It's not often that we see multiple hostage situations occur simultaneously on One Life to Live. Last week, Llanview's craziest residents took control, as Eli kidnapped Dani, Starr, and Hope (who says "Mommy" now!), with Hannah deciding to "join the party" and take Starr and Hope for her own purposes. Is it just me, or do Eli and Hannah tip the scale of craziness in Llanview? Also, how many times will this happen to Starr and Hope? Hostage situations create intense drama, but when the same characters are held hostage multiple times, it becomes difficult to take them seriously.
At this point, it is difficult to take Eli seriously at all. He has become a quasi-cartoonish villain who manages to have perfect timing, the necessary skills to do anything at any time, lack of a clear motive, and the sardonic humor to complete the package. It might work for a while...but not this long. By now, I wish Eli had actually died in the fire in Tahiti. Since I am reasonably certain that nothing will happen to Dani, Starr, Hope, and even Téa, I am just waiting for this to be over, so that the show can move forward. I think Matt Walton has done a great job playing the really good guy and then the really bad guy, but Eli's reign of terror needs to end.
Téa's ordeal also needs to end. How much must one character go through in less than a year? She's been told she was going to die, put through taxing medical "treatments," had her death faked, been kept away from her family, shoved into a trunk by Eli, and now bound and gagged to a chair in a creepy room. I am glad Téa knows the truth about Eli now, and I can't even blame her for being slow on the uptake when Eli told her what was really happening. She probably has a lot of drugs in her system, and she's already had to absorb a lot of strange information. The dialogue was awkward in those scenes, though. Even in a haze, I am sure Téa would question why Greg was supposed to kill her instead of glossing over it the first time Eli said it. On a more positive note, I am looking forward to Téa and Dani's reunion on Monday!
As for Hannah, she is proving to be as crazy as I (and many others) originally thought. It takes a special kind of craziness to decide to use someone else's hostage situation to her advantage. It's amazing that she managed to get Hope and an unconscious Starr to her house and into what looks like a creepy attic, but I guess she shares Eli's impeccable ability to accomplish any sinister act that is required at any time. She and Eli should have worked together from the start, since they both have these magic powers. Of course, they are both bad at covering their tracks. Eli didn't work too hard to hide his secrets from Blair, and Hannah dropped the frog and James' necklace, but I guess they can't be good at everything!
It turns out Hannah is the way the she is because she was neglected by her parents and feels that nobody cares about her. This is a much stronger motive than Eli has ever had! After hearing this, Starr did a good job of telling Hannah what she wanted to hear, as she professed her love for James instead of Cole. Starr might have done that just to appease Hannah, but there is some truth in what she said too. Whether or not Starr will actually admit that to herself (before Cole leaves) remains to be seen.
Cole is going to feel like a fool when he discovers that Hannah, the woman he won't stay away from, is crazy and decided to hold his girlfriend and daughter hostage. He already looks pretty bad, as he has taken every opportunity to order James to stay away from Starr. He even let his temper take over and punched James at the police station. Since Cole isn't held accountable for anything he does, it didn't matter, but it didn't make Cole look good. I don't know how he will leave Llanview, but if he continues on this path, I won't be sorry to see him go. The writers have been working hard to make James look like the better guy at every turn, and so far, it's working!
As Greg is on the verge of leaving Llanview, I am certain that he is Destiny's father. I haven't read any spoilers, but the scenes on Friday made it pretty clear, as Mr. and Mrs. Evans wondered how Eli found out about what they did. While I like the idea of making Greg be Destiny's father, it's a little late for this revelation. With Greg leaving, there won't be an opportunity to see anything play out. It would be similar to when Schuyler was revealed to be Roxy's son right before he went to prison. Nothing came from it because it was done at the last minute. What's the point? I hope Greg isn't gone before the truth is revealed, but I have a feeling that Eli will see to it that he is, since he managed to sneak into Greg's hospital room. By the way, why are police always so lax about guarding hospital rooms?
Echo DiSavoy has taken Llanview by storm, as she has sparred with Viki and Dorian, and attempted to flirt with Clint in a short amount of time. I wasn't sure how I felt about Echo's return when it was first announced, but I like it so far! It is great to see the vets front and center, where they belong. Echo knows all kinds of history about Viki, Dorian, and Clint, giving her the ability to push their buttons like few others on the show can. It's been a lot of fun to watch her reintroduce herself to Llanview, and I can't wait to see what happens with her story.
Based on the information Rex found about Echo last week, I have a strong suspicion that Echo is back in Llanview because she had a child after first leaving. I know it isn't a reach, since almost every female character that comes/returns to Llanview has a secret child, but I think Echo might be Rex's mother with Clint as the father. I suspect this is true because Rex is investigating Echo, and he despises Clint, so it would create conflict and drama. I know it's early to speculate, since we've only seen Echo a few times, but we'll see if I'm right.
As if Echo's reappearance wasn't enough, Clint and Viki were hit with more bad news last week, as Jessica revealed that her baby could be Robert Ford's. I think they handled the news relatively well, even if Clint had visions of going after Robert with his shotgun. I like that Viki urged Jessica to have the paternity test and deal with the truth, instead of avoiding it, which is a bad habit of residents of Llanview. I am glad Jessica took the advice and seems ready to face the future, which gives me hope that Tess, Bess, and any other alters will remain dormant. It would be great to see Jessica be strong and face a situation herself. Now, the question remains if Natalie will follow suit and tell the truth.
In recent columns, I have complained about the lack of Bo and Nora. In the past few weeks, we have seen more of them, and I like it! Last week, we watched Bo and Nora discuss the hostage situation, Téa's "death," and how grateful they are for what they have in their lives. These scenes weren't filled with action or suspense, yet they were some of the most enjoyable scenes of the week. As I've said before, Bo and Nora don't need big events to be interesting. They accomplish that all on their own. I hope the last few weeks haven't been a fluke and that we will see Bo and Nora on a regular basis. I don't want to see them disappear again and become Llanview's invisible, happily married couple.
Finally, I had the opportunity to attend the One Life to Live fan club party last weekend. I had the opportunity to meet several members of the cast and many fans of the show. I want to thank the fan club president, Diane Casale, for putting on this event for everyone to enjoy. It has to be a lot of work to put on an event for 200+ people, and people had a good time meeting their favorite actors and fellow fans. It was great to see so many people gather to support the show, and I can't wait for next year!
Until next time,
Dawn
