When a star is tempted to leave his old soap home and leap over the fence to the green grass a new soap home, on a new network, what can the fans do? Do his old fans line up to follow him?  Do the viewers at his new soap home accept him grudgingly? 

Roger Howarth.  A show of hands, please how many of you were wondering how long it would be before I got around to Roger?  He has become something of a legend in soapland, originally hired to be a nameless frat boy in a rape trial built around Marty on One Life To Life.  But Roger's performance attracted legions of fans, prompted the writers to give his character the name Todd, and eventually led that character to become larger than the other accused frat boys, Marty, and even the crime itself.  He was connected to OLTL's main character, Vicki, by becoming her previously unknown half-brother and Victor Lord's illegitimate son.  Roger appeared on OLTL for many years, winning an Emmy, obtaining time off to pursue other acting projects, and always being welcomed back to Llanview when he was ready to return.          

So when I started seeing rumors this summer that Roger Howarth was leaving OLTL again and this time joining the cast of As The World Turns, I was a little surprised.  Although not a follower of OLTL, I'd always figured he was probably happy there, since the show gave him a lot of leeway to leave and come back, and always seemed to give him good stories.  He'd gone from a complete unknown there to one of its major stars; why would he want to leave?

So I did a little research, and I found that Roger was apparently never comfortable playing a reformed rapist. Fans were divided on his departure; some felt betrayed, others said good riddance.  But good or bad, Roger is now a part of Oakdale.  So let's turn our attention there.

Roger took over the part of Paul Ryan, the son of uber-criminal James Stenbeck, played by Anthony Herrera, and wacko-mommy Barbara Ryan, Colleen Zenk Pinter.  The previous actor to play Paul, Scott Holroyd, was fired to make room for Roger.  That angered fans who loved Scott's portrayal of a strong but gentle Paul.  This Paul had nurtured along a romance with older woman Rose DeAngelo, the identical twin sister of long-time Oakdale resident Lily Holden.  Rose was played by the talented Martha Byrne, who along with Scott made this couple a winner as they struggled through all the soap roadblocks they encountered on the road to romance.

So when Scott's Paul flew off in his private plane, while channeling the spirit of his evil dad James, and a few weeks later Roger appeared as Paul, fans at ATWT were as divided as the fans on OLTL had been about him.  But as time went on, it was clear that a more complex Paul was filling our TV screens.  I'll admit that I wasn't a huge fan of Holroyd, and I was very interested to see what Roger would do with this part.  It didn't take long for Paul to evolve from a gentle man into a conniving one, from a strong man into tormented one, from a forgiving man to a vengeful one.  He roared full force back into Oakdale, plunging into storylines involving his fiancée Rose, his father James, his ex-best friend Dusty, and oh yeah, Barbara, the mommy who will never let him go.

Paul Ryan returned to Oakdale to find that his fiancée thought he was dead in a plane crash and had hopped into bed with his old best friend, Dusty Donovan.  Dusty had also recently returned to Oakdale, and since Rose is a dead ringer for Dusty's first love Lily, he was a willing carnal partner to comfort Rose over her 'loss.'  This infidelity seemed to activate the Stenbeck genetic code full blast in Paul.  He confronted his father in prison, his father as an imaginary mentor, his mother and her twisted desires to keep her family together forever, and his own desire to punish Rose for her infidelities yet win her back.

Along the way, Roger had scenes with another ABC-alumnus, Cady McClain.  As Rosanna Cabot, she has offered counsel and comfort to Paul.  One of my favorite scenes with them was when Paul held Rosanna's baby niece.  It was clear that Roger loves babies, and to see him hold the child, cooing and cuddling her, obviously enjoying the moment, showed a whole new side of him.  It was plain to see that these two actors were enjoying their scenes together, and they created some sparks.  Increasingly, fans are hoping that Paul will dump Rose and move on to a pursuit of Rosanna.

So what has Roger Howarth brought to ATWT?  Have we fans received a prize or a prank?   In my opinion, Roger has brought a new edge to an old character, by  playing Paul as a person who is fighting to maintain his sanity and gentleness, while being tormented by his parents who want to mold him to their standards.  Roger shows his raging vulnerability while being verbally assaulted by those inner voices that he believes are coming from his father, but are in fact coming from his own subconscious.  Roger displays his desire to break free from and attain superiority over his manipulative mother.  We see his flashes of anger over the realization that Rose did not mourn his 'death' very long before seeking comfort with another man.  And we see his loving tender side towards Rose, the woman he loves and desires or is that desires to punish?

Roger Howarth is a talented actor.  I find myself enjoying every little movement, every eyebrow twitch, every little sideways glance that conveys his character's anger and also insecurities.  He goes toe-to-toe with some major talents on ATWT in Byrne, Herrera, and Zenk-Pinter, and the screen flinches with the tension they create.  Recent scenes where Barbara confronted Paul, and his inner demons had also conjured up Stenbeck at the same time, were very alluring.  While Paul and Barbara argued, Paul and the viewers could also see Stenbeck, giving him advice, warning him and goading him.  When Paul would blurt something out to his inner demon-daddy, it was clear from Barbara's face that she wondered if her son was losing his mind.  And perhaps he is.  But if Paul Ryan loses his mind, I will enjoy it immensely with Roger Howarth in the role.  He has peeled off and exposed so many new layers of Paul that have never been shown before.  He has moved a character that was a face in the crowd into the forefront, and proven that he is not just a one-character actor.  He is Todd no more; he's definitely and unequivocally Paul Ryan.

So what do you think?  Is Roger Howarth a welcome addition to ATWT, or should he pack his bags and head back to Llanview?  Let me know!