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BUSTED: Y&R'S BABY "SWITCH"

Y&R has always been at its best when it focuses on reality based drama, like the recent story of Colleen's death and Victor's heart transplant. These kinds of heart felt (no pun intended) stories are the reason Y&R has sat atop the ratings for 21 years.

It's unfortunate the show decided to ruin such inspiring stories by interspersing them with insipid ones, like the Mary Jane is Patty fiasco, and the Adam wants revenge storylines. These plots alone aren't enough to

taint the show's credibility, but the storyline of Adam giving Sharon's baby to Ashley sinks it to new depths of inanity.

First and foremost, Ashley is an intelligent character. For her to think she was pregnant all of these months, long after she suffered a miscarriage, was barely plausible. However, it's downright ridiculous for her to take some sleeping pills and wake up and think she's given birth. The woman has given birth before, and her first instinct upon waking up was to question whether the room was too neat for childbirth to have occurred hours before. Beyond the appearance of the room, wouldn't Ashley have been alarmed she didn't feel physically different after having a baby? It's ludicrous for Ashley to think she'd given birth when she hadn't. I've never given birth, but don't most women feel something down there?

I cringe every time Ashley talks about what an easy birth it was. It requires such a leap of faith to think that Ashley is this stupid or this much in denial. Are we really to believe Adam is such a master manipulator that he can cause a woman to forget she had a miscarriage and convince her she has given birth? Even the all powerful Victor Newman isn't that powerful, and his son didn't fall far from the egomaniacal tree in family traits.

Besides the fact this plot makes Ashley look like an idiot, I also dislike it because of what it does to Sharon, since it's her baby that Adam gave away to Ashley. After Sharon gave birth, she heard her baby cry, so she knows it wasn't stillborn as she has been told. It's way out of character for her to blindly accept the death of a second child without any proof (she didn't even see the baby). After everything Sharon went through to have this baby with Nick, it isn't like her to roll over and give up without a fight, or at least question the doctor or the hospital for more answers.

Y&R is calling this a baby switch story, but that's inaccurate. It can't be a switch when there's only one baby. It's more like a baby robbery. And while Sharon has had her baby stolen, both women have had their intelligence and instincts as mothers stolen.

The writers have made it very difficult to watch the show for as long as this dumbed down plot persists.

BLISSFUL: THE LIGHT GOES OUT ON GUIDING LIGHT

It was the end of an era when the lights were dimmed forever on Guiding Light on September 18, 2009 after 15,762 episodes. GL left the airwaves on as hopeful a note as it began 72 years ago.

Unlike soaps that go for gimmicks with their finales (Sunset Beach and Port Charles) or soaps that leave some characters and storylines unresolved (Passions and Another World), GL gave the citizens of Springfield the happy endings they - and fans - deserved.

With the exception of Alan dying peacefully (at least he made amends with his family, friends and foes first), everyone ended up with the person they were supposed to end up with. Was there ever any doubt Josh and Reva would live happily ever after? I admit, I did get nervous Reva would reunite with Richard in the meantime, when Josh asked her to meet him in a year at the lighthouse. Of course, she met him, and they drove off together in his pickup truck to close the show.

Love her or hate her, Amish or Clone, Reva has been one of the driving forces of GL's storylines for over 20 years, and her love story with Josh is certainly one of the most memorable relationships in soap history. Despite Reva's over the top storylines, it was always her humanity that kept us watching, whether it was her struggle with breast cancer or her surprise late in life pregnancy. It was therefore fitting for Josh to ask her if she was ready for an adventure, and she replied, "Always," as the final dialogue ever uttered on GL.

The entire last week of the show was an emotional rollercoaster. From the happiness at Billy and Vanessa's and Buzz and Lillian's nuptials; to the surprise and sadness of Alan's death; to the elation of Jonathan bringing Sarah home to reunite with Lizzie; to the poignancy of the Spauldings - plus Buzz - scattering Alan's ashes; to welcome returns from Ed, Holly and Fletcher; to the reunion and coming out as a couple of Olivia and Natalia; the show had something for everyone. My one complaint is that Olivia and Natalia were never allowed to share a single kiss as a couple.

However, the show saved the best for last with its predictable, though not unwelcome, glimpse into Springfield residents' lives one year later. Everything was right in the world because Philip and Beth were together: as were Rick and Mindy, Shayne and Marina, Frank and Blake, and Mallet and Dinah. Bill and Lizzie were having a baby, and Remy and Christina and Frank/Natalia/Olivia already had one.

The essence of what set GL apart from other shows was their characters' history and deep familial bonds. This proved true right until the closing seconds. It only served to emphasize the fact they don't make soap operas the same way anymore, and probably never will again. GL was one of a kind and will be missed.

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Lesleyann Coker is a reporter and monthly opinion columnist for www.Soapdom.com. She is also the co-author of Boob Tube, a novel that goes behind the scenes of the soap opera industry. The book is available in ebook form at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/3 . She was previously a reporter for Soap Opera Weekly Magazine.

 

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