OLTL: Discussion for the week December 13

[Vee]

Tea is great in the courtroom. Unfortunately, when she's defending Todd the story inevitably turns into poor maligned Todd, even when he is the guilty party. The [!@#$%^&*] Tea pulled in the courtroom a couple years ago to get Todd off for the rapemance was some shameless, heinous sleazy brilliance, and it was great soap, like Joan Collins-esque. The huge problem with it, though, was that the show did not fully acknowledge it as such - instead, they turned around and tried to pretend Todd was A-OK, just a misunderstood boy, and tried to claim Tea's methods were just. Tea's methods weren't just, that was the whole point; she defended a rapist for a second rape, got him off by any means necessary. But then they were feted as America's Sweethearts. It's bull. Anyway, I'm off-topic. Yes, I love Tea in the courtroom.

I like Darren, too. The problem is he is a plot device. The black characters are currently sounding boards for white people, nothing more. Their "storylines" - Destiny's bond with Matthew, Darren's jealousy - move at snail's paces, and only when Dani or Nate or Matthew needs a talk-to scene. It's a waste of all these actors, even Shenell Edmonds who IMO remains the weakest link among the African-American players. They haven't explored the interesting angle of Darren coming from money and dating working/middle-class Destiny, nor have they explored the friction they established re: his big brother Theo choosing to eke out a relatively poor existence as a cop despite the Price family money. That is a compelling story to tell with any family, no matter what color they are. And you could've made a lot of that with Rachel Gannon still around, I might add. I'm sure Daphnee Duplaix and Max Tapper would look gorgeous together - especially if you added in Uncle R.J., returning to Llanview back on the prowl.

Since the start, Lenny Platt has reminded me of the creepy "young thespian" in that old YouTube video of the kid auditioning for Full Metal Jacket in "Good Morning, Mr. Kubrick." He was introduced as "a real actor" to make Matthew jealous re: Dani, and launched into these obnoxious Al Pacino impressions. It was like he was trying so hard to be artsy. On any other show it would be obvious Nate was the short-term friction object in that high school musical story - instead, with no backstory or character, they slotted him in next to Dani in the musical weeks later. By virtue of his height and biceps and little else. I saw that coming when I saw the musical promos with the blocking for Nate/Dani and Matthew/Destiny. 'Sorry, little Matthew, back to the black girl.' It's like if at the end of The Goonies the preppy kids beat the [!@#$%^&*] out of Sean Astin.

[MontyB]

I simply don't have time to sit an analyze soap operas all day, I will admit it's truly time for the Fords to be written out. I wish the focus was more on the seasoned players.

[DeeeDee]

At least they didn't make him do the truffle shuffle.

[TeamEric]

Hmm, Toups, I think Bo will be honest with Nora very soon so how about Inez confesses on the stand she did NOT sleep with Bo?

[TeamEric]

It's bull all right because I watched Téa slapped multiple times and verbally abused for that ruthless defense of Todd. She was hated and spit on by the "good people" of Llanview (except Viki) for most of 2009.

Some folks like B&N and John/Nat were nice to Téa and Todd for a NY minute because most characters felt true sympathy for the torture Eli put them through. But John is already back to going after Todd and NOT liking Téa turning on her shark defenses. And so-called BFF Blair was annoyed as hell that Téa clammed up and wouldn't answer her badgering questions. I'm sure B&N will turn on her too, they always do, and the status quo will be back to normal, TnT aren't Llanview's sweethearts but hated.

Darren's an annoying bint and the actor's scenes with that driving instructor were so painfully bad, they belonged on this soaps wall of shame. In contrast, SE has improved. She's decent now with EA where in the past he completely outstripped her in scenes.

As for LP, he's a total dud and KM acts circles around him, but Frons wants his 3 teen girls paired each with a Ford brother at all costs. Ugh. Make that triple ugh as all 3 pairings are painful to watch.

[TeamEric]

See I don't see or hear any toughness or danger in NR. I see a guy who has a really charming smile and can play the light, teasing scenes really cute. TPTB need to rewatch the Santa Baby video, NR is flirting with KA in a sweet, aw shucks manner and comes off quite charming and appealing. Keep him in those type scenes and he sparks. Whenever the material turns serious, he can't deliver.

[DRW50]

Most of that ended by spring. Spring was when they started the poor poor Tea stuff, with her being kidnapped by Powell, being shot or whatever, I can't remember now, and the whole "secret." This was also when Todd suddenly stopped using her as a piece of tail and started seeing her as his soulmate.

[Vee]

Carl's right. The Llanview public distaste for Tea lasted only as long as FL's stint was still determined to be short-term. Once she signed on the dotted line to stay long-term, no one except "biased" people (re: victims of Todd) had a problem with her behavior.

It's not that I have an issue with Lozano staying long-term, it's that I have an issue with how the tone of that writing changed. Suddenly she was A-OK`by people who knew damn well what she had done. Today they are beloved Llanview royalty, hence the gala.

[rhinohide]

I don't know if Bo will be honest unless Matthew confronts him with what he saw.

[Sleepy]

If JJ Singleton is given the time SE has been given, I can believe he would improve as well... as much as I like Destiny/SE, she was HORRIBLE in the beginning and even now she still has a long way to go even though she has gotten better.

I am going to hate it if Destiny is now good enough for Matthew since the girls he wanted didn't want him... plus I like Darren (and even more so after he told Destiny right on Friday) and I like him with Destiny.

[SFK]

I think the actor who plays Darren came out of the gate a more polished actor than SE. Acting isn't the issue here, it's the Urkel-Laura writing.

[TeamEric]

Actually the onscreen facts don't back you up.

Téa was lambasted time and again throughout the summer and fall of 2009. She ONLY had Cristian (plus his roommate she didn't know) as guest at her wedding because the rest of Llanview except Viki hated her. Téa was derided by Eli, Rachel, Bo and Nora during Matthew's trial. Nora spit on her for being a horrible person then later a bad mother in London and Seattle.

Rachel forgave her b/c after Georgie Phillips she owed Téa. Téa had two people on her side last fall/winter, Rachel, and later Eli who was kissing up to her to get in her pants.

But the tone didn't change in 2009.

In 2010, RC eliminated Téa's only friend, Rachel, and wrote Blair insisting over and over again that Téa had NO ONE during her cancer story.

As for the gala, Dorian/Langston coldly cut-off Téa mid-sentence. Rex/Echo/Clint only attended to advance their agenda. The Ford Brothers only attended to chase their Cramer Twit females. And Kelly oozed total faux happiness.

TnT weren't even stars of their own gala, they were bit players who left early. They had one night of goodwill which victims usually get.

And that goodwill is already eroding, John's back to his usual targeting Todd as prime suspect and annoyed at Téa getting in his way of interrogating suspects. Her BFF is already annoyed with her for not spilling all she knew.

[DRW50]

Eli was a small role at that time, and the deriding was basically banter. She basically eviscerated Rachel on the witness stand -- surely Nora and Rachel wouldn't be expected to shrug that off. Even then, Rachel became Tea's prop in no time. Nora was written as a hypocrite because of the damage she and Bo were doing to Matthew -- his salvation (walking again) was only through Tea taking his court case to help him get the operation.

Most of 2009 Llanview barely interacted with Tea in her first stint (it was just Cris, Todd, Blair, Viki, and Nora from the old days), and at that time the show still seemed to be writing Todd as the wacky noble anti-hero. I think that was more a reason for lack of attendance for the wedding than big personal animosity towards her.

The real key is how to do the people who trash Tea look, how are they written? I would say that they - mostly Blair and Nora - were written very negatively during that time.

[Sleepy]

Definitely... I think the writing for Darren might leveling out a bit because we have seen him going against Destiny a few times now instead of the constant praising of her greatness, most notably his challenging her on the issue with her parents... but yes JJS was definitely better, a whole lot better, out the gate than SE.