Soap Opera Digest – August 05, 2019

her journey of com-
ing to terms with what
she did and examining
why she did it would
have been infinitely
more fascinating.
Instead of GH’s Ava
flitting from psychic
to psychic, how about
she work through her
grief over Kiki with a
qualified professional
(her quickie therapy
with “Kevin” doesn’t
count, since “Kevin”
was actually Ryan!).
Y&R’s Billy is still
grappling with the rip-
ple effects of Delia’s
death. How refreshing
would it be to have
him actually talk to
a professional about
it, instead of talking
to a gravestone? The
roots of these stories
are all based in reality:
It would be great to
see the importance of
keeping up with one’s
own mental health
playing out in tandem
with the tales. w

Can we please call a moratorium on characters using drugs to force someone to

have sex with them — or, in the case of B&B’s Thomas, who drugged Liam to get

him into bed with Steffy, another person? Less than two months after GH show-

cased two foiled rape attempts by Shiloh involving drugged tea, Kim drugged

Drew and prepared to sexually assault him while rambling about how one day, he would

“accept that the baby we’re gonna make tonight” was conceived in love. Though Julian’s arrival

thwarted her, this distasteful episode was ruinous to Kim’s character, turning the human

drama of her struggle to recover from Oscar’s death into something far more tawdry. (Y&R fans

will recall that this same beat played out a few years back with Chloe, who went off the deep

end after daughter Delia died and tried to drug Billy into impregnating her.) The bottom line

is that rape is far too serious an issue, affecting far too many people, for soaps to treat it so

casually, and seemingly only for shock value. It’s a trend that needs to end. —Mara Levinsky

Second Opinion

nWhen Esther found out that her only

daughter, Chloe, was very much alive,

Kate Linder delivered a stirring enact-

ment of her character’s miracle.

Linder played Esther as wary and anx-

ious when Kevin escorted her to a clandestine

spot. Then, from behind, she heard a familiar voice

call her “Mom”. Esther’s body froze, and her eyes flicked from

side to side, too shocked and confused to turn around. As Chloe

offered assurance that it was really her, Linder’s face paled, and

her mouth gaped slightly open, stupefied, torn between want-

ing to believe it and fearing that she was in store for yet more

heartbreak. Slowly, she rotated, and as her eyes drank in the

sight of her beautiful daughter, her purse dropped to the floor.

Esther gingerly reached over with trembling hands and

touched Chloe’s face. Feeling warm flesh, the tears gushed as

she embraced her daughter for dear life, Linder heaving over-

wrought sobs that emphasized her character’s release from the

shackles of grief.

The reunion soured slightly when Chloe insisted that she

must stay in hiding, and that she had to leave right away. Still

reeling from shock, Esther struggled to process this, cycling

from incredulity to determination, forceful as she declared, “I

am not letting you go again!”

Linder’s vulnerable, expressive work provided a clear window

into the depths of Esther’s maternal soul — and made it darn

near impossible not to cry right along with her.

Kate Linder

(ESTHER, Y&R)

JJOOHHNNPPAASSCCHHAALL//

JJPPII

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