| "Reflections by Jill" - A Weekly Commentary on One Life to Live | |
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REFLECTIONS BY JILL….Before I go any further…in answer to the tons of e-mail I received asking about the song that Marcie was singing to at the radio station after Al died…the song is “This Year’s Love, by David Gray. Thank you to my friend Christina who found that out and passed it along.
Well, I guess that’s where I’ll start…once again…with Al. Like many fans, I spent quite a few days with swollen, red eyes from crying my heart out over Al’s death. Every time I stopped crying after one episode, like the one with Marcie at the radio station…I had barely enough time to recover before I was bawling all over again…like when poor Gabrielle found out that Al was dead….when Max finally completely broke down…and that candlelight vigil where Luna appeared to Max. It’s a good thing we had the weekend to recover before the funeral. Could it have been any sadder? When Roxy can make me cry you know it’s really sad…she never does anything but make me laugh.
And now, the Big Wigs are convinced that they have given the fans what they want…what they have been protesting for…Al’s return. I definitely have to reserve judgment on this, because like so many fan responses I read on the Net this week, I certainly don’t feel satisfied that Al is returning in a spiritual way, “appearing to Marcie.” They obviously can’t take back Al’s death…at least not now…so I guess they figure this is the next best way to placate the fans. We will see Al come to Marcie at his funeral and then in a few weeks his new storyline will begin. I don’t want to be a pessimist, so I’ll wait…but I can’t see how it can be a very rewarding storyline when Al and Marcie can’t truly be together.
On to Antonio’s trial. Was it any surprise that Colson pulled Nora off the case. Gee, it makes sense to me…LOL…you surely don’t want a prosecutor on the case who is honest and fair, do you? At least Nora will be free now to find out what really happened to Keri. And how about that creep RJ paying off that guy to say he taught Antonio how to fix the brakes on a car. I really love Tim Stickney as an actor, but I cannot stand RJ. Not a scene goes by with him in it where I don’t want to just smack the guy. He may be sad that he lost Keri, but he should be mourning the loss of his own scruples, which he probably lost when he was 10 years old. I don’t even take his upset over Keri’s death seriously because he won’t even take an ounce of responsibility for helping her to ruin her life just so he could hurt Antonio. Giving him custody of a young child is ludicrous. He’ll only leave her with some babysitter while he hangs out at his club and continues to conduct illegal business.
What about Carlotta? She’s going to come forward and confess that she killed Keri? Give me a break. That’s what Antonio needs…his neurotic, over-protective mother making things worse. To tell you the truth, the other day I jokingly commented to someone that Carlotta could have gone crazy enough to do it…but when it comes down to it…no way. She’ll be caught lying and hopefully someone will lock her up in the diner and keep her out of the courtroom.
I continue to be surprised by how much I like David Vickers this time around. Yep, that’s me…the wimp who can’t stand the bad guys…lol. There’s just something about him…a con man with a heart…I think…and of course, he’s not at all hard on the eyes either. I was so glad he finally told Kevin about Kelly’s illness…I guess the condom finally got Kevin’s attention. I was surprised to hear that Kelly was the one who had the affair and not Kevin, although people were buzzing that they figured it would be Kelly. She and Kevin do not belong together. He’s an incorrigible flirt, as we can see in his relentless pursuit of Blair…and Kelly needs someone to really enjoy her life with…not a marriage that is a political job. The governor has already issued a warning to Kevin to “keep it clean” but I don’t think Kevin can do it.
Why are we wasting time watching Jen destroy her life? When is Joey going to get his head out of the sand and realize it wasn’t smart to jump in bed with Jen and marry her 5 minutes after she divorced Rex? So now Jen is fascinated with being a hooker…very nice…she’s a true minister’s wife. Excuse me, I’ll be back when I stop laughing. Whatever problems Jen had in growing up…it’s time to put them where they belong…in the past. She got a whole new start when she snagged Joey and she can’t handle a normal, healthy life. I would have thought it was funny when she knocked on the door and opened her coat to Joey in just her underwear…but knowing that she did it because she was intrigued by the “excitement” of the dark life of prostitution…that turned my stomach. Supposedly she’s going to wind up being pregnant shortly…oh that’s great…let’s tie her to Joey and make things worse…and that’s if it winds up being Joey’s baby. We all remember how she seduced Al twice to get pregnant and pass it off as Cristian’s baby…Enough Said!
Oh, and regarding Rex…he is a disgusting excuse for human life. The things he said about Al last week were horrible. Someone needs to put that unfeeling, worthless worm in his place once and for all. Can you tell what I think of Rex?
Boy, Todd really has had a personality transplant to go with his new face. It sure isn’t like Todd to whip out the big engagement ring and beg Blair to marry him. Nor is it Todd-like for him to bang on her door, grab her and land a huge lip lock on her. I like that he’s more normal when it comes to romance, but they shouldn’t make him so different that he’s no longer Todd. Following Blair to Harrisburg and eavesdropping on her and Kevin…now that was Todd. Oh, and just a tidbit about Harrisburg. Did you notice that the chairs in the restaurant in Harrisburg were the same as the ones in the newly decorated Palace Restaurant? I know I’m crazy, but I noticed them right away. Hey, prop guys, producers, whoever…if you’re trying to save money, you need to be much more subtle…those chairs are loud and very noticeable…at least to a detail nut like me.
I still have no interest in Natalie’s new career as a pool player. Maybe when Michael Easton comes on the show it will add some interest once we find out what’s really in store for Natalie and what the heck the real Walker Laurence is up to where she’s concerned.
And now to the spoiler that spoiled my week. Yes, the governor is going to be very taken with Viki and will ask her for a date, which she will accept. Maybe I’ll be lucky and the cable company will be working on the wiring that day and scramble my screen…LOL! We already know from Erika’s interview last week on “Ali and Jack” that Viki goes to dinner with the governor but she did say that this will have to move very slowly since of course, Ben is alive and still her husband. Well, they can’t move slowly enough for me…that’s for sure. I know that to my great dismay, there are a lot of fans out there that want Viki to move on with her personal life without Ben. That’s ok with me…she can take it very slowly. I think she should say hello to the governor around December…let him start liking her around February…and then during next year’s May sweeps he can ask her out for a date and she’ll be able to say, “Sorry gov, my husband just woke up from his coma and I only date him.” Hey, I can dream can’t I? WAKE UP BEN!!!
See ya next week...
Jill Berry
FAN FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONS
Sharon writes: “It's hard to type through tears, but I'll try. Poor sweet Al. I still don't see why he had to die! Wasn't Marcie awesome when she told Deke off? She really is a tough little thing! And of course Deke and Madison don't have to be held responsible for what they did. That doesn't surprise me! And how can anyone possibly care about Rex? He has no respect for anyone and he's a total sleaze ball, so he'll probably be on forever! After Al's funeral is over, I'm not watching it anymore! I don't want to see Viki say good-bye to Ben and I don't want to see Antonio go to prison! This show is going downhill fast!”
Dear Sharon: Yes, Marcie sure was awesome. I am constantly floored by the performances of Kathy Brier and as you all know, I am never really floored by any actors on the show except for Erika Slezak. She’s always been in a class of her own and I think she would happily move over and make room for Kathy…she’s wonderful to watch. I’m sorry to hear that you’re tuning out after Al’s funeral. I don’t want to see Viki say good-bye to Ben either, but I am deluded enough to believe that it’s not a permanent good-bye. Now if they go and ruin Viki’s character and have her do something that Viki wouldn’t do…then I wouldn’t blame you for walking away.
Trish writes: “How can we get Al back on the show permanently, and not as a Ghostly Figure? I feel that they had many story lines to explore with Marcie & Al. What can we do to let the writers know how unhappy the Fans are?”
Dear Trish: A good friend of mine who is usually “in the know” tells me that all storylines for the show are approved for the network by:
Felicia Minei Behr
One Life to Live
77 West 66th Street
New York, NY 10023
Then we have the president of ABC Daytime and OLTL’s Executive Producer:
Mr. Brian S. Frons
President - ABC Daytime
500 South Buena Vista Street
ABC Building - 3rd Floor
Burbank, CA 91521
Frank Valentini
One Life to Live
56 West 66th Street
New York, NY 10023
And the writers are:
Mr. Josh Griffith
One Life to Live
56 West 66th Street
New York, NY 10023
Mr. Michael Malone
One Life to Live
56 West 66th Street
New York, NY 10023
I’ve also been told that you should not bother writing scathing letters with nasty and angry messages. They ignore those letters. Make your opinions known, but in a constructive way and it’s even a good idea to mention something you do like about the show…LOL…if you can find something. Happy Writing!!!
Shawn writes: “If so many people want AL back why not do it like it’s all a dream, like Pam Ewing did with Bobby? Dallas pulled it off…so could OLTL.”
Dear Shawn: Too funny! I was talking to a friend the other day and we were laughing over the thought of the show doing exactly what you suggested. Hey, if soaps can have vampires, ghosts and people possessed by the devil and levitating off their beds…why not have Marcie head for the shower and see sweet Al rinsing the shampoo out of his hair?
Olivia writes: “I have been watching OLTL since Gillian Spencer played Viki and Meredith and Larry were the hot young couple. I've not always loved the direction of storylines and casting of characters but I've nonetheless remained a devoted fan and still can't wait to tune in the next day. Until now. The demise of Al and Marcie is inconceivable and unforgivable. Characters in daytime come back all the time. Is there no chance of ABC righting this wrong?”
Dear Olivia: As I said in the above article, for now, ABC’s answer to the fans hysteria over the loss of Al is to bring him back as a ghost…or whatever you want to call it. Who knows what else they can come up with if this doesn’t work? Maybe they should show Max and Gabrielle getting on a plane to Argentina with what they believe is Al’s body, and then let us see the real Al being held somewhere (for God knows what reason), leading to a storyline where weird things are happening that make Marcie believe he’s alive…and her trying to convince everyone to find him. Have I been watching soaps for too long? They did this years ago on Days of our Lives with Steve (Patch). His body was switched and all these years later the fans are still waiting and hoping to get Patch back. He had a lot of nerve taking a detour to Santa Barbara and then to General Hospital!
© Copyright by Katherine Thurston, 2003
