Edge of Night (EON) (No spoilers please)

[Broderick]

It really made Oscar the Doorman seem like an imbecile.  

I think the show's unusual format & subject manner is what makes EON often seem less "dated" and "old-fashioned" than other shows from that time period.  It never attempted to be especially "trendy" or "modern" -- and its film noir style is pretty timeless.  

[Broderick]

Googling does tend to ruin it. 

For those of us who were teens in the late 1970s and early 1980s, you can't imagine how much fun it was to watch the show in the afternoons.  (It came on right after school.)  There weren't any "spoilers" at the time.  We would always try to anticipate how each crime and each mystery would be resolved, and we were ALWAYS wrong, because the stories are filled with so many weird twists and turns.  

The head writer (Henry Slesar) and his dialogue writer (Steve Lehrman) invariably toss genuine clues directly into your face in the most unlikely ways, but then they provide a host of "red herrings" to completely confuse you and send you off on the wrong path.  Once the story reaches its conclusion, all you can think is Why didn't I figure that out weeks ago?  lol

[chrisml]

Feelings after a week's worth of episodes (and excuse me if I get character names wrong but I'm not googling so as not to spoil anything)

Kim Hunter (Nora) is excellent. This is Emmy caliber work. I have no idea if she got nominated, but she would have tapes from this week if she did. She has scenes with Eliot and I'm curious if this is going anywhere because soaps rarely if ever put characters together unless they have a storyline planned for them. I hope so because that was a good scene.

I'm still confused about Paige's past storyline with the terrorists. There's a spoiler surprise this week. The spoiler surprise was connected to Nora's scenes and it worked well. I hope to see the spoiler surprise with Nora. Are Paige and her bodyguard supposed to be in a romance? Or did she romance her stepbrother? (I think it's her stepbrother as he is Nora's son, and she's Owen's daughter, right?)

April/Draper: Can't say I care all that much about the house issue. The mother gave part of the payment, so what?!? Draper is getting on my nerves with his macho nonsense although the posts here leave me to think he has a right to be upset. I like Margo so much so I don't care. 

Sharon Gabet had a fun entrance in this week's episodes for me. She comes in and makes out with Eliot. She has a fight with a character named Sara who she then slaps. She comes home to a baby and her mother-in-law. Fantastic scene. I think this is Lois Kibbee based on looks, but I don't know the character's name. Kibbee and Gabet are amazing in this scene. I don't quite get the background (Raven was married before and cheated on Kibbee's son?) and I don't remember the new husband's name. I'm curious where this is going. 

I'm enjoying EON. My only quibble is that I don't like the show's logo. Looks very cheap.

Edited 17 hours ago by chrisml

[Maxim]

There is a time... till the old storyline is cleaning up... where it's still kinda annoying. For me it was. That's a personal opinion. But in 10-20 episodes more... you'll find yourself enthralled. It's not even begun.

I'm so glad to hear your reviews! And excited of what's to come for you! 

[j swift]

It is his fatal flaw. 

He's smart, cute, and loyal.  But, a total chauvinist pig.  We're looking through a 2025 lens, but April's from a wealthy family, (that she recently met), she should be allowed to contribute to her own home. Especially if Draper is going to work for the Crime Commission, rather than joining Mike's private law firm (did I get that part correct?)

How about smoking while the baby is in the room?  It all looks nuts by current standards.

Raven was married to Geraldine's son Kevin, but had an affair with Logan (whom Geraldine also considered like a son). Raven got pregnant by Logan, then Kevin died (long story short).  The part you need to know is that Raven was bored being a mother to Jamey (check out my member name).  So, she starts going out to Elliott's club and leaving Jamey with April.  Logan is not happy that Raven keeps leaving their baby all around town.  And thus, Geraldine is not pleased with Raven either.

Draper and Logan are frequently rivals in the courtroom.  FYI --- Draper is also Raven's step-brother (her mother married his father).

Raven's real name is Charlotte. But, one day [she] was sitting on the lawn and saw this beautiful black bird with shiny wings fly by. [She] wanted to be that bird. So beautiful. So free. With beautiful black wings…"    @chrisml you'll hear that story soon, and I envy you getting to see it the first time.

Edited 15 hours ago by j swift

[Soaplovers]

 

Word of advice... you have to view the show without the 2025 lenses.. which means you need to 86 the misandry.

[j swift]

On the other hand, I still find episodes of TV with people smoking in front of babies shocks me into nervous giggles.

[chrisml]

I can get through another 10 to 20 episodes. April is such a compelling character. The actress just owns the screen. I think this is also why I'm annoyed by Draper. Margo and April are so fantastic that Draper is a wet blanket (except for one scene which I mention below).

 

Draper was bearable in his scenes with Logan because he was not whining about the house. If he has more scenes with Logan, I can tolerate him. As of now, he's just very one note. Everyone has had more to do. 

Thank you for explaining about Raven's backstory and her connection to Draper. It clears things up. Logan explained things a bit in the convo with Draper, but there was still some things I was not sure of. Gabet and Kibbee are just sensational. I now see why people adore Sharon Gabet. How did AW squander her talents? SMH.

 It's the way Draper is written. I'm drawn to Eliot who is a total cheating pig. The writing and the performance are first-rate. Draper is stomping around like a spoiled child and I don't have the benefit of seeing April and Draper's relationship from the beginning so this is my first intro to Draper. He's annoying as can be.

==========

There's also an African-American police officer who's struggling to walk again. He's Steve's partner. He took his first steps. I can't tell if they are writing him off or if he's going to say. I hope he stays because the actor is quite charismatic.

Edited 14 hours ago by chrisml

[Maxim]

Elliot is SOOOOO tasty in this period. He's so wicked. One of the reasons I stayed on with the show when I began watching. 

[Broderick]

Kim Hunter is excellent, and she only gets better & better.  By the time the storyline ends, she's downright DAZZLING. 

As for whether or not Nola Madison will encounter Eliot Dorn again, all I can say is that everything on the show happens for a reason. lol.  

Paige Madison is a wealthy young debutante.  In real-life, in the 1970s, there was a rich heiress in California named Patricia Hearst who joined a violent gang and committed a crime; there was some question about whether Patty Hearst was brainwashed or whether she voluntarily broke the law.  Paige Madison is the "Edge of Night" version of Patty Hearst.  Paige Madison's storyline is loosely based on the real-life events surrounding Patty Hearst & the Symbionese Liberation Army.

In the show, Paige Madison assisted a mysterious man named Tobias in stealing some firearms from the US government & delivering those stolen firearms to revolutionaries in a South American country.  Paige faces jail time for what she did.  However, she's been given temporary immunity from a prison sentence if she cooperates with the police in finding the other members of the Tobias Gang.  The only problem is that various members of the Tobias Gang keep popping out of the woodwork and trying to kill her, before she talks to the authorities; that's why her father has hired a bodyguard to protect her.  There is ALSO some fear by her family that she was romantically involved with Tobias himself, and that perhaps Tobias (or "Toby", as she calls him) still has a certain hold over her emotionally. 

All of that will play-out in the coming weeks and will involve a VERY surprising character whom you've already met. 

Paige Madison is NOT involved with the blond-haired, blue-eyed bodyguard.  He has a girlfriend of his own.  He's involved with a cute, red-headed female police detective played by actress Frances Fisher.  Miss Fisher has been given a few weeks off to rest, because she's about to be featured very heavily in the Nola Madison storyline. 

Paige Madison is in love with her step-brother, Brian Madison.  The "official story" of the Madison family is that Paige Madison is the daughter of Owen Madison and his first wife (a lady named Elizabeth); Brian Madison is the son of Nola Patterson Madison and her first husband. Many years ago, Owen Madison's marriage fell apart, and Nola Patterson's marriage fell apart; Owen and Nola then married, raising Paige and Brian as step-siblings.  But in 1976, Owen had a "secret talk" with Brian about certain events from the past; Brian was so horrified by what he learned that he ran away from home and joined the Navy.  Nola and Owen didn't hear from Brian for three years.  He's recently returned home, and he feels VERY uncomfortable around Paige.  She would like to resume dating Brian, but Brian isn't willing to participate.  All of this will be discussed in coming episodes, and you'll learn the "secret" that sent Brian away three years earlier. 

The show's logo will change drastically in the summer of 1980 to something that doesn't look cheap at all.  lol.        

I'll defend Draper to the "death" on this business with Margo.  The woman is absolutely wretched to him.  Not only did she trick him into purchasing a $100,000 house (which she led him to believe cost $65,000), she wheedled and schemed until she got APRIL to participate in the subterfuge of tricking Draper.  Now Draper is not only annoyed that Margo lied to him, he's subconsciously realizing that Margo is easily able to manipulate APRIL into lying to him; he's wondering if Margo has created an environment in which his own wife will callously lie to him about important things in order to take advantage of Margo's open checkbook. The "subtext" is that he's unsure if he can trust April to be honest with him anymore, thanks to her horrible mother's haughty interference.  (But of course the worst thing that Margo has done is interfere with the lucrative job he landed in New York City, an offer which was immediately rescinded before he even started.  He doesn't know yet that Margo used sexual blackmail against the senior law partner in New York to snatch his job away from him, but the audience knows.)

Right now, Draper isn't working for the Crime Commission.  He's Mike Karr's "junior" law partner.  Remember, Mike & Nancy Karr encouraged him to take the job in New York City, because the pay was so much better than what earns working for Mike. Then when Margo pulled her ace out of her sleeve and yanked the job away from Draper, Mike happily welcomed him back.     

[j swift]

You are the best!!!!

That is a remarkable talent, to not just summarize, but contextualize Draper's dilemma!  It is delightful to be able to think of that situation in a new way. - Thank you

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I was pondering Lee Godart's accent, because it was so dreamy.  It made me think he would've been perfectly cast as Victor Newman's brother on Y&R.  American's have a hard time distinguishing European accents.  And, good news, before I hit reply, I went and confirmed the actor is still alive.

Edited 13 hours ago by j swift

[Broderick]

Thank you, @j swift.  I'm probably more sympathetic to Draper Scott than most audience members are -- even though I'm absolutely CRAZY about Ann Williams & her bizarre Margo Huntington character 

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The more I watch these episodes -- and I've watched several of them a zillion times, I'm ashamed to admit -- you realize there's a WHOLE lot of passive-aggressive hostility brewing inside Margo Huntington about Draper.  She wants to take April AWAY from him and recreate the childhood that she never got to experience with April, because of the adoption 25 years ago.  Draper has sense enough to realize how heartless and vindictive Margo really is about other people's lives and their feelings, but he bites his tongue rather than poison his wife's mind about how horrible her mother really is.  And I admire him for that.  He's a sweet boy.   

[chrisml]

Broderick, thank you for all of the info [I edited for space]. I am so grateful for everyone filling in the blanks for me. I suspected the Nora/Eliot scene was very important and it was setting something up but I didn't know what. Can't wait to see it play out. The two actors had such a great back and forth.

I should have made the Paige/Patty Hearst connection. I thought Paige was in love with Brian from the first episode I watched but it seemed as if they were brother and sister. Steve kept being affectionate with her so I assumed he was the love interest. Then she was affectionate with someone else and well..she's a very busy woman. I can't wait to see Frances Fisher show up. (I'm trying to be vague because I don't know what would be a spoiler in this storyline)

Now it makes sense why Draper would be upset. I didn't get the whole background of why he didn't go to NY. I'm a sucker for good acting, so I might still side with April and Margo, if the writers don't give Draper more to do besides yelling.  He had more chemistry with Logan, but I know that's not happening. 

Something else I noticed: the show really takes care with even the smallest parts. The acting is superb. Too often, I noticed on older soaps they don't take care with the recurring or day players (Ryan's Hope was so bad with this that I couldn't make it through some episodes). It's only been six episodes, but so far, the casting department was spot on.

[j swift]

It's funny you say that because part of the entertainment of the trials on the show are all the day players who come on as witnesses and jurors.  I'm certain it was like the Law and Order of its time. It employed so many New York actors, that if you look close enough, there's usually someone vaguely recognizable in the courtroom.

[Broderick]

What annoys me a little bit about the "day players" is they sound a bit too "Brooklyn-ish" sometimes.  Obviously, the show was taped in New York City, and the actors are all New York actors, but Monticello is supposed to be located in Illinois or Ohio.  Occasionally, they grab actors and actresses for small roles who have VERY distinct New York accents, which contrasts sharply with the main cast, none of whom have noticeable accents (except for our dashing European gigolo, Eliot Dorn, of course).  The heavy Brooklyn accent works fine if the character is a bookie, or the owner of a pawn shop, or a guy who's selling stolen guns on the street corner.  But when it's a steadily recurring character -- such as the first Mrs. Goodman, who worked for Miles and Nicole -- it's pretty jarring to me sometimes.  And you'll see it often -- such as an "under-five" character who witnesses a car accident, or a character who witnesses a shooting, or the occasional desk clerk, or waiter.