I will be honest and say I was never a huge fan the first time around but I think that's mostly because I dislike the character of Carly so much. I'm hoping this doesn't turn into another case of Sonny and Jason worship...

Shouldn't they make a special effort to distinguish Claudia from Carly? I felt like today was a replay of Carly and Jason's one-night stand at Jake's.

Also, waaaay too many reds going on in her outfit and accessories. It was like something bled all over her. Sarah Brown looks fabulous though.

I vaguely remember her as Carly, and I know she is a good actress, but seriously, yawn. If they had brought her back into a different storyline I might be more interested, but I could not care less about the mob. One more woman in Sonny's orbit, yippee!!

Well I have heard that Guza outlined this introduction very carefully and closely just in case Sarah did return...and wrote this character specifically for her.....so yeah sorry Sarah...

So really it was going to be anti-climatic and repetative by definition wasn't it? I'll be shocked if they go her whole run without having her repeat dialogue that she had ten years ago to the exact same person.

I was completely expecting more and I was let down. I know Sarah Brown is a good actress because her Carly used to make me physically sick to my stomach but all of her scenes today seemed really awkward and forced and the whole thing was just wierd. However it looks like Claudia will be occupying Sonny for a while so maybe we can get some more scenes with Kate & Jax...? That is a relationship I could definitley get behind.

My guess? Since according to a TV Guide interview Sarah Brown did this was all Guza's baby...the genius thought we would all be "Woo hoo Sarah!" and "Oh my gosh..Sonny's so awesome!" that he didn't actually bother to outline things like...character...plot...pacing...logical thinking.....you know the usual stuff he throws out the window......

I wasn't too excited by SBr's return, mainly because it's going to put even MORE focus on the mob (I'm not sure how that's possible but I never over-estimate Guza's ability to make this show suck even more).

And moobster sex is just...eewwwww!

I have no comments on Sarah Brown's return as I did not watch her scenes. My FF finger got quite the workout. She brought loathesome Carly to my screen and I will never forgive her for that.

That is hilarious because I want to give SB a chance since she isn't Carly anymore but I was tempted to do the same because I can only associate her with my least favorite character in the history of soaps. Now that she's wrapped up in the mob crap, I can do it without feeling like I didn't give her a chance.

The mobster sex was just horrifyingly ewww. It's ewww at new levels. And the cheesy trashy music playing over that scene also added a level of ick.

I felt skeevy all over watching Sonny and Claudia have sex. They didn't even know how to kiss. It was like they were shoving their faces together and hoping for the best. Ick.

I'm definitely not impressed with her character. I think the writers want us all to think she's this independent, strong woman. Sorry GH, you can't write an independent woman and then have her sleaze around with Sonny.

Yes why must mobster sex reek of bad bad 1970s porno????? All that's missing is flashing red lights and shag carpeting......

How creepy was it when her own father gave her a pick-up line?

I'm sure they were going for hot, but all I got from it was...trying too hard.

Get used to that red, Becca because according to SOW's interview with Monique Adams, GH's costume designer, it's going to be Claudia's "signature color" and that her Diane Von Furstenberg dress "epitomizes the character." Imagine my surprise when Adams further mentioned they were going for an old money vs. new money thing to differentiate Claudia from Carly. THAT's "old money?" Hrmmm ... and I thought it was just old whore circa 1977.

I just wish Guza would introduce a character without the cliche three days of the "mystery" character's hands, legs, etc. shown in part. It probably worked the first time someone tried it but at this point it's as laughable as Laura's wig. (See Becca's sarcastic "Best Kept Secret" blog entry for more on this and the shoes.) Oh, and speaking of the shoes, how embarrassing is it that they hired someone who obviously cannot walk in heels. It was like watching a first-time cross-dresser in action the wobbling was so bad.

As for Claudia herself, I *want* to like her, really I do. I was so excited when I heard SBr was returning and loved the idea of Johnny Zachara sticking around and having someone besides Lulu with whom to interact. But much as I respect SBr's fantastic abilities as an actress, the whole encounter was a bit flat for me. I know she's an "actor's actress" and really works to develop her characters but I wonder if she's working too hard to sublimate any of her earlier "Carly" traits and in doing so, is cutting off an element of herself that imbues her characters with such charisma? Claudia seemed very hard and lifeless to me during the Sonny enounter. Not seductive or a woman who is sure of herself and what she wants. But I'll give it time.

I guess my main problem is with the whole "I'm no lady" setup (brilliantly parodied on SZ Muppet Theater). As I wrote on another message board, that scene was really repellent to me. First off, I'm not big on guys going to whores (which is what Sonny thought he was buying). I don't find stale sheets, used condoms or potential STDs romantic, just kind of pathetic. And although the "I'm no lady" line could work in some cases (i.e., if it were someone we already knew as a strong woman with a sense of self-worth who was simply asserting her sexuality), in this case it just seemed trampy to me -- like some middle-aged creep's fantasy that he writes about in a Penthouse forum. Oh wait ... does Guza subscribe to Penthouse?

The bright spot on this particular horizon for me was that even in the few lines they shared Friday, Sarah and Brandon Barash had crazy (inappropriate) sibling chemistry. Someone on the TWoP board compared 'em to Alexis and Stephan (Nancy Lee Grahan and Stephen Nichols) and I couldn't agree more. Bring on the inappropriate sibling chemistry -- it's better than man-boobs!