Episode 77 Morals

In plain English, these are the morals from Episode 77:

Will Dru be agree'n' to Sid's latest offer?

A lot has been made on the newsgroup of the platonic relationship between Sid and Dru. Many have said it's nice to see Dru with someone who's just a good friend, and for not every relationship to be romantic/sexual. Maybe so. I admit that's an issue, and indeed I kinda like that as well. But I also sometimes think platonic friends are just blind to how much better friends they could be, too. So I wanted to explore that a bit more. Sid is a good friend to Drucilla. He cares about her and what she really is--he doesn't have unrealistic expectations of her. He pumps her up when she needs to be and he's there for her in her down times. He encourages her to care about herself. So I thought it would be fun to see what he'd be like if he "moved ahead" with her a little.

Anything to break Dru out of the black-characters' ghetto! Dru needs out of the Dysfunctional Four! She's one of the best actresses on the show and for her to be playing musical chairs in a background plot that's going nowhere is silly. Moreover, she does not need to be told to stay with Neil and "work it out". She and Neil are not right for each other, and given that Lily really isn't his anyway, she should just cut it off. Too bad if Neil perceives the loss of a daughter--would serve him right if he ended up never having another child and feeling always that he should have cared more about the child he had and less about the second he wished Dru would cook up for him.

Besides, I just this last weekend went back and re-watched some old videotapes I'd forgotten I had--tapes of Dru being proposed to by Neil. Dru was full of fight and energy then. She was a real character. Fast-talking. Not thinking always too clearly, but tons of fun to watch. I was laughing out loud with excitement at her energy. And there was Neil, telling her about how everything that was fun in her was part of `the old Dru' and that now that she was maybe going to be marrying him she had to be `the new Dru' who was, effectively, lifeless and sedate like a Stepford Wife. He was also a killjoy about the engagement ring itself, always calling it a friendship ring to her face so she couldn't get as excited as she wanted, even though he was going to others and saying he'd gotten engaged... perhaps tentatively--gauging their reaction--in case someone should tell him to change his mind. Dru and Neil are fictional characters on a show, so I don't really care about her happiness; but I care about my happiness. And I was happier when the Dru on the show was `the old Dru'. I want that Dru back. Going with Sid seems the way to do that.

Will greenhorn photographer Malcolm ask Sid for a handout?

Watching everyone on the show (Victor, Nick, Ryan, Neil, Malcolm, Danny, ...) want to solve their problems by fighting gets tiring after a while and sends a bad message to kids. Sid has the look of someone who's really got it together and somehow I could just see him being a Tai Chi master of some sort. Showing the audience there's something better than violence--yeah, that's the ticket!

Why did Ellie leave the lucrative green of the Newman pastures?

I wanted to do the grand unification of AWO and Y&R about Ellie (the maid from nowhere) and Estrella (my name for Miguel's long-unseen and only hypothesized wife). In so doing, we finally understand why it is that Ellie could have been there so long and yet so unseen--she was just quietly helping Miguel. And we also create an opening for Miguel to suddenly hit the dating scene!

The line about `why don't you come up to my room and watch some TV' between Miguel and Sarah the other day was one of the most refreshing from him in years. I was suddenly filled with excitement that we'd see the `backstage tour' of the Newman Ranch, that we'd see Veronica have a chance to fall for a real man and forget Joshua, etc. I could just feel the possibilities. And then, just as suddenly, she said "no". Then for the entire rest of the scene, as Veronica talked to her mirror and the camera tried awkwardly to show both her and the mirror, I could only focus on what separated the woman from the mirror, which was the centered shot of the door. I was hoping Miguel would awkwardly return, learn her secret, and ... Well, no such luck on that front either. But, when all else is lost, there is always Another Way Out, so the major wrong has been righted and things are well again.

I have said before and I'll say it again: Y&R is wonderful at setting up interesting situations. I just wish they were better of late in their followthrough. That scene with Miguel asking Sarah out was fun. Let's see something come of Miguel's social interest in Veronica!

If Veronica's obsession falters, who will be left green with envy?

I'm convinced that the major fallout if Veronica were to lose interest in Joshua is that Nikki would not let her. Nikki is so self-obsessed, she would not tolerate the idea that someone could lose interest in plotting against her, trying to steal her husband, etc. So she would will it to continue. Well, it seems a fun premise anyway.

That's all for Episode 77's morals. Don't miss Episode 78 and its morals!
If you missed any older episodes, see the index.