| "Reflections by Jill" - A Weekly Commentary on One Life to Live | |
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REFLECTIONS BY JILL…. Did everyone enjoy the One Life To Live 35th Anniversary Show? I thought it was a good show, although not my favorite of all the special shows they’ve done in the past. I thought a lot of the clips were wonderful to see, although I think they should have gone back further into the past and shown more of the memorable characters. I know they only had an hour, but how could they leave out people like Larry Wolek (not to mention his entire family…Vinnie, Wanda, etc. who were such a major part of the canvas), Ed Hall, Carla, the Craig family, Erin Torpey’s Jessica (who only spent 12 years of her life on the show) and so many others too numerous to name. I don’t know the reason why certain characters were left out. Some people tell me that when actors leave the show TPTB have to pay them to use old clips. Some people tell me that TPTB have stated that they don’t even have tapes of shows as far back as they would have liked to go. I don’t know what the truth is, but you know where I’m going with this, don’t you? In case you don’t…the absence of two people in the flashback clips was more than evident….
First was Todd Manning. I figure that either the show didn’t want to pay Roger Howarth to use his scenes, or they are just too plain ticked off at him for abandoning OLTL for As The World Turns, which to add insult to injury, airs at the same time as OLTL in most time zones.
Need I actually say the name of the actor whose absence from the show I most objected to? OK, for those of you who have never read my column, I’ll tell you. By the time the final scene of the show aired last Wednesday and there was not a glimmer of a sign of even an elbow or an eyelash of Mark Derwin’s Ben Davidson, I was ready to call the fire department to extinguish the flames that were about to shoot out from my ears. I don’t think the word “furious” even comes close to how I felt. Being that so much of the show centered around Viki, I surely thought we’d get at least a clip or two of her wonderful relationship with Ben, even if it was in the montage about loves gone wrong and lost loves. And there’s no way he should have been left out of the clips that dealt with Viki’s breast cancer. Give me a break! I guess TPTB felt that it was more amusing to go through all of Asa’s 100 marriages than to include the one husband of Viki’s who irrevocably changed her life and brought her more happiness than any other. On a funnier note, maybe they thought that if they included all of Asa’s marriages and all of Viki’s, there would be no time left for anything else…LOL!
In any case, whether the fates of Todd and Ben are up in the air or not, there was no excuse for excluding either one of them from such an important landmark show. I was happy to see Joe Riley…I always loved him and I always thought Ben was the one husband of Viki’s who was most like Joe. And that’s all I’m going to say about the anniversary show. Let me know what you think.
Now, about last week’s shows. I am totally baffled about Walker. The more I am convinced that he is Todd, the more I think some great big joke will be played on us and as usual, I will be on the wrong track. They sure gave us enough reasons to believe he is Todd last week…from Victor Lord’s ring…to setting everyone up and coming to their rescue as only Todd can do…but most of all, the scenes with Starr made it hard to believe he is not Todd. From the way he looked at her, his grin, the gentle way he dealt with her, the way he promised her that her father wasn’t dead and most of all, knowing the nickname Todd gave her when she rescued Troy from that ridiculous wheel…I couldn’t find a reason to think he’s not Todd. Then there was the way he appeared to be protecting Jessica like Todd always did. All I can say is that if he’s not Todd, the writers have done a good job of fooling me. The rumors are all over the place that the show is trying to lure Michael Easton of Port Charles to the show to play Todd, but I don’t hear anything that lets me know it’s really true…and I don’t see him as Todd…but it remains to be seen. I first watched him on Days of Our Lives years ago and I don’t watch Port Charles, but the fact that he plays a mysterious character well doesn’t make him Todd Manning.
Kevin Buchanan is still on my nerves. I loved it when Viki fired him and I was really furious when Clint and Asa came around and basically nullified what she was trying to accomplish. We never got to see Clint talk to Viki and let her know that Kevin was not going to rehire those two veteran reporters. I would have loved to see that. I really get a kick out of Viki reducing ridiculous people to nothing with just a few words…lol. They treated her like the “little woman” and I hated that. Even though Clint told Kevin that he should not cross his mother, he let Kevin walk all over him instead of pushing him towards doing the right thing. Not good. I can’t wait until Kelly comes back and we know what happened between those two. I have a feeling that whatever happened will not make him happy when it is revealed. And when the heck did he marry Kelly?
Kudos to Kristen Alderson…once again…for making Starr such an enjoyable character to watch. Although I don’t approve of the way she manipulates her poor nanny, I did laugh my head off when poor Heddy was fired and instead of being upset she looked up and thanked God in German. Who could blame her? There’s not enough money in the world to make a sane person want to keep a leash on Starr Manning. And I just loved the way Starr took control of the situation and got Matthew to go to the ball game with Bo and Nora…leaving Gabrielle in the lurch. I would have felt bad for Gabrielle a while ago, but I have a bad taste in my mouth now when it comes to her because of her feelings about Marcie and most recently about her little dinner with Troy/Colin…and I call him Troy/Colin because I don’t know who the heck the guy is any more.
Speaking of Troy/Colin…this is the second week in a row that he’s made me feel sorry for poor Lindsay…and that is really an accomplishment. I got the creeps when they put her in that straight jacket. Ty Treadway must be having a ball with this role. It’s just too bad that it’s going to lead to his departure from the show.
I’m curious to know what everyone thinks about the chemistry between Cristian and Natalie. Somehow I don’t see it they way I used to. I’ve always been a fan of Cris and Jessica and even with Bree Williamson now playing Jessica I am seeing more chemistry between she and Cris than between Natalie and Cris. Tell me what you think.
Well, that’s it for now…..
See ya
next week...
Jill Berry
FAN FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONS
Morgan writes: “I watch One Life To Live off and on, mainly to see my favorite character Tea Delgado at the time. Since she left, I hardly watch the show that much. I can't stand Walker, and even though I didn't care too much for Todd Manning, I hope that Walker isn't Todd. They should just let Todd stay gone along with Mitch Laurence. When I do catch the show, I see a lot of silliness, yelling, and threats. I don't see a lot of love on this show, not gushy stuff, but love. My question is do you think that there will be more warmth and emotion on this show any time soon?”
Dear Morgan: I’m not a big fan of Walker either. If he is Todd, he sure doesn’t have that edge that Roger Howarth has. As far as the love on the show, I do agree with you to an extent. Being one of those sappy people who loves the good guys and would trade any adventure for a good romance, I complain all the time about the lack of love and romance. And I do like the gushy stuff…lol. However, I must say that lately there is more of the “love” I think you’re talking about in some storylines, such as Bo and Matthew, Al and Marcie and of course, any scene with Viki and her kids is always filled with the kind of love that makes me feel warm and fuzzy. See, I told you I was one of those sappy people.
Sharon writes: “I just finished watching the 35th anniversary show flashbacks, and I am livid!! WHERE WAS BEN DAVIDSON!!!! He should have been in those scenes, especially the ones when Viki had cancer. He was very much a part of the show back then! What do they have against him anyway? Everyone I could think of was on. There was no Ben and no Todd! Just because they both went to other shows doesn't mean they should be left out. Some of those other cast members moved on to other soaps and they were on. Since they don't seem to like Ben much, than I guess we can assume that he will be killed off! Not showing Ben today was a slap in the face to Mark Derwin. It's the same as telling him that he wasn't important on the show! I had to get that off my chest! I think my days of watching the show are numbered if things don't change pretty soon.”
Dear Sharon: Hey girl…you are my new best friend. As you have read in my article above, I more than totally agree with you. NO BEN? It was a travesty, a tragedy, an injustice, and a disgrace. Did I leave anything out? Just one thing…you can remain my best friend if you never again utter or write the words “killed off” in the same sentence with the name Ben Davidson. Thank you, pal.
Michele writes: “I think I may have missed a few episodes during the past few months. I am not sure how Rae Cummings ended up practicing again. We found out that she never had gotten her degree and now she is suddenly working at the hospital and everyone is acting like she is a credible psychologist. Did I miss something? I would appreciate it if you could update me.”
Dear Michele: You didn’t miss much. It was pretty ridiculous how Rae started practicing again. All of a sudden one day her status was reconsidered and she got her real license to practice. The same board (I suppose), that wouldn’t give her a diploma and didn’t see her as a good candidate to be a psychologist all of a sudden gave her the credentials to practice. Now she’s qualified to shrink anyone’s head. It makes no sense. I think the writers could have used their thinking caps a little bit more and come up with a good storyline for Rae without taking the easy way out.
© Copyright by Katherine Thurston, 2003
