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"Reflections by Jill" -
A Weekly
Commentary on One Life to Live | |
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REFLECTIONS BY JILL….
I was really hoping that by this time we would have ended some of the storylines that have been on our screens for what seems like forever…and that we’d be moving on to some much needed fresh material on OLTL. To my disappointment, this has not been the case and not only are we still embroiled in some very monotonous storylines that are taking up way too much airtime, we are waiting for things to happen…for desperately unused talent to be brought forward …and for some satisfaction for all the time we’ve been waiting. Too many storylines that should have been wrapped up are still dragging on and way too many potentially great storylines are being ignored.
I don’t know where to begin, except with the most annoying storyline of all….
I know I have harped on this before, but I am at the point where I am completely sick of seeing these characters on my screen almost every day. No matter what the writers do to it, they cannot make the Jen/Cris/Al storyline work. I have tried…I gave them a real chance, but let’s face it…They are boring…there is no chemistry between any of the characters related to this storyline…and most of us stopped caring one way or another months ago. This storyline stopped being interesting when Jen stopped being written as a feisty young woman who had the potential to make some trouble…and that was a long time ago. Not that we need another Lindsay in Llanview…lol…but Jen is not the same girl who walked into the Break Bar and pretended to be someone she wasn’t. Once that initial intrigue was over, so was the interest in this couple. At least when Will was still in town, his rivalry with Cristian and his connection to Jessica made the whole storyline a bit interesting. There was tension between Will and Cris, between Jen and Jessica, and they were bearable to watch. It sure doesn’t provide any intrigue to see Lindsay keep trying to get between Jen and Cris, especially since she never even had a reason for disliking him with her daughter. Oh, excuse me…he’s not good enough for her daughter because he’s a criminal…oh right, I forgot! Excuse me while I choke on this laugh…if all of Lindsay’s criminal deeds were as bad as making fake ID’s, there might be someone left in Llanview who likes her!
I was hoping to somehow see an end to Cris and Jen, because frankly, although I think Seth has the potential to be a good character one day, I see Cris being back in Jessica’s life more and more every day. Those two young actors have chemistry, on screen as well as off, and their history gives us a reason to root for them. Now we have Al’s paralysis thrown into the mix. Oh man…been there, done that! How many months is Jen going to let him think she’s pregnant out of her own guilt? And are we going to have to listen to Gabby rant on and on every day warning Jen not to tell him the truth? Personally, I don’t see Jen being able to hide the truth for too long. With her tiny body, everyone should expect her to show in about two days….lol.
A friend of mine posted something the other day that she found on a soap Web site. It appears that someone has been keeping score, because out of 75 shows (October 1-January 16), Jen was on at least 59 of them. That’s not counting flashbacks. Also, when Jen is on, she is almost always on in every block of airtime - unlike any other OLTL character - Her longest unbroken streak was 13 days (October 1-17). If these figures are correct, is it any wonder that we’re choking on this storyline, which provides no intrigue or romance any more?
Moving on…I have to say that I happen to be a Sam/Nora fan. I know many people did not like the love scenes between them last week. I, for one, thought they were very well done. What I do have to say is that this storyline is going to fizzle fast (I know a lot of people don’t care) if they don’t take Troy out of the mix…and we don’t have to wonder about this one…they will NOT take Troy out of the mix…GUARANTEED! My question is…why, Mr. Tomlin, did you make such a hasty replacement of Kale Brown? I guess I was foolish to think that you were going to have big plans for Sam and didn’t want to wait to get them going. You’ve done nothing about Sam’s relationship with his brother, Ben. We haven’t seen him in a courtroom since he was on trial for Colin’s murder. So what the heck are you doing with Sam? And let me also say, you are ruining the character of Nora. As someone who always liked Nora, I now get annoyed at her all the time. She’s not Nora any more. The obsession with Troy is ridiculous and makes no sense. Nora is the one person in Llanview who always makes sense out of everything and now you’ve got her chasing after the look-alike of the man who tortured her for months. Are we supposed to accept that Nora has become a blubbering idiot who can’t resist knocking on Troy’s door, knowing he’ll always answer it half naked?
OH, and a word about Ty Treadway. First of all, this is a nice man. I got to experience that first hand a while back when a good friend of mine saw him at a personal appearance and actually got me on her cell phone and let me talk to him for a minute. My question is….when he signed back on to the show last spring, did he agree to be “a piece of meat?” I think he’s a talented actor. Why is his wardrobe so LIMITED?????
On to the Baby Jack saga….
Is this finally coming to an end? Is Paloma going to finally spill the beans? I have heard that she will, but then what? It’s been so long that we’ve waited for Todd to pay for this dastardly deed that I don’t really care any more. And could Blair possibly not forgive him and kick him to the curb? Like I said…it’s time for this to be over. I had more fun watching Starr rack up Max’s credit card bills than I’m having trying to figure out which day Paloma will be able to speak English and which day she won’t know one word.
And why are we going either in slow motion or reverse on Viki’s baby switch storyline? This was such a big deal blockbuster revelation several months ago…and what happened? Aside from the fact that Natalie being on speaking terms with most of the family has come way too quickly, nothing else has moved along. Oh, a few little hair-brained scheming scenes between Allison and Roxy….when will we see the fruits of those scenes? Maybe next summer? Once again the ball has been dropped. Some of the best actors on the show have had minimal airtime when this is a storyline that could be wonderful. Ben, Viki, Jessica….the actors who play these characters are some of the best OLTL has to offer and we see so little of them that it’s ridiculous. And now I hear that Niki Smith is going to appear yet again…GEEZ! For what good reason do we need her back? It better not be to mess with Viki and Ben. I mean, after all, since Christmas we’ve gotten a handful of wonderful scenes between these two…not nearly enough, but an improvement. GT, are you tired of them being happy already?
Why is it that some of the most promising storylines fizzle out before we get a chance to enjoy them?
If TPTB were smart…lol…they’d find a nice little back burner somewhere and put the Jen/Cris/Al storyline there for a while…or longer. And gee, what would they do with all that airtime?
Here’s what I’d do:
Bring back Asa, the old coot…why did he fake his death, come back to life, and make his way all the way back to Llanview if we’re not even going to see him. I want to see him in those funny scenes with Nigel and Alex…I want to see him dealing with Renee and especially with his son, Ben. He has a lot to answer for and a lot of fences to mend. And hey, I wouldn’t mind seeing how Alex is doing with her new hubby, Captain Jeb. When are we going to see that?
Give us more of R.J./Keri/Antonio…I was not at all surprised to see R.J. revert back to his old nasty ways the other day when he hired Chad to keep an eye on Keri and Antonio and when he erased the message from Antonio on her cell phone. R.J. is a great character. I can’t root for him when he does stupid, mean things like he did this week, but I sure am rooting for Antonio and Keri. I could take plenty more airtime for this group.
What about Jess and Natalie? I think this is a tremendously interesting relationship. Natalie obviously has a lot more fight left in her and she and Jess as sisters could be a great storyline to delve into. Can we see them more than once a week, GT? I can see TPTB heading in the direction of Jess being sucked in by Roxy. I believe she learned to be smarter than that from Viki, even though she learned first and foremost to be compassionate. Let’s not let her get sucked in too deep.
It’s my humble opinion that the best talent on the show is being wasted. I have nothing against youthful storylines, but the ones we have on OLTL are uninteresting and pointless. There are other shows that have great storylines for their young people. Our show is not one of them, I’m sorry to say. TPTB need to either fix that or give the airtime to those storylines that the majority of the fans want to see. Too many people I know are changing the channel to watch something else instead of OLTL. Changes need to be made. I’m willing to hang around to see them…NOW LET’S SEE THEM!
See ya next week......
Jill
FAN FEEDBACK AND
QUESTIONS
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Chan writes: “I think everyone has different reasons for watching the show and we all like to dream a bit. When you said " I don’t feel that by watching soaps I come away with the feeling that my life isn’t so bad. Actually, I have a very nice life, but it sure could be better if I had a husband like Ben…or a house like Viki’s….or free access to the Wardrobe Department!….LOL….JOKE!!! ", I completely agree! I have a very full and busy life with great kids and the wonderful husband so the appeal for me is a bit different. God knows I would like to wake up in the morning looking as good as the people on the show. When I crawl out of bed it's enough to scare anyone LOL. For me the show is an hour of down time between housework, responsibilities here at home and the time the kids come in the door from school. I am in my 30s and I think that my favorite characters, Ben and Viki, appeal so much to me because it shows that life and romance don't have to end at 40. Contrary to what most of the entertainment world chooses to convey, a woman in her 50s can be sexy and passionate. I don't think there is a woman out there who wouldn't want that. So it seems no matter how much gets thrown at this couple I stick around. I guess it's safe to say I am harmlessly addicted.”
Dear Chan: I couldn’t agree more about life not ending at 40…and especially
romance. I wouldn’t mind being Viki…not one little bit. And as far as scaring
people when you get out of bed, girl you are not alone there. I like to think
there’s something wrong with the mirror first thing in the morning…that’s all!
I like the way you describe yourself, harmlessly addicted. That’s a great way
to put it.
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Thasha writes: “Hi Jill. Recently, I've started watching OLTL again. I'm enjoying the old and new characters, however, the story lines are dragging. I'm really glad that David Fumero and Kamar de los Reyes are back and getting more airtime. But, the Cris and Jen storyline has gone far enough. Just dump the girl and move on with your life. Cristian Vega has been a struggling artist for years now. Is it just me or is it time for a career and wardrobe change? Maybe Cris doesn't need a wimpy companion. He needs a strong woman to get his life on track. I love Antonio and Keri. I don't think I could get enough of this couple. They are breaking the monotony of the other story lines on OLTL. Is there anyway to get Kamar to sing on the show (Light bulb)?”
Dear Thasha: You must have been in my head when I wrote this week’s
article. I put all your thoughts on paper…lol! Hey, I learn something new
every day…Kamar sings? Oh, I’d love to hear that. Thanks for the info…I’ll
have to throw that one at GT also.
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Debbie writes: “Jill, sorry but I am a Ty fan and I love his scenes. I hope Lindsay gets what she deserves. Ty looks great with or without.”
Dear Debbie: Why are you sorry? You shouldn’t be sorry that you’re a Ty fan. There are tons of them. Listen, I am a MEGA MEGA BEN FAN and we Ben fans have lots of abuse hurled upon us all the time. I don’t care and I’m never sorry. I, too, hope Lindsay gets what she deserves, even if it’s from Troy. You keep loving him…I respect that and hope he brings you tons of pleasure….with or without!!!!
© Copyright by Katherine Thurston, 2002
