Saying goodbye to ‘As the World Turns’ is more bitter than sweet

Given that the final episode ever of “As the World Turns” airs tomorrow, I had planned on waiting to post my thoughts on the soap’s end until then. However, given I know what is going to happen with Luke Snyder, the only character and the only storyline I’ve consistantly cared about, I decided not to wait. I’ve also been a fan for about four years, a fraction of the show’s run, which I think doesn’t give me much authority to comment on it as a whole. However it does give me the right to vent my frustrations about the treatment of Luke Snyder and his two loves: Noah Mayer and Reid Oliver.

Last week, the writers inexplicably killed Reid, the character that brought a breath of fresh air for so many viewers, including myself, nine months ago. His chemistry with Luke was undeniable from their first conversation and even the writers had said that if the show hadn’t been canceled Luke and Reid (also known as LuRe) would have been an epic couple. Why the show ending meant they had to ruin this I have no idea, but ruin it they did.

They rushed Reid’s death, killing him off within the first twenty minutes of the episode and having characters caring more about self-aborbed Chris Hughes ( I am still trying to figure out why we’re supposed to care about him when he’s been lying to his family and the woman he supposedly loves for weeks) instead of the man they all hated until he selflessly gave his heart to save Chris. Both Luke and Reid had changed from the moment they first met, they both grew from loving each other, and Luke’s transformation couldn’t have been more noticable than with his scenes with his former love, Noah.

It was Noah’s accident that brought Luke and Reid together and it was his selfishness and pushing Luke away that drove Luke to become dependent on himself instead of Noah. And through his independence he discovered how to get under Reid’s tough exterior and love him. Luke even went so far as to say that he and Noah weren’t meant for each other.  This is a far cry from the days when they knew they were meant for each other.

September 1, 2010: One of Luke and Noah’s final conversations

I could go on about the mistreatment of both gay couples on the show by its writers, but that’s not the point I’m trying to make. Though the power couple once known as Nuke have grown apart, they were and will always be a historical soap couple, both in the ground they broke and in the treatment of their relationship by the writers. Despite everything these two had gone through the past year, namely Noah blaming Luke for his blindness, there is still  a love there. This was clear in their goodbye, even though Luke was still mourning the death of Reid.

Both Jake Silbermann (Noah) and Van Hansis (Luke) were brilliant in this scene and it made me miss Noah and Nuke as they once were. You could feel all the history that had gone on between them, both as characters and actors. The setting, WOAK, Oakdale’s television studio where the two met as interns three years ago, only served to heighten the already emotional scene. Yet while it was well-acted, it wasn’t entirely well-written. Noah was still self-absorbed and his kind words about Reid to cheer up Luke felt insincere since Noah had never shown any kindness toward the doctor until after his death.

September 16, 2010: Luke and Noah say goodbye

This ending leaves fans of Nuke, LuRe and Luke unsatisfied. With Reid dead, Luke’s relationship with the doctor is as well, and though I don’t believe it would happen, any sort of Nuke reunion is left up to the fans’ imagination. And of all the residents in Oakdale, only Luke is left alone, grieving and his future unsure. This feels like an insult to both the character and the fans, leaving many of them angry and hurt, and the promise made by the writers to treat their gay storyline fairly, broken.

The truth of the matter is no other American soap like it. Since the show’s end was announced I have been trying to find another show to occupy the soap opera hole left in my life, yet none of them have captured me the way “As the World Turns” did and that, for me, makes the end of show feel like the end of an era.

YouTube videos courtesy of anthonydlangford.

Sarah’s Weekly Preview – 9/12/10

First, I have to apologize for being absent lately. My excuse? I’ve been completely wrapped up in the sadly disappointing end of “As the World Turns,” and the couple I was watching for: Luke and Reid. Expect a rant dressed up as a column on that soon.Also, just as I sent Mel into the world of  “Merlin” and Camelot, she has trapped me in the back of Dean Winchester’s Impala. It’s so very comfy back there, I don’t plan on leaving soon.

So, finally, here is a preview to what to watch this week (this may seem like a repeat of my last preview, but never fear, next week will be better)!

Monday: Rizzoli & Isles. I can’t say enough about this show, it’s frickin’ awesome. God bless you TNT for airing this amazing show. And even if you don’t do femmeslash, the lesbian undertones in this show are barely undertones at all. I get why there’s so much slash fic for this show running around. Unfortunately the sneek peek from TNT won’t embed, so I can only give you the link: http://www.tnt.tv/dramavision/index.jsp?oid=69096&eref=sharethisUrl

Tuesday: The first half of the two-part season finale to “Warehouse 13” on SyFy airs this week! After a season of romance, insanity (literally) and body-swapping, it’s sure to be an amazing finale. They go to Egypt y’all, it’s bound to be epic. Also, the season finale of “Covert Affairs” on USA.

Wednesday: Because I don’t watch reality television, hump day is a dry television day, at least until “Criminal Minds” returns, and even then I’m not that psyched. So I plan on feverishly watching all the seasons of “Supernatural” so far so I can be ready for the sixth season. I suggest you use it to catch up on your favorite show too.

Thursday: The Vampire Diaries on The CW. I still consider myself somewhat a newbie when it comes to show, but I was very much impressed with the acting from all the lead characters last week. Nina Dobrev did amazing with the double-acting of Elena and Catherine, Paul Wesley seemed to realize he wasn’t the small screen’s Edward Cullen and went from broody to sinister and I loved it. Ian Somerhalder was, of course, brilliant and I’m really looking forward to see how the seaosn goes. After that there’s “Nikita,” which I also really enjoyed and didn’t expect to.

Mel already posted the preview for next week’s TVD, so here’s the promo for “Nikita”

The Weekend I leave up to you, gentle viewer, since there usually isn’t anything on except movies and sports. I plan on spending more time watching Sam brood behind his ever-growing bangs and Dean wolf down some more food.

See you next week when finally television returns!

Week in Review – 9/4/2010

Okay, so I’m cutting it a little close, but I did post two things in one day so that has to count for something, right? I actually don’t have a whole lot to say this week because not a whole lot has happened, but let me see what I can muster…

*Dancing with the Stars should rename itself Dancing with the Reality Stars since that seems to be half the new cast anyway. And to quote the great Joan Rivers “Bristol Palin’s going to be on DWTS with the guy from Jersey Shore? Perfect! The Situation will be competing against The Embarrassment.” I’ll watch a little bit just to see Jennifer Grey and Margaret Cho. Nobody puts Baby in the corner!

*So excited for White Collar next week. I loved how they cut this week’s eppie right before they opened the music box. Suspense is great and all but WHAT’S IN THE DAMN BOX?

Preview for the White Collar summer finale airing September 7th

*Weird freckle faced little boy is still playing Young Shawn on Psych. Where is my Liam?

*Emmy’s = LAME, what a let down. The only highlights of the night were Ricky Gervais‘ waiter trying to hand Matthew Perry, an alcoholic, a beer and Eric Stonestreet winning Supporting Actor. Everything else was just predictable…HBO wins, Mad Men wins, Bryan Cranston wins, Jewell is still lame…shall I continue?

*ATWT has official lost my respect and my viewership with the impending death of Doctor Reid Oliver. The Young and the Restless and I are now exclusive – especially now that half the cast of As the World Turns and Guiding Light are now on Y&R anyway. Holla for the upcoming entrance of Paul Leydon. Soap operas can never have too many Australians.

*Maroon 5’s new album Hands All Over is up for Pre-order on iTunes. The Lady Antebellum collaboration alone is worth the money. Also, my beloved Gin Blossoms also have a new album on the horizon. I need to stop iTunes stalking before I go broke.

Ok, so apparently there were interesting things that happened this week. Not to steal Sarah’s thunder, but since she’s gone this weekend anyway, I don’t think she’ll mind, but I need to Sons of Anarchy, which premieres next week on FX. Despite Charlie Hunnam’s unfounded whining about Kurt Sutter’s tight lipped story methods, Katy Sagel will be brilliant as always and Charlie Hunnam is still a damn good actor despite his unfortunate need to bite the hand that feeds him.

Related Articles

• ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Season 11 Releases Contestant Promo Photos (pinkisthenewblog.com)
• ATWT’s Eric Sheffer Stevens on Luke and Reid not having sex: “I don’t know any two men that would hesitate” (pinkbananaworld.com)

Sarah’s television picks for the week

We’ve reached the limbo point of television programming where summer shows are airing their finales and fall series have quite started yet. However, there is still plenty to watch and here are my suggestions for this week:

Monday: TNT’s “Rizzoli & Isles” has made television history by having the highest audience numbers for an ad-supported cable show with 7 million viewers for its pilot episode. And for good reason. Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander have amazing chemistry, as does the rest of the cast. And it holds a special place in my heat for having Billy Burke guest-star as an FBI agent in the pilot.

Tuesday: Thanks to Comcast, we have the SyFy channel and therefore have access to the brilliance that is “Warehouse 13.”  With just one episode left in the second season, we have seen everything from a pair of trunks giving the wearer (“Firefly” actor Sean Maher) superhero powers to an emotionally-charged episode where Pete (Eddie McClintock) is taken over by an artifact.  I cannot begin to express how perfect this show is for a science-fiction/history geek like me. It’s about a Warehouse where secret government agents store supernatural objects, most with dangerous effects. It makes the place where they stored the Arc of the Covenant look like my neighbor’s garage. The script is full of wit and intrigue and humanity, making for the complete package of quality entertainment. Check out the promo:

If sci-fi isn’t your thing, you should check out “Memphis Beat,” the southern police drama that has quickly become my new favorite.

Wednesday: To build up to the season finale of “Royal Pains” Thursday night, USA will run a marathon of the second season so far from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday. With all the medical dramas clogging the air these days, the balance of wit and drama is perfect and a breath of fresh air. So, if you have twelve hours to kill, I can’t think of anything else you should do.

Thursday: This will be my first and only daytime preview. On “As the World Turns,”  controversial gay couple Luke and Reid finally get serious. According to the preview, Reid tells Luke  he needs to take care of himself (speculation says this is a reaction to Chris’ failing health and his stubborn insistence to keep it secret) because if he’s going to “fall in love with [Luke]” he doesn’t want to lose him. And according to fan-chatter, this is possibly the episode where Luke and Reid finally have sex. Whatever happens, it’s guaranteed to be an epic LuResday. Here’s the now infamous ten seconds:

Friday: After a week full of drama, you really need just need to laugh. That’s why I look forward to ABCFamily’s night full of “America’s Funniest Home Videos.” There’s nothing quite as therapeutic as watching other people making absolute fools of themselves.

Saturday: TCM Summer of Stars, obviously all summer, where they feature movies starring a different actor every day. Saturday features Olivia de Havillad with “The Heiress” at  8 p.m., for which she won an Oscar, followed at 10 p.m. with “To Each His Own,” for which she also won a statue.

Sunday: This is pretty obvious: The Emmy Awards. I am a sucker for award shows, but especially the Emmys this year because I have a lot invested in Chris Colfer’s win for Best Supporting Actor.

Check out Mel’s week in review on Saturday