Let's have a moment of silence for Adam Munson. Go ahead. I'll wait. In a shocking move this week, Adam Munson was declared dead, the victim of a bombing in Afghanistan. In my opinion, the show had already killed Adam a long time ago, when his beloved longtime character turned into an attempted rapist and villain, all for the sake of a silly plot-dictated storyline that barely lasted two weeks. Yes, I'm a little bitter. Aren't you?
The question now is why did the show kill Adam, who hasn't been onscreen in ages? I've come up with two possibilities. Either it was a way to introduce this new guy, Riley Morgan, to the Oakdale fold, or it's plot groundwork that will eventually allow Margo to discover that Adam wasn't killed, and he'll come back home. I vote for option two. Adam has some fences to mend.
This death plot twist gave Margo and Tom some excellent drama to play, which we haven't seen in a long time. Bravo! But, what a travesty Adam's funeral turned out to be. I get that Margo didn't want to talk to people, but what about her family that loved Adam? The fact that Adam's "grandparents" weren't in attendance was unacceptable. Bob and Kim were a big part of his life. And Katie, Craig, and Parker should have been there, too. Parker is his half-brother, and Katie and Craig were part of his life when he was younger. The fact that Ali, Luke, Luke and Noah were there, instead of Adam's family was absurd and a slap in the face to longtime viewers and to his character's history. The kid wasn't always a bad guy. In fact, for most of his tenure in Oakdale, he was loved. Shame on that mockery of a memorial service. If he is indeed dead, Adam deserved some kind of tribute. I bet Katie's rabbit, Snickers, would get a better send off than poor Adam did.
Meanwhile:
• I'm worried the Swine Flu (H1N1) has hit Oakdale. Someone call the CDC. First, Meg was sick with the "flu", then Damian, and then Bonnie. If I were Holden and Lily, I'd be running out to buy those white facemasks.
• As much as I pick on Paul, his character is always good for an entertaining one liner. I didn't know whether to be offended or to giggle when he said that Damian had a "ravioli salesman accent."
• I hate to start out this column all doom and gloom, but I have to be brutally honest and say that this was pretty much the worst week on As the World Turns that I've ever witnessed, with the exception of a few scenes. Writers, producers, I'm begging you, please, please make some changes, before it's too late. The fact that Carly, Craig and Jack weren't on until Friday, and Henry, Katie, Brad, and Vienna didn't check in until midweek, made for one boring week. I'm sorry to Paul, Meg, Holden and Lily fans, but I cannot get excited about watching Paul stealing Eliza again, Meg ringing her hands and fainting again, Lily lying to Holden again, and Dusty playing hero again. We've seen all this before, and it doesn't make me want to tune in the next day. Neither does Rosanna working on the farm. Sorry. Honestly, at this point, I'm not sure how to make this show better, but I'm begging someone, try something, anything. Track down Paul Leyden and throw a bucket load of cash at him to return as Simon, or perhaps give us a love quad with Henry, Vienna, Brad and Katie, Bring back Molly McKinnon or get actors Wally Kurth and Jensen Buchanan as new characters. We need something to get excited about, and with the exception of a few of the characters/storylines, it's not happening now, at least not for me.
• What a fantastic scene this week between Katie and Henry at the hospital. Thank you, writers, for remembering the Katie/Henry friendship and unbreakable bond. Henry comforting Katie reminded me of just how much chemistry these two have, whether they're fighting, joking, or annoying one another.
• Can we keep Riley Morgan the soldier? He's a cutie and a good actor, and I'm interested in seeing more of him.
• Cady McClain sure has a beautiful voice, and I enjoyed her music, but it's a little difficult to wrap my head around the new version of Rosanna. I remember the cutthroat business lady, whose wardrobe and gorgeous mane made me envious. This Rosanna prefers denim and apparently has never met a straightening iron. They say people in comas do go through dramatic personality shifts, so it's plausible that the Rosanna I loved would spend her days picking asparagus. But, I sure hope she soon remembers that she has a mind for business and fights her way back to the top, annoying Craig, Lucinda, Damian or whoever else gets in her way.
• couldn't help but laugh at poor Bonnie this week. She went searching for Eliza without a photo, and had no idea what the kid looked like. How would she have known Eliza if she saw her? Oh, that's right. She didn't. And I thought Bonnie was supposed to be smart.
• --Did any of you catch Meredith Hagner (Liberty) on the new USA show "Royal Pains" this week? She was fabulous! And so was Paul Leyden on the TV movie "Maneater" with Sarah Chalke. I love seeing ATWT folks turn up on other projects.
• Noah got into film school. This could be a fun storyline, if he gets to work on a movie or a TV show. It could introduce some drama for him and Luke that doesn't involve the audience wondering whether or not they're ever going to have a sex scene.
• --I told you, Scoopers, that Paul was Superman. With all his death-defying feats, I always knew he was special, but this week he proved it when he apparently single-handedly pushed his broken-down car up the road with Meg inside.
• Did Dallas leave the show and I missed it? How about Derek? It seems the show is testing a Bonnie/Dusty duo, so I guess that means Derek is done. So far, I'm not loving the Bonnie/Dusty duo. I didn't like her with Derek either, though. Poor Bonnie. She just can't get any love.
• Is it possible that we may see a little Brad/Vienna flirting? Frankly, the two looked gorgeous together on the set of Brad's show, while Vienna was filling in for Katie. And Henry's jealousy was perfect. "You have nothing to worry about" Vienna told her beloved. In my experience, that most always means you have something to worry about. Henry, you've been warned.
• Congratulations to Katie, who is finally pregnant. I was on bed rest for most of my pregnancy, so I feel her pain. But, I'm not sure what this means for us the viewers. Watching someone lay on the sofa, reading, puking, and sleeping doesn't make for good TV for the next eight months. I fear Katie won't end up with this baby either.
• Edna, I hate to break it to you, but unless you get some customers into that farming co-op, I don't think you're going to make it. Other than Bonnie and Paul, I haven't seen a customer at that place since this farm storyline started. Would it kill ATWT to hire some extras? I'll volunteer if they're that desperate.
• Henry's dress shirts always entertain me. One day it's pink and yellow stripes, the next, bright orange. I guess his wardrobe is supposed to reflect his whimsy. Well done!
• Please stop the madness that is Ali and Casey. I've never met a more boring couple.
• I had to chuckle last week when Meg told Damian she wasn't the fainting type. Um, since when? Meg has logged more time on the floor than most dust balls. Someone get some smelling salts for this woman.
• Margo, please hire Dusty as a detective. He told Bonnie he knows the "tell" signs when someone is lying. And he wasn't exaggerating. He busted Edna and Rosanna. Carly needs to hire him to interrogate Parker.
Best Lines of the Week:
(Rosanna tells Paul that she understands why he took Eliza and that the Oakdale folks will too, but Paul disagrees.)
Paul: "You've been in a coma. You've been in several comas. You're probably as loopy as I am."
(Brad denies that he's cheating on Katie, despite being seen with another woman.)
Henry: "Brad, you don't have to play dumb. It comes to you naturally."
Reader Spotlight:
(From Two Scoops reader Carol.)
Yesterday I read a book totally in one day and couldn't put it down. The characters drew me in and I cared about them and had to finish the book to see what happened to them. This is the problem with the writing at ATWT. The writers are not able to get me vested and interested in the characters anymore and what happens to them. I think the writing is the problem and the writers need to be replaced because they aren't contributing here anymore, just collecting a pay check, and time is running out for this soap to continue.
(From Two Scoops reader Diane.)
Is Trent Dawson the best actor on daytime or what? The writers finally gave him something better to do than pour drinks and it was fabulous! I was in tears watching his video to his unborn baby and then again when he heard Vienna had lost the baby. He is AWESOME! Let's hope the powers that be submit some of these scenes for next year's Emmys. (And) I don't know what's going on, but when did Craig Montgomery and Damien Grimaldi turn into the heroic leading men? I love it! Both actors are fantastic and make the show worth watching. I only hope that Damian and Meg hook up, since I can hardly stomach one more scene with Meg and Paul.
Is it just ME, or hasn't anyone else noticed that Allison Stewart must be the first person EVER to graduate from nursing school in less than six months?!
(From Two Scoops reader Leslie.)
It was bad enough all those years ago when Margo went through the Police Academy in less than a yearand IMMEDIATELY became a plain-clothes detective;and when Meg went right back to nursing at the SAME hospital where she "killed" a patient and had
had her nursing license permanently 'revoked'; but for Allison to go from Meth addict/porn star to nursing school GRADUATE WITH an award in a matter of months, especially since she was also "working" at Memorial Hospital( even though we almost never SAW her doing anything at the hospital except spending time with Casey) at the same time, and apparently spent all of her 'free' time at Yo's instead of studying, is just TOO ridiculous. Nursing pays pretty well and nurses are in big demand right now.
If just anyone can graduate from Oakdale's nursing school in six months while attending part-time classes, working another job and never cracking the books, there is going to be a HUGE run on applications and MINE will be in the mail tomorrow! Come ON, writers! Get real for Pete's sake!!
That's all for now Scoopers! See ya next time.
Jennifer Biller
