Reflections by Jill - A Weekly Commentary for OLTL for December 10, 2007

David Vickers never ceases to amaze me. I could only sit shaking my head, feeling very upset and uncomfortable when David was so ruthlessly going after Marcie to come up with a million dollars to keep him from turning her in. Although we all know how much he worships the mighty dollar (and hates to work for it), I thought it was harsh even for David to pressure Marcie the way he did. Not having read the spoilers on these scenes, I didn’t know just how far he was going to go. I really wanted to give him a good smack when he was torturing poor Marcie and she was begging him not to turn her in. I thought for a while there that Marcie was going to completely lose her mind when he kept saying, “The kid ain’t yours.” If there was one time in all the time David has been around that I was upset by his joking, this was the time. However, leave it to David to shock even himself by realizing that somewhere in that buff chest of his lies a compassionate heart.

Maybe it was Marcie begging and pleading with David and telling him that she knows that all his jokes are just a way to hide some big hurt that he’s carrying around and that deep down he has a soul. Or maybe it was spending time with little Tommy and realizing that it might not be the best thing to turn him over to Todd. But we all know that David gave in and let Marcie off the hook because for some crazy reason, behind all his bravado, David hears Viki’s voice telling him that he can be a better person and that it would make her proud of him if he did the right thing. It’s strange to think that such a thing could move David, but it sure is true. He just lights up when Viki tells him she’s proud of him. I loved his line to Marcie when he said, “I keep turning out to be a finer person than I thought I was.” Yes you are, David, just ask Viki.

It’s so much fun to watch Viki getting such a kick out of David, especially when he flirts with her. She just gives him that look when he tries to get her to give him a tumble and teases her about Charlie. It was so like David when he said, “He better be good to you or I’ll kick his butt; or if he’s bigger than me I’ll find someone else to kick his butt.”

And before we leave the subject of Marcie this week, I have to say that although I am so sick of this “Marcie on the run” business, Kathy Brier had me glued to the screen during those scenes with David. You could feel how desperate Marcie was and the fact that she was reduced to begging was hard to watch. What was even harder to watch was the scene where she made the phone call to Michael and kept insisting that he had to find a million dollars to send her. Obviously she was out of her mind to even think that Michael could find anyone to come up with the money to keep her on the run and it was cruel to tell him that if he loved her he’d get the money. That just shows how desperate and out of her mind she was. I felt sorry for poor Michael when he had to tell her that there was no way he could come up with that money and that what she was doing was wrong and he wasn’t going to help her. That had to tear his heart out and now he feels guilty for what he said to her. Now things finally get interesting with Michael going to Texas with Charlie and winding up at Marcie’s doorstep. I don’t think Michael has anything to feel guilty about. His life has been wrecked and he has had to sit by helplessly and watch everything he loves and believes in fall apart. Now Marcie is talking about wanting to come home. Oh gee, it took her long enough!

Okay, speaking of Michael, of course I have to comment on Chris Stack, the actor who replaced Nathaniel Marston. To be totally honest, I really like Nathaniel Marston and loved him as Michael, but I have to give the casting people credit here because I think this new actor has stepped into the role of Michael fairly seamlessly. His physical appearance makes him believable as Michael, but as far as the acting goes, I think he has very smoothly fit into the role. I don’t feel that degree of discomfort that I usually have when someone takes over a role immediately from another actor. Right off the bat I felt that he could feel who Michael was and make it believable and he pretty well convinced me. I give him so much credit for being able to do that. I know that a lot of fans would like to flame me for having this opinion of the replacement for an actor we love, but Michael is involved in a big storyline and I’m glad that they found someone who could do a good job of stepping in. The guy deserves a fair shot and from his first scene, I felt that he could be Michael and that says a lot for him. I don’t yet know anyone’s opinions on the recast, but I think he was very good in the scenes with Charlie and he was great with Starr when they ran into each other at Rodi’s and they made peace with each other about Tommy. I think he’s very “Michael-like” and for me that’s a good thing.

And speaking of Starr, I never grow tired of giving praise to Kristin Alderson. She’s so wonderful as Starr. In spite of her upbringing, Starr is a very good human being who has compassion for others. It was obvious that she was upset with Michael when they first ran into each other at Rodi’s. Of course she’s upset about Marcie running away with her brother but when she realizes that Michael is hurting, too, and she remembers that she is so fond of Marcie, she finds it within herself to have compassion for him. I was very touched when she was leaving and said, “Dr. McBain, could you try not to hate my dad so much?” and Michael replied, “If you remember how much you love Marcie.” That was a great scene and it showed that Starr has an initial tendency to go on the offensive like her dad, but the big difference is that she never walks away from a confrontation without thinking twice and making things right. I wonder where she learned that.