I think I'm in the minority on this one, but I actually enjoyed the Mendorra storyline. Sure, it's silly and a bit out of step with the everyday realistic drama of One Life to Live, but the same can be said for the time travel story, which I find to be a lot more annoying, and I will probably address in a future entry. The Mendorra story, while certainly not without its weaknesses, is one that I've enjoyed overall.
First of all, I adore Tina. Adore! I had never seen Andrea Evans as Tina, or the classic storylines with Cord, although I do vaguely remember Tina being played by a different actress (whom I didn't like much) when I first started watching OLTL in the mid-'90s. Ever since Tina breezed back into Llanview with David Vickers the Dog on her arm, though, I have been in love! She's ditzy, funny, and now her character is becoming deeper and more complicated as we see her with her daughter, Sarah. The expression on her face when Carlo sent Sarah and Cristian over the falls was heartbreaking, and the joy when she saw Sarah alive was great. I can't wait to see more of this mother-daughter duo! And ooh, David Vickers the Dog is just about the cutest thing in the whole world (right after my own beloved pup). And now that Tina and Cord are going to be reunited, however briefly? Color me VERY excited.
I also enjoyed Christopher Cousins as Cain Rogan, and Thom Christopher kicked ass as Carlo Hesser. He's so deliciously EVIL, which is exactly what I like in my soap villains. Plus he had great father-daughter chemistry with BethAnn Bonner as Talia.
Speaking of BethAnn Bonner, I have to give her props for her brilliant performance during, and especially after, Talia and Jonas's wedding. She looked like a million bucks in that wedding dress, but one look at her face and you could see how much she hated what she was being forced into. And later, when she said goodbye to Antonio at the airstrip, I actually had tears in my eyes, her performance was that good. Hell, I'd go so far as to say IMO she should get a Supporting Actress nod at next year's Daytime Emmys. She's come so far as an actress sincer her days on I Wanna Be A Soap Star.
All that being said, I'm not sad to see Mendorra go. It served its purpose, and now it's time to get back to Llanview and "real" life. If only the time travel story would end soon, too... And hopefully both Talia and Carlo will be back on our screen shortly. Talia and Antonio's reunion is going to be great, I can feel it in my bones!
