-  The episode starts out with Natalie and Jared moments after they've climaxed in bed together...yet she's in a nightgown and he's got the bed sheets tucked into his underwear. So... are Natalie and Jared dry humping these days, or what? 
-  LOVED Tina's pink robe and slip today... good job, wardrobe!
-  Why did Cole just mention having a weird headache? I smell a medical crisis...
-  I can see it now: Cole needs a relative's bone marrow or something, or else he'll die. Will Todd let Cole die?
-  Uh-oh. Todd went OFF on Janet in front of Marty. She didn't seem to mind, but it was pretty cruel.
-  So, Keyes could be the undoing of Todd?
-  LAUGH ALERT: Tina just called Jessica's daughter "Gouda" instead of "Bree!" Ha, ha!
-  I am LOVING Tina Lord right now!
-  Jessica would never ever EVER be so snarky to Natalie. How could Natalie not be suspicious of Tess? This is absurd.
-  I was just wondering "Where is Dorian?" and lo and behold, we find out she's in NYC ringing the bell at the New York Stock Exchange! Nice.
-  Tina: "Why don't you let me talk to Dorian for you?" Oh PLEASE, yes! Why don't you???
-  So the writers are going to attempt to give Langston a storyline again. Let's hope this one turns out better. Enough pouting and whining.
-  I thought it was bizarre and cruel of Marcie to tell Blair she can be the grandma to the baby, without talking to Starr first.
-  SO NICE to have an eppy with NO 1968 crap!

-  I am loving Tina even more today! Andrea Evans has found her pacing and stopped bugging out her eyes! Tina is back in the saddle and she's getting some really funny lines!
-  But that Tess...not only is she a bitch, but she's an idiot, too.
-  So, Clint is going after Langston because he is jealous of the attention Dorian gave her while he was still dating her? Dang, that's twisted.
-  Have you noticed that the scenes are getting shorter and shorter and flowing from one to the other, often with dialogue cues in the script? In other words, Clint mentions Langston in his scene with Bo, and then we shoot over to a Langston/Markko scene where they talk about Starr, and then Starr and Cole have a scene, etc. I like this swift, crisp rotation today.
-  Why is Marcie chowing down on her food while Starr and Blair leave theirs on their plates? And why has this happened several times before with Marcie eating in front of others who ignore their food? It's really strange.
-  Markko: "Lang - chill."  Writers  do better.
-  I hope Tina pushes Tess down the stairs and locks the door forever.
-  What is Todd making the OBGYN do? This is scaring me.
-  Can the writers and Bree Williamson please clarify for me: Does Tess WANT to be caught? Because everywhere she goes, including the hospital where her mother has sat on the board for her entire life, Tess causes a commotion and treats people like dirt. She is not even TRYING to act like Jessica. The writing is off, and the acting is off, and this story is starting to kill brain cells.

Friday, August  22nd

-  "Crank Dat Soldier Boy" is the title of the eppy? Really??? Maybe the writers should crank up their minority characters if their going to use hip hop references.
-  I think Lea DeLaria is over being Delbert, because today she seemed to kind of half-ass it. Who could blame her? It's exhausting to constantly spew out awful dialogue.
-  Hey, Gigi:  If you are going to whine about being away from your precious son, then maybe you shouldn't have let yourself be struck by lightning and purposely time traveled into another dimension just to go after your man (who was sleeping with a prostitute anyway)?  Gigi, you are starting to look like a really crappy mother.
-  Bo isn't concerned that he is missing 3 weeks of his memory?  Hello???????
-  Oh look, there's the REAL Renee Divine. I could barely remember what she looked like since the 1968 Renee got more air time than Patricia Elliot has in eons. And look
- she's NOT 90 years old. I guess Renee spends her time in the Buchanan attic these days.
-  I cannot believe the directors let Princess Tessica - rich, white snob scream, "YOU LAZY BITCH," at an African-American nurse. Perhaps it wasn't intended as racist, but there is such a thing as racial sensitivity. Racist whites use laziness as a descriptive for black Americans - that is no secret. So why did this line get through?  It certainly made me hate Tess all the more, and also served to CONTINUE to dumb her down to the point of being, shall we say, mentally challenged? This girl is SUPPOSED to be PRETENDING to be Jessica, RIGHT? Yet she's screaming "You lazy bitch" in PUBLIC and only thinks to cover her tracks when caught by her uncle.  If Tess is this stupid, then so is Jessica. I know Bree Williamson is on contract and all, but I really hope and pray the writers come to their senses and write this character off. Send Tess to St. Anne's or even farther away and let her stay there for a few years. And Frank Valentini might want to cue the directors in to the fact that the writers are not seeing the big picture and it's up to the directors to sometimes decide a line needs to be cut. "You lazy bitch," was one such line. Unless Tess is supposed to be racist...? It's sad that the casting department's efforts to populate the day player crowd with black actors (did you catch the new cop, too?) continues only to serve to highlight the fact that the show will not write for a black audience or give black actors any respect.

submitted by Baji

I'm sickened by this Todd and Marty storyline. I'm sending this email to make the following comments. I pray that you will listen and not reduce it to "It's just TV".

 I have to ask, what message is Ron Carlivati and Brian Frons sending to women who watch this show? RAPE is a traumatic experience and no matter how much chemistry there is between Todd and Marty, it doesn't excuse the fact that Marty was gang raped and that Todd is misleading her and keeping her there without all of the facts. Yes, Todd is a former rapist and he has to deal with that for the rest of his life, but that doesn’t stop him from forming a healthy relationship with a woman, but that woman in no way, shape or form, should be a former victim of his. 

How is Marty supposed to redeem Todd? Once she knows the truth, all the warm fuzzy stuff will end and Todd will be made the town pariah once again. This is not Todd. Todd wouldn't do this. So RC's writing is way off base. He needs to go back and look at old footage in order to gain a better perspective of the Todd character.

I can't in good faith continue to watch this show.  I have made my feelings known to many people on the boards as well as friends and family.  Please put an end to this story line and give women back to women the reason they started watching soaps in the first place... LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON! not Perversion.

Okay, let's all breathe in and... breathe out... slowly.  All right.  The fact is, Marty doesn't know Todd raped her.  So... how is it offensive?  Let's not forget that Marty and Todd hooked up before the rape ever happened, so an assumption that a basic sexual attraction exists is perfectly reasonable (in the absence of Marty's memory of her own history).  Would a rape victim find the Todd/Marty scenes romantic or titillating in any way?  Of course not.  Just as I'm sure black viewers feel degraded every time Tika Sumpter is dragged onto the screen to get her quota of thoughtless screen time as the only black cast member, still floundering with no back story or consistent character traits.  I think soaps offend a lot of people because of their lack of realistic continuity as well as their willingness to change characters on a whim to suit the plot du jour.  What are the chances in real life that a woman would be presumed dead, then kept for months by different men in her home town, including the man who orchestrated a gang rape against her in college?  What are the chances that said woman would find her former rapist the perfect gentleman, and empathize with his impending divorce and estrangement from his children?  What are the chances that the rapist would convince the woman he's a good man, all the while trying to convince himself that this twisted little fantasy might somehow redeem him?  The chances are one in a zillion, I think.  There is just no reality in this storyline other than the emotional reality the actors are so brilliantly bringing to the material. 

To those not enjoying this story, take heed:  You know Todd's lies are going to be exposed sooner than later, and I have every expectation that the writers are going to let Marty teach Todd a painful lesson.  Then what will you have to say about the message the writers are sending?  Frankly, I don't watch soap operas for messages.  I watch for entertainment - and right now for me, that means Marty and Todd. 

MAIL REPORT
 

"This will be my first time e-mailing you. I just wanted your take on the John and Blair relationship. You seem to like them from what I've read so far, but you haven't written much about them since they had sex. You stated that the kiss was hot. I have to say Jeremy, that one kiss on the roof was good, but a long way from hot in my opinion. Their first love scene was really disappointing and boring. From my view point, I really don't buy them as a viable couple. It feels forced to me. Today's show really made me want to respond. Blair is really acting like Starr when it comes to John. She's gushing with Dorian and I'm surprised Dorian didn't point out John's previous relationship issues with Natalie and Evangeline. What makes Blair and Dorian think that she will fair better with John?

I think the most difficult thing to take about John and Blair besides being forced down the audience throat like jolie was, is the dishonesty in the writing. Blair said that John knows how to treat a woman? Come on now Jeremy. Who does Ron think we are? Stupid with short term memory loss. Ron's been with the show for years and he had to be around for both Jovan, jolie, and Jarty. When has John ever known really how to treat a woman? He's an emotional retard most of the time."  - ????? artemis????

My take on John and Blair... well, I don't really see them as a viable long-term couple, either.  That is, I can't really see John McBain in any long-term relationship.  John is just not that into love and romance.  He seems to like sex when it's thrown in his face or offered up by a damsel in distress, but he doesn't seek it out.  And he certainly doesn't seek out romance.  He is truly from Mars and in his eyes, women are aliens from another planet.  They talk too much, nag him, have strange ideas, enjoy all the colors of the rainbow, and exhibit emotions - something he really can't relate to!  So how can I be expected to get excited about John and anyone?  Michael Easton and Kassie DePaivia are holding my attention, but their characters right now are mainly bystanders to the real story, which is Todd and Marty.  The writers are building John/Blair up because in a few weeks they're going to find out Marty is alive.  John and Blair's affair makes sense to me (hello, rebound!) and serves as a great set-up for Marty's return.  There are many possibilities here; in particular, Blair will have to fight for John or let Marty have him.  And if she chooses to fight, how dirty will she get (given her hatred and jealousy of Marty, which could potentially be even stronger than her feelings for John).  The main test for this quadrangle's future, in my mind, was finally seeing whether Easton and Susan Haskell had any chemistry.  I think they passed the test.  Because of that, a Blair/Todd reunion becomes all the more likely, though far from certain.  I do not want to get back on the Todd/Blair tilt-a-whirl, but in the meantime I'm definitely enjoying this quadrangle roller coaster.

"I enjoy your column very much.  Your comments are pretty much on point.  Although, I have a hard time blaming the writer.  Especially since the prior writer/writers were so off.  I think he tries best with what he has and tries to accommodate fans as much as possible. I do not mind him reworking old storylines with a twist. I think that the One Life to Live's main problem, and I will use the Marty/Todd storyline for example, is that the majority of the performers on the show simply cannot perform the way Susan Haskell and Trevor St. John can (they wanted her back for a reason).  How do you write complex, layered dialogue and drama and flesh out characters for Archer, Williamson, Bonner and Fath as well as most of the others involved when they can barely get through the simple things written now?"  - Stacey

Too true, too true.  Trevor and Susan are KILLING it lately.  I actually think Susan Haskell has gotten twice as strong as an actress.  She believes in herself and in her acting choices completely and commits 100%.  She and Trevor seem to be on the same page, and in tune with the writing and the directors.  It's just clicking utterly, whereas all of the other storylines are faltering in some way.  It's not that all of the actresses Stacey mentions are talentless, but they are not in synch with the writing, direction, or even their co-stars.  I think Archer has been doing fine with her story, but she's never as interesting when Natalie is playing the victim.  I think Williamson's turn as Tess is badly bombing.  Bonner has failed to impress me at all though she's stunningly beautiful and I know she's talented from watching her on Soap Star - yet she isn't infusing Talia with any extra oomph.  She needs to, otherwise she'll always be playing a boring character and come off as a boring actress.  Fath has her moments but she has been resorting to facial twitches as a primary acting technique.  Maybe it's because she's in a James Reilly-inspired storyline, but still...

"Why don't soaps have fact checkers?  You know, that someone who reads over a script to make sure those little details are correct?  Monday 8/18; Marty wakes up from a nightmare about her rape then tells Todd (TSJ) she remembers him being there. HUH? Todd had a different face back then (Roger Howarth) so she couldn't remember him.  Even seeing him years later after his plastic surgery, she still wouldn't remember him. She has AMNESIA!  It might seem a little detail to RC and the current writers but over all it's a BIG detail to mess up."  -Sheree

Oh, I couldn't agree more.  Yet I doubt this was a mistake.  It had to be a conscious decision by the writers to pretend that Todd's plastic surgery never happened (too much to explain, perhaps?).  If it was a mistake or forgetfulness, that would be truly embarrassing.  The writers would have to have amnesia themselves to forget that Todd lived life as Walker for many months without his own wife and children knowing who he was.  So... why would Marty remember him being at her rape?  Now, since it was a dream in which she remembered him being there, it's possible her subconscious (which knows Todd raped her) put Todd's current face into the rape situation - as a warning to her.  But I distinctly got the impression from the nonchalance of it all that the writers were just going to ignore the past story of Todd/Walker.  I'm sorry but that was way too important - and recent - to ignore.

"Tammy & Marvin crooning in ’68 in the background and Soldier Boy as a silent title do not diversity make.  Such references do not even make the writers hip.  Hypocrites, perhaps for the real rebirth of cool will not be classic R & B as an episode closes or some hip hop assist as it begins.  The most progressive pop culture statement OLTL could attempt would be a fully-realized, fleshed-out-and-included-in, three-dimensional, black character."  - Citizen K

You mean, Keyes being dragged into the police station via intimidation and blackmail, with full disclosure of his ex-con past, does not constitute a fully fleshed-out black character?  Because I could swear I heard OLTL's writing staff patting themselves on the back for finding a way to wring out a couple more drops of peripheral story from this minority day player.  And you never know, they might decide to give Nurse Lazy Bitch her own story - maybe she's sleeping with Vincent too?