco’s departure and everything

else that unfolded in Port Charles over the last five days. Your usual Soapboxer, Dustin, handed things over to me this

week… and what a week it was!

I’m Not Crying… You Are!

Portia, Liz and Lucas working to save Sam’s life didn’t get to me, and my eyes were dry when they broke the news to Alexis that her Jason-lovin’ daughter had passed away. But when the grieving mom shouted at Portia to get her a blanket because Sam was cold? I felt my defenses weakening. And when she crawled into that hospital bed beside Sam, I may have sniffled a bit. Coulda been allergies, though.

What I really didn’t expect was that it would be Jason’s bedside monologue (and the flashbacks that followed) that would unleash the floodgates. But damned if Steve Burton didn’t deliver, big time. Of course a tear running down the cheek of the man we’ve long called Stone Cold got to me. I’m only human!Let’s give a big shout-out to whoever put together that gorgeous montage of Sam and Jason’s relationship. I don’t think I could have predicted that the show would go in that direction, especially given how badly it screwed up their relationship (not to mention the shoulda-been-epic Liz/Jason/Sam triangle which they never truly invested in). However, at the end of the day — or in this case, hour — General Hospital delivered in spades.

Haters, Attack in Three… Two…

While I 100-percent understand the anger and outrage felt by fans of both Sam and Monaco, I am also 100-percent fine with the show’s decision to kill off the character. Why? Because I’m a huge believer that when it comes to soaps, they should always take the most dramatic route possible. And does a situation get more dramatic than this one? Sam went in for what seemed like a simple surgery and never emerged. Why? We don’t yet know. But think about the drama left in her wake.

Sam’s final action was to essentially save Lulu’s life. Dante went from celebrating his engagement to mourning in a heartbeat. (And if Dominic Zamprogna’s performance on Friday didn’t leave you feeling crushed, you may be dead inside.) Any potential reunion between Lulu and Dante will no doubt be tainted by the fact that she is only alive because of Sam’s death. Her family members, especially mom Alexis, will face a tough struggle as they try to be happy for Laura’s clan. A happiness that came only at the loss of Sam. Visit Advertiser website

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: One of the reasons modern American soaps have struggled in recent years is their refusal to tell stories which might rile the audience. But some of the most lauded storylines of all time involved controversial subjects and, yes, popular characters dying. And not “soap-opera dying” where they’ll return six months down the road, but dead-is-dead dying. On General Hospital alone, we had the heartbreaking saga of Stone’s death and the crushing blow of BJ’s passing.

Death is a part of life. And the death of a beloved soap character should be hard and leave us feeling angry, because they have, over time, become part of our extended families. But just as in life, soaps go on long after the loss of a loved one.

As for those viewers hoping that the show gets cancelled as a result of Sam’s death and Monaco’s dismissal? Shame on you. No, seriously. I get that you’re not happy with the decision, and that’s your right. It’s also your right to stop watching, as many have vowed to do. But to wish that an entire production company — cast, crew and beyond — lose their jobs, or that others who don’t have the same tie to a character as you be deprived of a show they love?

Unlike a lot of soap fans, I ship good story as opposed to individual actors or couples. Having watched for over 40 years, I know that it’s not necessarily a good thing to get overly attached, given that this is a medium in which people — be they actors, characters of both — come and go. It’s the nature of the beast. In this case, I suspect even Monaco’s biggest fans would have to admit that so far, Sam’s death has made for good soap.

Well, I guess we know why this column is called Soapbox! Time to climb down off of mine…

Elsewhere In Port Charles

• I love that General Hospital didn’t play Sam’s death in a vacuum. When a soap has something big happening, they should always keep in mind that the main event is an opportunity to get people invested in other storylines. Come for the crushing loss, stay for the ongoing drama.

• I’m sorry that Scott Reeves’ Steven only stayed for a few episodes but love that the powers that be used him to escort Heather off the canvas. In real life, people come to town for a visit or with a specific purpose in mind, then they leave. Do I think we’ve seen the last of Heather? Did you hear what she whispered to Ace? Oh, she’ll most definitely be back…

• Sasha being the offspring of Robert and Holly feels like about 10 retcons at once. (That attempt at explaining Holly’s actions during Friday’s episode was so convoluted that you could literally see Emma Samms and Tristan Rogers struggling to make sense of the dialogue.) That said, both Sofia Mattsson and Josh Kelly have been doing fantastic work. From Sasha’s revulsion upon discovering she’s slept with her first cousin to Cody putting Drew on blast, it was great soap with a lot of messy potential down the line. Especially since Michael slept with Sasha and Willow within hours of one another. I mean, you don’t have to be a genius to see a double-whammy coming down the pike!

• Speaking of Sasha and Michael’s hook-up, it amused me that, thanks to a temporary recast, she went to bed with one Michael (Robert Adamson) and woke up with another (Chad Duell). I mean, who of us hasn’t slept with someone only to wake up and discover they’re not the person we thought they were. Er… right?

• All this and a Xenon shout-out, too? Yeah, this was a good week to be a General Hospital viewer.