PC: Port Charles Ponderings, Feb. 23-27, 1998 - Part 2
Christine W. Meyer
"Faith Manages"
Please forgive me for using a line from B5 (from the episode
"Confessions and Lamentations"), but it fits this storyline so well.
Yes, it was about decision-making--Lucy deciding to accept the
antidote and sign the D.N.R., but it was also about faith--Lucy's
faith and the faith of her friends, which brought her back to them.
Monday's episode opened with Lucy in the hospital, while the interns
are hard at work finding the antidote for the poison Rex gave her.
RATSA discussed how s-t-u-p-i-d it was to get a group of interns to
find the antidote for such a dangerous poison, and both Luke Spencer
and Dr. Boardman expressed the same thing. However, on Wednesday Joe
tells us that the main lab was duplicating their work. But I agree
that the idea of interns, with just a basic knowledge of chemicals,
would be in charge of such a monumental task. But I chanted the IOAS
mantra and was able to look past it. It still made for some great
drama--a group of professionals, fighting against time, to find a
solution. The decision-making theme affected them the most, in that
they had the most decisions to make.
In the only Rex scene of the week (but still delicious), his friends
the spiders have started to walk over him, freaking him out and
causing him to "confess." (What a fun scene that was.) Of course, it
was all for moot, because the "antidote," stashed in Dirty Kitty, was
really arsenic, dashing everyone's hope, . Dirty Kitty got lost,
though, so there was a marvelous scene in the park where Gail, Scott,
and Eve looked for her. I loved Eve's "Hey, Scott, that kid's got
D.K.!" And then Scott looking like he enjoyed cutting up D.K. himself
as he speculated about Rex's enjoyment.
Kevin, after returning from his meeting with Rex, begins keeping vigil
at Lucy's bedside. This began a series of beautiful Kevin and Lucy
scenes, which continued the entire week. I just had to transcribe
some of those scenes.
Lucy: My hero. I knew you'd get that antidote out of Rex.
Kevin: Well, we don't have it yet, but we know where it is.
Lucy: Well, I never doubted you even a minute, because you'd do
anything for me.
Kevin: You are the most important thing in my life. Wait a minute.
You are my life.
Lucy: Oh. Doc, you are my heart.
Kevin: You have your own heart. I feel it when you love me.
Lucy: I do. I do love you so very much.
Kevin: I love you, too.
As the interns work, Eve and Serena bond while Eve stitches up Dirty
Kitty. She tells Serena why she wants to be a doctor, as Scott
listens. Then father and daughter have a heart-to-heart about Lucy's
illness and D.K.'s condition. One of the things I appreciate about PC
is the way the adults explain things to Serena. They don't patronize
her, but they make sure their explanations are given at her level, so
she'd understand. Serena asks her dad why people get sick and when he
couldn't answer her, she said that D.K.'s illness was caused by "some
bad boys." She then asked, basically, why there are bad boys, and
Scott told her that some people (obviously thinking of Rex) are born
bad. What was really happening in that exchange was that the problem
of evil was being explained to a child. And quite well, I might add.
I liked it because Scott was honest with her, while protecting her.
Serena, for example, wanted to see Lucy, but Scott knew it wouldn't be
a good idea for either of them, even without talking to Lucy about it.
When the interns find out that the "antidote" is arsenic, Kevin has to
tell Lucy and Scott goes off to kill Rex. The show ends with Lucy's
wrenching prayer to the "higher powers." She asks for help--that
she'd learn from the experience and grow from it--and confesses that
she's afraid. It was beautiful, especially to me because I believe so
strongly that faith makes a difference. I also believe that the
"higher powers" Lucy was pleading with often comes through in crisis
like this.
Tuesday was a red-letter day, due to the crossover of "da Man," Luke
Spencer. He and Scott bump into each other as Scott is trying to
leave to kill Rex. Scott asks Luke, "How's Laura?" Luke's "None of
your business" was priceless. The irony of these two long-time
nemesis meeting didn't get past RATSA. At a time when Luke was
dealing with the past--Laura's rape--he comes face to face with the
man Laura was married to at the time. And Scott was about to follow
his emotions, something that's always gotten him into trouble. It was
his strong emotions that helped Luke escape, and bring Laura with him.
He said later that bumping into Luke helped him realize that hurting
Rex wasn't the answer--that it wouldn't help Lucy anyway. And it
ultimately leads him to the idea to visit Rex's Asian herbalist.
Luke visited Lucy right after Kevin had to tell her about the
antidote, just at her lowest moment. Lucy gets all teary because she
assumes that Luke is there to say good-bye.
Luke: I don't do good-byes, dumpling. Especially to the only woman I
ever considered leaving my wife for.
Lucy: You never even looked twice at me.
Luke: Oh, I looked. I've been looking for a long time. The hard part
was looking away.
Luke: What is this hospital gown? You told me you never wear anything
off the rack. Where's your black negligee, darling? I bet you don't
even have your garter belt and hose on under here. With all these
fine, young interns and all those tired. old ex-husbands of yours,
swarming around? What are you trying to do, let everyone off their
pretty little hooks?
Lucy: You are the biggest flirt in the whole world.
Luke: Me? You think?
Luke and Lucy have a heart-to-heart, with Luke giving her support as
only Luke can. He listened, and he bantered, and he was there for
her. He told her, "You're not going to die. You're going to survive,
because as long as you do, I will." Appropriate words for a man going
through what he's been going through.
That began two flashback scenes. And I was a goner. I didn't just
shed a few tears. folks, I was out and out sobbing, gasping for
breath. Since I've only been watching GH for about two years, it was
my RATSA pals who provided the background for them. In the first one,
Lucy was cleaning out Luke's wound after he was shot in Puerto Rico.
In the second one, where Lucy had been kidnapped and tied up by Joe
Scully, was Luke rescuing her. (Thanks, Karen C. and Rika.)
Luke: You are one beautiful woman.
Lucy: Oh, and you are one very, very good friend.
Luke promised to take her out on the town as Lucy wept with the rest
of us. Luke and Lucy have a beautiful friendship. Others have
written about it more eloquently than I ever could. As McAmy, our
resident Luke expert, said, it's interesting how Luke sets himself up
as the protector for the women in his life, and the closest friendship
he has with a woman (outside of his wife) who has saved his life.
One of the most significant ways that Luke helps Lucy today is to act
as her confessor, in a way. The joking about "Father Luke" and
"Sister Luce" is significant because he really was there to exonerate
her from the sins she thinks she's committed. He does that by
listening to her account of her wrongdoing, and then reminds her of
the good she's done. He brings up her strip at the Nurses' Ball and
the shoe he has hanging over his bar. (Thanks to everyone who
provided that background.) She makes him promise to keep the shoe
there, and he makes her promise to give him a "more personal article
of clothing to use as a flag over my bar."
Lucy: He didn't want to say good-bye."
Kevin: Neither do I.
Lucy: You're going to have to, Doc. You're just going to have to.
The last scene of this wonderful episode is of Kevin and Lucy. After
he quoted a line from a Modern English song ("I'd stop the world and
melt with you"--thanks, Carin), she asked for his forgiveness. He
assumed she meant Rex, but she really meant for "leaving him" before
falling asleep in his arms. Beautiful episode.
Christine * http://www.enteract.com/~jon/FGC_Stefan/
FPCs: Lucy, Kevin, Scott, Serena, Matt, Eve
Amy McWilliams
>though, so there was a marvelous scene in the park where Gail, Scott,
>and Eve looked for her. I loved Eve's "Hey, Scott, that kid's got
>D.K.!" And then Scott looking like he enjoyed cutting up D.K. himself
>as he speculated about Rex's enjoyment.
Those scenes were pretty lame, but that line--and the kids' faces when
they dropped DK--were hysterical.
>Tuesday was a red-letter day, due to the crossover of "da Man," Luke
>Spencer.
Be still my beating heart.
As far as the Kevin and Lucy stuff? All I can say is ditto. And
thanks for the transcriptions.
--
McAmy
FG/PC Lucy, Keeper of her Friendship with Luke
FG/PCO Kevin&Lucy, Monitor of Their Evolution