Our Hopes For General Hospital's Thrilling New Yuri Storyline

For a soap opera that pioneered action and adventure stories on daytime television, "General Hospital" has been lacking in that department for a while now. Sure, the heroes of Port Charles saved the world from annihilation in Greenland back in May, powerful racketeer Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) was shot at by a sniper in March, and he and Anna Devane (Finola Hughes) were targeted by yet another gunman in July, but beyond that, there haven't been any major action-oriented arcs. While we're anticipating an epic battle in which many characters may confront the villain Cyrus Renault (Jeff Kober) and his mysterious organization, one story seems to have come out of nowhere involving the severely underused Yuri Tamashevich (Cyrus Hobbi), and it's about time.

Originally hired as a bodyguard for Brook Lynn (Amanda Setton), the imposing Ukrainian ultimately became a butler/bodyguard for the wealthy Quartermaines. Despite being a towering figure, Yuri hasn't actually seen any action, but that may all change since Gloria Cerullo (Ellen Travolta) came to town and revealed she's got trouble with the Bratva — the Russian mafia. Yuri told her and her daughter Lois Cerullo (Rena Sofer) that he would help them, explaining in his charmingly broken English, "I know I look like nice boy. But I am not always nice. I can handle these people." It seemed as if Gloria came to town to seek Sonny's help, and it's highly probable Yuri and the don could team up.

Considering Ellen Travolta will only be on "General Hospital" for three episodes, the clash with the Bratva will probably be short. But it'll hopefully be just enough to align Yuri and Sonny Corinthos, who's going to need all the allies he can muster if he's going to take on whatever surprise Cyrus Renault is plotting. Ever since Jason Morgan (Steve Burton), Sonny's chief enforcer, was killed in 2021, Sonny hasn't fully filled the void he left behind. He's got the incredibly capable Dex Heller (Evan Hofer) working for him, but he's also going to need extreme muscle in the form of Yuri.

So far, we haven't seen him in any brawls or gunfights, so a clash with bad guys could be a great way to find out Yuri's real strength. Cyrus Hobbi has created a very nice and lovable character, especially in his romance with Dr. Terry Randolph (Cassandra James). Hobbi is also an accomplished football player in real life, and although he recently broke his leg playing the game on Thanksgiving, we're sure he'll recover quickly and bring his impressive physique and athletic skills to the table when the need arises. And Yuri's face turned completely serious and menacing when he offered to help Gloria Cerullo, so we're sure he means business.

We're excited to see how this story plays out, and will hopefully have more Yuri in front-burner storylines to come!