ZestBlog

I just finished watching the whole series, and I love it. I watched All My Children religiously as a kid, so the elements of soapy cliche melodrama were very recognizable tropes, and rather than bother me, they felt like nostalgic comfort food. 

I loved the final season for the most part. I think the only thing I would have changed would be for there to have been more show, less tell when it came to pairing up Olivia and Andrew. I actually got into the possibility of that ship when the baby buying plot was going on in season one (or two? can't remember). Their relationship had depth to it, and a base upon which to build an interesting romance with a single Olivia. I love that she unwittingly disarmed him just by being so genuine and trusting and made him feel like a total heel for betraying her. I just feel like, rather than inferring through the barest of clues that Andrew was haunted by guilt over what he did to her and became a better person in large part due to that guilt, I'd have liked to see it. Even just showing them meeting up again at that yacht party, and he sees her and goes out of his way to offer an utterly contrite, heartfelt apology would have been enough. Like, if a scene like that was a flashback that we see rather than Olivia just telling Anna that they met and got together and he's such a good man doing good work now, I would have no complaints at all. I would rather have seen him being kind to her and expressing genuine remorse than be told he's such a good guy because he rescues refugees now, which just felt like too much and made me role my eyes. As it is, it kind of felt like he was just tacked on in the end so that Olivia could have a happy ending and a blonde granddaughter.

I didn't mind at all that they revealed Matt was super controlling and Bad News, and it didn't feel like it came out of nowhere, because he was such a blank slate in season 5. All we really knew about him is that he was immediately drawn to staid, lonely, separated, single mother Olivia over glamorous, independent party girl hot mess Anna, and that he was the permanently estranged, disowned son of the kindest man in the world.  And like Elizabeth, that never sat right with me given Douglas's characterization. I'd be more disappointed if Matt wasn't revealed as super sketchy in some way, tbh, so it didn't surprise me in the least that his characterization turned in such a way that he probably fell in love with Olivia in large part because he wanted someone he could dominate. She does give off apparent weakness as a first impression. It's why James married her, why Andrew targeted her to manipulate, why Lloyd decided to use her. So striking that in the same episode Matt is arguing to Elizabeth that Olivia is a fragile girl, James reassures Olivia that she's the strongest woman he knows. Of the two, I know who I would choose as the guy who really loves and respects her. Wouldn't surprise me at all to learn Matt's ex who fled with their child ran for much the same reason Olivia did. I guess I wish we learned more about that before he just up and disappeared as quickly as he showed up out of nowhere. As it stands, whatever the circumstances were that led to his ex fleeing with their child is my headcanon for why Douglas disowned him. 

And all this drama with Olivia's canceled engagement to the man she intended to be Georgie's replacement father and dredging up the issue of the illegal adoption served as a natural way to bring James back into Olivia's story, which I like because the arc of their relationship has always been a highlight for me. it made me happy that James and Olivia settled into good friends and co-parents. I was very disappointed in James for being willing to just totally abandon Georgie, but the fact that it looks like they reestablish that bond post Matt makes up for it.

And I also love that James is kind of serving as this reasonable third party in season 6. He's not on either Matt or Olivia's side on the issue with contacting Georgie's birth mother. He sees Matt's point that Georgie's birth mother may have given him up of her own free will or she may not have and it's been torturing her, and the problem is that they just don't know and it's wrong to continue on if they don't know, and he sees Olivia's point that she is Georgie's mother in every way that matters and this woman has never once tried to find her son, at least in any way that Olivia would know about, and it's possible tracking her down and reminding her of the circumstances surrounding this birth could wind up being extremely cruel for everyone involved. And then the truth is somewhere in the middle- the birth mother absolutely gave him up willingly, the circumstances of his conception and birth were traumatically cruel, but she also needed the closure of knowing he was a sweet, happy boy being raised by a loving family. But I just kind of love that James represents the neutral opinion of "I just don't know what's right here" rather than having a firm notion one way or the other, because that's certainly how I felt. I think I would have sided with Matt's reasoning if he wasn't such an emotionally abusive, controlling ass about it. Like, just fucking tell her why this is hitting close to home! Don't go all moralistic and self-righteous and try to turn her family against her, Mr. Red Flag! And seriously, when you get to the point where the doctor is telling you the birth mother hasn't tried to find the baby and hinting very heavily that she gave the baby up willingly due to some sketchy circumstances, just fucking stop right there! Good riddance to that jerk. 

And I also appreciated James being Henry's advocate when it came to Anna's pregnancy. I genuinely was so disappointed that it was even a question for her over whether to tell him when 1)she's keeping the baby,2) he's such a loved friend and 3)she knows he wants to be a father and is extremely unlikely to ever have another chance to be a father. Like, I don't even know how she could contemplate not telling him. Yes, I know it's her body, her choice, but there is nothing at all objectionable about Henry and every reason to believe he would only be a wonderful father and a positive addition to her baby's life. And it is also his child. As soon as Anna decided to carry that pregnancy to term and bring a person into the world, I feel like Henry had a right to know and decide if he wanted to be involved. Paternal rights is murky territory though, because it opens a can of ethical worms over abortion rights. I guess I come down on the side of-  no one has the right to force someone to be pregnant, but fathers have a right to know if they have a child when it's born, and should probably get a say in custody, unless it's a case of rape or something. It's really not a subject I think about a lot though, tbph, even though it probably should be. Not interested at all in engaging in a debate about this on a fandom forum, but I like that the show made me think about things like this. I'm too complacent in my political views, and this whole story made me consider stances I don't usually think about. 

On a lighter note, I LOVED Harry/Henry. With James out of the picture, they could have just felt like pairing the spares and been written so thoughtlessly, but I actually found their relationship to be much more interesting and sweet than the James/Henry relationship, which felt less like a romance and more like a personal character journey for James, imo. But I just love that I can go back and watch those episodes in season 4, like- James taking Harry to the party in spite of Harry's class reservations, and Henry is in the midst of being blackmailed by his boyfriend's aunt/stepmother, so he's drunk and Not In The Mood, so when James ~Significantly Introduces~ them, Henry is just this utterly rude, dismissive asshole who writes Harry off immediately. I can go back to that scene and laugh about how he has no idea that beautiful country boy is actually the love of his life, if only he knew. 

I love that class conflict is a consistent theme with Harry. He was conscious of being written off as rough trade when it came to the posh queer community that James and Henry are part of, and he got in Henry's face for falling back on being just that kind of snob when Henry was hurt and rejecting him, not having the perspective that Sarah gives him of how justifiably scared and lost Henry is without his career, which is a huge part of his identity. I love the subtle misunderstandings that are revealed, like, Harry accuses Henry of privilege because his parents could afford to send him off to school, but then Henry reveals to Sarah that his mother disowned him when she found out he was gay, and he thought being a surgeon would make him worthy of her love again, but nope. Stuff like that. Like, Harry reads him mostly right, but is missing some crucial details with his blanket assumptions. Also, it's pretty easy to interpret Henry's vehement initial rejection of Harry as due in large part to being attracted to him, besides associating him with James. Because Harry's initial overtures are really so innocuous that Henry's defensive overreaction to them really says it all. In any event, I love that Harry never stops making friendship overtures and softens so much after Sarah talks to him. I love that Henry instinctively stops his car outside Harry's farm, and then just stays there because he feels safe. I love that Henry is at a party and stares at the door the entire time hoping that Harry will walk in, I love that Harry walks in looking like a perfect romantic dream, and that Henry is just totally smitten and breathless when he see him, I love that some dude is crooning The Wonder of You in the background as this is happening, and I love that Henry's declaration of forever is "I'm yours" and Harry is just SHOOK. I love that they grow old together and live to get married as nonagenarians. I just love everything about them. They really just absolutely made this season for me. 

Onto Carolyn and Jack! Omg, how painful were these guys! I think the scene were Carolyn is making the overture to Jack in his office in the finale is one of the best scenes in the whole show. I didn't mind Dehlia being introduced and representing the conflict in that marriage. The groundwork for their rough patch was laid in season 5. Caro was so bored she was breaking into strangers' houses and stealing artwork! It makes total sense to me that she would become bored in that life after marrying him and settling down back at Ash Park, considering who she was and the life she was living when we first met her. She had to lose him for real to realize she didn't want to lose him after all, and that's the way it works for some. I teared up when they reunited, ngl. 

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