In real life, this summer has flown by at a record speed. I can't believe it's August and that I see "Back to School" sale signs in every store. In Llanview, however, time is crawling and is almost at a standstill. I realize this is a necessity of the genre. It would be very difficult to produce a show all year round with a little lag time. Actors and other staff of the show need vacations, and they definitely deserve them. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to watch One Life to Live, knowing that not much is going to happen until fall. There are too many never ending stories on the canvas right now, and it seems like they could go on forever.
First of all, I can't believe that Natalie is STILL missing. She was kidnapped a long time ago, and it appears that her rescue will not be an easy one. I think we are all rather confident that she is not going to die in that well, so she needs to be removed from it as quickly as possible. I felt Natalie's pain when she said "Why hasn't anyone found me yet?!" I wondered the same thing too. I was beginning to wonder if anyone in Llanview was actually looking for her. Putting Evangeline under hypnosis turned out to be a good idea (except for incessant rambling about John), as she gave Bo and John the clue that they need to look on Llantano Mountain. It seems like many nefarious events have taken place near or at Llantano Mountain, so I would think it would have already been searched. Of course, that would have sped up Natalie's rescue, leaving lots of empty air time to fill. I was a little dismayed that while Natalie was in the well, the only memories she seemed to be thinking about were with her and John. What about her family? Cristian? I was relieved to see her write their names on the wall of the well, but she seemed mostly concerned with not seeing John again. Between Evangeline's obsession with John while under hypnosis, and Natalie obsessing over him in the well, I am beginning to think that both women would be better off if they both dumped John. The triangle is another storyline that has been going on forever, and there isn't an end in sight to that either. However, at this point, I would just be happy to see Natalie be removed from the well so that she could clean up, eat, and be reunited with her loved ones. I am not sure how many days in Llanview time she has been missing, but it's been several weeks in real time, and I am ready for the next chapter of the story, whatever that may be. I don't care what happens to Nick, Hayes, or anyone else involved in the Killing Club. The only thing I do care about is getting Natalie out of that well, so we can all move on to something new!
Next, I am getting tired of Spencer. It would be one thing if something new were revealed about his character each day. However, he has been on for months, and we still know very little about him. We know that he is a womanizer, he is shady, he was married to Paige, and that he and David don't get along. We discovered all of those details in his first week in Llanview. Ever since then, Spencer has been on almost everyday for the majority of each episode. He and David have essentially have the same conversation everyday. David wants Spencer to leave Llanview, and Spencer always has some retort ready to throw back at David. Dorian and David also have the same conversation about Spencer everyday, making their scenes boring. Believe me, it is hard to for me to say that any scenes with David and Dorian are boring. They are a dynamic couple, but they have been reduced to doing nothing but talking and arguing about Spencer. Kelly is oblivious to Spencer's ability to dupe people, and she is going to be blamed for Spencer using information about Buchanan Enterprises to hurt the company. Spencer has also caused a slight rift between Todd and Blair, as Blair is grateful to Spencer for saving Jack's life, and Todd is suspicious. Spencer has interfered with 3 couples' lives, all of whom don't need any more complications. Dorian and David just got back together after splitting up for several weeks, Kelly and Kevin are trying to get back together after everything they've been through, and Todd and Blair are still trying to get over what happened to them because of Margaret--and they still have to deal with Margaret, since she is in Llanview. Spencer isn't adding anything to the show right now. He isn't enhancing storylines or carrying a story of his own. He is just there all of the time, and I am tired of him. He either needs to be on the show less, or his character needs to be more fully developed. I am sure the intention of introducing Spencer's character wasn't to make the viewers sick of him in the matter of months, but at least in the case of this viewer, that is what has happened. As we approach the end of summer, I hope he develops more of a purpose on the show and won't make me want to use the fast forward button.
Jessica's DID and Tess' escapades in New York are getting old. I am relieved that Antonio finally knows what is going on, but I doubt anything of true value will happen until Viki returns. Tess was in New York for weeks without any communication with anyone in Llanview. She met Nash, who has turned out to be a good new character. Meeting him was worth the trip to New York, but very little happened after that.Watching Tess and Nash grow closer was like watching a completely different show. There were a few mentions of Jessica and of Antonio, but there was very little to link the story to Jessica and her family. It wasn't until recently that Todd set out to find her, and now he has to deal with Margaret and his stab wound before he can help Jessica with her DID. Now that Antonio has found Jessica, things might heat up, especially with Nash in the picture, but I hope that Nash comes to Llanview this time. While I've enjoyed seeing the outdoor scenes, it's time to bring this storyline back to Llanview where people Jessica knows can witness her strange behavior and possibly figure out what has happened to her. Let Nash come to Llanview and figure out who "Tess" really is and what Nash is up against. This could also be an opportunity to see if Jessica would take to Nash the way Tess did. Could this create a triangle between Jessica/Tess, Nash, and Antonio? I've visited the message boards, and I've noticed quite a few people like Nash more than Antonio. I must say, after the way Antonio tried make Jessica feel guilty for not wanting to share a bed with him when she got back to Llanview, Nash looks better all the time! Since we are stuck with the DID storyline for a while longer, I hope it will be centered in Llanview until Viki returns. Tess had her fun in New York; it's time to deal with reality at home.
Finally, we all knew that Margaret's return was inevitable and that she would be carrying "Todd Jr." when she did come back. I didn't want Asa to facilitate her return, but he was the one who rescued her so she could torment Todd and Blair again. Asa has every right to dislike Todd and Blair, especially after all of the things they did to him when they tried to steal his mansion. However, Asa has gone too far with bringing back Carlo to kill Blair and now with harboring Margaret. He wanted Margaret and Todd to kill each other and solve 2 problems at once. Instead, Margaret managed to overpower Todd yet again, stabbing him with scissors and leaving him for dead. I have a feeling we are in for a long storyline once again with Margaret. I am sure I am not the only one who dreaded watching Todd be tied to a bed for weeks at Margaret's mercy. It went on for too long, and I don't wish to watch that again. Of course, Todd can recover from serious injuries without medical help. He's survived many traumas, and he can do it again. I just hope that we don't have to watch Margaret gain the upper hand on Todd over and over again for the next several weeks. Since we are stuck with Margaret, we should find out if her baby really is Todd's and if she has a connection to Ginger, as some viewers have suspected. There has to be more to the story than what we know right now. Otherwise, we are in for another endless story that makes me want to use the fast forward button. Since this storyline has just begun, I won't label it as dull yet, but I hope it doesn't end up in the same category as the others I have mentioned.
Feel free to share your thoughts about the show with me. Have a pleasant week!
Have a pleasant week!
Until next time,
Dawn
