Manny's Transcendence 3 . 15 . 00
Those of you who read these RRR's on a semi-regular basis know that I seem to go on and on (and I have) about how amazing Manny's love for each other is, but I really think that the dialogue above and all it encompasses is worth a lengthier study. The moment I heard it, it hit me. It represents everything that I believe Manny are to each other. More specifically though, what Danny has meant (means) to Michelle. Michelle, a woman who, despite wanting to be with her husband more than anything, would be satisfied just knowing that he was out of that dangerous life. In these simple lines, we hear everything that she surmises her place in his life to be. While on some levels, she knows she's made him happy, she sees the most important thing she's done for him as being a reason, an excuse, for him to leave the life he was destined to live, but scared to death to leave. In these moments, all that matters to her is that he remains safe and doesn't get sucked back in. No matter how many times she's said that she knows how much he loves her - sometimes I wonder if she really does grasp what she means to him. It's possible that she will in the upcoming weeks, so I look forward to seeing it come to the surface. On the night before the verdict, when she wondered what she had done in her life that was not selfish, he was quick to remind her of her accomplishments, which included saving his life. It's the one thing in life that she's the proudest of, perhaps the one thing in her life that she will feel made her life worthy. What she has come to feel for this man, her other half, has turned into more than even *I* thought possible. From the first day I saw them, I knew they were different, I knew this was going to be a great love. But I never expected it to become a part of their very beings, a part of their souls. Like all souls, it's unable to be destroyed, even in separation, deprivation or death. Over the last two months, especially, their story, their love has been explored with such passion and such richness that even with their separation, I feel stronger about their love and about their bond than I ever did before. It's a tribute to the better writing that we've gotten, it's a tribute to Paul & Joie's unparalleled performances, and it's a tribute to these characters, who I believe, speak for themselves. There was a post on the Mannyac Discussion Board a week or so ago by JFish that I didn't have the time to respond to, but I wanted to take this opportunity to agree with everything she said and say how much I believe it needs to be shouted from the rooftops. She talks about Danny telling Jesse about the marriage offer and how he couldn't do it. While Jesse was telling Danny to do whatever he had to to get Michelle out of jail, Danny's resolve was such that he couldn't possibly bring himself to do that to Michelle. Do what? Desert her. Leave her. The fact of the matter is that he knows Michelle better than anyone does and he knows that those feelings of abandonment that JFish spoke of are as big a fear for her as anything she's ever felt before. Everyone in her life, save Rick, has left her. Some by choice, some by accident. She's had to be strong for everyone else her entire life. April 27, 1999 (to Abby): "He's strong, and he's gentle, and he's really passionate, about things, about life. He sees life with this incredible intensity, he just feels it. When he looks at me it is like he is looking into my soul. I have never felt like that at all before." His passion for her and intensity he feels toward protecting her is something she loves most about him. With him, she always feels protected and loved, even in the early times in their marriage. It was a huge source of conflict for her. How could she have felt so scared about her living condition when she never felt safer than when she was with her husband? The one time he did leave her, she knew he'd come back for her. And he did. He'll always come for her. It's one of the few things in her life that she knows without question. She trusts in it with everything in her. Which is what made letting him go the hardest thing she'd ever have to do in her life. However, she was willing to do it - FOR HIM. That in itself shows you the amount and level of love that this young woman feels for this man. And no matter how much she said she wanted it, he knew that she was doing it for (what she felt to be) his own good. This was obvious by the way she left: "I LOVE YOU. DO THIS FOR ME." But he can't. He knows that if he did, he'd be hurting her more than any lengthy incarceration ever could. What I see in front of me on a daily basis with Manny is the most unselfish love that I've ever seen written on daytime. Another difference between the two lies in how they handled this situation. Michelle's solution was simple - end the marriage. Set him free. She didn't see any other choice. And it was also the only choice she had the right to make anymore. Talk about loss, not only has she lost people in her life, she's now had her rights taken away. Her need to control just any ounce of the situation was very important. She knew that Danny would never give up, and that he could get really hurt if he kept trying to get her out. Not only physically, but emotionally. And she couldn't live with that. She could be proud of the fact that she was his reason for being safe, but she'd be damned if she was the reason that he would get hurt. But Danny sees it completely different. His passion, his intensity, the things she loves, rear their ugly heads and he will stop at nothing to free his wife. Deal with the mob, break her out, anything and everything to avoid ending this union. He would never let that happen. He would NOT leave her. JFish hit the nail on the head when she said that this wasn't Danny being selfish about how he would feel without her, he was putting HER FIRST in this case. And only those who really know and watch this relationship would see that. Any casual viewer WOULD see his selfish motivations (while of course, they DO exist, they are not the driving force behind this decision). Now onto more general comments. The treatment of Manny over the last month or so has been noticeably different. Oh how I've yearned for care to be taken with them, for time to be taken with them, for some insight into their thoughts, their feelings, and what makes them who they are. Look around, we're getting it again. It's as though whoever wrote early Manny and splotches here and there, has come back with force. I can practically feel the respect that is being given to them, the love that is pouring through every written piece of dialogue, through every challenging direction and action. I can feel Manny again. Oh, what a feeling! Look at Rassie. I fully admit that I fast forward through MOST of the Richard & Cassie scenes, but in order for me to be fair in my criticism, I feel it only necessary, at least once during every show, to stop and watch a scene between the two of them. I've been doing this for quite a while (though I don't admit it to my online friends). My feelings haven't changed. If anything, the recent treatment of the two couples has exacerbated the difference between the two. I realize that some people get something from them, whether it be a light-hearted romance in the midst of all the pain, agony and angst going on in Springfield, or whether they identify more with an ex-stripper turned Princess or a Prince turned hick, I don't know. All this time, I've found myself comparing the two couples. But you know what? There really IS no comparison. Rassie started with barely any story, and they won't have anything to sustain them through the summer. They're a weak "flavor of the month" love story that I know happens on every single show. If you're a fan of theirs and are upset by what I'm saying, so be it. This is how I see them. I don't begrudge ANYBODY their right to enjoy them, however. I realize that different people have different needs from soaps and I'm nobody to be saying that anyone should enjoy one thing more than another. That's not my place, and I'm not trying to do that here. For me, I've found that what has manifested itself into a kind of "resentment" toward Rassie has in reality just been misplaced anger. The anger I feel is not toward the couple or its portrayers, regardless of the record-amount of eye rolls that occur during their one scene per day that I subject myself to. I think my anger is actually more of one that should be saved for the soap publications, both online and in print, that have exalted Rassie into the kind of couple that they once showcased Manny as. To me, by doing that, it's devaluing everything that Manny has been since they began. What they're doing, by comparing the two on anywhere near the same level, is downright insulting to Manny. And I will not play any part in the comparison game. At least not between the couples themselves. I will, however, compare their treatment from the executives in charge because, from my perspective, the way they're both treated speaks volumes. They treat Rassie as fluff, therefore, I see it as such. Many viewers of this couple don't dispute their "fluffness" and don't apologize for enjoying it. I applaud them. I don't get them, but I applaud them. The show treats Manny differently. Despite the complaints some of us have had in the past about their treatment of Manny (and granted, it was downright embarrassing there for a while), when you sit and think about it, they really are treated better than any other couple on that show. JennH has a an interesting post about this very thing. A couple of my close Manny friends and chat mates know that it's something that's not lost on us, though. It is a fact. I understand that not everyone enjoys Manny. I get that. I've surfed around enough to know that some people practically hate them. For whatever reason, that's theirs to tell you. From them taking up too much airtime, to them being post-coital every other day, to the way Michelle actually says "Danny", I've read it all. I get it. It's not their cup of tea. I let them be. But what I've seen in the last month/month and a half has gone above and beyond any other soap couple that I've experienced (and I've seen plenty). Manny has been deemed by TPTB, imo, as THE couple on this show. This IS their Luke & Laura, this IS their new signature couple, and they're only NOW realizing their need to capitalize on their star power and potential. The show is finally putting Manny where I feel they were destined to be placed. Front and center. Do they deserve it? Depends on who you ask. They've only been on the show for a bit over a year. Jeva, Pharley, and Matessa have seniority. I'm not going to argue with those fanbases because they have every right to feel slighted recently. I truly do feel for them. Jeva's contemplating divorce, Pharley is being threatened by the news of his infidelity, and Matessa (though a beautiful devotional story being told now of a husband and his comatose wife) has been backburner as long as I can remember. It's not fair. But I've watched those couples. Of them all, I'm the least familiar with Pharley (I have my own issues there). But in all those couples, I've never seen the intense connection that Danny & Michelle have shown us. I've said so many times to friends that I can literally see Danny fall down dead the moment that Michelle is permanently out of his life (through death, for example). And recently, we see the effect that Danny's absence in Michelle's life has. While I once believed she could handle life without Danny much better than he without her, I'm starting to doubt that now. So much credit has to go to Paul & Joie that it would do them barely any justice to attempt to put it into words. But I will say that never in my life have I seen two actors who were meant to act off of each other more than Stenz. I'm not writing this to defend Manny against any criticisms, that's not my job. I tend to hope that this web page and my loquacious posts are understood as a devotion TO this couple, and everything that they've brought to my life. I simply am finally beginning to see Manny's place on this show as something of incredible importance. The ultimate tortured love story. The young ingénue role that they desperately tried to fit Drew into has finally been given, hand over fist, to Michelle and to Joie Lenz, and she's delivered at every opportunity. The strong and dangerous, yet sexy and vulnerable young leading man that every show tries to cast an ex-model for has been diligently handled by Paul Anthony Stewart. The show has gold POURING out of every scene that these two actors are in, and I think they've finally realized it. There's no point in trying to compare Manny with anyone else. Because, the truth is, there is no comparison. Simply put, they transcend every compliment that's been given to any couple on daytime and their potential is endless. Candy
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