Daytime TV Performer of the Week: ‘GH’s Lisa LoCicero Defends Husband Ned After Drew’s Reaction to His Heart Attack

Not since Miss Ellie ordered Ray to get her the shotgun out of the hall closet on Dallas have we enjoyed seeing a rifle in a scene on TV.

Lisa LoCicero‘s Olivia Quartermaine was all set to de-escalate the family’s feud with black sheep member Drew Cain (Cameron Mathison) on General Hospital — until she learned that the congressman was with her husband, Ned (Wally Kurth), when he had his potentially fatal heart attack.

Ned said he’d kept quiet about Drew being so dastardly to him because his family could be “a lot.”

“Guess what? I never aspired to be ‘a little,’” Olivia shot back.

Just then, the family heard Yuri (Cyrus Hobbi) trying to keep two visitors at bay in the foyer. Drew picked a bad time to drop by Monica’s Tracy’s (Jane Elliot) house to let the family know the court order demanding the return of Quartermaine keepsakes wasn’t going to hold up.

While Tracy and other family members argued with Drew and his attorney, Martin (Michael E. Knight), Olivia excused herself to borrow one of Edward’s (David Lewis, John Ingle) weapons. Just as Drew accused Tracy of being a “tad over dramatic,” Olivia descended the staircase, rifle in hand.

“Is it?” Olivia rhetorically asked as she cocked the rifle. LoCicero infused her voice with a deadly serious tone, showing that the lady meant business.

Neither anyone in the scene (except for Olivia, of course) nor the viewers knew that the weapon wasn’t loaded, but for the scene to work, for Drew to feel truly threatened, everyone needed to believe that it was. LoCicero committed to Olivia’s justifiable anger.

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Forget Quartermaine artifacts and heirlooms (not that they don’t matter), Olivia was pissed that her beloved husband almost lost his life and that Drew was so callous when Ned took ill.

“You left my husband to die like a dog, and the only reason I haven’t pulled this trigger yet is because Ned is alive,” Olivia stated.

LoCicero made the choice for Olivia to say all this as she continued to keep Drew in her sights, holding the rifle with confidence. She was prepared to blow him away.

“So, if you know what’s good for you, you and the ‘boot lickin’ barrister’ will vacate the premises immediately,” Olivia continued with conviction.

Martin didn’t need further convincing. He hightailed it out the door. Drew, however, needed a bit more evidence. Ever the gracious hostess, Olivia obliged.

“I’m an excellent shot, Drew,” Olivia pointed out. “What’s it going to be? Should I finish the job someone started a couple of months ago?”

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After Drew beat a retreat, Olivia let out a chuckle and informed her family that the gun wasn’t loaded. An impressed Tracy gifted her father’s Halliday rifle to her daughter-in-law as a reward for her passionate defense of her son.

Olivia’s gun may not have been loaded, but LoCicero’s performance certainly was. We saw and felt the passionate love that Olivia has for her husband and the fury she has towards Drew.

Just as Miss Ellie was the protective Mama Bear of the Ewing family, Olivia Falconeri Quartermaine is fiercely loyal to Ned and the entire Quartermaine clan. Brava to LoCicero for her fully loaded performance!

General Hospital, Weekdays, ABC