I don't watch the show, though my aunt is obsessed with it. She heard that Jill Larson was being bumped to recurring and told me it would be great if Dorothy Lyman would return in the role. Apparently Dorothy won two Emmys playing Opal back in the early 80's, even though I only know her from Mama's Family

So my question to you AMC fans is this: Which Opal do you prefer? I'm curious to see if people think like my aunt.

If the show bumped Jill down to recurring after playing the role for over 15 years, they arent going to bring on Lyman. The actress isnt the problem. Its TIIC and their incapability to want to do anything with the role. Sorry I cant answer your question as Ive only watched since Larson took over but Ive seen clips of Lyman and she seemed good. Different, but good

Larson since, like Cheap, I've only seen her version....either way it's still a big loss to the show to have her on recurring status

Both were/are great in their own ways.

DL’s Opal was a bit more badass – sort of like KWAK (but not annoying like KWAK). JL’s Opal seems more scatterbrained. I love both.

Hopefully with the new HWs Opal will great some airtime again. But I suppose Opal getting the shaft is more the fault of Frons than anything.

Dorothy Lyman hands down. I was watching AMC when Opal and Jenny came to town. I was watching when the Martins first got Tad and they had to deal with Ray Gardner. I remember when Tad was not played by MEK but by some other kid. And although I like Jill Larson I have always always always preferred Dorothy. In fact I had a hard time accepting her in the role when she first took over. I will miss Jill and I believe that AMC has done a great disservice to Jill and the fans.

Larson is a more vulnerable and appealing Opal, and she's a great actress. Lyman was very different and daytime had never seen anything like her Opal. It's kind of like the Robin Mattson/Kate Collins "Janet from Another Planet" thing--Robin was just fine, but Kate, like Lyman, took her portrayal to that "next level" that is almost like lightning in a bottle.

That said, if AMC does make Opal a Pine Valley fixture again, I'd still want Jill Larson in the role. Lyman was amazing, but it's been over 20 years since she played the role. To me, and probably most others, Jill IS Opal now.

I think they were both good and gave unique performances of Opal. Larson is one of the best recasts in daytime history, but for many, Lyman is the quintessential Opal.

Also, I may be in he minority ::ducks tomatoes::, but I always preferred Robin's Janet over Kate's. I think Robin has a knack for playing oddball characters and she's very good at that. I find Kate highly overrated and in my opinion, she over-acts a lot. Robin had a more subtle quality, which I liked better.

I think they were both good and gave unique performances of Opal. Larson is one of the best recasts in daytime history, but for many, Lyman is the quintessential Opal.

Also, I may be in he minority ::ducks tomatoes::, but I always preferred Robin's Janet over Kate's. I think Robin has a knack for playing oddball characters and she's very good at that. I find Kate highly overrated and in my opinion, she over-acts a lot. Robin had a more subtle quality, which I liked better.

Robin is a wonderful actress if anyone saw her portray Heather on GH and trip out on LSD then there would be no question!!

I've only seen Jill in the role, and I don't recall ever seeing many clips of Dorothy's Opal, so I choose Jill.

Dorothy's Opal has always intrigued me. Like someone said, she always comes off as Krystalish to me, and I've always liked the way Krystal is written (except when she's being a selfish !@#$%^&*]).

Dorothy Lyman is a GENIUS. No joke. She is like a powerhouse actress. And if nothing else, she stamped pink spandex on the psyche of America.

Dorothy Lyman's Opal was indeed more "badass". Her whole goal for a long time was to make her teenage daughter, Jenny, a star and she wasn't above exploiting Jenny to do it and forcing her into situations she didn't really want to be in. (Maybe someone can confirm or deny but wasn't she the one who made Jenny work in Foxy's, the sleazy club where Jenny had to wear what amounted to a Playboy bunny outfit?) There were also definite racist feelings from Opal when it came to Jenny's friendship with Jesse Hubbard. She had an affair with Langley Wallingford while he was married to Phoebe. She had a nastier, more ambitious streak. I mean, you laughed at her but also hated some of the things she said and did. Jill Larson's Opal is more "dingbat funny." I remember Jill as psycho "Ursula" on OLTL--I think I still have the clip of her, her father and Tina taking the fall out of the lighthouse window.

And if nothing else, she stamped pink spandex on the psyche of America.

Every single time I think of Dorothy's Opal, in my mind, all I see is her wearing a white blouse and pink spandex pants. I don't know why. Maybe I saw a picture of her in that before or something, but that just screams Dorothy's Opal to me.

Opal's pink spandex:

Dorothy Lyman's Opal was indeed more "badass". Her whole goal for a long time was to make her teenage daughter, Jenny, a star and she wasn't above exploiting Jenny to do it and forcing her into situations she didn't really want to be in. (Maybe someone can confirm or deny but wasn't she the one who made Jenny work in Foxy's, the sleazy club where Jenny had to wear what amounted to a Playboy bunny outfit?) There were also definite racist feelings from Opal when it came to Jenny's friendship with Jesse Hubbard. She had an affair with Langley Wallingford while he was married to Phoebe. She had a nastier, more ambitious streak. I mean, you laughed at her but also hated some of the things she said and did. Jill Larson's Opal is more "dingbat funny." I remember Jill as psycho "Ursula" on OLTL--I think I still have the clip of her, her father and Tina taking the fall out of the lighthouse window.

Yep, Opal forced teenager Jenny to work that humiliating job at Foxy's, in what was basically the fox version of a playboy bunny outfit, because Opal was too lazy to work herself.

It's really hard to choose between the 2 versions because Opal evolved quite a bit while Larson was playing her. When Opal first returned, Larson played her very similar to Lyman, but Palmer's ex-wife Daisy helped Opal soften her rough edges so she could win Palmer's heart. Since then, the character hasn't quite been as outrageous. I wouldn't want Lyman to return and play the old Opal with no explanation for the change (although I did love Kate Collins recent stint, but McT really should have had Janet say one line about going back to her old look).

Jill Larson for sure but Dorothy was very good too.