As summer unofficially ends, a murder mystery has just begun in Llanview, as Victor was shot and killed right before our eyes. I still don't think killing off Victor was the right move. There was a potential for a lot of interesting story with both Todd and Victor in Llanview. Of course, since this is a soap opera, Victor can still return to the show at any time. I just think removing him from the canvas so quickly after learning who he is was hasty and shortsighted.
I have to admit that I enjoy a good murder mystery. It remains to be seen if this one will be good, though. Typically, murder mysteries on this show go on for so long that I don't care who committed the murder by the time the truth is revealed. I hope that doesn't happen this time.
There are certainly plenty of suspects. Todd is too obvious, as is Rex. Brody's motive is weak, even if keeping Liam is the most important thing to him. I hope he didn't do it. Tomas wanted Téa to leave Victor, so he had a reason to want Victor dead too. Then, of course, there is Irene. She is capable of anything and wasn't happy after Victor choked her.
I just hope that the killer doesn't end up being Shane. He is still reeling from Gigi's death, and Rex has filled his mind with ideas of revenge, so I guess it's possible, but we already have to deal with Matthew being a murderer. I don't care to find out Shane is one too! Everyone I mentioned made cryptic comments and looked uncomfortable after the murder was announced. Now we have to wait and see which person had the biggest reason to behave that way!
Victor's family was shocked and saddened after learning of his murder, even if they had to keep saying "whoever he was." What a strange situation for all involved! I especially feel bad for Téa. She quickly accepted that her husband wasn't Todd and was ready to move on with Victor, and now she can't even do that! I also feel bad for Dani, since she has lost a second father, and she doesn't know Todd at all. With Todd being a main suspect in Victor's murder, I doubt Dani will go running into his arms for a father/daughter reunion in the near future. Jack really needs a father these days, as he continues to cope with what he did to Gigi, but he can't stand the sight of Todd and calls him "Scarface" every chance he gets. As Todd is quickly learning, you can't go home again!
Kim returned to Llanview to see Clint, and I don't want to see them get back together. I actually grew to like Kim and Clint before she left town, but it seems like their moment has passed, especially since Clint and Viki continue to bond. It looks like Kim's story will be taking her in a different direction, since we now know that she is the real Aubrey Wentworth. Cutter and Aubrey (or Christine) haven't interested me since they arrived in Llanview, and if they were to just disappear without explanation, I would be fine with that. I hope the truth about Aubrey Wentworth and why she is important, ends up being interesting enough to hold my attention. Right now, they are people who take time away from characters I want to see. I hope this story will ultimately be worth the time it will take in the show's last few months on ABC.
I also don't want Stacy to come back and take up precious airtime. Her character was ill-conceived from the start, and I was happy when she left. I don't know why she is alive now, but I don't have any desire to see her return to Llanview. Some characters are better off gone and forgotten, and she is definitely one of them. Can't she stay in Kentucky?!
I keep hoping Jessica and Natalie will get over their ridiculous feud because it has gotten boring. Natalie isn't even interested in Brody; she's just with him because he's available while she believes John isn't. Jessica seems to enjoy being mad at Natalie, causing this feud to continue in a pointless direction. I like that Jessica is more assertive now, but I relish the day when I see her do something other than yell and pout. I guess I'd rather see her do that than become romantically involved with Ford, but she needs something else to do!
I was surprised to see Cristian show up at Llanfair to see Jessica on Friday. Since we know he is leaving Llanview soon, I highly doubt they will get back together, and I don't know why they would. A lot has happened since they were together. Jessica is a completely different person now, and beside that, I don't think I can forget Jessica's behavior when she reverted to her teen years last year. Maybe Cristian just wants to relive old times or is hoping he will figure out what to do by talking to her. Either way, it will be interesting to see what happens with that on Tuesday!
I was happy to see Bo and Nora in the same room at the same time last week. It seems like we have only seen them separately for a while now, and even those appearances have been few and far between. I liked their discussion about how they imagine hearing Matthew talking and laughing because that's what they want to happen. It seemed like a real conversation that parents in their situation would have. They are desperately clinging to hope, even though Matthew's condition remains the same day after day. It's a sad situation, and I am glad that we got to see Bo and Nora cope with it together for a change.
My happiness at seeing Bo and Nora was short-lived, however, because we had to watch their confrontation with the Evans family at the diner. I cringed as Nora forged ahead with discussing Matthew and Destiny's baby, even though everyone sitting at the table looked like they wanted to crawl under the table and hide from her. It got even worse when she showed them the legal document she created to protect Matthew's rights.
There is a way to approach such matters, and Nora chose the absolute wrong one. I understand her desire to make sure that Matthew is represented in the situation, but her timing was horrible. I am glad that Phylicia insisted on communicating only through lawyers. We won't have to watch any more of these awkward conversations that way! The main thing this confrontation proved to me is that Matthew needs to recover and play an active role in this story soon. There is a big void in the story without him, and Nora can't think clearly while he is his current condition!
Speaking of not thinking clearly, Rex is all over the place as he deals with Gigi's death. Even if it was creepy, I was relieved to see Gigi's body in the casket. It gave Rex a reality check, even if the date of Gigi's death had disappeared from the tombstone. It was painful to watch Rex insist that Gigi was alive before the exhumation, and I was sure he was headed for a stay at St. Ann's! I don't know why he's been seeing her in various places, but I am glad he now believes she is dead. Now, he must find a different hobby than pondering what he could with the gun in the safe!
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Finally, All My Children wrapped production at ABC last week. It will come back in another form at some point, but it is still the end of an era, and One Life to Live's turn is coming up. Regardless of what happens with Prospect Park, it's still sad to see these shows end, especially when it didn't have to happen. It's even worse to see people assert that viewers don't want to watch soap operas or don't have time to watch an hour of drama. I would much rather watch an hour of a drama than fifteen minutes of any talk show. I don't care how many talk shows with rhyming names there are on daytime television. None of them can ever truly replace a soap opera.
PS: If you miss seeing Gina Tognoni as Kelly, you'll want to tune in to Soap Central Live this Friday (September 9 at 6pm ET/3pm PT). Gina will be returning to the show to talk about her time on One Life to Life as well as a charity event that benefits the American Red Cross, the Rock Show. Gina will also be joined by Kristen Alderson (Starr). For more information, click here.
Until next time,
Dawn
