Many thanks to the lovely Deb Nam-Krane for inviting me to be a part of her delicious Soap Opera blog hop.
I have to confess that these days I don't watch much TV. But growing up, the stories (what we called soaps) were always a part of life.
My best friend adored Santa Barbara, especially Cruz and Eden. She was obsessed, and we both longed for the long golden hair and California tan of Eden and her sister, Kelly. (I just blew my own mind right there by remembering Robyn Wright's character name) I found it hard to get excited over the romance though, because to my 15 year old self, Cruz was too old for me to get excited over.
I think my first soap hero crush might have been Frankie on Days of Our Lives. Or maybe it was Joey on One Life to Live. It's hard to remember. Both shows held my attention. My grandmother is responsible for bring One Life to Live, and All My Children, into my life. Just as she introduced me to romance novels, she was also my gateway into ABC soaps. It was amazing to watch how much she loved bad-boy Todd on OLTL, while also cheering for Max (they were both involved with Blair). But her truly favourite show was All My Children. Tad, Adam, Noah (sigh), Mateo, she loved them all. No matter where she went, she made sure she taped her story. I can still recall the day she decided she was done. I think she was about seventy-six at the time. They'd gotten too silly for her.
My other grandmother still follows what I call the Young and the Useless. My dad calls it the Young and the Hopeless. But my mother and her mother are addicted to Y&R. If I got in the car right now and popped down to Mom's, I bet I'd find her and Dad watching it. They might not realize it, but it's their after supper ritual. My father pretends that he's not watching, but for someone who doesn't watch, he sure knows all the characters and what's happening.
I've never had the addiction the way others have. And yet, perhaps mine is the most inexplicable. I'm not addicted to a show as much as I'm addicted to a couple. And not just any couple. For me, they are the most romantic, most tortured, most compelling couple of any soap. I'm talking about Sonny and Brenda on General Hospital. I'm not even sure how I became enamoured. I do remember an aunt of mine coming to my parent's house when she'd get off work to watch GH after work. That was my only exposure to the show. And yet, the moment I first saw the sparks fly between Sonny and Brenda, I was hooked. I didn't care about anything else that happened on that show. But put either of them on the screen, and I was spellbound.
Confession time. From time to time, I'll go on youtube and watch random Sonny and Brenda scenes. In case you don't follow GH, there are times when Vanessa Marcil, who plays Brenda, quits the show, or gets fired, or whatever. I stop watching. And then, I'll hear a rumour that she's coming back, and like the addict I am, I'm tuning in.
Why? Because I'm still waiting for my darn happy ending. The romance writer in me craves it. And those producers know it. What soap couple has ever gotten a real happily ever after? It drives me nuts, and yet, it's what pulls me back every time I hear that there might be a chance for Sonny and Brenda to finally grow old together. I know. It'll never happen. But a girl can hope, right?
So here's a question. What soap couple draws you into the story over and over and over again? Who do you wish the writers would just stop torturing us with and let them grow old happy and content without dying, possession, amnesia, the mob, bombs, psycho twins, and witchcraft tearing them apart?
I'm going to give away an ebook to one random commenter. :)
And now, a little Sonny and Brenda. Just to make me sigh.