General Hospital's Sonny and Jason have long been the Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid of daytime - the sexy, inseparable criminal buddies who would rather go down fighting than turn against the other - until now. Maurice Benard and Steve Burton give us insight into their characters' volatile friendship and why the Emily issue has been such a hot-button topic among fans.

FRIENDS OR FOES?

SID - Sonny and Jason's honor system has been compromised. That's a big deal for these two.

SB: They finally found something legitimate that has come between Sonny and Jason. Finally! Everything else has been a substitute up till this point, even with Courtney.  That story worked, but it's nothing like this. It's MY sister now.

MB: There's a hypocritical thing, too. Jason's the one always to say, "Do what you feel." We went through the same thing with my sister and him.

SB: You playing that card? You can use that for an argument, and I'll let you, but it really holds no water here because a lot has happened since then, violence-wise on the show. And you know it's a matter of time before something happens to Emily. That's why I'm upset.

MB: That's the key to what makes it so interesting - Sonny has to fight against showing Emily who he really is.

SID: What if Sonny did go off on Emily, unintentionally of course?

SB: I would shoot him in one freakin' minute. I would have to hurt him somehow.

MB: No...you'd kill me. When is my contract up? (laughs)

HIT OR MISS:

SID: Some fans have a problem with Sonny and Emily's romance:

MB: It had to be the right time to bring it on. Obviously, with Amber Tamblyn playing Emily, it wouldn't have worked. But with Natalia Livingston, he just sees a beautiful, vulnerable woman. He doesn't see "young."

SB: I think that's part of the problem.  Fans see Emily as young like when she first came on the show, but it's just not the same anymore.

MB: The thing is, ever since Brenda, whoever I'm with, there are those who will always have something to say.  This one is a little more controversial. But that's what makes it great. Now I'm playing more "Sonny" than I have in a while. That has to be saying something because I'm feeling it. When I'm in a scene with her, I feel like the Sonny when I first came on the show. It's this thing inside.

SB: Plus. it's another dimension of your character that people haven't seen. That's why, I believe it works too. He's been on the show a while now, and we've seen Brenda and Carly and the same old thing.  Then this is something new and people are like, "What the heck is going on?". But you never really know a guy like this, a guy who's so crazy and so volatile. One minute he's your best friend, and the next minute he could be out of his mind.

BEAUTY OR BEAST?

SID: Sonny also doesn't want to come between brother and sister

MB: No. He loves them both. But the thing is, if you had to choose between the love of a friend and the love of your wife, as we know, most of the time, the love with a woman will win out. It's a struggle because of how close these two are. But also what's hard is that Sonny knows that Jason is right. That's where I play the Beauty and The Beast thing, that he's not worthy of her, of that kind of woman.

SB: He's not!

MB: But the beauty is that she makes him see that he's a beautiful person. And he hasn't been this happy in a long time. For him to feel that happiness, it's scary, but it feels good. But you know what I love? For me, it's one of the most real stories I've been in in a long time. This could happen tomorrow with anybody. We're all parents. We all have brothers and sisters.

SB: I'm playing that she's my daughter. That's all I think about. I would never, no matter what our relationship is, want her with him.

Stage Name : Steve Burton

Birth Name: Jack Stephen Burton

Birthday: June 28

Birthplace: Indianapolis, IN

Yuck: When Burton learned that Emily and Sonny were going to embark on a romance, let's just say he didn't much care for the idea. "I thought it was the worst thing that anyone could ever suggest," Burton admits. "I'm like, "What? How's that going to happen? Don't do it, dude. It's not right." Because of the perception of the age difference I was against it until I started watching."

Unhappily Ever After: Should Emily side with Sonny or Jason? Burton has his definite opinion. "If she doesn't choose Sonny, it's Deliverance."

Birth Name: Mauricio Jose Morales

Birthday: March 1

Birthplace: Martinez, CA

Something to Chew On: "It's the first time we've really had something to sink our teeth in," Benard says of his and Burton's current storyline. "When I do scenes with him now, I feel that he's out of control. He doesn't have to say anything, but I feel the energy of him being out of control."

Calling It Quits: How would Benard like for the Jason/Emily/Sonny story to pan out? "I think what should happen is that she should choose not to be with me but can't help but come around" he says.