My alternate title for this column was "Viki and and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day." While almost no one in Llanview is having a stellar time of it these days -- people are getting threatened, shot at, and finding out people they care about aren't who they thought -- it's poor Viki who seems to be getting the worst of it lately. This week, she learned not only of her own financial destruction due to her investment in the Pellegrino fund but also that Clint had betrayed their daughter.
Let's start with Viki's daughter because, whoa, Melissa Archer was on fire this week. In the first few weeks of the online version, I felt Natalie was being underutilized. This week's scenes demonstrate just why I was hoping Melissa would get some more meaty material. She was stellar as Natalie confronted Clint about filing the restraining order in her name against John and sending the forged letter that made John think Natalie wouldn't allow him to see their son and wanted to end their relationship. Natalie was angry and heartbroken all at the same time -- both because of the damage that had been done to her relationship with John and John's relationship with their son as well as the way her father had betrayed her.
I am a huge Natalie fan, and it's been rough seeing her so adrift. As much as she still is lost and troubled and as heartbreaking as these scenes were, it was wonderful to see some of her fire again. She did not hesitate to confront Clint and lay into him for all the damage he's caused and, my goodness, he really has screwed things up royally.
Viki was equally horrified and angered by Clint's actions. I love the way the women in this family go for the jugular when they're hurt. Their first instinct is to go on the attack, and goodness, is it fun to watch. I have to admit that I did feel a little sorry for Clint, though. That's to Jerry verDorn's credit because what Clint has done is so very despicable, but he plays it like Clint truly believes he's doing the right thing and is absolutely mystified as to why people would be angry at him. Unlike Todd, who knows and owns the fact that he's an absolute jerk, Clint just doesn't get that he's doing completely horrid things.
Even if he didn't fully understand why she was so angry, Clint probably hoped the Pellegrino fund going down would distract Viki from the absolute mess he'd made of Natalie's life. Sorry, Clint, but Viki's an excellent multitasker who is fully capable of handling more than one tragedy at a time. And her protectiveness of Natalie trumps her financial concerns. Viki is filled with nothing but rage toward Clint, and I don't see that ending any time soon. When Clint indicated that Natalie would calm down when Clint and Viki got married, Viki looked like she was seconds away from twisting Clint's head off. Clint, I wouldn't count on hearing "The Wedding March" any time soon.
Though he dreaded having to do it, Jeffrey wanted to be the one to break the news about Pellegrino to Viki. This was a wonderful moment of relationship development for them. Though Jeffrey hasn't known Viki that long, he cares about her and feels a strong loyalty to her. He didn't just tell Destiny that, he clearly indicated it in his actions toward Viki. The scenes where Jeffrey finally broke the news to Viki were powerful and magnificently played by both actors. Jeffrey's regret at what had happened and desire to comfort Viki were obvious and played against Viki's shock and her need to keep it together in Jeffrey's presence.
I'm not too proud to tell you, readers, I was near tears when Viki told Jeffrey to go write the Pellegrino story, saying, "It could be the last exclusive the Banner ever has." Just an hour or so earlier Jeffrey had told Destiny that he felt guilty for wanting the Banner to break the story first, even though it meant devastation for Viki.
That one quote from Viki drove home the seriousness of the situation but also underscored the kinship between Jeffrey and Viki because they're both first and foremost reporters at heart, eager to get the scoop, whatever the circumstances. Moments like this are the reason Jeffrey and Viki's friendship is probably my favorite new-to-the-online-version relationship in the whole show.
Destiny is learning a lot about Jeffrey through seeing his reaction to this mess with Viki, and she seems truly impressed. The show is setting up a stark contrast between Jeffrey and Matthew, so much so that I sometimes wonder how the two of them are such close friends. This contrast is most evident when it comes to Destiny, who is starting to see just what a reliable, loyal, and stand-up guy Jeffrey is. Their scenes at the coffee shop were sweet. I loved the way Jeffrey opened up to Destiny and she listened and supported him. There's still a lot we don't know about Jeffrey so this could change, of course, but right now I'm rooting for pretty hard for him and Destiny to end up together.
That may happen soon, since Destiny is planning to ask Jeffrey to join her on a double date with Natalie and Cutter. I'm so pleased that the show is building on this friendship between Natalie and Destiny. I love that Destiny was there for Natalie in the aftermath of the revelation about Clint as Natalie wondered whether she could have worked things out with John after he cheated if only her father hadn't interfered. Destiny pushed Natalie to stop the what ifs and live in the now. And the now hopefully includes a little less moping for Natalie and a lot more making out in alleyways.
Destiny and Natalie are planning on better days in the future, but the only person in Llanview I can guarantee you had a great time this week is Dorian. Bless her, Dorian looked as satisfied as could be when hearing about the trauma Pellegrino was causing. No doubt if she knew Todd was recording everyone in Llanview, Dorian would be pounding on his door and demanding the footage so she could sit down with an expensive glass of wine and just rewind and watch Viki's crushed face over and over again. Dorian, this is precisely why I love and hate you.
Let's talk about Todd and those cameras for a second, shall we? I think Blair chose to keep that bit to herself when filling Téa in -- for good reason. Todd was deservedly on the end of enough of that famous Delgado rage already this week. I fear when and if Téa learns about the cameras, Todd is not long for this world. I'm looking forward to that confrontation. I'm look forward to it a lot because angry Téa is one of my very favorite things in this world.
Despite not knowing the whole story yet, Téa got one step closer to the truth about what Victor is involved in when Blair showed her the two notes that had been sent to Todd. And that truth is a lot scarier than just a threat to Victor. It's a threat to Blair and Téa's families, and neither one of these mamas is about to take that lightly.
Blair wants Téa to help Blair and Todd find Victor so that Victor and Todd can work together to bring the bad guys down. I don't know about you, but I'm having a tough time imagining Todd and Victor working together. They'd need some serious teamwork lessons first, like a whole team-building retreat. That would be the most hilarious, and likely violent, episode ever. Neither one of them plays well with others and especially not with each other.
Speaking of people not getting along, would you have guessed just a few years ago that Blair would be the one who could sweet-talk Téa into something? Remember when these two used to alternate whose turn it was to push the other out a window? I'm awfully fond of those times. Imagine sentimental music playing over a black-and-white montage of the two of them nearly murdering each other as I wipe a tear from my eye.
It's amazing how they've grown from those days to now seeing each other as family. There is no question they'll work together to protect their kids. Téa says she trusts Blair, just not Blair's judgment when it comes to Todd. I love that Blair's response to that was, "Okay, that's totally fair."
And it was totally fair because Téa's first instinct was accurate. As Todd, Blair, and Téa argued about who would go to see if Victor was hiding out at Willow Lake, where Téa thought he might be, Téa shouted at Todd, "You killed Victor once. You're not going to kill him again." Unfortunately, Blair played peacemaker and convinced Téa to play along with reformed Todd, who just wants to save the whole family so they can all go on nice, friendly, family picnics together or something.
Blair and Téa, I love you both, but you are making a bad decision here. I know because two seconds after you left, Todd was on the phone and telling whoever was on the other end that Todd needed to see Victor "before we kill him." At that point, I did my best to will myself through my laptop screen and into the fictional town of Llanview so I could follow Téa and Blair as they walked down the driveway, thinking they were fully in on Todd's plan, and shout at them, "No, you guys! There aren't going to be any family picnics! Abort the mission! Abort the mission!"
I fully understand why people love Blair and Todd. Kassie and Roger have off-the-charts chemistry and spark every time they're in a scene together. And I know part of the appeal of the pairing is that Blair is drawn to Todd despite knowing what despicable things he's capable of. But, being such a Blair lover, I can't help but shake my head every time she gives him a loving look and says something like "I'm glad you're here," because, Blair, this is not going to end well for you. It never does.
I'm hoping for a few things out of this storyline -- either Blair and Téa figure out what Todd is up to, but the three of them maintain an uneasy alliance in which they all second-guess and try to pull fast ones on each other in the search for Victor, or Blair and Téa decide to team up on their own and work against Todd. What I fear is Blair and Téa will remain oblivious to Todd's true motives until it's too late. Just don't let Todd kill Victor, ladies. He's too pretty to die, and I want to keep him.
I'm also hoping for a little more of their classic snark to work its way back into Téa and Blair's friendship. I love the way they support each other now, but I think part of the magic of their friendship that makes them so fun to watch is when it's clear they love antagonizing each other just as much as they love each other. This storyline has the potential to bring that out in them once again.
Since Blair, Todd, and Téa aren't going to the cops with all they know, Bo is trying to get to the truth about the incidents at Shelter on his own. Cutter obviously wishes he wouldn't, and Bo so obviously does not care one bit about what Cutter wants. Bo warned Cutter that Bo's narcotics division is going to be watching Shelter, which could be extremely interesting, since Cutter seems like he knows more about the drugs that run through Shelter than he's letting on.
Bo did find out that Dani's overdose probably wasn't an accident. The pill she took was four times the strength of a normal pill. Dani looked truly frightened when Bo told her someone had likely wanted her to overdose. She was scared enough that she gave up the name of who sold her the pills despite her reservations.
After Bo found out that Briana, the woman who sold Dani the pills, was dead, Rama mentioned that Briana had been at the club, making out with an older guy, not long ago. In my opinion, signs are pointing toward this mystery guy being somehow involved in this drug business and maybe even in setting Dani up to overdose. I wonder who will be the one to make that connection.
I am anticipating Téa's reaction to finding out Dani's overdose was likely a setup with the doctored pills. I hope this is a beat the writers don't miss. Téa is worried enough knowing there's been an attempt on Blair's life and that the kids are on the list, but she's sure to be both devastated and even more ready to go on the attack against this mystery organization when she realizes an attempt has already been made on Dani's life. It would also be an opportunity for some great dramatic Téa and Dani scenes and possibly a way to start mending their relationship, which I have been missing terribly.
Dani's week wasn't all bad, though. When Matthew admitted to Dani that he'd been played by Michelle, Dani looked more excited than sympathetic. She tried to make all the appropriate sympathetic comments, but she had a smile on her face as she did. I'm sure she was jazzed both that she was right all along and that this meant she might have Matthew to herself. It's too bad for Dani we know that probably isn't true, since Jeffrey figured out that Michelle is actually in Llanview because, as Jack sang loudly and obnoxiously in true little brother fashion at the coffee shop, "Dani likes Matthew. Dani likes Matthew."
True to family form, Jack is getting into some trouble himself. He's on his way to summer school for failing English. And when Blair and Todd ordered Jack and Sam to stay in the house, Shaun caught the two of them sneaking down the trellis.
Shaun is back, readers! I love Shaun, and I am looking forward to Destiny having a family member to lean on. Bo and Nora love and do their best to support Destiny, but it's complicated by the fact that Matthew is their son. It will be nice to see Destiny have someone who is in her corner fully without complications. Let's hope, too, that Shaun's arrival is a good omen and that everybody in Llanview has better luck next week.
