As usual, I sat down and made myself comfortable at my laptop Friday night. I started to rewatch the Otalia footage for the week of June 29, and I began to analyze the events for this week’s Otalia post. Once I started to write the actual words for this post, I found myself struggling. If any of my readers follow my Twitter adventures during Otalia writing sessions, they know it’s not unusual for me to struggle. However, this was different…even different from the post I struggled through after Crystal Chappell’s Days of Our Lives announcement. I felt like I wasn’t saying what I needed to say properly, that everything was coming out wrong. I tried to get past what I was feeling and focus on writing my Otalia post as usual. Still, that feeling couldn’t be ignored. It wouldn’t go away no matter how many mental breaks I took from this week’s depressing Otalia footage. I felt like I was going in the wrong direction with this week’s Otalia post. When I woke up this Sunday morning, I knew what I had to do. I had to scrap everything I’d written for this week’s Otalia post and start over. In the back of my mind were the words and direction for this post, which had been struggling to surface for days.

If you are expecting one of my regular Otalia posts this week, you won’t get that this week. This post is going to be different because I feel different after watching this week’s Otalia footage. I have some things I want to say, and I would not be true to myself if I didn’t say them. (more…)

Author’s Note: I apologize for the lateness of this post, but a number of unexpected events kept me from completing it as I usually do (Saturday or Sunday).

The Otalia roller coaster took a dip into depression valley the week of June 15 as the angst ramped up and clouded some of Otalia’s radiance. The Guiding Light episodes for the week of June 22 would continue on level track right through depression valley for the most part. Nevertheless, this story would attempt a M. Night Shyamalan twist (more like The Village than The Sixth Sense) as the week ended, and a “Frankenclipse” unlike any other would darken Otalia’s light.

The June 22 episode began with Natalia, Olivia, and Emma continuing Rafe’s birthday celebration. With Rafe being a no show, Natalia’s mood was dampened, sad, and a bit lonely, despite Olivia and Natalia’s presence. Olivia correctly guessed that Natalia was hoping Rafe would return the farmhouse and celebrate his birthday. However, Natalia realized that he wouldn’t. Natalia expressed to Olivia that she’d hoped his birthday would be a new beginning, which would allow her to repair her relationship with Rafe. Despite Rafe’s slight progress in the June 19, 2009 episode, he still isn’t ready to deal with Natalia and Olivia’s relationship.

After Emma swiped a bit of icing from the cake and Olivia jokingly admonished her, Natalia decided that they should forge ahead without Rafe. Olivia seemed hesitant and asked Natalia if she was sure, but Natalia was resigned to celebrating Rafe’s birthday without him. As Olivia lit a matched and shared her flame with Natalia’s matchstick, I recognized the symbolism in this scene. When I reviewed the old Otalia footage (late 2008 and early January 2009), Olivia was the first to become aware of Natalia in a romantic way. It took some time for Natalia to recognize the torch Olivia was carrying for her. Having Olivia strike the match and pass her flame to Natalia symbolized how their romantic relationship has played out. Olivia carried the flame in an expressive way – via angst-ridden facial expressions – for many months. Natalia never allowed herself to truly accept what she felt for Olivia until she left Frank Cooper at the alter. Now that Natalia has accepted the torch from Olivia, it is Natalia that seems to be carrying it in this second act of the Otalia story line. As this story unfolds, it seems to be told with Natalia as the lead. (more…)

Some of my readers have asked a few questions on Crystal Chappell’s big announcement through blog comments, emails, and tweets on Twitter. I addressed how I felt mostly through Twitter, but I realize not everyone uses Twitter or follows me for that matter. Others have asked questions about my Otalia posts, and some have asked me if I would follow Crystal Chappell and Jessica Leccia’s careers once Guiding Light concludes this September. I decided to address all of these questions in this blog post, but I have also decided to discuss the state of soap operas as well. I feel like I can’t discuss the Crystal Chappell announcement and my Otalia posts without also discussing how I feel about soap operas. I think once you finish reading this post, you will have a clear indication on my thoughts.

Thoughts on Crystal Chappell’s Announcement

Around midnight on June 12, 2009, I discovered the news that Crystal Chappell was returning to Days of Our Lives as Dr. Carly Manning. Crystal Chappell currently plays Olivia Spencer on Guiding Light and is one-half of the super couple known as Otalia. I started seeing a flood of tweets on Twitter about the news, but I waited to read a story confirming the news. Once I had confirmation, the crushing pain I felt was absolutely startling and very unexpected. As I said on Twitter, it felt like something had pierced my heart once the news hit me.

At first, I felt denial and disbelief that this was happening. For weeks, I have been fighting to keep Otalia and Guiding Light alive. I knew that time was ticking on the clock towards September 18, which is the final airdate for the show on CBS. I knew that Guiding Light had not found a new home, but it didn’t stop me from trying my best to save it. Once I got past the denial and disbelief, sadness enveloped me because I knew that Otalia was as good as over. (more…)

I’ve caught on to how Guiding Light swings the pendulum for Otalia; therefore, I was (somewhat) mentally prepared for this week’s episodes. I am extremely grateful I had a beautiful Otalia experience the week of June 8 because I knew the week of June 15 was going to be a painful Otalia experience. As many of you know, I don’t read spoilers because I must maintain a “pure” Otalia experience to write these posts, but I was going with my instincts. I knew the writers would dip this roller coaster ride down into a deep valley of depression, and I knew there would be few lighthearted, smile-inducing moments. As predicted, I was right.

The June 15 episode picked up right after Rafe called his mother, Natalia, out over her interactions with Olivia from the June 12, 2009 episode. At the end of the June 12 episode, I felt Natalia knew Rafe spotted the intimacy between her and Olivia. In the beginning of the June 15 episode, I thought Natalia was trying to play the denial card with Rafe. Deep down, I think she knew he suspected the truth, but I felt Natalia was hoping he didn’t know about Olivia yet. When he asked, again, what was going on, Natalia’s replied that they were getting ready for dinner. Albeit true, that wasn’t all Natalia and Olivia were doing before Rafe’s outburst over their intimate behavior. Olivia decided to play along with Natalia’s denial response by agreeing they were preparing for his celebratory dinner. Rafe responded by snapping at Olivia with a bit of “Rafertude.” Natalia immediately addressed it by demanding he stop speaking to Olivia in a bad tone of voice. However, Rafe was building up to a full-blown “Rafertude” when he fired back at Natalia about how she raised him to adhere to the Bible and Catholic church’s teachings. After Rafe demanded an explanation once more, Natalia finally admitted to herself that he was clued in on her romantic relationship with Olivia. (more…)

The week of June 8 provided a four-day Otalia week filled with spectacular highs and new twists. While the Otalia rollercoaster has been on level track, the story zoomed through new yet thrilling loops that left me stunned, dazed, and amazed by the time this week’s ride ended.

The June 9 episode started with Natalia fulfilling her promise by spending more quality time with her son, Rafe. Natalia planned a day of volunteering at her church – as head of the cookie committee – along with Rafe. When she went up to his room to see if he was ready to leave, Natalia found Rafe still sleeping until she awakened him. Granted, Rafe woke up with a bit of his “Raftertude,” but I actually considered his response with Natalia normal. I can recall not being in the best of moods when my mother woke me up for school as a kid. I sometimes had a bit of my own “Rafertude” since I am not a morning person; maybe Rafe isn’t either. Additionally, he had to abide by prison rules by being “ordered” to sleep and wake up at a certain time, so he was probably enjoying sleeping by “Rafe’s rules” instead.

When I watched Natalia urge Rafe to get up and get his day started, I felt like I was watching another normal mother/son interaction. Despite Natalia’s attempt to get Rafe involved in normal yet helpful activities, he wasn’t too keen on the idea. Rafe felt that she didn’t need him to a part of the cookie committee but Natalia did. I saw this effort was a way for Natalia to spend quality time with Rafe by helping him adjust and feel better about himself. I agreed with Natalia’s assessment that the best way to take your mind off your own problems is to serve the community. Volunteering their time to escape from their problems was something they both needed but for different reasons. I would notice that volunteering, as escapism, would be a theme for the June 9 episode. After Natalia urged Rafe once more to help her, his “Rafertude” evolved into a temper tantrum – complete with a child-like response of kicking the bed covers. Instead of getting upset at Rafe, I was actually laughing at this scene. Natalia refused to let his temper tantrum deter her goal of getting him ready and going with her to the church. Her sunny response of “Let’s go” as she pulled the covers away and left Rafe’s room made me laugh again with encouragement. Natalia was not about to give up helping Rafe like she promised. This particular scene reminded me of the October 6, 2008 episode when Natalia found Olivia sleeping in a room (other than her own) at the Beacon. In the October 6, 2008 episode, Olivia conveyed a bit of her own “Rafertude” towards Natalia once she was awakened. Just like Natalia was trying to help Rafe in the June 9 episode, she helped Olivia by saving her skin with Decker, Olivia’s boss with Galaxy Hotels. (more…)