interesting column from mimi torchin on soap net -- addresses a bit of the rape rumor (which has not been confirmed in anyway and yet everyone is freaking out ...)
Love It/Hate It!
News & Views for May 30, 2003
I'm not exactly sure what it is about soap operas that elicits such a passionate response in its fans - that's a discussion for another column - but the fact remains that almost no one who is really "into" soaps is wishy/washy about them. I suppose there are certain storylines and characters a viewer can be indifferent to or conflicted about, but the more frequent responses are loyalty, personal involvement, and adoration - or the flip side of the coin, loathing! Although, as a journalist, I try to maintain an objective distance from the industry I cover, I'm also a viewer and can't help but become involved. Just like any soap fan, I have stories and characters that I love and those that I, well, yes, hate. Strong words, but this genre does bring out inordinately strong emotions. I thought I'd share some of my own hits and misses with you this week. Feel free to share yours with me on the SOAPnet general board.
A storyline I absolutely love is the blossoming mother/daughter relationship between AMC's Erica and Kendall. In spite of all the wrong-headed things Kendall has done to get Erica's attention, Alicia Minshew is so sympathetic and vulnerable in the role that you can't help but root for her to receive the love she so desperately longs for from her mother. For some reason - probably because as a loving mother herself she can relate so well - Susan Lucci does her best work when playing the good mother. She and Minshew have exceptionally good chemistry, and their tentative but sincere moves toward rapprochement have been touching. It's a welcome payoff to years of storyline groundwork. Although I hate the overuse of rape or attempted rape and other forms of violence against women on soaps, in this case it's a fitting irony that Erica and the daughter conceived from a rape would be brought together by each of them saving the other from the same fate. Their bonding began when they worked together to bring down the man, Michael Cambias, who seduced and used an unwitting Kendall to try to take over Erica's company. Cambias, a ne'er-do-well to the bone, propelled by his rage at being beaten at his own game and publicly humiliated in the bargain, was the would-be rapist. He's a nasty piece of work, and is well, if repugnantly, played by William de Vry. I have a real love/hate feeling about Michael: hate the character, love the skill of his portrayer.
Speaking of All My Children and the subject of rape, there's a persistent rumor all over the Internet that Bianca, Erica's favorite daughter, is going to be the victim of a sexual assault. A word to the wise (writers, that means you!): Don't go there. I haven't seen one positive comment about this potential storyline. Enough already with the rapes and assaults against women. Instead, let Bianca and Lena get back together (love it). Of course the honeymoon won't last forever, but please allow Bianca have more than two consecutive days of unconstrained happiness. Eden Riegel and Olga Sosnovska (Bianca and Lena) have played this groundbreaking lesbian romance pitch perfect, and the writing has been sensitive and involving. Don't blow it now by having Bianca be raped. It's too disturbing - and is this what we really want on our soaps? Not me. I hate it! Make love, not rape.
A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants