Valerie Spencer, played by the beautiful and talented, Brytni Sarpy, is spending quite a bit of her time in her police uniform, carrying out seemingly minor Port Charles PD duties on General Hospital.
While there is certainly a lot of activity going on in the fictional town of PC, I think there is a great deal of untapped talent going to waste. Valerie Spencer has the potential of being a multi-layered character with a broad variety of storylines. After all, Valerie is a Spencer!
We’re finally seeing more and more of Lulu’s ‘Spencer side’ coming out, and it would be great to see Valerie show more of the cunning and drama that always follows this family.
In addition, we rarely get to see Brytni in anything but a police uniform. It’s clear she deserves to get promoted to detective so she can garner some of the fabulous wardrobe we see Police Commissioner Jordan Ashford [Vinessa Antoine] wearing — and I’m quite sure she would wear it just as well! I know this sounds shallow, but part of the fun of soap operas is watching our favorite actors wearing clothing many of us could only dream of purchasing.
What are your thoughts about potential storylines for Valerie Spencer?
Let’s Talk!!!
(All photo credits in this article go to Brad Everett Young.)
I want Valerie to get more airtime and be in other storylines too. I want to know why Valerie’s not getting any family scenes either. Where’s Valerie friendships at too.
Exactly! There’s so much potential for this character and Brytni is so talented — I want to see more of her on screen with fresh, exciting storylines. Thank you for chiming in!
I agree!! Wonderful actress & person!!
IMO, both Valerie Spencer and Brytni Sarpy are welcome additions to General Hospital. She being a Spencer should be played up more–she has an aunt, cousins–we need to see that side of her, too. I know the canvas is stuffed right now but I’d still like to see her story line expanded, because, given the opportunity, Bryt shines as Valerie! If they are going to put her with Curtis, write a real love story and not a string of “booty calls” disguised as a romance. In a nutshell, she needs to be featured far more often than she is.
ITA! I would love to see Valerie interact with any of the many Spencers in PC. It would make sense to give her a real love story. Thank you for commenting!
I’d like to see valerie with Michael corrinthos they be good together.
That would be a good pairing
Her character doesnt appeal at all. Not much on the actress either after meeting her, sorry.
So sorry you feel this way. I hope she’ll get a chance to win you over in the future. I appreciate you sharing your viewpoint.
I must agree. In the beginning, if the character had been introduced differently, maybe I could have warmed up to her, but neither the character nor the actress has ever appealed to me. If a backstory, if relationships with family haven’t been developed in 16 months, they never will be. She is a plot point. Always had been, always will be. My hope is TPTB use this plot point to speed the hospital killer storyline to a quick finish. If a rookie cop is killed in the line of duty maybe the PCPD will be allowed to solve the crime just this once.
Like you, I wish Valerie had been introduced a better. I do think the character has potential that is yet untapped and would love to see the writing team’s creativity develop her. There’s a lot that can happen but has not yet.
Thank you for chiming in!
Some only “hate” Valerie because their beloved St.Dante CHOSE to sleep with her. They want her gone still a year later. Still a threat. DZs second fave story after Somny shot Dante. too which is awesome!! Oh yes,They would say this with anyone not just a “newbie”
You certainly might be right, Betty. I’m just glad the #Vante storyline is long past and now Valerie can get a new story!
Just not cool to knock an actress because you don’t like the character.
Would love to see her developed as more than just a plot point entity. Whenever BrSa has shared scenes with JZ’s Bobbie there is a warmth and sympatico that should be mined for all it’s worth with Bobbie acting as the young woman’s touchstone relative. This in turn could lead to her interacting consistently with her cousin Carly, thereby strengthening the Spencer connection that a lot of people forget about, considering that much of Carly’s material is more Corinthos oriented.
Thank you, Beth, for joining in the conversation! I think you have some great ideas for developing Valerie, either through storylines w/Bobbie or w/Carly. I think both are definitely good plans and would be happy to see one of those.
Seems the writers have forgotten about it too.
Let’s hope we start seeing more of those family connections. 🙂
Brytni is a very talented young lady & so wonderful to her fans!! Wish her “Spencer” ties had been more the focus! She was integral to a story which got Dom Zamorogna another Emmy nomination this year, but some “fans” have treated her very badly for doing the job she was hired to do!! It’s very sad when some people can’t seem to realize they are actors playing parts in a fictional TV show, and they blame “her” for messing with their couple!! Love Brytini & got to spend time with her at the GH Fan Club weekend. You won’t meet a classier or more talented lady anywhere & she so appreciated fans who know the difference between herself & a role she plays on GH. Her detractors need to get a life outside of GH Love you Brytni❤️
Love this girl…she deserves her own story!! I’m liking Val & Curtis and maybe a story when she finds out Curtis is trying to help Nina in a not so legal way!! They both have good hearts!! Love you Brytni!! So loved meeting you at GHFCW a few weeks ago!!
I think Valerie has potential for chemistry with more than one character in PC. 🙂
Yes of course she does. That was just a love life suggestion. The fact that she’s a Spencer & the Bobbie, Carly & Lucas connections would be great to see!! Wouldn’t mind seeing her volunteering at the hospital in her free time too or working with disadvantaged kids as many police officers do!!
Great ideas!
I agree that Brytni is a wonderful actress and I hope the writers give her a quality storyline. It’s great that you had the chance to spend time with her at the GH Fan event! Thank you for adding your support for Brytni AND Valerie.
I respectfully do NOT agree that it’s too late to develop Valerie. Willing writers have created positive situations under more difficult circumstances. Even though Valerie was introduced to give Lante much-needed story and, therefore, was not as developed as she should have been when she first arrived, she has shown the potential to be so much more than she currently is!
So what would I like to see for the development of Valerie’s multi-layered character and for her storylines?
I want to see her having real, sustained conversations – conversations which are needed to grow her character and to fully establish meaningful relationships. Examples: Develop the mentor/friend/older sister relationship with Jordan. Develop depth between her and Curtis – both about their shared wish to move on from their past mistakes and about their interest in law enforcement. Build on the wonderful friend chemistry between Brytni and Robert Palmer Watkins and feature Valerie and Dillon being each other confidants. Both need a platonic best friend! Include in these conversations more information about Valerie’s life growing up and living in PA because doing this can fill in some gaps in her backstory.
Build on Valerie’s Spencer connections – not just with Bobbie, but also with Carly, Joss, Michael and Morgan. And let us see more of that Spencer fire and determination which she has shown. Focus on her resilience in rebuilding her life after losing her mother and making some significant missteps following that loss.
Feature Valerie (and the rest of the PCPD) in positive law enforcement situations – and not just in criminal investigations but also in the community service that cops can do so well. (As an aside, considering the upheavals in our society, this is an especially good time to focus on positive relationships between the community and the police department – even it’s only fictional).
I have more, but I’ll stop at this … for now!
Well said! Thank you so much for adding all your viewpoints on how Valerie’s character can be developed.
I LOVE Brytni Sarpy and the energy she brings to GH! As other people have said before, I would have loved more of a back story for her! I think it would have made a world of difference in the Vante storyline (that I loved btw) It gave Dante new life to his character. Unfortunately (again) TPTB didn’t give it a lot of time/effort and unfortunately she seems to be suffering the fallout.
I hope in the future TPTB take notice & remedy this situation.
I agree with your summary and hope in the future Valerie will have a story we can’t turn away from. Thank you for adding into the chat!
Sigh. That some take a positive article about Brytni’s #VALERIE to “knock” an actress. I have never met Brytni , personally, but have communicated with her via Twitter. I find her to be inquisitive, smart, warm and engaging. She is an interesting spirit and welcomes much needed diversity to the landscape of a pretty “stagnant” cast of GH. I admire her strength & humor in dealing with all the “hate” re: Lante… handling the critique in a truly professional manner. Sadly for her the story went “south”.. with the writing making she and Dante the villains. Regardless – a story such as #Valerie should “write” itself- introducing a new chapter of GH legacy to screen. Much in the same vein as the Wards. She is a Spencer with a potential for backstory – if written correctly – could captivate an audience. Bring her into some Spencer drama with Lucas, Carly, Bobbie etc and a new chapter of Spencer history could be a refreshing change for this show. I agree that it isn’t “too late” for Valerie. And given her showcase as a detective – so much potential. In short I love Brytni and think she has more than deserved the opportunity for more story.
I can completely understand your viewpoint and hope that we will soon see Brytni a richer storyline for Valerie! Thank you for sharing your feelings!
First of all, I want to thank you for writing such a positive article about Brytni Sarpy and her Valerie Spencer. I just love Brytni and I’m always doing whatever I can to support her. Apologies for the length of my post! 😉
I remember my mom watching a few different soap operas when I was young but it wasn’t until I was around 12 that I had one that I liked and that was General Hospital. My viewing regularity has varied at different times in my life but I remember Luke and Laura on the run with a young Lucky and the Spencer family became my favorites on GH. No matter the combination, Tony Geary, Genie Francis and Jonathan Jackson were tremendous talents and they made you feel every moment the characters were going through. Years later Julie Marie Berman was cast as teenage daughter Lulu and she quickly became my favorite female soap character. Like Tony, Genie and Jonathan, Julie drew me in and made me feel for her character. Between the level of talent in these actors portraying Spencers and the number of Daytime Emmys between them it makes me have high standards for what it takes to be a part of the Spencer family. Some soap actors seem to be doing little more than reading words off of a page but Brytni is not one of those people.
Although the writing hasn’t been much more than plot point since her initial arrival in Port Charles, Brytni Sarpy sells me on every moment while she is portraying Valerie Spencer, just like Tony, Genie, Jonathan and Julie have done over the years and she is now my favorite female character.
I had taken a break from watching General Hospital after Julie Marie Berman left the show and her role was recast but tuned back in to see how Tony Geary’s Luke Spencer would be written off of the show. I was as surprised as anyone to see that not only did Luke have a previously unknown niece, but she definitely did not have the same fair skin or blonde hair! That was very surprising. Brytni had the challenge of starting her soap opera acting with some of the most iconic soap opera actors in Tony and Jane Elliott as Tracy Quartermaine and well known actress but soap opera newcomer Dee Wallace as her mom Patricia Spencer. Not only did she hold her own with such big name actors but she sold her scenes that were very emotional, from being held hostage by a crazed Uncle Luke to the devastating death of her mother and then in a moment of grief, holding a scalpel to her new found uncle’s neck, the man she blamed for the death of her mother.
Since those first scenes I have continued to be impressed with Brytni’s abilities to draw me in and make me feel what her character is going through, just like those iconic Spencers that originally drew me in. Valerie is a character with such potential! She is a Spencer so she has many relatives on the GH canvas that she should be interacting with besides rare Aunt Bobbie scenes, like with Carly, Lucas and all of Carly’s children. There is also the mystery of who her father is and it makes so much sense that since she is mixed race that he might be a Ward, especially since the Spencer family was close to Mary Mae Ward and Justice Ward in years past.
I also love the way she wears her heart on her sleeve and doesn’t take crap from anyone! She is fierce when she has to be! Valerie is a strong young woman who has chosen a tough career path to be in law enforcement. I would have loved to actually see her graduation from the police academy but seeing a graduation party on screen with the support of her mentor and friend Jordan, as well as her boyfriend Curtis who understands what an important day it was for her, was a nice way to show the milestone in her life.
There are also not enough friendships on GH and there are so many potential friends for Valerie that have been dropped or rarely seen like Dillon and Jordan or have yet to be explored like maybe Elizabeth, Kiki or Sabrina, who could all use a female friend.
I love that we are seeing Valerie in her uniform as a police officer and no one can make that uniform look as good as Brytni does! I want to see her continue to learn and grow on the job and be written as capable at her job as sometimes for plot point’s sake the PCPD are written more like Keystone Cops than competent.
After being used as angst to try and make Lante2.0 interesting (never going to happen in my opinion) in the romance with Dante and then getting thrown under the rewrite bus as those in charge of story lines decided to hastily slap the original couple back together, Brytni and her Valerie were done no favors. Soap fans tend to be very passionate in their like and dislike of characters and plot lines. I really admire how Brytni handled herself on Twitter as she had many rude and/or hateful comments directed at her as well as a lot of love, for her and her Valerie and excitement that she succeeded in making Dante enjoyable to watch again for a short time from many longtime Dominic Zamprogna/Dante fans like myself. Just like her Valerie, she doesn’t take crap from haters but instead addresses them with grace and kindness. That is an ability that soap actors need to have to succeed.
While much of Valerie’s romance with Curtis has been off screen I really like them together more and more as time goes on. Soap characters not only need careers to tell story but they need relationships, including of a romantic nature. Valerie and Curtis got off to a slow start due to that lack of screen time to see the smaller, more intimate moments between them but I must say that their love scene on 8/19 was the hottest love scene I’ve seen in a very long time! I hope the show runners continue to invest in this couple as I think they really have something special in Brytni and Donnell Turner as Curtis. Why does it work? While there is definitely an age difference, Valerie is mature and wise beyond her years yet she brings a youthfulness out in Curtis. Instead of being the laid back, cool dude he is with other characters, he lets his guard down with Valerie and has fun. That man has a gorgeous smile that frequently appears when he’s with Valerie and her smile is equally gorgeous!
Although I wish Valerie could get some fantastic writing and major story that is about HER and not just using her as a plot point as we have seen all too often, I have noticed that Brytni can even impress when given brief or infrequent scenes. She is able to hit every emotional beat and THAT is a fantastic talent that needs to be taken advantage of by General Hospital’s show runners.
Thank you so much for this wonderful and supportive comment! I see Brytni Sarpy, and the character of Valerie, having a great deal of potential and hope that we get to see more of it very soon!!! Glad you’re so enthusiastic and devoted to GH!