Langford on Soaps: Jo Weil's Sexy Calender and Gays Stay On Top At "One Life To Live"

LANGFORDS PICKS AND PANS

Forbidden Love

I think it’s time to put Christian and Olli to rest. Let them get a divorce and be apart, at least for awhile. The characters have come to the point where they need to move in separate orbits, meet new people, perhaps have a new romance or two. Perhaps at some point down the line they can rekindle their relationship. They have been fighting about the same thing for months and the back and forth has gotten boring. Perhaps looking at why their marriage fell apart in less than a year might be a good idea.

If the show tries to force them back together anytime in the near future, it would not only be unbelievable, but would seem like the writers just threw them back together for lack of anything else to do with the couple. So much of this story has been about lazy, uninspired drama and it is time for a change and a new direction for both characters.

Much damage has been done to them, especially Christian, who cheats for reasons not yet explained with the nearest woman to drop her panties for him. And while I get Olli’s inability to forgive or trust his cheating spouse, that’s the only thing about his behavior that makes sense. He’s not only befriended Jessica, the woman who set out to destroy his marriage and has repeatedly lied and schemed to get what she wants, but he discusses his marital problems with the homewrecker and absolves her of any blame. Not to mention he’s gone into business with her. Who does that?

With all that, I did think their scenes this past week were nicely acted, and there is always wonderful chemistry between the two of them. Jo Weil and Thore Scholerman continue to give their all. I must say though that I found the garish pink scarf and green shirt Olli wore to be terribly distracting. I continue to hate the wardrobe that Jo Weil, a stunningly beautiful man, is forced to wear on this show.

Emmerdale

Another week and Aaron’s agony continues. And I keep wondering how long this particularly depressing arc of misery can go on? If I look at the show’s history I could see the show dragging this self-harming story out for months, but I pray that they won’t. There’s only so much sorrow that I can take, and as much as I Danny Miller’s portrayal of Aaron, I’d like some relief for the character, and myself as well. Besides, I just can't escape the feeling that much of this is designed to keep Aaron from growing, moving forward and to prevent Miller from having to act out romantic scenes with another man. I'd love for the writers to prove me wrong on that score.

Is it too much to see Aaron smile, at least once every few weeks or so?

I’m not saying Aaron has to suddenly be dating half the guys in town. Though I wouldn't complain if he had a steamy affair with David! But could we at least see him working through his problems?

Still, no matter what happens, the acting continues to be outstanding. Miller is wonderful as always and I really like Lucy Pargeter’s performance as Chas. I love that the show is finally working on creating a real bond between mother and son. And I'm glad Paddy is finally getting involved in Aaron’s life again. I did like Paddy getting tough with Aaron, even though I still don’t think he is as determined to help his surrogate son as he used to be.

I know the show needs it that way to make the story work as it has, but it really is damaging to Paddy’s credibility as a character. And for a character I really like, I hate to see that happen.

Roman says a sad goodbye to Deniz…

All That Matters

I don’t have a lot to say about last week’s shows. ATM continues to put out strong and emotionally moving episodes revolving around Roman’s death. The writing and the acting remains wonderful, and I like the show’s music choices as well. I thought the scene where Deniz finally watched Roman’s video tape was quite powerful. I found myself misting up a bit as Roman said his final words to the man he loved.

Of course for me, much of the talk of Roman and Deniz's deep and abiding love for each other is blemished by the fact that they had only very recently gotten back together, and that was only because of Roman’s illness. Before that they had been broken up because of multiple infidelities and betrayals on both their parts. But that’s just the cynic in me. I still was moved enough to be touched by the scenes that played out last week. And I guess that's the important thing.