You would think by now the residents of Pine Valley would know better than to accept any sort of food or drink from David Hayward. You would think. David was busy lacing Krystal's drink with an unknown substance on at least two occasions in the past week. Since she wasn't immediately ripping off her blouse and running for the nearest Fusion stripper pole, I think it's safe to assume that the mystery powder was not the infamous Libidozone. So let's dissect this storyline. I would much rather have David and Krystal bond over the death of their daughter without the use of drugs. I don't think that it's that far-fetched that two people might grow closer to each other after the death of their child. I'd have preferred to see nature run its course without any pharmaceutical prodding.
What does amuse me about David Hayward is his ability to somehow always find himself in a position to be chief hypocrite. David blasted Angie for violating Rebecca's "do not resuscitate" order and stated that she was too personally involved with the patient to be objective. If doctors with personal involvement with patients were not allowed to practice medicine at Pine Valley Hospital, no one would ever get any treatment. I have to say that David does seem to be good at what he does. He's stepped in to mend the hearts of many a patient. He also can play the piano.
Angie was left in a terrible position. She is right when she said that it would be hard to reconcile with Natalia if the image of Angie "killing" Rebecca was burned into Natalia's mind. That's part of being a doctor, though. If Angie needed to step back, then I am sure there was another doctor somewhere that could have stepped in to do whatever was necessary (or not necessary, I suppose). Or, she could have flagged down Jake. I am sure he could have come up with a revolutionary new treatment to save Rebecca -- without violating any sort of medical ethics.
I don't like Natalia. I didn't care much for Cassandra, either. Natalia's constant attempts to get Jesse and Rebecca back together were more than annoying. That said, my heart did go out Natalia when she had to say goodbye to her mother. If Rebecca were not suffering from an inoperable brain tumor, she might be a character that I'd like to see stick around. She's never been obnoxious or intolerable. Heck, she's even the one that encouraged Jesse to go back to his wife and son. So Rebecca isn't the bad guy here. It's Angie! Just kidding... we all know it's Natalia!
Oh, that nurse at Pine Valley Hospital who took it upon herself to call Zach and tell him that a coma patient had regained consciousness. I have no words for her, but if Zach once threatened to kill his own brother-in-law, she'd better run.
I am sure that I will kick myself in a few weeks when I read this column in the Two Scoops Archive, but I was actually somewhat invested in Jake's story over the past week or so. I still don't like him, but the unusual triangle between Jake, Taylor, and Brot is interesting. Yeah, the my-man-is-back-from-the-dead love triangle is one of the oldest plot devices on the soaps, but this one is somehow different. What is interesting about the storyline is that Taylor has changed from the no nonsense, tough girl to someone with real emotions. I never envisioned that Taylor would ever be portrayed as weepy. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with her crying over her current situation. On the flip side, I also feel bad for Brot.
So the $712.56 question (sorry, times are tough and $1 million is out of the question right now) of the week is a two-parter. First, is Annie really crazy? It's tough to tell at this point if she's really gone off the deep end or if she's just one hell of an actress. Speaking of actresses, Melissa Claire Egan is doing some really great work. I'd say that it's a safe bet that Egan will score an Outstanding Supporting Actress nomination -- assuming that there actually is a Daytime Emmys ceremony this year - and CBS doesn't somehow earn every nomination again. Part two of the question is a bit stickier. If Annie really is koo-koo-kachoo, how will she ever be redeemed? AMC head writer Charles Pratt, Jr., has gone on record as saying that Annie will not be written off the show because he likes the character. There will come a point in time when something has to give. Annie cannot be loopy forever.
All My Children took on Star Wars this week, with Annie Lavery in the role of Luke Skywalker and Aidan Devane as Darth Vader. "Annie, I am your father," Aidan said breathily, in his best Darth Vader voice. No word yet on who will tackle the role of Yoda.
I look forward to hearing your ideas. Click the email link below to send them over my way and I may post them in a future column. Also, coming up in just one exciting week is the start of the Best and Worst of AMC '08. Look for two special weeks of highlights and lowlights from the year gone by.
For those of you who have written in to blast AMC for not addressing the death of Eileen Herlie (Myrtle) on the show, this is the week to watch the show. Unlike live television, soaps are taped about a month ahead of time and written even more in advance than that. When something happens in real life, the shows cannot always address those situations immediately. On Friday, December 19, All My Children will air a special episode devoted to our beloved Myrtle.
dan
