| "Reflections by Jill" - A Weekly Commentary on One Life to Live | |
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REFLECTIONS BY JILL….Not a bad week for laughs and drama on One Life to Live. For a while there I was pretty much of the opinion that the writers did a better job on the comedy than the drama, but I have to say that lately they’ve been doing a fairly good job of both. I hope they don’t make me eat my words by sending what good storylines we have to disappointing endings. Ah, time will tell.
Although Roxy makes me laugh at least two or three times every week…and she didn’t disappoint me last week, especially when she wanted Rex to stay away from Lindsay and told him to “quit foolin’ around with that barra-cooty”…I have to give my “no competition” round of applause this week to David Vickers and Lois Smith. Tuc Watkins continues to amaze me. Oh sure, I always thought he played David with a good sense of humor and sometimes more than a touch of the sinister con man, but even I was surprised at the depth of his talent in his scenes with Aunt Betsy and Dorian.
Lois Smith is stupendous as Aunt Betsy. I will miss her. When I first read the spoiler that she was going to offer David a pile of money to teach her the “pleasures of the flesh,” I didn’t even mention that I was looking forward to seeing it because I didn’t really believe it was a real spoiler. I thought to myself, “this is just too bizarre.” But, to my surprise, after Dorian described how sublime David’s lovemaking was, Aunt Betsy was beyond intrigued. Aunt Betsy begging David for sex was like a man stranded in the desert begging for water. I don’t think I’ve laughed that hard in ages…although her plea was quite touching and heartfelt. It was funny enough when she started out with the big guns, asking for the whole enchilada…but I was hysterical watching her whittle down her request to a mere kiss, figuring nothing would be “mere” about David’s kiss. What surprised me was that while I was roaring with laughter from Aunt Betsy, I watched David go from disbelief, to humor, to commitment to Dorian (hard to believe, but true), to compassion for Aunt Betsy. David’s range of emotions and his battle with doing the right thing and giving into his desire for that cool million was fascinating to watch. I think the guy really has at least half a heart. I’d have to say that he wanted to make Aunt Betsy happy almost as much as he wanted that money….which was pretty out of character for David. When he started kissing her I thought it was very sweet and he was so kind about showing a spinster what she’s been missing…but when she threw him over and attacked him in a fit of passion, I nearly fell off the couch in hysterics. And talk about the kiss of death. When he broke away from her and she was dead…what else could I think but “there lies a woman who died happy.” My only question is…will he get the million? Obviously Aunt Betsy did not have time to change her will to include her gift to him in exchange for his gift to her…LOL…just like she didn’t have time to finalize in her will that Adriana would be the heir to the $30 Million. All we know for sure is that she left Paul $100.00…which I loved. My bet is still on Aunt Betsy not having a red cent.
And I can’t close my discussion of David without commenting on how nice it is to see the human side of his personality. His devotion to Dorian is unwavering and I was impressed when he sat with her all night in the hospital, waiting for word about Blair. He is a perfect combination of con man and lover and there is never a time that he doesn’t make me laugh at some point during the show when he’s on.
How crazy is Dorian? When she called the paramedics to come to the house when she found that Aunt Betsy was dead she directed them to come to La Boulaie…she lives in her own little world where she is the queen…crown and all. I guess she thinks everyone should know the name she gave to her house just like they know the White House is at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
I loved the scenes between Roxy and Starr when Starr stole her lipstick and wrote all over the ladies room wall at The Palace. It sure didn’t bother Starr very much to pull out some bucks from her fat little wallet to reimburse Roxy for that “expensive” $10.00 lipstick. I’m going to have to ask my mother why I didn’t walk around at 10 years old with a wallet full of money.
Now on to Blair…so she’s got a brain tumor. At least she’s not pregnant…or at least we hope not. And my annoyance with Kevin was at the boiling point again last week. Boy, I wanted to smack him about six different times last week. His joy at Todd being sentenced to 10 years was nasty, especially since he knew his mother would be hurt by the results of the trial. His admission that he happened to be at the Palace to discuss Banner business with Blair was totally lame. Kevin, call her on the darned phone or see her at the office. (The fact that he offered her a job at the Banner is a smack in the fact to his wife.) His preference to stay at the hospital with Blair when Kelly wanted him to go home was inconsiderate to Kelly and she had to shame him into leaving with her to take Starr home. And to top it off, when David asked Kevin why Blair collapsed Kevin had the nerve to say it was Todd’s fault. Kevin’s motives are clear as a bell…baby or no baby, Kelly should not put up with his garbage.
OKAY…on to the drama. How sick is Dr. Haver? Every time he gave that cocky, “try to catch me” look to John, I was hoping John would do something to him that would cause him to be unable to eat solid food for a while. Haver has got a nice little system rigged up with all those surveillance cameras and the way he hypnotized Jessica. And he’s got such a huge ego…parading around town daring people to challenge him. To me he is downright chilling to watch. Ashford is doing a wonderful job to say the least and surprisingly enough, I think the storyline has gotten 100 times more interesting since they revealed whom the killer is. I was just shaking my head when the light bulb finally went on for Jessica and she realized that John was right and she had made a big, stupid mistake trusting Haver. Thank goodness they’re going to realize she was hypnotized and shake her out of it. Maybe then she can help them and redeem herself for screwing up the hunt for the killer.
And Antonio is back. I’m not sure what he was doing all that time he was in Chicago, but he had time to get a new hairdo and he definitely found his temper and brought it back to Llanview with him. Obviously he was upset about Jess being kidnapped, but I thought he had a lot of nerve telling John he should be off the case. Oh Antonio…I defended you….don’t be a jerk and prove me wrong.
I had to laugh at Marcie’s conversation with Michael where they talked about Al and he told her he’d bet she never would expect Al to be making out with her best friend (Jen). I was laughing and thinking to myself that Al had done more than make out with Jen…he married her. How soon they forget.
Oh boy…rumors say that Viki is going to be involved in a crisis that will force her to need her family and they’re saying she’s going to be ill again. I’m begging for this not to happen. Is there some ailment…physical or mental…that Viki hasn’t suffered through yet? And the magazines are saying that we should NOT assume that we’ve seen the last of Ben. Ahhhh, music to my ears! I figure anything is possible after we heard months ago that Ben was in an irreversible coma and had severe brain damage. They guy didn’t seem brain damaged to me and as a matter of fact, he didn’t even have an IV in his arm. Do you think he wakes up in the middle of the night and a cute nurse sneaks him a Big Mac and fries? What else could be keeping him alive???? LOL!!!
See ya next week...
Jill Berry
FAN FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONS
Coreen writes: “Am I the only person bothered by what is going on with OLTL? The rape trial of Todd was intense and the actors did a good job. What I didn't like and cannot understand is why Marty would EVER return to try to help Todd. He brutally raped her- a scar she will carry for the rest of her life. To watch her defend him and claim she believes "he loves Blair very much" and has “changed” disturbs ME very much. How would she know this? Is this truly a realistic portrayal of the feelings of a rape victim? I know we are forgiving in this world but is this even close to being accurate? Yes, it is a soap opera but I think the writers have a responsibility to try to be as careful as possible on such an emotional and violent issue. Marty claimed a lot of things she could not possibly have known. Years have gone by with no contact on her part with anyone in Llanview. Her defense of Todd was premature. In my opinion it sends the wrong message.”
Dear Coreen: I certainly understand your feelings on this subject and since this storyline has been the subject of so many conversations and disputes, obviously, all sides have been voiced many times. I agree that it was a stretch for Marty to claim to know that Todd could no longer be capable of rape and these storylines should be handled with special care. However, I also think Marty has come a long way as an adult and in the work she described as a psychiatrist working with rapists. Although she admits she hasn’t been able to forgive Todd yet, she has been able to put the horrible incident in its place and find a way to make good use of her life. She’s using her experience to try and help others so that hopefully she can save even one woman from what she went through. I see shows every day and read stories about people who have lost children to horrible murders and amazingly there are some special people who can find it in their hearts to forgive as a means of moving on with their lives. Surely they never forget. I can’t say I’d be that big of a person, but thankfully I’ve never been put in that terrible position where I’d have to find out.
Alison writes: “Hi, just wanted to comment that I am one enjoying the storyline of Lindsey and Rex. When you think of all the middle-aged men with younger women out there, and it doesn't make anyone lose their lunch or even comment on it - well, it's high time it's turned around. I really like the character of Rex and the actor. To me, he manages to be bad while still showing signs of actual emotion; I think they've got a really good actor there! Just wanted to let you know that there really are people out there agreeing with Michael Logan! I'm about seven months older than Catherine Hickland, so I am enjoying from the vantage point of a woman her age!”
Dear Alison: I thank you for letting me know that someone likes Lindsay and Rex together. You’ll be happy to know that one other person wrote me last week and agreed with you. I agree that John Paul Lavoisier is a good actor. As I’ve said many times…any actor who can make me both annoyed and sick at the same time has got to be talented. To reiterate what I’ve said about Rex and Lindsay previously…I never said that I had anything against older women with younger men…or older men with younger women. It doesn’t bother me at all. I am in the same age group as you and Catherine Hickland and I say if a woman enjoys a younger man…more power to her! My objection, which will never change, is that Lindsay is Jen’s MOTHER!!!!!!! She knows the guy is in love with her daughter and she’s sleeping with him. No matter how you sugar coat that…IT’S DISGUSTING!!! Even if Jen is not “with” Rex (so far her only smart move), no decent mother would do that. It’s just plain ugly and I was hoping Lindsay would have had enough dirt in her life to finally stay out of the gutter. She should be doing constructive things with her life for a change…like being a good mother to a troubled daughter or getting a decent life for herself…but she’ll never get it.
Dshaw95615 writes: “Wouldn't it have made more sense for the writers to restructure the Al/Michael/Marcie storyline a little better? I think that I could have done much better than their version. I think that I would have had Al's "death" as part of a dream sequence with Marcie being the only one to be affected by the poison from the dumpster. Marcie would have been very sick and would have dreamt that Al had died and she had met someone else by the name of Michael. When she awakened, she would have been confused because the dream would have seemed so real but she would eventually understand that none of the bad things had happened and she and Al would have continued as normal people. This, to me, would have made more sense than the silly fantasy that the writers have conjured up. What do you think?”
Dear Dshaw95615: What do I think? I think your idea would work fine for me. Truthfully, any idea other than what we’re supposed to be swallowing right now would work for me. I am trying to give what we’re getting a shot, but it’s not working. I don’t see Al as Michael and if they want us to believe that Marcie is starting all over in a new relationship then I can’t put myself in that mindset when I’m looking at Nathaniel Marston’s face trying to convince myself that he knows nothing about Al…or what has all of a sudden taken him from being a sour, nasty person to a nice guy. I mean, come on, Marcie is good, but she’s not that good…LOL.
Raynelle writes: “First I have to say, I loved your whole take on the Ben and Blondie thing. It's great to see someone who feels as passionately about this magical duo as I do. I was so afraid that Megan was there to take him back with her. The only complaint I have on the whole thing was it made me ache for Ben and Blondie more than ever. The whole world just lights up when these two are anywhere near each other. That being said, I think it's pretty much a given that we won't be getting Mr. Derwin back and rather than lose the magic of Ben and Blondie, I'm hoping for a recast. So have you seen anyone out there who might be a suitable replacement? I agree that the magic will be hard to recapture but I also agree that Viki could shine with whomever she is given to work with. She sparkles with Mark but at this point I'd settle for shine, just to get my beloved Ben and Blondie back. Not that I think TPTB would ever take our suggestions but I think we need to be on the look out for the next Ben. I'm absolutely blown away by Trevor St. John and I was sure no one could take Roger's place, so I think our next Ben is out there somewhere. How about you?”
Dear Raynelle: Yes, LOL, you might say I feel passionately about Ben and Viki. And yes, I think there is another Ben out there for us if we don’t get Mark Derwin back on One Life To Live. I’ve been thinking for a long time about who could possibly replace him and for sure, it’s not easy to come up with ideas. My problem is that the choices I’ve come up with are not available or probably wouldn’t do daytime television. A good friend of mine suggested that Patrick Duffy would be a good choice…I agree with that one. My number one choice would be David James Elliott of JAG. See what I mean…how would we ever get him? But he’d be the closest thing to Mark Derwin I can think of. I also really like Tim Mathison, although being one of the kings of television movies, I don’t see us getting him either. If I had my choice of daytime actors for the role of Ben, I’d take John Callahan from All My Children in a minute. He’s got the looks and personality and he’d make a great Ben…even if he does have a little bit more hair than Mark does. See what I mean? Anyone I come up with is not a realistic choice. Now, you may think I’m crazy, but I have to say that if Tuc Watkins had never been David Vickers, he would make a wonderful Ben. He’s got the looks, the adorable personality and definitely can show Ben’s hard and soft edges. I guess I’ll just have to keep enjoying him as David. So….let’s hear your suggestions.
© Copyright by Katherine Thurston, 2004
