You Can’t Spell Marlena Without M-E
So thus far I’ve refrained from dipping a toe into the whole Marlena/John storyline. To be frank, I haven’t wanted to deal with that rabid fanbase, but after this week, I just finally had to say something about that woman. I honestly think my Marlena hate eclipses my Daniel hate, and anybody that reads me regularly knows that that is a very loaded statement indeed. I can’t pinpoint when the hate actually began, but I know it has been running strong in the past couple of years for sure. She’s just such a raging narcissistic bitch. I don’t know if I can do a discussion of her justice, but I will try. I’m not going to talk about Jarlena, because I hate them and that’s all you really need to know there, but I know damn well they’ll be back together sometime soon so why bother writing of the hate? That’s one hate that is never going to go anywhere because they are “twu wuv” and I accept that.
What’s inspired me to finally break out a Marlena blog? She only had a couple of scenes this week but she was beyond intolerable in them. First, we see her waltzing into the police station to have a little chat with ex-husband Roman. Of course Roman remains her bitch and she uses him to do any number of things for her, including getting her out of trouble for shooting at EJ and helping investigate John’s much important missing disk. He is another of the men blinded by her glitter and she wouldn’t have it any other way. Anyway, Marlena has been busy being focused on herself as per usual so she was not aware that Lucas was back in jail or that Lucas and EJ had both gotten some Love In An Elevator.
Roman tells her and what is her reaction? To blame herself because Sami drove both men away. Who to the what now? Last I checked, Sami was a full grown woman and she can make her own choices, or not make a choice, or make the wrong choice, depends upon how you view the EJamicus saga. When Roman rightly points that out to her, she just moves on to demanding that he help Lucas. Roman points out that hello, his hands are tied, Lucas broke house arrest 3 times and this last time he actually had his ankle monitor off. Queen Marlena gives him her royal stare and says, “Do it for me, Roman!” and of course he falls under her spell and sets off to do some plan to help Lucas. Also for some unfathomable reason she was mad at EJ for sleeping with Nicole but not mad at Lucas for sleeping with Chloe…I guess we know her daughter comes by her idiocy honestly.
In her other scene this week (two too many for my taste), she was in the pub and in walks Rolf in his disguise of some sort of beret and sunglasses. I initially thought he misread the script and thought he was part of Stax’ great French adventure, but no, he was trying to hide in case John found out he was meeting Marlena. And what did Her Majesty expect this time? She expected Rolf to help her restore the disk that could bring back her beloved John, aka The ONLY man worth being, as uttered by St. Marlena a few weeks ago when John told her old John was dead.
Now, Rolf has really no reason to help Marlena and she knows that, so what does she do? She offers him immunity for his past crimes. Did I miss when Marlena became the DA of Salem? I mean, I know she was dubbed the Brady family Pillar of Strength by Colleen, despite not having been a Brady for a long ass time, but I failed to see when Marlena became the DA or Police Commissioner. So no, of course she didn’t have the power to offer immunity, turns out that she later went and saw Roman yet again to have him help her with the disk/Rolf situation.
So, she offers Rolf immunity and he basically tells her, no thank you, I am not crossing John. He’s happy being who he is, so maybe she should just leave it the hell alone. Of course, why should she do that when she can bring back her ONE TRUE LOVE and the GREATEST MAN OF ALL TIME? Rolf doesn’t realize how John not being old John is affecting HER and since she is the center of the universe, everyone must bend to her wishes. It wasn’t even the fact that she felt this way that bothered me, it was the way she acted all entitled about it, she was actually preening her way through both scenes, just so sure that everyone would do her bidding. Because she is Marlena, Queen of Glitter.
I ask my fellow readers, when did Marlena become so damn smug and intolerable? I honestly can’t pinpoint when it happened. Combine her ME ME ME attitude with her gasping and preening and she just becomes downright detestable for me. I hate the character and I want her to die, for real this time, not her usual Salem death, though I would take that for awhile too to be rid of her. My #1 wish is that she brings Stefano back as the only one who can save John (and suck on that bitch) and he kills her. I don’t think this is asking too much. She put him in a coma so he should make with the vengeance. Do it Steffy, do it for me!
I came up with a rather cathartic way to kill her off that involved Chelsea and Daniel, which I will post here at another time if anybody wants to see it, but it helped me feel better. Anyone who wants to come up with Marlena death scenes or even ways to torture the bitch without killing her, feel free to share with us all in the comments. I promise, it will make you feel better. At least her name does have the letter M & E in it, since that’s her only focus in life (along with John of course, but that wraps right along back to her, so it doesn’t count). Man she sucks!
I don’t know what scared me more this week…Marlena taking blame for something (though for once it’s not her fault) or Roman actually making sense.
tripp3235 said this on July 19, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Hee, that was pretty much a tie for me. Of course she takes the blame for the wrong thing, she probably did it on purpose to be reassured that it was not her fault. Narcissist I tell you.
nolebucgrl said this on July 19, 2008 at 9:48 pm
marlena is the most boring and dull character, i hater her…always have and always will.
terry( i love melanie) said this on July 20, 2008 at 11:36 am
Shocking, something we actually agree on, who knew? I removed your Daniel blather as it does not belong on a Marlena blog.
nolebucgrl said this on July 20, 2008 at 3:17 pm
When Marlena was doing her preening this week I was gagging it was sooooo bad. I want her to leave Jawn alone! I LOVE him the way he is now. I hope Marlena brings back Stafano and all of her plans backfire on her and she ends up – horror of all horrors that could happen to Queen Orgasm (that’s what all the moaning and gasping reminds me of) – she ends up MARRIED to Stefano!!! Bwahahahahahahaha!!!!
mosaicplum said this on July 20, 2008 at 11:17 pm
when did Marlena become so damn smug and intolerable?
I don’t think she is, but the stuff you don’t like about her… it’s Higley. Really. Please give Marlena another chance if we’re fortunate enough to get another head writer.
Ellie said this on July 21, 2008 at 12:39 am
Heee…I wouldn’t wish that on Steffy, Mosaic, but it might be the greater good if we get to keep this John around. Queen Orgasm, hehe, yes that works too!
Glad you stuck around. I’m letting Terry do 1 or 2 comments as long as they remain relevant to topic, as you can see I just deleted another that had nothing to do with anything.
nolebucgrl said this on July 21, 2008 at 7:04 am
Welcome, Ellie, I’ve seen you on MP’s blog and I know you’re an excellent poster. It’s nice to have a different perspective now and then!
That being said, my hate for Marlena preceeded Higley for sure, it’s been several years at least since I’ve actually liked her and it might be longer than that. She’s always put herself and John number one in my mind over her children (except maybe Belle) and I’ve never approved. I am sure part of it is that I was a Sami fan for years and Marlena was a crappy mother to her. Sami deserved some of what she got, but not all in my eyes.
However, this recent marching around town and expecting everyone to do her bidding is driving me insane. She uses Roman constantly and I find that irritating. So those could be Higley traits, I don’t know. I disliked her under Hogan but he backburnered her so that made me happy too.
What about her appeals to you? I don’t ask that as sarcasm or anything, I’m just curious as to what you consider her strengths as a character. I’m interested in hearing what you have to say!
nolebucgrl said this on July 21, 2008 at 7:11 am
I’m going to do the unusual for me and stick up for Marlena a little bit. It didn’t really bother me that she speculated whether Sami losing both men was her fault. It seems kind of stupid, sure, because Sami’s an adult and despite EJami fans’ speculating to me there’s no parallel between J & M and EJami. But. . . yeah, Marlena did kind of set that pattern of being unsure of her feelings about two men. I think Sami’s acting a lot more like Belle than Marlena, but I have no real quarrel with Marlena feeling guilty. I mean, we complain when she’s a crappy mom, so when she’s acting kinda mom-like and wondering if she did a bad job raising Sami it’s hard for me to bash her.
I also kind of see why she would be mad at EJ only. For one thing, (and it’s the biggest thing), she knows Lucas busted Sami and EJ. It doesn’t take much of a psychiatrist to see that Lucas might have wanted his feelings assauged. EJ, OTOH, has done nothing but declare himself a changed man and that he will always and only forever and ever love Sami. However, as we see, one little bump in the road after they finally have sex and he’s off making himself feel better with Nicole. Sami’s been stomping around doing the ugly cry and declaring her truest love for Lucas for forever and ever, thank you very much Hogan Sheffer; what was one more time? While I personally am glad EJ is getting over the fishwife, or seems to be, from Marlena’s perspective it should be abundantly clear this guy hasn’t really changed that much, and just because he loved Sami once (assuming he ever really did), doesn’t mean he does now. I know EJami fans love their GWTW references, as did I at one time, but as Rhett so truly points out in the book, if not to my recollection the film, even the most deathless love can wear out. Again, from Marlena’s perspective Lucas probably has a lot more legitimate excuse for the cheating. Now, she could unload on him for thinking so little of his daughter’s future, but that’s a different problem.
And randomly, Rolf’s outfit was something, wasn’t it?
Paxton said this on July 21, 2008 at 2:27 pm
Wow, Paxton, you slay me! hehe This was very unexpected coming from you, but yes, as usual you do have some good points. However, I think it’s a little too late for Marlena to take any kind of responsibility for Sami and how she’s turned out after years of doing no such thing. It just, like most things on this show, came out of nowhere and didn’t make a lot of sense to me. Nothing new there.
As to her blaming EJ more than Lucas, no, I’m not on board there. I get your point but Lucas is supposed to be her twu wuv according to her and Marlena, therefore it should be worse what he did. That’s just my opinion there.
nolebucgrl said this on July 21, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Well, I didn’t always hate Marlena–in fact, I used to love J & M way back in time, plus it’s my job to argue sides with which I may not agree personally.
I get that you don’t agree with me about what EJ did being worse, but I still think that from the glitter girls’ perspective, it is, for other reasons as well. For one thing, the Chlucas hookup was beyond spur-of-the-moment; talk about no buildup. Although Nicole is Sami’s sworn enemy and she’s begged the man who allegedly loves her to have nothing to do with her, he continued to seek out Nicole and spend time with her, even when she wasn’t his client anymore. Right after he had sex with Nicole he suddenly got his spine again and isn’t putting up with Sami’s crap. There’s every reason to think he wants to move on from Sami, even if he might not be quite emotionally ready, and every reason to think he feels something special for Nicole. Nicole is a legitimate threat to a relationship with EJ; Chloe does not appear to be a legitimate threat to a relationship with Lucas. At least, not yet, although give Dena some time and she’ll ruin Chloe further. And everyone else. Except Nicole.
Anyway, it actually doesn’t strike me as odd that Sami could more easily forgive Lucas. If we accept Sami at her word, and I’ve been doing so for months now, she loves Lucas. Period. She’s certainly overlooked a lot of other crap from him. Both men are horrible for her but she seems to have chosen the one who might have been slightly less horrible. The betrayal from a loved one obviously hurts, but I also think it’s a lot easier to blow off someone who’s hurt you if you don’t care that much about him. EJ having sex with Nicole merely confirms Sami’s belief that he doesn’t really love her but at most is obsessed with her, probably due to Stefano’s brainwashing. Lucas didn’t have to be brainwashed or ordered to fall in love with her. You certainly know that I am no Lumi fan, never have been and never will be, although I have in the past at least sometimes seen chem. But the topic really is Marlena’s perspective, and to me it’s more than plausible that she would see Lucas’s e-sex as a mistake with a person he doesn’t love while he was still smarting from walking in on Sami having sex with the man she claimed raped her. EJ. . . well, EJ has obviously been attracted to Nicole for quite a while. I just don’t see them as equivalent. But, it’s only my opinion.
Paxton said this on July 21, 2008 at 3:06 pm
And it’s definitely a well stated opinion as always. It makes sense to me in one way and doesn’t in another, where Lucas is supposed to be her truest of loves that would seem to me to be the bigger betrayal. Lucas told Sami to move on, she did with EJ. She told EJ to move on, he did with Nicole. There’s a parallel there as with having feelings for both people, EJ for both girls, Sami for both guys. EJ and Nicole have been dancing around one another for a couple of months and therefore it’s not as big a surprise and a hurt in my viewpoint as Lucas’ should be. I guess I just don’t see revenge sex as excusable in any situation, even this one. Maybe because I don’t see Sami as having done anything wrong in the first place though.
I can buy that maybe loving Lucas is enough of a reason for Sami to forgive Luloe sex, but for Marlena to? I guess I’m just thinking that if I had a kid and that situation occurred, I’d have plenty of anger at the guy. And actually I’d have relief that EJ was apparently moving on too, if I thought he was bad for my kid, which Marlena assuredly has thought at times.
You’re quite a good lawyer, you know, it’s very clear because it’s damn hard to come up with a cohesive way to argue with you. Especially since I understand to a point. It doesn’t negate the fact though that Marlena continues to expect anybody she runs across to do her bidding, that one I won’t argue!
nolebucgrl said this on July 21, 2008 at 4:00 pm
Thanks; it’s certainly more fun arguing with people over the reasons they should have MY point of view about soap characters than it is doing my actual job! Incidentally, every time I see “Luloe” my brain for some reason reads it as “Lube” and I get all grossed out.
My marriage is far too unexciting to ever feature revenge sex, so I can’t say for sure how I’d feel about it, but I have to say if my husband ever came home to find me in bed with JS I’d feel a little hypocritical complaining if he later had one-time sex with someone else. I guess where you see Sami as doing nothing wrong, I see her as a woman with a lot to explain. This is Dena’s fault, of course, because the retcon/explanation she came up with where EJ was just making love to Sami could possibly make sense to the two of them, but not to any other person in Salem who’s heard Sami and everyone else say ad nauseum for over a year that EJ raped Sami. Rape, rape, rape. . .oops, I mean, making love. Honestly, there should have been a lot more fallout from that and I not only had no problem with Roman and Marlena discussing Sami’s sex life, I felt they both should have investigated further into why their daughter was voluntarily sleeping with a man she said raped her. If I had a child I would be far, far more upset at that situation than I would be if my child’s alleged true love cheated on her. People cheat, it happens. Not that it’s not hurtful and wrong, but people do move on from it. And Sami can’t very well tell Lucas he told her to move on to excuse her own fling and then be angry with him for not being able to accept her doing so with this particular man. I’ve always been on Lucas’s side about that and I don’t even like him much. But that stupid e-mail was one of those idiotic plot devices that I can’t blame characters for. I really doubt Lucas expected to Sami to read the e-mail, squeeze out a few tears and then hop into bed with EJ.
There are plenty of reasons to dislike Marlena, but for myself, I just can’t really blame her for feeling differently about EJ and Lucas. The whitewashing of St. Lucas has been going on for so long that I’m numb to it and I’ve just accepted that they’re not going to stop calling him a “good man” any time soon. Plus, I’ve got to say, those scenes on Friday with Lumi were a lot more passionate than anything I’ve seen from EJami in a long time. Not passionate in a way that makes me want to watch, but AS was actually showing some emotions other than hatred, irritation, irrational shriekiness or disgust, which is pretty much her repertoire when it comes to EJami scenes.
Paxton said this on July 21, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Hee, I’m glad that your marriage will never feature revenge sex, your husband is too cute with his views on Days and I would never want those to stop.
As to the EJami/Lumi debates that go on ad nauseum, I can’t even begin to go there! You know I can’t stand it! And yes, Marlena and Roman had every right to be concerned about her sleeping with EJ after that, I never had a problem with them having that discussion. It’s just, honestly, in this situation, I have such an issue with all the blame being pointed at everyone else. I want Sami to take responsibility for her part in both EJ and Lucas’ actions. I want her to point the finger at Lucas just like she’s pointing it at EJ. Nobody made Lucas leave the mansion, he did that on his own. He was dishonest with her about taking off the ankle monitor before and she knows it. The Sami I know and love would have kept the monitor and slammed it in his face the next time she saw the guy. It’s just a personal thing, I hate when the injured party blames the person that was cheated with instead of the person doing the cheating. Not that Lucas was technically cheating, but you get what I’m saying. It’s like watching Springer or one of those shows when the girl attacks the girl instead of her “man” who did her wrong (no I don’t watch that show, I swear!)
As to the Lumi scenes on Friday? Didn’t move me at all. I thought EJami’s confrontation scene a couple days before was way better. But again, that’s preference. I saw way more passion in the calm voices of EJami than I did in the raised hysterical voices in the Lumi talk. Fortunately I can swear that I will be staying away from and EJami/Lumi stuff in this blog. I’m pretty much over EJami and never cared for Lumi, so whatever they want to do there they can do. My interest in either side was crushed, yay Higley!
nolebucgrl said this on July 21, 2008 at 5:45 pm
I don’t have a problem with Marlena blaming herself for some of this. Let’s face it, both of her daughters ended up using 2 men just like she did. Marlena got the man she wanted, Belle got the man she wanted, so now Marlena wants Sami to get the man she wants (lucas). The problem I have in all of this is that none of them think they are to blame for what went wrong in the relationships and they all have the audacity to use the other men like little puppets to do their bidding. If my husband couldn’t decide between me and another woman, yet he finally did choose her, do you think I would still be his friend? Or worse yet, his little puppet? Hell no!!!! Well actually, if I’m honest he wouldn’t be around to be friends with anyone, but you get my point.
mosaicplum said this on July 21, 2008 at 8:04 pm
Hee, very good point Mosaic, I’d feel the same way. I just find it interesting that it’s now of all time that Marlena takes some responsibility for Sami’s issues. And yes, it’s more the way they expect the men to still succumb to their glitter after they have pushed them away repeatedly that drives me more insane than anything.
Did you see that I was right by the way, Marlena offered Rolf immunity before she ran it by Roman today? That just illustrates the point that she feels he is so wrapped that she doesn’t even need to bother to get insurances first. It annoys the hell out of me.
nolebucgrl said this on July 21, 2008 at 8:26 pm
Thanks for the welcome and the kind words!
Yes, Marlena has always been my favorite character. What do I like about her?
- Her devotion to her family. Marlena has always put her children first. Yes, in 1993, she did something without considering the consequences to her family. But it tore her up inside, and she tried to reconcile with Roman and tried to repair her family for years afterwards. She has repeatedly over the years placed the needs of her children ahead of her own.
- The fact that she puts others’ happiness ahead of her own. Marlena will not let others sacrifice their happiness for her benefit. The entire John/Kristen storyline was based on this premise. There are other storylines which I haven’t liked as much, lol, which have been based on this as well. If someone else has the chance to be happy, Marlena almost always steps aside.
- The fact that she is emotional and caring. (This is a combination of Deidre’s acting and the writing for Marlena.) Marlena is a psychiatrist, yet she is very in touch with her own emotions. She cries when she needs to, and she recognizes that the crying only helps work out whatever issues she’s having. It’s my contention that the writers over the years have recognized that Deidre has this ability – not to cry on cue (though she can), but to become completely emotionally involved in a scene to the point of tears. I like that they’ve used this to make Marlena as emotional as she is.
- Her resourcefulness and strength. Marlena is very self-sufficient, and she can see herself through whatever difficulties she may face. (Incidentally, though “what do I like about J&M” is a different question, one of the essential elements of the J&M relationship is that John was able to break through this wall of self-sufficiency that Marlena had put up after Roman died.)
- Her intelligence. This may be my favorite characteristic above all others. This emotional, caring, selfless, strong woman is also fiercely intelligent. I love how she’s usually written as being the only one to be able to match wits with Stefano. The writers usually make Marlena the one to figure out whatever mystery is currently underway.
So there’s the summary. I know some of you will probably argue on some of these points and find counter-examples, but I think the bottom line is that each character on Days has core characteristics which were set in place both by the actor/actress and the writers who created the character. The writers who write well will perpetuate these characteristics and work with the actor to add new layers, while the less talented writers will ignore the character’s core traits and instead use the characters as mouthpieces to further the plot.
So, I agree with what some of you are saying about Marlena’s asking Roman for help. I personally don’t think that’s in character. Marlena is intelligent and resourceful and puts others first, and I don’t think she’d go begging to Roman.
On the other hand, it may have been in character for Marlena to wonder if what Sami’s going through was a result of Marlena’s actions. The dialogue was a little heavy-handed, but overall I think Marlena would put Sami’s needs ahead of her own and question whether she’d been part of the cause. What’s missing, of course, is the balance of John’s telling her that fifteen years have passed since Sami saw them in the conference room. With the scene written as it was, the viewers were left thinking it was indeed Marlena’s fault, when it’s really not a clear-cut cause and effect at all.
Ellie said this on July 22, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Well, Ellie, I must say you see a completely different character than I do, but that’s what makes things interesting! I don’t think I could disagree with your characterization of early Marlena, though my memory of her is nowhere near as good as yours clearly! I did like her at one time and as I said, I don’t know when that changed. Her mannerisms started annoying me and I think that annoyance is probably what spilled on to the character.
I personally haven’t seen Marlena put her kids first, at least not in my memory. I always felt she put herself and John first, but I couldn’t site early storylines to back that up, only the recent one that comes to mind is when they were making out on the couch while Sami was in an airplane possibly having both twins killed. That just grossed me out.
I honestly don’t know if her sense of entitlement is a more recent characteristic from Hogan and Higley or not. I took a lot of time off, just working and not having soapnet for years, so only saw bits and pieces up til the devil and Melaswen, which also did the character no favors.
I thank you for sharing your take, it’s nice to have well stated differing views and you’ve definitely given me something to think about. Please come by anytime, I’m interested in what you have to say!
nolebucgrl said this on July 22, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Well, Ellie, I must say you see a completely different character than I do, but that’s what makes things interesting!
Yep! As long as everyone’s respectful (which you and your friends really seem to be), I also enjoy hearing the different viewpoints.
Her mannerisms started annoying me
Well, that’s Deidre, not Marlena. I am a fan of hers, but I can understand that not every actor/actress resonates with every viewer.
I couldn’t site early storylines to back that up, only the recent one that comes to mind is when they were making out on the couch while Sami was in an airplane possibly having both twins killed. That just grossed me out.
That was terribly written. Hogan Sheffer is exactly who I was referring to when I mentioned writers’ using characters as mouthpieces to further the plot. (Even moreso than Higley). He probably thought, hey, J&M haven’t kissed lately, let’s just stick it into that scene. I hated how he wrote her, and I never felt that he ‘got’ her.
I don’t know if you want me to make another long post lol but if you’re interested, I can give you the list of where she’s put her kids first. I’m not sure exactly which years you watched.
I honestly don’t know if her sense of entitlement is a more recent characteristic from Hogan and Higley or not.
It is. I hate it. That is from Higley especially. Higley writes all her women as dependent doormats (imo) and Marlena is no exception.
so only saw bits and pieces up til the devil and Melaswen, which also did the character no favors.
Oh no, lol, I mean, that’s not who Marlena is. I wouldn’t call that ‘out of character’ (the devil and SSK), more ‘Marlena with a storyline-driven personality change.’
I thank you for sharing your take, it’s nice to have well stated differing views and you’ve definitely given me something to think about. Please come by anytime, I’m interested in what you have to say!
Thanks for your interesting posts!! 
Thanks again so much!
Ellie said this on July 22, 2008 at 7:35 pm
Hee, yeah I had a feeling you were referring specifically to Hogan and Higley. I have no problem leveling hate at Higley these days, I’m really not enjoying many of the characters! Hogan had a whole other set of issues, MP hit that way better than I ever could. hehe
I definitely tolerate alternative viewpoints, sometimes to my detriment. Had to reign in Terry a bit because, well, he goes overboard and off topic, but anybody is welcome to post here. I enjoy what you said and I might have to go hit youtube and see some old Marlena stuff. I did enjoy her once and maybe with yet another writer I could again (when will we be free of Higley???)
If you can think of any particular storylines I should try to revisit, feel free to let me know, I’d be happy to check out what I can and see if my feelings are more due to Hogan and Higley than anything else!
nolebucgrl said this on July 22, 2008 at 7:48 pm
There was a time I liked Marlena. It was many years ago and it was the pre-John era. Once she fell for John, her whole life centered around him and she put him before everything and everybody. She turned into a gasping, moaning, love sick teenager instead of the strong, self confident woman that she was. I loved her scenes and the character after this last time that John “died”. She had focus, and was once again strong and confident. I loved it when she threated Rolf and Steffy with the gun. She was at her best in a very long time when she injected Stefano in the jail cell. Now that John is back, she has returned to the lovesick teenager again who can only find meaning in her life if she has “her” John back. Bleh!!! Deidra Hall is to good of an actress to be forever doomed to moan, gasp, and manipulate her ex-puppet (er I mean husbad).
mosaicplum said this on July 22, 2008 at 8:27 pm
See, this is the Marlena I know as well. But I have to readily admit that I didn’t watch because of school and work for a long time so I don’t know if there was a time with John when she was tolerable or not. I admit she was likeable for a short time after John died, although I hated how she went around town talking about how her grief was the griefiest grief that ever griefed. It was particularly galling because of course everybody in that town has had their significant other dead at some time or other. It just bugged me.
But I am willing to keep an open mind and if Ellie gives me an idea of something to check out, if I can find it on youtube or something I will and see if I feel any differently about her character. Right now, though, I don’t care for her at all. Of course, I hated Kate at one time and I’m liking her now (that’s of course because she might ruin Chan) which shows that anything can be salvageable.
nolebucgrl said this on July 22, 2008 at 8:38 pm
mosaicplum, before I reply about Marlena’s changing when John came into the picture, I wanted to ask you which years you’ve watched. I’m not sure if that’s your impression from 86-now, or if you’ve only watched certain years.
nolebucgrl, thanks for the offer to watch some clips! I don’t know how to hyperlink here, but this is where I’d direct you:
http://youtube.com/view_play_list?p=E3F3977817FFA0E9
This is the 1993 affair storyline. (If you had in mind something more recent, I could give you suggestions for that as well.) The background to these clips is that Marlena had been alone with John in the pit, and her feelings for him had been reawakened. This was after she’d been married to him in 1986, but then when Roman (Wayne) came back in 1991 and John was discovered to not be Roman, Marlena and Roman (Wayne) got back together and John married Isabella because she was pregnant.
At any rate, the playlist I linked to picks up the story when Marlena and John were having trouble fighting their feelings for each other.
And regarding Marlena’s recent grief, I actually thought that was written extremely well. I can’t even think of which scene you might be talking about, but I was happy that finally the show was focusing on someone’s emotions rather than something like Colleen and Santo. Which particular scene(s) bothered you to that extent?
Ellie said this on July 22, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Ellie, I will definitely check that out tomorrow. I didn’t have any time period in mind, anything is fine because I know at one time they didn’t bother me like they do today, so I’d love to pinpoint when it happened!
I can’t remember exactly which scene I’m talking about but there was a time shortly before John reappeared, when we all knew he was coming back, and she was wallowing and I think she told either Kayla or maybe it was Roman that nobody could possibly understand how she felt. It might really have been Roman because I remember the irony of having her say that to him of all people. Maybe someone else will remember better than I but I know we talked about it quite a bit on TWoP at the time. Anybody that knows give me a hand!
I’ll check in tomorrow with some commentary on what I thought of the clip, thanks for sending it, Ellie.
nolebucgrl said this on July 22, 2008 at 9:51 pm
I used to love Marlena when I was little, hell I even watched her on that show with Shannen Doherty. I was so excited when she came back, pink track suit and all! I think my Marlena hate began when she started interfering with Kristen and John. I loved Kristen! I also loved it when Kristen locked Marlena in the panic room and Doc had to run around with a short ponytail. The Marlena hate intensified when Belle became a teenager and thus, her favorite and only child. Whenever I think of how pointless Marlena is as a character, I always flash back to her standing on the beach in Hawaii in a flowing white dress and flower in her hair hoping that John (who dove into the ocean to save “a drowning victim:/Hope as Gina) would return.
brandi11 said this on July 22, 2008 at 11:49 pm
See, I watched that Our House show too, so I know I didn’t always hate her, else why seek out something else she was on? I do think perhaps my Marlena hate began when my Sami love took off, in that time you really couldn’t love one without hating the other. Good point, Brandi, that might be what did it!
nolebucgrl said this on July 23, 2008 at 7:24 am
lol the Our House discussion is about Deidre Hall, not Marlena. Deidre played a completely different character on that show. I think it’s possible to like “Jesse Witherspoon” (the character on Our House) and not like Marlena, or vice versa, unless someone just doesn’t like Deidre in general.
Nolebucgrl, thanks again for checking out the clips! Regarding that scene were Marlena talks about her grief, I’ll look to see if I can find it and I’ll watch it again. Upon reading your post though, my first thought was really that anyone unfortunate enough to be in the situation of having lost a loved one really does think that no one else has gone through what he/she is going through. But I will watch the scene again with an open mind and see how I react to Marlena’s dialogue.
Ellie said this on July 23, 2008 at 11:41 am
Ellie, thanks so much for sending the clip, that was fun to watch! After I got past Fake!Kim (who was that???) and FauxBo (never liked RKK) I really enjoyed myself. Really loved WN back in those days and it makes me sad for what Roman’s reduced to now. On topic, I see that DH still had some of those same mannerisms that drive me crazy today but they didn’t tend to bother me back then. I don’t know why. I did enjoy her scenes and you could see her jealousy when John came in with Rebecca. She was effective then
I know that the Our House refers to Dierdre of course, but I wouldn’t have watched Our House if I hated the Marlena character back then if that makes any sense. I remember tuning in specifically because DH was on the show, which I would not have done had I hated Marlena at the time.
My dislike for the character is definitely a more recent development and you could be right, if she’s given better writing and tones down some of the mannerisms (because they do drive me insane), I might get to like her again. If I can come around on Kate or Chelsea (tho I’m back to hating Chelsea again these days), I can probably come around on anybody.
I agree that maybe she was lost in her grief, the scene I was referring to, but at the same time, know your audience you know? She knows damn well that Bope have gone through it, S&K have gone through it, etc and it just bugged me and many others at the time that she acted like she was the only one who’d ever felt that way. It was just more of the ME ME ME that she’s played the last couple of years in my eyes. I understand what you’re saying though and if she hadn’t been so focused on herself in the past couple of years I might not have been as bothered, if you get what I’m saying.
Thanks again for the clip though, it’s fun to look back at the old Days and miss what this show once was!
nolebucgrl said this on July 23, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Elle,
I have watched Days since I was a little girl and I only started disliking Marlena when John came along. Marlena and Don Craig were the first soap couple that I remember loving as a kid. I was devestated when they divorvced. I liked her with Roman because she still was hr own person and a strong woman. When John entered the picture, she became totally obsessed with him and put him above everyone, including being her own person. I hate it when she treats Roman like a puppet, but on the other hand she is like John’s puppet. She exists only for him (and occassionally for Princess Belle – but that’s another story and another character I loathe). I just feel like John ruined the character of Marlena and changed her from a strong woman to a weak, needy shadow of her former self. Maybe that is one of the reasons I love Jawn. He doesn’t get the whole twu wuv thing or even care. I am hoping he will push her away and she will realize that she doesn’t need him – want maybe but not need. I think the character of Marlena is much better stading on her own two feet and she can only do that without John.
mosaicplum said this on July 23, 2008 at 11:58 pm
nolebucgrl, you’re welcome for the clip! Glad you liked it! I forgot about FauxKim, lol. (And I was never much of a RKK fan either). That does make sense about Our House – I think I understand what you’re saying.
I’m realizing that S&K fans really missed out on the best years of Marlena. Since S&K came back, Marlena has not been written well at all. I liked some of the writing for her when John was in a coma, where she stood up to the doctors. I liked the Italy mini-storyline in the winter of 2006, and I liked the writing for her from fall 2007 – early spring 2008. And that’s about it. I can see how someone who tuned out from 1990-ish until 2006 would get the complete wrong impression about the character.
mosaicplum, I’ve heard variations of what you’re saying before (that Marlena became ‘totally obsessed with John and put him above herself’). But I’m not sure I’ve ever seen someone cite a specific example of a scene or storyline where this occurred. Do you think you could give me one? I disagree with your statement, but I think if I had an example, I might be able to better understand where that argument is coming from. Thanks!
Ellie said this on July 24, 2008 at 1:49 pm
I did too, forgot about FauxKim…it was very jarring and I was like, who is this woman and why are they calling her Kim? Imposter!
I didn’t tune out in the 90’s because of S&K, who I did adore, but mainly cause of high school and college. I did watch Days some during college but it was mainly in a hungover haze so I don’t know what I retained! I started working from home in 2005 and that’s when I became an every day viewer again. So I’ve definitely been sporadic until the past few years, can’t say that I’ve liked Marlena since I’ve been back, so somewhere in that intervening time she lost me. Time will tell if she can win me back again!
Thanks for sharing your views and your clip with me!
nolebucgrl said this on July 24, 2008 at 3:15 pm
You were in high school in the ’90s? Yikes. I was still watching Days through law school (’91 to ‘94) but started trickling off due to full time work after that and eventually realized I had completely stopped watching it, thanks largely to Belle. Who I still hate less than Morgan.
Paxton said this on July 25, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Yes, I graduated from high school in 93, college in 97. I watched sporadically in college, freshman year at 2 PM I was often napping (hehe) and my roomies sophomore year were GH fans, so that’s how I got into that show. Real work started for me in 98 so I never watched then, never taped the show, only saw it when sick or on vacation. When Soapnet showed Days at 7 I picked it back up again, and of course now that I work from home I watch it live daily. Which is fun except when Chan are on!
nolebucgrl said this on July 25, 2008 at 2:36 pm