| "Reflections by Jill" - A Weekly Commentary on One Life to Live | |
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REFLECTIONS BY JILL….Ah, where to begin…I guess the best place to start is with the most dramatic scenes, in my opinion, from last week…and those, of course, would be the ones involving Viki’s devastation over Jessica’s illness. It was hard to watch some of it, especially the parts where I could actually feel the hopelessness creeping into Viki when she knew in her heart and tried to convey to Clint that life, as Jessica knew it, was over for good. I can’t imagine what that must be like, but it was a very powerful thing to watch as Viki went through it, especially when she tried to explain how things were to Antonio.
And speaking of Antonio, I think Viki was perfectly justified in blasting him for keeping Jessica’s secret from her for the entire summer. Antonio always thinks he knows what’s best and even in this situation he tried to justify his behavior to Viki. I was sitting here when he was trying to give his opinion that Tess doesn’t exist and that they had to get rid of her while Viki told him that there was no getting rid of Tess…and I said to myself, “Does he think he understands this better than Viki does? What’s wrong with this picture?” I think Viki said it all when she told him, “You’ve already lost if you think you can help her.”
And still, Antonio and Nash continue to fight like little boys battling over a fire truck. Actually, I felt pretty sorry for Nash since he has just had this all come crashing down on his head and there isn’t a soul in Llanview, except Tess, who wants him there or wants to deal with what he represents. Well, Viki will deal with him because she knows he’s part of Jessica’s life. Of course, Viki is the only one dealing with a level head, even though her poor heart is breaking. It was too bad that most of the show was pre-empted on Friday because I really wanted to see what went on when Clint came out to talk to Nash and Antonio. Maybe we’ll get to see it…I hope so.
So, let’s dish…Clint is back in town. I know everyone knows how I feel about his return as it relates to his relationship with Viki. I think it’s great that he will be there to deal with his kids’ problems, especially Jessica’s (he doesn’t even have a clue what his little Natalie is heading for yet), but as far as any romantic involvement with Viki, I say, “Been there, done that.” Actually, I say, “Been there twice, done that twice, why go for it a third time?”
Asa sure wasn’t too nice to Clint when he popped up at the lodge, was he? Asa certainly expected Clint to be home for good, but it didn’t hurt me too much to hear Clint’s reaction when he reminded his family about his girlfriend, Dallas, and said, “Dallas loves London and I love Dallas.” Hmmm….let’s hope absence makes the heart grow fonder. And remember when we met Dallas several years ago at Asa’s…hmmm…second wedding to Renee? Dallas was quite the little ringer for Viki. Okay, okay, I know I’m being a baby. Tons of people want Viki to find love again…I just don’t think that Clint is the next miracle for Viki…but then again, I don’t know where the heck they would find another miracle for Viki like the one she lost. Know who I mean? LOL!!!
I was having major flashbacks last week when they brought Jessica into the emergency room. It was almost a carbon copy of when Dorian ran Jessica down and she lost baby Megan. I distinctly remember them all gathered in the same spot, Viki sitting in that same chair worrying herself to death, Clint walking around and there were only two things that were different….Antonio and Nash were fighting over Jessica where the last time it was Cristian and Will….and…..Ben wasn’t there at Viki’s side to support her. I even remember Clint trying to break it up between Will and Cristian just like what was going on with Antonio and Nash. Weird…déjà vu…history definitely repeats itself on soaps. I also distinctly remember Clint being very judgmental of Viki for not taking better care of Jessica the last time and this time I was waiting to see how close to Clint’s real personality they would write Jerry ver Dorn’s version of the character. When Clint said, “How did this happen?” I was flashing back…but he didn’t get crazy this time…so we’ll see if he still has that mule-like way about him that he had to apologize for the last time.
Oh, and by the way…I adore Bo…but I was glad that Viki blasted him, too, for keeping the secret about Jessica’s illness. Of all people, Bo should have known better and should have told Viki, no matter what. He lucked out that he got called away in the middle of her reaming him…he deserved more than she was able to give him right there and then.
Okay, moving on…it sure took guts for Natalie to show up at that prison…but Natalie has never been short on guts, has she? I thought Cristian’s teeth would fall out from the shock of seeing her up until he realized that she really didn’t know who he was. He sure had a slick way of getting around her request that he stay in jail and forever stay out of her life when he said, “I promise you that no phony Cristian Vega will be walking out that door.” Well, that’s sure the truth. Talking about playing with words!
I do enjoy the scenes where John conjures up his dad and they have those heart to heart talks. Those are some of the few times that we get to see John let down his defenses. Wasn’t it funny that John’s concern was the same as Cristian’s? John admitted that he wanted to know if Natalie loved Cris more than she loved him…and Cris (John Doe) asked Natalie if she loved John more than she loved Cris. Obviously, John got the message from his dad that he needed to be a man and that the only way to find out the answer to that question was to give Natalie the truth. But he won’t and he and Cris will suffer the consequences when Natalie does find out.
Well, I usually can’t stand Asa…and I always detest Spencer, but I did enjoy that poker game they had. Of course it wasn’t as amusing as watching Celebrity Poker on Bravo, but it did really get good after the game was over. I almost felt sorry for old Asa when Spencer cheated his way into winning his prized thoroughbred horse, “Home On The Range”, but I totally died laughing when Asa admitted to Kevin that the horse had already died. Oh, I can’t wait for Spencer to find out that bit of news. I guess the old coot has still got some tricks up his dirty sleeve. Actually, I would have loved nothing better than to see little Matthew take every last chip that Spencer had. Now THAT would have been worth watching.
I have one question? Who is that woman with the long, blond hair, walking around like a thinking and feeling human being…and what has she done with the real Lindsay Rappaport? Okay, that was a bit mean, but I was more than impressed the other day when Lindsay showed up at the hospital outside Nora’s room and told Michael that she was there because Nora truly loved Jen and grieved terribly when she died and that she now realizes that Nora is a wonderful mother which made Lindsay feel jealous of her. Wow, was that really Lindsay? And how cute was that scene when she was sitting by Nora’s bedside with Matthew? Are we sure Matthew doesn’t belong to Viki? LOL…besides Viki, he’s the sweetest, kindest person on the show.
I guess we have to talk about Todd. I loved it when he came home and Blair laid down the law, saying she was going to ask the questions and he better give her honest answers or she was out of there. It sure wasn’t too bright of him to lie to Bo when asked whether or not he had slept with Margaret. And he still keeps secrets from Blair. When is he going to tell her what he did that night out on the lake…that he lured Margaret out there…that his blood was found on that tree limb because Margaret clocked him with it…and that Margaret claims the baby was his? I guess when Todd swore on Blair’s life, as well as his kids’ lives that he didn’t kill Margaret, she felt forced to believe him…but he did just get through using his young daughter to cover his butt…so why trust him now? I don’t think he killed Margaret, but why should Blair so easily believe him? The one smart thing Blair did say to Todd was, “All the pain I was in wasn’t caused by Margaret….it was caused by you.” Oh yeah, that’s for sure!
I was so mad that we didn’t get to see more of Marcie and Hugh’s date. Wasn’t it a bit over the top when that woman literally threw herself at Hugh and glued herself to him? I was glad Marcie got as much of a kick out of it as I did. Mr. Hugh Hughes should be the one writing a BLOG about his romantic escapades…now that would be something worth reading.
And finally…the fun moment of the week…of course, it was the stripper showing up at Dorian’s bachelorette party. I died laughing when she admitted that she hired the guy. Hey, why not? She probably figured every one of her Cramer women would be major downers and not in a partying mood…so she had to amuse herself. I just have one question…and please, no offense to the actor who played the stripper…lol…but couldn’t they find someone a bit beefier who could actually dance and gyrate a little bit? Shame on me…but you already know I like the darker, brawnier type…and as I’m sure Dorian would agree….Girls just wanna have fun!!!!!!!!!!
See ya next week...
Jill Berry
FAN
FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONS
Nikki writes: "I am so sick of this whole Nora storyline. For months we sit there, dizzy spell after dizzy spell and we wonder what is wrong with her, and when we finally find out they put her in a coma. When OLTL got new writers I never thought they would make Nora stupid again, but hey what do you know, they did it with that whole stupid Daniel storyline. Like many fans I have hoped for a Bo and Nora reunion, but it doesn't look like we will get that anytime soon since Hillary's contract is up. OLTL will probably let her go like they usually do when they have good actors. I truly hope that Hillary does stay, and when she wakes up they bring back the feisty attorney back the way she used to be when she didn't take crap from anybody not even her husband Bo."
Dear Nikki: I have always been a fan of Nora's and I would like to see her back together with Bo, too. Daniel was dirt from the beginning and I hated that the writers made Nora stupid enough to fall for him when she doubted herself every step of the way. For a while it seemed more likely that Nora would get back with Bo, but now we just don't know. Although I don't really dislike Paige, I don't really care for her with Bo and the fact that she has a bad secret that she's keeping just makes me dislike her with Bo more. As far as Hillary goes, I suppose that when it is decided whether or not her contract will be renewed, we'll see her either die or miraculously come out of that coma.
Kay writes: "BRAVO on your observations on Spencer (a real scum bag), Evangeline (I take the 5th on her pathetic attempt to remain in John and Nat's orbit), Chris (he is so busy being angry and lashing out, he hasn't stopped to think that he did, indeed, begin this whole mess), and Viki (Erika is truly incomparable, and her scenes with Bree have been awesome). I haven't heard many complimentary opinions of Bree Williamson's portrayal of Jessica, but I like her, and I think she has been brilliant this year, in two very challenging roles. She has made this story line believable for me, even way back in January and February when we didn't supposedly know about her DID. I think Asa is a jerk also. I have always thought the man had more mouth than smarts, and love his sons as much as I am aggravated by him. Yes, brother Ben was one of a kind."
Dear Kay: I couldn't agree more about Bree Williamson. I think she's a very good young actress and she certainly holds her own in the most powerful and emotional scenes we've seen on the show in a long time. Oh yeah, Asa is a jerk...you took the words right out of my mouth. I think it's going to be a fun contest to watch and see which creep winds up on top...Asa or Spencer.
Norissa writes: "Dear Jill, I have missed a few episodes surrounding the confrontation between Todd and Margaret at the lake; some of the fans are speculating that Todd maybe didn't kill Margaret and that someone else may have. Tell me, what exactly did happen at the lake? Why would some assume that Todd didn't do it? Can you give me the date of that particular episode?"
Dear Norissa: Sorry, I can't give you the date of that episode, but I can tell you that Todd lured Margaret out to the lake, supposedly to make peace and "be together" and she met him. Of course, she had her trusty gun and they argued. Margaret took a swipe at him with a big tree limb. That's how his blood got on it and the police have it now. Todd finally convinced her to get in a boat with him to go across the lake to some island where they could be together. She agreed to go with him, even though she claimed she couldn't swim and was afraid, but he sweet-talked her and she went. When he got her out on the lake, he started to terrorize her by rocking the boat. She was terrified, screamed, and supposedly no one heard her. Todd told her she was getting what she deserved and the next thing we saw was Todd coming home all wet and we saw the empty boat out on the lake. It was weeks later that they found the body...but we did not see Todd actually do anything to her and yes, people are speculating that he didn't kill Margaret and the baby. I'm sure there will be some kind of twist and I think it will come out that Todd didn't kill her. Just my opinion!
Joan writes: "I agree with you about John and Nat but the chemistry is really heightened when Evangeline and John are together...they sizzle. Natalie belongs with Cristian and I hope that is what happens. Personally I also like Layla and Antonio. Jess is ok and Tess is too but Layla in her annoying way seems to hit the spot with Antonio. And the idea of Lindsey having a baby with RJ is ridiculous. She needs a bed in St Ann's not in the delivery room."
Dear Joan: Obviously,
there are tons of opinions out there about John, Natalie and Evangeline. I think
chemistry is in the eye of the beholder, so I will say that I have never been a
fan of Cristian and Natalie because I never really saw the chemistry there. I
think David Fumero always had more chemistry with Jessica...definitely with the
former Jessica, Erin Torpey, and even with Bree Williamson's Jessica...but not
much with Natalie. Thanks for the chuckle about Lindsay. Do you really think
those poor nuns at St. Ann's deserve to deal with her again? Let's give them a
break...Llanview has certainly kept them on their toes enough over the years.
© Copyright by Katherine
Thurston, 2005
