Reflections by Jill - A Weekly Commentary for OLTL for August 4, 2008

FAN FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONS

Caroline writes: “I am hoping that you are able to answer this question for me. Who is Aunt Megan? In Viki's venture to "the light" her granddaughter Megan showed a clip of Vicki talking to Aunt Megan. I have watched OLTL since 1978 but I think I missed Aunt Megan between graduate school and working. If you could also fill me in on how baby Megan died I would really appreciate that as well.”

Dear Caroline: Aunt Megan was actually one of Viki’s daughters. My history may be a bit rusty, but in a nutshell, after Viki’s first husband Joe Riley was presumed dead, Viki was to marry Steve Burke. I believe that Viki conceived Megan with Steve while she was in her Nikki personality and Victor (Viki’s father) had her hypnotized later so that she wouldn’t remember Megan. If I am wrong about any of this, I hope someone will write in and correct me. Viki and Megan were reunited later in life and after a rocky start, developed a very wonderful relationship. Sadly, Megan was ill (she had Lupus) and died years ago. The story of baby Megan is very sad. Jessica was pregnant by Will Rappaport (Lindsay and Sam’s son) as a teenager. Jessica and Cristian were going to get married (long story) and raise the baby. They were very happy and having an engagement party out at Ben’s bar, Crossroads. Jessica got upset over Will and Cristian arguing, ran outside and was run down by a car. Dorian was driving the car, hit Jessica and ran and wasn’t exposed until much later. The accident was fatal for the baby who was born brain dead at the hospital (they named her Megan after Viki’s other daughter) and Jessica spent quite a while in a coma. I remember that baby’s death being one of the saddest things I’ve seen on the show when family and friends gathered at the nursery to say good-bye to the baby before her life support was disconnected with Jessica lie in a coma.

Judy writes: “I'm like you Jill. I just don't get the whole Mendorra thing. I think it's just a pointless waste of time. And Cole is just cracking me up. He still says that he loves Starr and he thinks Starr loves him after the way he betrayed her? I don't know why Dorian hates Todd so much. The two of them should really get together; nobody can tell lies and keep a straight face better than they can.

Dear Judy: As far as I’m concerned, they can take that whole Mendorra storyline and chuck it out the window. It’s boring, uninteresting and a waste of airtime. As far as Cole goes, I still can’t believe that he has aligned himself with Todd when he could have been a lot more believable if he had just stuck with Nora and let her handle his side of this situation. It was the worst case of betrayal for Starr as far as I’m concerned, but I never have any doubt that Cole loves Starr. Everything he has done out of desperation was done because he does love her and wants to share a family with her. When it comes to Dorian and Todd, I agree. They are two peas in a pod, totally selfish and totally unconcerned about anyone who gets hurt while getting in the way of what they want. Dorian hates being compared to Todd and always claims that her behavior is different that his. No one fools themselves more than Dorian and Todd when it comes to making excuses for their sick behavior. They feel that the whole world is out to get them so whatever they do to achieve their goals is justified.

Sharon writes: “Did you have a stroke yet? I almost did when I heard "Hiya Blondie' and saw BEN! I got chills and started crying. The love story of Viki and Ben was the best one on any soap EVER! I enjoyed seeing Mel again, too. I liked how he used to keep Dorian in line. GOD HELP HIM! He really loved her. The storylines with Bo and Rex and the crap with Mendorra we can do without. We need MORE BEN!”

Dear Sharon: LOL. No stroke, but I was wearing a smile from ear to ear for the entire time Ben and Viki were on my screen (except for when I was crying) and although I didn’t need reminding, it brought back all the reasons why I loved them so much and miss their relationship on the show. I don’t think it can be duplicated, unless of course we get Ben back. Maybe the next time Viki goes to Heaven she can get Dorian to give Ben a little shot and transport him back to Llanview.

Martha writes: “As a mother of a son I feel differently than you do about Starr wanting to give her baby to Marcie. Fathers to be do not have many rights and that is wrong. A girl/woman can abort her fetus without the father's consent. That is wrong. I am not talking about abortion, a woman does have a right to abort but it is wrong to not give the other part of the conception a voice. Is Cole wrong? No. Is he going at it the wrong way? Yes. He should have gotten a lawyer. But how can a kid get a lawyer? I’m still glad they did not go the storybook way20of having Cole and Starr going through a pregnancy, getting married, being miserable.”

Dear Martha: I don’t believe that I ever really took sides in the Cole/Starr baby controversy although seeing how much Starr obviously loves her baby and seeing what she and Cole went through last week, I do think Starr needs to consider the repercussions of giving the baby to someone so close to her. I have always said that they are both young and that Starr is more realistic than Cole about what it will be like to have a baby at the age of 16. I also always discuss the fact that they both only see things their own way and don’t give an inch when it comes to seeing the other’s viewpoint. Now Cole has made a decision and we’ll see what happens. As far as getting a lawyer, Cole has the best at his fingertips. He went to Nora first and begged her to help him and even though she had reservations, she agreed to help him and he still decided to go to Todd. This is certainly not the place to discuss the topic of abortion but I will just say that I agree with you that Cole should have a voice, but ultimately, it is Starr’s body and that is the crux of the whole issue for a lot of people.