ABC Television Network
Monday, January 14, 2019
Introduction to "A Happily-Ever-After..."
In February of the year 2000, Megan McTavish had taken
over as Head Writer on One Life To Live, and she presented
a disappointing sweeps-stunt "reunion" of Todd and Tea
(Roger Howarth and Florencia Lozano). It was so depressing,
I decided back then to write my own reunion for my favorite
couple.
That was a long time ago, but I've finally gotten round
to posting my story...
over as Head Writer on One Life To Live, and she presented
a disappointing sweeps-stunt "reunion" of Todd and Tea
(Roger Howarth and Florencia Lozano). It was so depressing,
I decided back then to write my own reunion for my favorite
couple.
That was a long time ago, but I've finally gotten round
to posting my story...
A Happily-Ever-After for Todd and Tea
February 2000
In a scene reminiscent of his flight from Llanview, Todd
is seen in the cabin of, this time, a private jet. He is in
a reverie about the past year he has spent in therapy in
Switzerland with a colleague of Nora's sister. We see
flashbacks of him and his doctor, a kind older woman
with an accent, and we see flashbacks, within
the flashbacks, of his childhood. One of these explains
the origin of the not-so-fake personality "Rod."
Todd leaves off his remembrances to make a phone
call. We hear a law firm identified on the other end, then
an attorney put through. "I'm coming back to Llanview,"
Todd says, "but I thought I'd check one last time..."
"No," the attorney replies, "Mrs. Manning still has not
contacted me."
The music woven throughout this scene is "Letting
the Cables Sleep" by Bush.
We next see Tea alone in the evening in the penthouse.
She receives a package by messenger. The package
contains a key and a hand-drawn map to an address in
the countryside outside Llanview. Tea ponders these
a moment, then without further hesitation, grabs her coat
and heads out the door.
We see her driving in the darkness. Fiona Apple's
"Criminal" comes on the car radio. Tea becomes angry
and impatient, and reaches to change the station, but she
cannot. She is compelled to listen to how the words
apply to her treatment of Todd.
Tea pulls into the circular drive of a mansion, and parks
before the entrance. With some trepidation, she tries
opening the front door with the key she has received this
night; the door gives way. The large hall she enters is
empty of furnishings, and dim lamplight and firelight are
coming from only one room.
She follows the light, and Todd emerges from a shadow
and stands before the hearth. This room also has almost
no furniture, but there are two chairs and a coffee table in
front of the fireplace, recalling the arrangement in the
penthouse. There are even pieces of an unsolved jigsaw
puzzle on the coffee table.
When Todd speaks, he is earnest and sometimes
"Tom"-like. Tea acts skeptical and resistant.
Todd: You cut your hair.
Tea: You too.
Todd: You look nice.
Tea: You're looking...well.
Todd: What took you so long?
Tea: (looking at her watch) I got here in half an hour!
Todd: UH-UH -UH! Over a year! You gave up on
the trail of keys.
Tea: How many hoops were you going to make me
jump through?
Todd: How far did you get?
Tea: The airport locker...
Todd: That one led to a trinket box in the penthouse,
and the one in there led to a safe deposit box
that had THAT one (motioning to the key in her
hand) and the address of an attorney. And
the attorney had this. (He hands her a legal
document, the deed to the house.)
Tea: (reads) "Thomas Todd Manning/Tea Delgado
Manning/Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship."
Well, I'll just have to take my name off of this...
Todd: You don't like the house? 'Cos if you don't, we'll
just sell it and buy another one -- something you
like.
Tea: Be serious, Todd.
Todd: I am.
Tea: By the way, this isn't my name anymore. I obtained
an annulment.
Todd: (after a pause) That's OK. So we'll get married
again!
Tea laughs incredulously.
Todd: I didn't want to make you jump through hoops,
Tea. I just wanted to make it, um...INTRIGUING
for you. I don't know if I'd do the same thing
today. I'd have to ask my doctor...
Tea: Your DOCTOR...
Todd: Yeah, my THERAPIST. That's where I've been all
this time. In Switzerland!
Tea: (incredulous again, and mockingly) But you always
RIDICULED therapy, Todd.
Todd: (reaching into his vest pocket) I didn't think you'd
believe me, so I brought a letter from her -- "a note
from my doctor." (He laughs a little and tries to hand
her the letter, but she does not take it.). But you know
what? You can ask Viki. See, I tried to see Viki's
therapist, but that's Nora's sister, and she wouldn't
have me. So she referred me to another doctor,
this neat lady. You'd like her. And, oh, Switzerland,
Tea. It's so beautiful. You'd love it there. You know
what my doctor helped me remember?
Tea: No, WHAT?
Todd: When I was really little, Peter Manning shoved me off
on this female relative of his to babysit me, and she
was married to a Russian immigrant. And he loved
opera! He would go around singing, full of life, you
know? And they had records, and the sheet music,
and the lyric sheets, called LIBRETTI. And that's
where I learned some Italian! And that's where ROD
came from! Isn't that wild?
Tea: (impressed and softening) It's amazing, if it's true...
Todd: Let's go see Viki. She can call Nora's sister, and my
therapist. You'll believe Viki...I've been working hard
for a year, but now my doctor thinks it's time for you
to join me -- for "couples therapy" -- if we're gonna
make a go of this...
Tea: "COUPLES THERAPY"?! ( She is marvelling and
speechless.)
Todd begins pacing.
Todd: I bought this house for you. I thought you'd come
here, and get over being mad at me; that you'd make
it a home. That you'd bring Starr here, and fill it with
her toys, and little girl things...
Tea: What ABOUT Starr, Todd? How could you abandon
your daughter that way?
Todd: I DIDN'T. Nobody knew, but I called her all the time.
And sent her presents, a music box and Switzerland
stuff like that. Blair's not very trustworthy, but I had
to trust her. And Starr -- Starr's good at keeping
secrets.
Tea: (murmuring) Wonder where she gets THAT from...
Todd: But my doctor's made it clear to me, I can't be in and
out of Starr's life like I've been. When she grows up
to be a woman, it could make her --
Tea: Crazy? Like me?
Todd: (playfully waving the letter from his doctor) "Couples
ther-a-py!"
Tea laughs and shakes her head.
Tea: But why the big secret, Todd? Why disappear like
that?
Todd: I wanted the rest of Llanview to forget about me for
a while, everyone but you and Starr. I was
EMBARRASSED, really. I mean, those guys were
EMBARRASSING -- Tom and Rod...
Tea: (really relenting) They weren't so bad. Hey, who am
I kidding? I was CRAZY about them...
Todd: Yeah. At least you liked a part of me. And you know
-- the things they said to you, they were the things
that Todd -- that I -- couldn't say.
Tea: I believed that the whole time, until I found out you
were faking.
Todd: But now I know -- and you've got to know -- it wasn't
faking, in a way, really. Those guys are all a part of me.
That's what my doctor says. Viki told me, too, before
I left Llanview. She's smart.
Tea: What about Pete?
Todd: I've been working on that. But what about
Miss Perkins?
Tea: I was never worried about her. She's just the part of
you that knows what's right and proper, like Viki.
Todd: So does that mean you're coming with me?
Tea: Now, HOLD ON, Todd...
Todd: (enthusiastically, and pacing again) When we come
back, I'm gonna run a newspaper consulting business
on the Internet from here. I'll show you the room I'm
gonna set up in. And -- who knows? Maybe I'll write
my memoirs. And maybe you'll want to work with me.
But if you want to keep doing your lawyer thing, we're
only 30 minutes from Llanview -- like you said. See,
I didn't actually want to live in Llanview again, but I
have to be close by because of Starr. I don't know what
will happen with custody, but she'll have both her
parents now.
Tea: Slow down, Todd!
Todd: Why, Tea? 'Cos, why did you come here tonight?
Tea: (becoming flustered) -- Out of curiosity. And
to disentangle myself from anything like this. (She
holds out the deed.)
Todd: You can't disentangle yourself, Tea, because we're
tangled. We're connected whether we're together or
apart. So you just have to decide which way it's
going to be. Isn't this what you always wanted?
For me to change? For me to try? Well, I'm trying,
Tea, I'm really trying...
Tea: I have obligations in Llanview. Commitments...
Todd: And I have a private jet waiting. It's up to you, Tea.
But it would be terrible to miss out on a chance for
so much happiness just because you wouldn't reach
for it.
The question remains with Tea as she stands in the firelight.
The song "The Dolphin's Cry" by Live begins and
accompanies a montage of flashbacks of Todd and Tea's
relationship, as well as scenes again in the present --
of Todd and Tea with Viki, who is making a phone call, and
of Todd saying good-bye to Starr and promising, next time,
never to leave again. At last we see a night scene of Todd
and Tea at the airport. Tea is just outside the airplane door.
The light from within the cabin falls upon her, and Todd
reaches for her to come inside.
In a scene reminiscent of his flight from Llanview, Todd
is seen in the cabin of, this time, a private jet. He is in
a reverie about the past year he has spent in therapy in
Switzerland with a colleague of Nora's sister. We see
flashbacks of him and his doctor, a kind older woman
with an accent, and we see flashbacks, within
the flashbacks, of his childhood. One of these explains
the origin of the not-so-fake personality "Rod."
Todd leaves off his remembrances to make a phone
call. We hear a law firm identified on the other end, then
an attorney put through. "I'm coming back to Llanview,"
Todd says, "but I thought I'd check one last time..."
"No," the attorney replies, "Mrs. Manning still has not
contacted me."
The music woven throughout this scene is "Letting
the Cables Sleep" by Bush.
We next see Tea alone in the evening in the penthouse.
She receives a package by messenger. The package
contains a key and a hand-drawn map to an address in
the countryside outside Llanview. Tea ponders these
a moment, then without further hesitation, grabs her coat
and heads out the door.
We see her driving in the darkness. Fiona Apple's
"Criminal" comes on the car radio. Tea becomes angry
and impatient, and reaches to change the station, but she
cannot. She is compelled to listen to how the words
apply to her treatment of Todd.
Tea pulls into the circular drive of a mansion, and parks
before the entrance. With some trepidation, she tries
opening the front door with the key she has received this
night; the door gives way. The large hall she enters is
empty of furnishings, and dim lamplight and firelight are
coming from only one room.
She follows the light, and Todd emerges from a shadow
and stands before the hearth. This room also has almost
no furniture, but there are two chairs and a coffee table in
front of the fireplace, recalling the arrangement in the
penthouse. There are even pieces of an unsolved jigsaw
puzzle on the coffee table.
When Todd speaks, he is earnest and sometimes
"Tom"-like. Tea acts skeptical and resistant.
Todd: You cut your hair.
Tea: You too.
Todd: You look nice.
Tea: You're looking...well.
Todd: What took you so long?
Tea: (looking at her watch) I got here in half an hour!
Todd: UH-UH -UH! Over a year! You gave up on
the trail of keys.
Tea: How many hoops were you going to make me
jump through?
Todd: How far did you get?
Tea: The airport locker...
Todd: That one led to a trinket box in the penthouse,
and the one in there led to a safe deposit box
that had THAT one (motioning to the key in her
hand) and the address of an attorney. And
the attorney had this. (He hands her a legal
document, the deed to the house.)
Tea: (reads) "Thomas Todd Manning/Tea Delgado
Manning/Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship."
Well, I'll just have to take my name off of this...
Todd: You don't like the house? 'Cos if you don't, we'll
just sell it and buy another one -- something you
like.
Tea: Be serious, Todd.
Todd: I am.
Tea: By the way, this isn't my name anymore. I obtained
an annulment.
Todd: (after a pause) That's OK. So we'll get married
again!
Tea laughs incredulously.
Todd: I didn't want to make you jump through hoops,
Tea. I just wanted to make it, um...INTRIGUING
for you. I don't know if I'd do the same thing
today. I'd have to ask my doctor...
Tea: Your DOCTOR...
Todd: Yeah, my THERAPIST. That's where I've been all
this time. In Switzerland!
Tea: (incredulous again, and mockingly) But you always
RIDICULED therapy, Todd.
Todd: (reaching into his vest pocket) I didn't think you'd
believe me, so I brought a letter from her -- "a note
from my doctor." (He laughs a little and tries to hand
her the letter, but she does not take it.). But you know
what? You can ask Viki. See, I tried to see Viki's
therapist, but that's Nora's sister, and she wouldn't
have me. So she referred me to another doctor,
this neat lady. You'd like her. And, oh, Switzerland,
Tea. It's so beautiful. You'd love it there. You know
what my doctor helped me remember?
Tea: No, WHAT?
Todd: When I was really little, Peter Manning shoved me off
on this female relative of his to babysit me, and she
was married to a Russian immigrant. And he loved
opera! He would go around singing, full of life, you
know? And they had records, and the sheet music,
and the lyric sheets, called LIBRETTI. And that's
where I learned some Italian! And that's where ROD
came from! Isn't that wild?
Tea: (impressed and softening) It's amazing, if it's true...
Todd: Let's go see Viki. She can call Nora's sister, and my
therapist. You'll believe Viki...I've been working hard
for a year, but now my doctor thinks it's time for you
to join me -- for "couples therapy" -- if we're gonna
make a go of this...
Tea: "COUPLES THERAPY"?! ( She is marvelling and
speechless.)
Todd begins pacing.
Todd: I bought this house for you. I thought you'd come
here, and get over being mad at me; that you'd make
it a home. That you'd bring Starr here, and fill it with
her toys, and little girl things...
Tea: What ABOUT Starr, Todd? How could you abandon
your daughter that way?
Todd: I DIDN'T. Nobody knew, but I called her all the time.
And sent her presents, a music box and Switzerland
stuff like that. Blair's not very trustworthy, but I had
to trust her. And Starr -- Starr's good at keeping
secrets.
Tea: (murmuring) Wonder where she gets THAT from...
Todd: But my doctor's made it clear to me, I can't be in and
out of Starr's life like I've been. When she grows up
to be a woman, it could make her --
Tea: Crazy? Like me?
Todd: (playfully waving the letter from his doctor) "Couples
ther-a-py!"
Tea laughs and shakes her head.
Tea: But why the big secret, Todd? Why disappear like
that?
Todd: I wanted the rest of Llanview to forget about me for
a while, everyone but you and Starr. I was
EMBARRASSED, really. I mean, those guys were
EMBARRASSING -- Tom and Rod...
Tea: (really relenting) They weren't so bad. Hey, who am
I kidding? I was CRAZY about them...
Todd: Yeah. At least you liked a part of me. And you know
-- the things they said to you, they were the things
that Todd -- that I -- couldn't say.
Tea: I believed that the whole time, until I found out you
were faking.
Todd: But now I know -- and you've got to know -- it wasn't
faking, in a way, really. Those guys are all a part of me.
That's what my doctor says. Viki told me, too, before
I left Llanview. She's smart.
Tea: What about Pete?
Todd: I've been working on that. But what about
Miss Perkins?
Tea: I was never worried about her. She's just the part of
you that knows what's right and proper, like Viki.
Todd: So does that mean you're coming with me?
Tea: Now, HOLD ON, Todd...
Todd: (enthusiastically, and pacing again) When we come
back, I'm gonna run a newspaper consulting business
on the Internet from here. I'll show you the room I'm
gonna set up in. And -- who knows? Maybe I'll write
my memoirs. And maybe you'll want to work with me.
But if you want to keep doing your lawyer thing, we're
only 30 minutes from Llanview -- like you said. See,
I didn't actually want to live in Llanview again, but I
have to be close by because of Starr. I don't know what
will happen with custody, but she'll have both her
parents now.
Tea: Slow down, Todd!
Todd: Why, Tea? 'Cos, why did you come here tonight?
Tea: (becoming flustered) -- Out of curiosity. And
to disentangle myself from anything like this. (She
holds out the deed.)
Todd: You can't disentangle yourself, Tea, because we're
tangled. We're connected whether we're together or
apart. So you just have to decide which way it's
going to be. Isn't this what you always wanted?
For me to change? For me to try? Well, I'm trying,
Tea, I'm really trying...
Tea: I have obligations in Llanview. Commitments...
Todd: And I have a private jet waiting. It's up to you, Tea.
But it would be terrible to miss out on a chance for
so much happiness just because you wouldn't reach
for it.
The question remains with Tea as she stands in the firelight.
The song "The Dolphin's Cry" by Live begins and
accompanies a montage of flashbacks of Todd and Tea's
relationship, as well as scenes again in the present --
of Todd and Tea with Viki, who is making a phone call, and
of Todd saying good-bye to Starr and promising, next time,
never to leave again. At last we see a night scene of Todd
and Tea at the airport. Tea is just outside the airplane door.
The light from within the cabin falls upon her, and Todd
reaches for her to come inside.
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Author's Note
The details of the trail of keys, Viki's therapist being
Nora's sister in Switzerland, Todd as newspaper executive,
and the furnishings and jigsaw puzzle in the penthouse,
are accurate to the original story.
Remember, Todd had faked a split personality -- D.I.D.,
dissociative identity disorder -- which his sister Viki had
actually suffered from.
Pamela K. Long was the ingenious Head Writer at
the time of that brilliant storyline (1998).
Maddeningly, the ratings plummeted during the course
of it. I believe it may have been partly because of a
terrible mistake the writers made just preceding it: They
had Todd strike Tea! I think this may have led to what
Soap Opera Digest used to call "click" moments --
viewers clicking the TV off, and checking permanently
out of a soap.
Nora's sister in Switzerland, Todd as newspaper executive,
and the furnishings and jigsaw puzzle in the penthouse,
are accurate to the original story.
Remember, Todd had faked a split personality -- D.I.D.,
dissociative identity disorder -- which his sister Viki had
actually suffered from.
Pamela K. Long was the ingenious Head Writer at
the time of that brilliant storyline (1998).
Maddeningly, the ratings plummeted during the course
of it. I believe it may have been partly because of a
terrible mistake the writers made just preceding it: They
had Todd strike Tea! I think this may have led to what
Soap Opera Digest used to call "click" moments --
viewers clicking the TV off, and checking permanently
out of a soap.
A Letter to Soap Opera Digest
After SOD reviewed the "reunion," I sent them this
letter. (They printed nothing of it.)
Dear Editors:
Thank you for pointing out some of the things that did
not ring true in Todd and Tea's reunion ("Late-Breaking News,"
March 28). This conclusion of their story was emotionally
and artistically dissatisfying because it did not build upon
what had gone before.
The point of the "fake personalities" plot seemed to be
that Todd literally "analyzed" his own psyche by separating
out all the very authentic parts of it. Viki told him so in
the end, and he was then haunted in his dreams by his
"alters." Now we are expected to believe that all of this
amounted to nothing.
It turned out to be totally believable that Todd would
regress to criminal behavior when accused of
Georgie Phillips' murder. Todd had never received
therapy, and, it was revealed, he had never acknowledged
having been raped by Peter Manning. But Sam forced
Todd to face the rape, and the self-analysis of the fake
D.I.D. was a seemingly therapeutic and redeeming
experience. To have Todd still reverting to criminality,
after all this, makes no dramatic sense.
Although Todd and Tea's relationship was repressed
and outwardly conservative, it was always more
erotically-charged than that of any number of soap
couples doing any amount of sexual gymnastics.
Todd's apparent denial now of their sexual connection
contradicts everything we have previously seen of them.
Again, the "fake personalities" storyline is dismantled
and robbed of its richness, if we are to believe that
the sexually curious "Tom" and the swaggering "Rod"
were not really a part of Todd's personality, or that
he never recognized them to be.
It may be possible to rationalize the writing of this
tacked-on conclusion to Todd and Tea's story, but one
cannot help but be disappointed in something that
would make us think so much and feel so little.
Todd and Tea's ending in 1998 did not bring them
together, but it was perfection as storytelling.
(End of letter)
letter. (They printed nothing of it.)
Dear Editors:
Thank you for pointing out some of the things that did
not ring true in Todd and Tea's reunion ("Late-Breaking News,"
March 28). This conclusion of their story was emotionally
and artistically dissatisfying because it did not build upon
what had gone before.
The point of the "fake personalities" plot seemed to be
that Todd literally "analyzed" his own psyche by separating
out all the very authentic parts of it. Viki told him so in
the end, and he was then haunted in his dreams by his
"alters." Now we are expected to believe that all of this
amounted to nothing.
It turned out to be totally believable that Todd would
regress to criminal behavior when accused of
Georgie Phillips' murder. Todd had never received
therapy, and, it was revealed, he had never acknowledged
having been raped by Peter Manning. But Sam forced
Todd to face the rape, and the self-analysis of the fake
D.I.D. was a seemingly therapeutic and redeeming
experience. To have Todd still reverting to criminality,
after all this, makes no dramatic sense.
Although Todd and Tea's relationship was repressed
and outwardly conservative, it was always more
erotically-charged than that of any number of soap
couples doing any amount of sexual gymnastics.
Todd's apparent denial now of their sexual connection
contradicts everything we have previously seen of them.
Again, the "fake personalities" storyline is dismantled
and robbed of its richness, if we are to believe that
the sexually curious "Tom" and the swaggering "Rod"
were not really a part of Todd's personality, or that
he never recognized them to be.
It may be possible to rationalize the writing of this
tacked-on conclusion to Todd and Tea's story, but one
cannot help but be disappointed in something that
would make us think so much and feel so little.
Todd and Tea's ending in 1998 did not bring them
together, but it was perfection as storytelling.
(End of letter)
More Thoughts
I had more to say, especially in light of the lack of reporting
of fan reaction in SOD. However, this was not sent:
I never felt that Todd and Tea were a couple who would
settle for mutual sickness, but rather felt that they were
struggling for health and love. Now the new writing regime
has Todd offering only sickness, and Tea accepting only
sickness. It was not sickness that held them together, but
something like a force of Nature.
Head Writer Megan McTavish has called Todd and Tea's
love story "non-traditional." On the contrary, it was Brontean,
Shakespearean, epic, Biblical and mythic. That's pretty
heavily traditional.
Did fans really find it agreeable that Todd abandoned
his daughter? That Todd and Tea's "beautiful relationship"
-- as one fan termed it in SOD* -- turned so cold, bleak,
depressing and despairing? What about fans, as SOD
claimed, "longing for a fairy tale ending"?** The writers have
Todd telling Tea he would "end the world" for her. He would
do that, but not try to change for her, as he was trying at
the time of their second wedding? Before Todd fled
Llanview, he asked Tea to give him a year to prove to her
that she had not made a mistake marrying him. Could this
be what he had in mind? A return to violence, and an offer
of sickness? This simply is not Todd as we last saw him.
But I will choose to view this "reunion" of Todd and Tea
as I would an ill-conceived attempt at a sequel to a classic
work of literature -- a pretender's usurpation and desecration
of another writer's brilliant work. SOD is very sympathetic
to fans who lost Another World. But my favorite story ever,
two years in the making, was destroyed in five days by new
writers with no understanding of what they were dealing
with.
* "Love It/Hate It," September 15, 1998
** "Mailbag," February 29, 2000
of fan reaction in SOD. However, this was not sent:
I never felt that Todd and Tea were a couple who would
settle for mutual sickness, but rather felt that they were
struggling for health and love. Now the new writing regime
has Todd offering only sickness, and Tea accepting only
sickness. It was not sickness that held them together, but
something like a force of Nature.
Head Writer Megan McTavish has called Todd and Tea's
love story "non-traditional." On the contrary, it was Brontean,
Shakespearean, epic, Biblical and mythic. That's pretty
heavily traditional.
Did fans really find it agreeable that Todd abandoned
his daughter? That Todd and Tea's "beautiful relationship"
-- as one fan termed it in SOD* -- turned so cold, bleak,
depressing and despairing? What about fans, as SOD
claimed, "longing for a fairy tale ending"?** The writers have
Todd telling Tea he would "end the world" for her. He would
do that, but not try to change for her, as he was trying at
the time of their second wedding? Before Todd fled
Llanview, he asked Tea to give him a year to prove to her
that she had not made a mistake marrying him. Could this
be what he had in mind? A return to violence, and an offer
of sickness? This simply is not Todd as we last saw him.
But I will choose to view this "reunion" of Todd and Tea
as I would an ill-conceived attempt at a sequel to a classic
work of literature -- a pretender's usurpation and desecration
of another writer's brilliant work. SOD is very sympathetic
to fans who lost Another World. But my favorite story ever,
two years in the making, was destroyed in five days by new
writers with no understanding of what they were dealing
with.
* "Love It/Hate It," September 15, 1998
** "Mailbag," February 29, 2000
Another Letter to Soap Opera Digest
I don't remember this very well, but I know that the show
ruined the character of Tea after Roger Howarth left at the end
of 1998. Tea's family history had been that she had a brother
Enrique, who had a daughter Roseanne, a character on the show.
But at some point the writers changed Roseanne's father to be
Tea's brother-in-law, who had seduced Tea. When SOD chose
some episode related to this as "Editors' Choice," it prompted
me to send this letter. They printed nothing of it, but they
definitely later acknowledged that Tea's history had been
rewritten.
Dear Editors:
I am amazed that a recent "Editors' Choice" honor went to
an overwrought storyline that I had only watched out of
horrified curiosity.
One Life To Live's Tea has been given a distasteful and
unbelievable backstory, and an unnecessary one: her having
been abandoned by a parent was sufficient explanation for her
troubled personality and poor choices.
On top of this, Tea's ugly new history necessitated an
inconsistency for Roseanne's character. Roseanne had been
introduced as the daughter of Tea's brother Enrique. Then
suddenly Roseanne's father was Miguel, Tea's brother-in-law.
Then, by some laughably tacky patchwork by the writers,
the guy's name became Enrique Miguel! (Now tell us why
Roseanne's last name is Delgado, the same as Tea's.)
As for the gun-play climax of this mess, it was, at best,
worthy of an old grade-B movie.
This is "exactly what OLTL fans want"? That is bad news
for me. If hackneyed, tawdry material is rewarded, that is all
we are going to get. (Or are other viewers only watching out
of horrified curiosity?)
(End of letter)
Author's note: I'm pretty sure I'm recalling this correctly
-- Pamela K. Long was fired at the end of 1998. As I've
noted elsewhere, the ratings had plummeted. The show
actually had no Head Writer for a while, just Executive
Producer Jill Farren Phelps "leading" the writing staff
(disaster). Pamela must have come up with the charming
"trail of keys," which was abruptly, and forever, dropped.
ruined the character of Tea after Roger Howarth left at the end
of 1998. Tea's family history had been that she had a brother
Enrique, who had a daughter Roseanne, a character on the show.
But at some point the writers changed Roseanne's father to be
Tea's brother-in-law, who had seduced Tea. When SOD chose
some episode related to this as "Editors' Choice," it prompted
me to send this letter. They printed nothing of it, but they
definitely later acknowledged that Tea's history had been
rewritten.
Dear Editors:
I am amazed that a recent "Editors' Choice" honor went to
an overwrought storyline that I had only watched out of
horrified curiosity.
One Life To Live's Tea has been given a distasteful and
unbelievable backstory, and an unnecessary one: her having
been abandoned by a parent was sufficient explanation for her
troubled personality and poor choices.
On top of this, Tea's ugly new history necessitated an
inconsistency for Roseanne's character. Roseanne had been
introduced as the daughter of Tea's brother Enrique. Then
suddenly Roseanne's father was Miguel, Tea's brother-in-law.
Then, by some laughably tacky patchwork by the writers,
the guy's name became Enrique Miguel! (Now tell us why
Roseanne's last name is Delgado, the same as Tea's.)
As for the gun-play climax of this mess, it was, at best,
worthy of an old grade-B movie.
This is "exactly what OLTL fans want"? That is bad news
for me. If hackneyed, tawdry material is rewarded, that is all
we are going to get. (Or are other viewers only watching out
of horrified curiosity?)
(End of letter)
Author's note: I'm pretty sure I'm recalling this correctly
-- Pamela K. Long was fired at the end of 1998. As I've
noted elsewhere, the ratings had plummeted. The show
actually had no Head Writer for a while, just Executive
Producer Jill Farren Phelps "leading" the writing staff
(disaster). Pamela must have come up with the charming
"trail of keys," which was abruptly, and forever, dropped.
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