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UPDATED 11-2-09
CRAZE
Fallen
Queens
No, I'm not
talking about Kyle, Nick, and Oliver. I'm talking about the Queens
of Llanview - Viki and Dorian - and how their current storyline has
further dis-serviced their legacy.
 I
hope everyone had a delightful Halloween. It's always my favorite
holiday and time of year. Unfortunately, this year Chicago has seen
nothing but chilly rain. The trees are bursting with color but those
crisp, clear autumn nights have proven mostly elusive - almost as
elusive as decent episodes of One Life to Live. As my frustrations
with OLTL's storytelling continue to build on numerous fronts,
what's bothering me most is the mayoral/gay wedding story. This was
supposed to be a Viki/Dorian story, and it's not. It's a bizarrely
half-assed and poorly executed gay storyline featuring the
thrown-together, irrelevant love triangle of Fish, Kyle, and
Nick. Dorian is a supporting lead in the storyline, playing the
buffoonish clown making everything gay in Llanview even gayer. Viki
is barely more than a bystander in "her" own storyline, though
clearly the mayoral race has taken a back seat to this ridiculous
mass gay wedding and Kyle/Fish romance. This isn't a Viki storyline
whatsoever. In fact, Viki has spent more time fretting in the
background over her daughters (yet again) than she has debating
Dorian or participating in her own campaign. When Viki canceled her
final debate with Dorian because she was too consumed with family
drama, I threw my pen across the room.
First of all,
Viki's family is ALWAYS full of drama. Viki knows that, the writers
know that, and the fans know that. If Viki is too busy ringing her
hands over her poor "Jess-EE-ca" to take on Dorian in a televised
debate, than how the hell is she supposed to function as Llanview's
mayor? This action was not like Viki at all. In fact, it smacked
of TPTB not wanting to devote any time to a Viki/Dorian mayoral
debate. When I realized this, I knew I had to write about it this
week.
 I don't know
about you, but when I first heard that Viki and Dorian were running
against one another for mayor, I had a very specific reaction. I
thought, that makes no sense. Why would Viki or Dorian want to
be the mayor of Llanview? I thought it contrived that either
Queen of Llanview would deign to take on the thankless, full-time
position with so much responsibility when they are both comfortably
wealthy and dealing with plenty of family drama. It makes no sense
that Viki would subject Jessica to the public eye at this time, or
spend so much time away from her family after the guilt she retains
for being away last summer when Tess was masquerading as Jessica. But it makes even less sense for Dorian to want to be mayor. Being
the mayor is a bureaucratic and not very high paying job. Why should
Dorian want to hold a full time job at all? Though Dorian is a
driven woman of means, part of the core of her character is that she
is rich and doesn't need to work. She needs time for travel and for
special projects, shopping, gala events, etc. TPTB's failure to
recognize the most basic aspects of this most defined legacy
character continues to befuddle me.
Misgivings aside, I quickly adjusted to a very positive reaction
toward the Viki/Dorian mayoral race. I recognized the lack of logic
as to why either character would enter the race, but I went with it
out of the expectation that it would deliver another knockout
chapter in the Viki/Dorian saga. That saga is the core of the show,
and has been relatively ignored by Ron Carlivati so far. He touched
on it quite nicely when Dorian poured liquor down Charlie's throat. But that story was fleeting and felt reconstructed. For a hot
minute, it seemed Dorian was genuinely into Charlie and hurt over
the Viki/Charlie love affair. But that was dropped and Dorian's
actions read as evil. Carlivati came close to tapping into the
truth of Viki/Dorian, but missed by taking it too far and then
abandoning it. Since then, he's ignored Viki for the most part
while giving Dorian loads of screen time but very little actual
material. The truth is, without Viki, Dorian is only half a
character. And vice versa. One Life to Live is a show about Viki
and Dorian's relationship and the various relationships that have
sprung forth from their rivalry. Any time the show veers away from
that core, it falters. It's like a planet drifting too far away
from the sun; it may still look pretty from space, but on the
surface it's cold, dark, and lifeless. Such is One Life to Live
without a Viki/Dorian storyline.
 Contrivances
be damned - Viki vs. Dorian for the mayoral office of Llanview was
going to be Carlivati's best story of the year and give the fans
exactly what we've wanted and demanded: More Viki/Dorian! I don't
think I'm being too dramatic when I say the story has become
sacrilegious in its abandonment of the Viki/Dorian relationship and
its shameless promotion of the soulless and demeaning gay marriage
farce. The stupidity of Kyle and Nick's engagement is sad enough; that it has arrived as a
Trojan horse when we were expecting Viki/Dorian
riding high atop a new chapter in their history, is truly
infuriating. Viki's nonchalant cancellation of the final mayoral
debate (were there previous ones that have slipped my mind?)
symbolizes TPTB's lack of commitment to the core of the show and the
fans, and its prioritizing of their own Amelia-like gay agenda. For
the record, their gay agenda is actually retroactive to the gay
rights movement because it paints gays and lesbians and desperate,
manipulative, fickle losers whose only care in the world is making
gay marriage legal. Nick and Kyle are so busy getting married after
dating for two weeks, that they apparently forgot to sleep together
or actually develop their relationship in any fashion first. If
Kyle is so fickle, than why should we take him seriously when he
inevitably gets together with Oliver? Why do the gay characters
have this gimmick instead of a real story or triangle? And if the
show is so progressive, then why have Kyle and Nick not slept
together? The double standard here is startling. If the show isn't
ready to treat gay characters as equals to their straight
counterparts, then I wish they would not have gay characters at
all.
Not only has
Carlivati written his gay characters one dimensionally, but he's
also turned Dorian into a clown by having her masquerade as a
lesbian in order to get votes (HELLO, THAT MAKES NO SENSE!). He's
also turned her legendary beef with Viki into a crappy side of
coleslaw. Dorian is so consumed with whether or not to marry a
lesbian she doesn't even know, that she seemingly has forgotten why
she ran for mayor in the first place (to beat Viki!). Likewise, Viki treats Dorian like an annoying mosquito but doesn't actually
get "into it" with her anymore. So my first question is, where
were the debates? Though my first thoughts about the storyline
regarded its lack of character-driven sense, my next thoughts were
something like, I can't wait to see the debates! That's not
because I wanted to watch Viki and Dorian talk about actual issues
(that's not why we watch soaps, is it?). I wanted to see Dorian
humiliate Viki and her family publicly and light that fire inside of
Viki that's been dwindling since she became the worrying, doting
mother with no life of her own. It could have gone something like
this:
 DEBATE
1: Dorian plays nice for a bit but then sabotages Viki by
passing out dossiers to the press and public with the complete
history of Viki's personality disorder, and how she wishes she was
able to stop Victor from carrying on sexually with Victoria. Viki
counterattacks Dorian and brings up her incarceration for murdering
Victor, to which Dorian explains how she was exonerated and Viki was
actually the one who killed her own father. Viki then brings up
that Victor had faked his death - she didn't kill him. But Dorian
uses that as an opening to bring up how Victor tried to cut
Natalie's heart out, painting a pretty twisted picture of Viki's
family. The press is having a field day. Dorian next brings up how
Jessica kept Natalie and Jared locked in the secret room for months,
just as Viki had previously locked Dorian in that same secret room. Dorian tells the press how Viki's alter personality imprisoned her
and practically starved her to death. A reporter asks Viki if this
is true, and Viki says yes as the room goes wild. Viki struggles to
rebound and bring the attention back to the issues, but Dorian talks
some smack about how Jessica's alter personality stole Starr's baby,
and Viki loses it. She runs out of the debate and breaks down in
Charlie's arms. It is a total win for Dorian.
DEBATE
2: Viki and Charlie regroup. Viki wants to quit the race
but Charlie convinces her not to. We have some great Viki/Charlie
bonding. The debate starts with Dorian thinking she has everything
in the bag. But Viki has come prepared. She presents all of the
evidence about how Dorian stabbed Charlie with a needle at the
hospital, drugged him, and then poured vodka down his throat. The
spectators go wild. Dorian tries to deny it but cannot bring
herself to say it is a lie. Instead she makes some vague comment
about how accusations are useless without proof, and she has not
been charged with a crime. Next Viki reads a sworn statement from
Dorian's own daughter, Adriana, about how Dorian hired a stalker who
almost killed her. Dorian starts to get wildly angry and cannot
believe Adriana cooperated with
 Viki. Dorian shifts the debate by
attacking Todd and bringing up all of the horrible things Viki's
brother has done, but Viki handles it very well and remains poised.
Dorian brings up Jessica again and
makes some overly mean comment
about Viki and Jessica's alters, but Viki turns the tables and
recounts for the reporters how Dorian seduced her teenaged son Joey
and had sex with him when he was barely legal, and also brings up
the Santi connection and calls Adriana the "illegitimate child of a
drug lord" (an attack that could come back to haunt Viki when
Adriana returns to the show regretting her decision to side with
Viki). Meanwhile, Carlotta takes off her Viki Banks button and
storms out of the debate. But then Viki drops a bomb on the press
room: Dorian ran her pregnant daughter Jessica over with her car,
killing her baby! The crowd goes nuts and Dorian is speechless. This is the one thing Dorian has tried to repress and not think
about for years. This time it is Dorian who storms out of the
debate. David tries to comfort her but she tells him he has to pick
between his friendship with Viki and his love for her. Either make
love to me now, she says, or walk out that door and never speak to
me again.
DEBATE 3: A
moderator has been brought in for this debate with very strict
rules. At this point, Dorian no longer cares about becoming mayor.
Her only goal is to destroy Viki's reputation completely and hurt
her in any way she can. Viki of course wants this final debate to
be about the issues and the issues alone. She feels each woman has
had a victory but neither has connected with the voters. In this
third debate, a surprising last minute third candidate is
announced. It is Carlotta. The two women are stunned but Carlotta
gives an impassioned speech appealing to the Latino voters and those
stricken by the economy. Carlotta wins the election in a
landslide. Viki and Dorian are left with very old wounds having
been reopened. Carlotta being mayor is something that will stay in
the background, but it will put her in constant contact with Bo -
whom she will start a flirtation with. It also leaves open a
possibility for Carlotta's criminal family past to play into the
story at a later time.
 The specifics
of my idea aside, the point is, there needed to be DRAMA! And there
was NONE! Viki and Dorian should not be rolling their eyes
dismissively at one another. They should be at war with one
another. And so should their families. OLTL has lost sight of this
completely. With the impending return of Kelly Cramer, a casting
call still out for Joey Buchanan, and the return of mutual enemy
Mitch Laurence, this would have been the perfect time to heat up Viki and Dorian's rivalry. Instead, they're barely lukewarm as
Dorian has been turned into someone almost unrecognizable and a
couple of near strangers have been given precious air time in order
to promote some completely ill-conceived gay agenda story. If we
only have one life to live, then I'd say we're on life support right
now.
Monday,
10/26: "THE CALL IS COMING FROM INSIDE YOUR HEAD"
- Blair to
Todd when he can't seem to bring himself to screw her: "Are you
thinking about Tea?" Umm... yeah, Blair. Please go find your
self-respect, retrieve it from the toilet, brush it off, and try
wearing it for a change.
- The guy on
the phone sounds nothing like Forbes March, yet it "is" Nash's
voice. Okay.
 - Does anyone
know if Nick and Kyle have had sex or done anything more than
kissing? If not, then why are they getting married (have they even
had a sleep over yet?)? If they have become intimate, then why
hasn't it been shown? Seems kind of homophobic to me.
- Watching
Blair and Todd fool around is disgusting.
- How can Tea
and Ross just walk into La Boulaie? They don't even keep the door
locked there?
- Can someone
PLEASE tell me if Tea's daughter is named Danielle or Daniella?
- Let's say it's Danielle. Can you imagine a future
Danielle/Matthew pairing, and how that would be Nora's worst
nightmare? To have her son dating the offspring of Todd and
Tea?
- Thank you
Cris Vega for calling a spade and spade: It IS a fake wedding!
- Michael Easton, please spit your gum out before the camera s roll.
- I like the
Matt/Danielle/ella scenes.
- Tea and
Ross have a nice chemistry going as well. If Carlivati is intent
on putting Natalie with John again, in which case I will probably no
longer enjoy Natalie, then here's the compromise I'm asking for:
Let Tea and Blair continue their feud, but over Ross and Elijah, and
put Todd and Marty back together.
- Doesn't
Ross wonder why Tea is hiding Danielle's existence from Todd? She
wouldn't be ashamed to have a daughter by another man. Ross doesn't
strike me as stupid. Why hasn't he guessed that Danielle is Todd's
child and not his own?
Tuesday,
10/27: "STRUCK LUCKY WITH HOTEL MATCHES"
 - Layla needs
to get over the Evangeline thing. Though I'm starting to think the
likelihood of Evangeline waking up is getting greater by the day as Cris and Layla grow closer. It just makes sense if you go by Soap
Opera 101.
- John is
having a full fledged Natalie-being-sexy fantasy the second Marty
leaves his office? Jesus f'ing Christ, help us all. I have never
felt so bad for Marty, not even when her rapist was having sex with
her under false circumstances. At least he loved her. John
couldn't care less.
- I like how
so many people's fantasies were shown today. I just hated the Jolie
fantasy. And why did Marty not get her own fantasy? Everyone got
to fantasize about someone except her. She could have fantasized
about what John would be like if he was a good boyfriend, or she
could have fantasized about Todd. Because let's face it - despite
the massive lies Todd told, the night John broke in through that
window was the last time she ever received any romantic attention
from a man.
Wednesday,
10/28: "FOR WHOM THE BELLMAN TELLS"
 - I like
Farah Fath's new short haircut, though her bangs are still in her
eyes a bit.
- John to
Gigi: "Shane looks happy. Seems like you and Rex are doing a good
job with him." Gee, thanks for the approval, John.
- Does anyone
remember how Pamela got killed last week? Didn't think so. Good
thing that's been explained, huh?
- At least
one soap is dealing with the sub-prime mortgage crisis, even if it's
using Brody's whack job of a sister to do it.
- Only a
disciple of Mitch Laurence would drug her own brother.
- Why hasn't
Jessica brought up Claudia as a possible plotter or accomplice in
this Nash business? Hello???
- I know this
isn't the case (nor do I want to see him again anyway), but wouldn't
it be kind of cool if Antonio was the stalker?
- David: "Clothes make me look fat." Funny!
 - I agree
with Dorian that Viki's backing out of the final debate (again, when
were the first two?) was very foolish of her.
- I have to
sneak in one AMC comment: How DARE they have Adam be Stuart's
murderer? That is such a sad travesty. So glad I gave that show up
years and years ago. Poor David Canary.
- Okay, one
GH comment, too: It's on FIRE and November Sweeps have begun... so
why is OLTL so status quo and uneventful? Not fair, ABC!!!
Thursday,
10/29: "A DATE WITH DESTINY"
- Has Dorian
stopped to think about how issuing a marriage license to herself and
Amelia could give Amelia access to all of her fortune? That pushy
lesbian needs to be stopped! Wake up, Dorian, and find your brain
before it's too late!
 - Speaking of
no-brains, that Shaun came out of his surgery even dumber than he
used to be. I think Greg accidentally clipped part of Shaun's
cerebral cortex.
- Well, well,
well, looks like someone took my note and told Mr. Evans to get off
the happy juice. I actually dug him today as he told Greg to go for
Rachel. At least one member of the Evans clan is not delusional.
- Dorian: "I
can't afford to be outed as straight." Honey, you've been out and
straight for 40 years and you've slept with half the town, so can we
get real? This storyline is getting to be worse than Mendorra.
 - WTF Alert: All of that crap with the Balsoms and the Mannings at the costume
party. That was all just a pile of doo doo. The worst part by far
was watching Todd and Blair gyrate on stage in front of a bunch of
school children. It was a blatant atrocity.
- Isn't it
funny how Rachel started hanging out with Tea again, only after Tea
humiliated her in public?
- Looks like
Ross is much more dangerous than I thought. Let's see, a brash
hothead who won't listen to reason...is it me or is Ross a lot like
Todd?
-
Technological miracle of the day: Danielle can call Tahiti from
England by dialing just one number on Matthew's phone. How about
that?
- Loved Bo
and Nora smashing all of that glass before they kissed!
Friday,
10/30: "SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW"
- Okay, the
writing is on the wall after Roxy actually mistook Schuyler for
Rex: Those dudes are brothers. Maybe even twins.
- Always nice
to see Andrew. You know what I'd really like to see? Some
Andrew/Marty scenes where she talks about what a crappy boyfriend
John is and how she misses Todd.
 - Some of you
have been asking me why I'm not enjoying Blair when she's being such
a bitch, after I've called for her return to bitchiness for the past
few years. Good question. I think I figured out the answer, too. It's simple. I used to ROOT for Blair no matter how big of a bitch
she was being. I rooted for her against Luna (sorry, I hated
Luna). I rooted for her against Asa (loved Asa but it was fun to
see him manipulated and challenged). I rooted for her when she
tricked Todd into marrying her. I certainly rooted for her in her
long feud with Marty. I loved her original feud with Tea because I
found myself rooting for both of them. I thought they were both
great with Todd, back in the day. My real problem with Blair now is
that sure, she's being a bitch, but I can't root for her because
she's trying to get Todd back and that is the worst and most played
out storyline on the show! I can't root for her because she is so
pathetic to be after Todd again. It's painful to watch. I love the
bitchy side of Blair, but she should be feuding with Marty for John
or something like that. Blair and Todd are more like brother and
sister to me lately. They are gross together as lovers - like, gag
me gross.
- I was
hoping for some Starr/Langston, Cole/Markko, mistaken-as-gay jokes. It would have been funnier if, when Markko was adjusting Cole's tie,
someone took their picture and they were actually thought to be
gay. But still it was kind of funny.
- Where to
start with the gay wedding/protest? On the one hand, it was
produced well with plenty of extras to give it a slightly more
realistic feeling. But everything else was pretty laughable. It's
tough when a show tries to do a story like this realistically with
their limited resources. It doesn't really work. For instance,
those protesters were totally silent at times, then completely
uniform in their chants. It didn't sound authentic. Their signs
were much too polite ("Nay to Gay!"). The real protestors are
fueled by religious extremism. The signs they hold up are much
worse than "Nay to Gay." They usually say something like, "You'll
burn in hell" or "God hates ____." So for me, the protestors came
off as pretty docile especially since they threw that lady (Eunice,
is it?) into the mix who I have a hard time taking seriously on any
level. Then Fish's ridiculously melodramatic speech, which he
delivered in that horribly annoying fake-crying manner. Yikes.
- How did
Kevin just walk in on Bo and Nora like that and not see them
kissing!?!?
- Uh-oh... Bo
just called Nora, 'Red!' The heat is on!
 - I will
admit it: I am really feeling Schuyler/Gigi. They are generating
some major heat.
- Really
enjoyed the Tea/Elijah scenes and the background information on
Ross' volatility.
- The casting
of the girl playing Danielle is perfect, at least physically. She
looks like the daughter of Todd and Tea (only too old!).
- If Nick had
any self-respect, he would have dumped Kyle by now. Every time he
turns around, Kyle and Oliver are moping around together. Now that
David Gregory has signed a contract as the soon-to-return Ford, can TPTB please give him to Nick? I'm sure he's on reserve for the
ladies, but I think Nick/Ford would provide a nice contrast to the
boring, domestic, asexual connection that Fish and Kyle seem to
have.
ANOTHER
VIEWPOINT, by Tim
I sat back
last week after reading your column, but after two in a row that
completely disparage the show, I feel the need to step up and offer
a defense. You seem to be finding fault with nearly everything on
the screen right now, and I'm not sure where it's all coming from. I
think there is a lot going right with the show, and although there
have been some disappointments -- like there always will be -- I
find the show entertaining, surprising, dramatic and worthy of my
full attention.
You obviously
don't like the Evans family, but I really like the interplay between
all of the characters and feel bad for Rachel, since she's in a
no-win situation here. I don't find her boring at all, and love that
TPTB have gone there with a completely realized, often front-burner
story for characters who happen to be black.
You also find
a lot of fault with the gay storyline and Dorian's part in it. I'll
admit, I was hoping we'd have a little more political intrigue
between Viki and Dorian and am disappointed that the mayoral race
has played out the way it has. However, I find it very true to
Dorian's character that she would make such a risky and
ill-conceived move when it's coming from a vulnerable place of being
afraid she's going to lose to Viki. Langston, Starr and David have
all called her out on the short-sightedness of her faux-lesbian
wedding, so it's not like everyone's pretending that this is an
excellent idea. But Dorian was desperate, and made the decision
rashly, and now she feels compelled to go through with it. Yes, the
story has moved quickly. But I think that's always better than
having the story drag out to the point where no one cares anymore
(David's and Rex's paternity stories, anyone?).
On the subject
of the gay story, I really don't have any problems with how it's
playing out. As a gay man, it doesn't offend me in the least. Nick
and Amelia are activists who are trying to challenge traditional
notions of marriage and publicize the right of everyone to marry who
they wish. Nick and Kyle had an honest discussion about getting
"married" so quickly, and Kyle expressed his reservations but
ultimately was swayed by Nick's argument that if they don't fight,
they may not ever be able to marry legally. I think it's a very
timely story and I applaud the writers for going there. I also view
it at heart as a love story between Kyle and Oliver, and I think
we'll be seeing that play out very soon. Ron often gets criticized
for repeating stories from the past, but at least you can't say that
here -- this is something that's never been seen on daytime TV
before, and I think that's worth applauding.
I'm flummoxed
at your disapproval of how Blair is behaving, when I recall you once
called for Blair returning to her bitchy roots. She's truly returned
to form here, and I think it's very entertaining. I'm looking
forward to Todd learning he has a daughter (yes, she's too old, but
I understand why they decided to go there story wise) and think Ross
adds an interesting addition to the mix and could be a long-term
viable partner for Blair. They still don't know what to do with
Marty, other than have her counsel everyone in town, although I
thought it was smart of the writers to have her discover the secret
about Todd's child but be bound not to say anything. I'm sure that
will play out once the reveal occurs.
I'm also
enjoying the stalker mystery and can't wait for Mitch's return. I
hope the rumors about Jared faking his death and whisking Natalie
away are wrong, only because I'd miss Natalie and have to assume
she'll have a lot to do once Mitch comes back on the scene.
I agree the
weak links on the show right now are Stacy and Kim, but I think TPTB
are smart to slowly put Gigi and Schuyler together and have it turn
into a triangle between those three. Stacy and Kim haven't been on
all that much lately, although I think there could be some
interesting scenes coming up between Stacy and Mitch if it turns out
that Mitch is Rex's father and Stacy is carrying what Mitch believes
to be his grandchild. Seeing Stacy be caught up in Mitch's web would
be interesting. Kim has potential as a character, and I think
they're trying to establish her with her own story because Stacy
might not be long for this world.
So, long post,
but I wanted to reflect what I'm sure are many people like me who
are enjoying the show. You said you have heard so much criticism,
but many of those people aren't even watching the show. So, to me,
their critiques are kind of pointless.
I'm glad Tim
is more forgiving than myself. But I do feel very bored with the
show lately. Unlike Tim, I find the Evans family annoying and
pointless. The Greg/Rachel/Shaun "triangle" is absurd in every
respect. I also feel the gay storyline is gay as in 80's "gay." Like, lame. I just don't give a crap about any of these
characters. If Ron had written a true triangle instead of gimmickry
centered around a rushed farce of a gay wedding, I might feel
differently. But there is no real triangle. Nick is just a
stand-in. It's a cheap writing trick and nothing I can invest in. As for Blair, I don't mind her being a bitch. What I mind is that
after completely getting over Todd last year, she is now reversed to
what - five years ago? If wanting to be with Todd is the only facet
to Blair's character, then I think it's time for her to be taken off
the show. What WOULD have been interesting is if Blair went Queen
Bitch on Marty and John. That's where the story was. Blair and
Todd should have teamed up to break up John and Marty. Watching
Blair have to make up ridiculous lies just to try to seduce a man
she's already married five times is so freaking boring.
 **MAIL
REPORT**
"I just read your latest column and, again, your assessment of the
entire show is painfully accurate. I am one of those longtime
viewers (since the beginning) who just can't watch anymore. When I
think about how the show has devolved into such unrelenting
mediocrity (especially in the last couple of years), I just want to
shake all the "suits" in charge or, at the very least, give them a
piece of my mind.
The deal breakers
for me: 1) The direction that they've sent Dorian; poor Robin Strasser, who is extraordinarily talented, is made to look like a
buffoon with no brains in order to advance someone's idea of a gay
storyline, a lame one at that; 2) Making viewers believe that
something worthwhile was in the wings for Erika Slezak when in fact,
she's only a supporting player, a very limited one at that; and 3)
The rise of the Teen Brigade, which for me is a proverbial TURNOFF. I just don't want to watch the likes of Little Miss Destiny
obnoxiously hogging scenes, while truly talented players get
nothing! When I think about the hugely talented actors who have
inhabited this show over the years and the truly gripping drama I
have seen, the watered down nature of the current show just makes me
SICK AND TIRED! Valentini, Frons, Carlivati - whomever is making
the decisions and plotting strategy - ought to be ashamed!
Thanks, Jeremy for
your very accurate and articulately-written column; I'll keep
reading it with the hope that there's an earth-shattering
turnaround, until then....I'm SICK and TIRED of the whole thing." -
Marcy in California
This is the
sad, awful truth. Marcy's specific complaints ring true. Dorian
and Viki's respective airtime is proving almost worse than being on
the back burner. It's like a sick tease to us fans. This is not a
Dorian/Viki story as it should be; it's Dorian as comic relief,
which in and of itself is scandalous, and it's also Viki in the
background not even participating in her own hijacked storyline. Viki and Dorian running against one another for mayor was an
inspired idea gone wasted.
"Ron Carlivati had
a scene last week that indicated that Todd knew that Ross was in
custody. This, in turn, would seem to indicate that Todd knew that
Ross broke into his house and stole Tea's briefcase. Todd would
have been plenty excited when he learned that Tea's "husband" was in
town! It is ridiculous that RC didn't even bother to show Todd's
initial reaction to the news. I think this is because Mr. Carlivati
is trying to put the emphasis on Todd & Blair. He cannot afford to
have Todd go ballistic over Ross because that would show how strong
his feelings still are for Tea! As a result, he is compromising his
own storyline. Furthermore, it is insulting that RC has it like
Todd is so dense that he cannot figure out that Blair/Ross were
conspiring together before the wedding. Ross broke into his house.
Jack said this was the same guy at the cabana. Hello? Todd would
realize that Tea/Ross were not working together to scam him. Ross
stole Tea's briefcase. Obviously, there are issues going on between
them. They are clearly not partners in crime! I wanted to point
this out to you because RC needs to be called on it!" -
Susan
Oh, I agree. Carlivati is writing Todd as an imbecile. It's shocking.
"A poster was
commenting on Todd buying Blair's story about Tea scamming him for
his money. The poster pointed out that when Tea first hit town, and
she was defending Todd, she had his power of attorney. She could
have taken Todd's money then and there while he was still in
custody! This doesn't even occur to Todd? Instead, Tea purchased
Christmas gifts for Todd's children on his behalf. Also, Tea flat
out told Todd at the time that she did not need his money. He asked
her about that when she wanted him to accept her as his defense
lawyer. What about Ross breaking into Todd's house to steal Tea's
briefcase? This does not sound like partners in crime to me! The
biggest thing, however, is the fact that Todd knows that Tea loves
him! He knows what they've shared this past year as well. How could
he so easily buy into Blair's lies, a woman who hates Tea and has an
agenda? Todd should never trust Blair." - Sue
Tell me about
it. That was some of the worst writing ever on the show. The
writers don't seem to even consider how their day-to-day scripting
can detract from the integrity and truth of a legacy character. The
fans know the characters so much better than the writers. Something
is very wrong with that.
"I don't know how
much longer I can TIVO OLTL. I'm 62 - almost 63 years old - and
I've watched the soaps on and off since high school! This is the
worst it's ever been." - Diane
Sad! It could
be so great, but the writers and producers seem utterly clueless.
If your show is under threat of cancellation, why would you come up
with such nonsensical drivel? Take a risk! Tell a story! Make it
hot! OLTL is a wilting, dying flower right now. There is no
passion.
"Dorian and Blair
have been utterly destroyed, the former with this ludicrous mass gay
marriage story and the latter via the incessant yearning for Todd.
Middle school was more interesting. Oh, wait, aren’t Matthew and
Destiny and Danielle, et al, in middle school? Scratch that. I love
Eddie Alderson, and I like seeing him angry at his folks, and I like
seeing him interact with big bro David, but the rest of his story…?
Not so much. Destiny’s bad acting has gotten on my last nerve, as
has Shawn’s stupid-saint type persona. The big, strong dummie,
waking up eager to go on that date with Rachael, a woman he barely
knows…? Let me guess, Rachael will move in with him, nurse him back
to health, marry him, but feel guilt ridden over her lust for Dr.
Greg. Ho hum… sorry, I was dozing off." - Laura
in Albany
Agree with
everything here. Destiny has had moments but I still don't care
about her as a character whatsoever. The entire Evans family is
annoying but Shaun is the worst. Laura nails it by calling him a
"big, strong dummy." The Rachel storyline is so bad because Rachel
is depicted as tolerating some extremely borderline behavior from
Shaun and feeling obligated to a man claiming to love her and even
possess her ("my woman") without ever having even kissed him or told
him how she feels about him one way or the other. It's so stupid.
"Let's face it,
OLTL is lost. I found myself fast-forwarding through a 2nd
episode yesterday. I've never done that before. I have a theory. OLTL is
going to be cancelled, and so that people wont complain too much or
wail and cry about the cancellation, they're going to destroy it to
the point where no one will care that it's gone. When it's
cancelled, people will say, "Well it's for the best, the show sucked
anyway." And that's sad." - Maya
Gosh, I hope
this isn't the case. But in so many ways, it makes sense. Turning
Dorian into a joke, taking away Todd's character and turning him
into a dummy, playing inane stories like Greg/Rachel/Shaun...it
does feed into conspiracy theories.
"I wish so much
for OLTL, but I am starting to fear it's all in vain. Perhaps if
they stir things up again by bringing in a new writer/producer,
things will improve and they will be able to stave off
cancellation." - Roman
The show needs a new writer
That's it for
this week. Please send your OLTL thoughts, complaints,
suggestions, and desperate pleas to:
Robert Iger,
President of Disney (ABC Parent Company)
robert.a.iger@disney.com
Anne Sweeney,
President of Disney-ABC
anne.x.sweeney@abc.com
Brian Frons,
ABC Daytime President
500 S. Buena
Vista St.
Burbank, CA
91521-4551
Brian.Frons@abc.com
Frank
Valentini (Executive Producer)
C/O One Life
to Live ABC Daytime
77 West 66th
Street
New York, NY
10023
frank.valentini@abc.com
Ron Carlivati
(Head Writer)
C/O One Life
to Live ABC Daytime
77 West 66th
Street
New York, NY
10023
rcarlivati@yahoo.com
ABC Comment
Line: 323-671-4583
OLTL Viewer
Comment Line: 212-456-3338
ABC Daytime
Feedback Line: 212-456-7777
Thanks for
reading, and don't forget to e-mail me. PLEASE include your name or
an alias in case I choose to print your comments!
Until next time - don't forget to feel the Craze!
Jeremy in Chicago
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JeremyInChicago@soaptownusa.com
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