Things are changing in Oakdale and things are looking up as different characters get a chance to be in the forefront as we see others make their way out of town. The new head writerobviously was reading letters from the fans when she was co-head writer because she has in a short period of time made Oakdale a place worth visiting again.
Lucinda
It is so wonderful to see her front and center which has been a long time coming. To have a character like Lucinda Walsh have cancer is a stroke of genius. This is one time that Lucinda has lost all of her control in this particular situation; she excels in her business maneuvers and controlling her family but now she is powerless. As she tries to maintain her strong façade, the idea that she has a potentially deadly disease lets us see how vulnerable she can be. Granted, this is the beginning of the story and I hope this is not like the Margo/Katie liver transplant because this needs to move at a reasonable pace as much for her and us as viewers wanting to see the effects of this on a character like Lucinda Walsh.
Craig/Rosanna/Paul/ Emily/ Hal
The real Hal Munson has returned none too soon as he came to his senses and wanted his wife back. It seemed like the last few months with him never happened, the story sort of picked up right where Benjamin Hendrickson left off. This story gets more convoluted as Emily gets more involved with Paul who is still pining over Rosanna who just remarried Craig.
It is obvious that Paul still loves Rosanna and lied about his feelings for Emily to hurt her. Why does Rosanna just jump from one marriage to another is puzzling to me? In the last year, she has been married three almost four times if you count the almost marriage to James Stenbeck. I like Craig with Rosanna and I will be sad to see them both leave Oakdale. Craig keeps things moving and his absence will leave a huge void in the Oakdale canvas.
With Craig leaving, I am starting to believe that Jennifer's baby is not Craig's but Mike's - an interesting twist, isn't it?
The Kids
Gwen is a keeper as is Will. Casey would be okay if he didn't mumble all the time and Celia is fair. When I read she is leaving, I was not said because I don't see how she fits in the grand plan anymore. This teen pregnancy story is an important issue especially when she is alone like Gwen is. I do have a thought about as well. Is Gwen somehow related to someone in Oakdale like Carly? Could Gwen be the daughter of that lady in the picture with Carly's father? My guess is that Carly's father like Rosanna and Carly's mother also had two family's - interesting, huh? Gwen does have quite a few of the same traits as Carly.
Finally, we get to see the veterans on a regular basis which makes the show so much more enjoyable; when is the last time in a whole week that we have seen Susan, Lisa, Nancy, Bob, Emma and Kim. Since I am never completely satisfied, when are Ben and Jessica going to get back in the thick of things and where is Curtis?
That's all I have for now.
Reggie Jackson
