ESPRIT LIBRE // Press Archive

Remote Patrol: Character Study (Soaps In Depth 5/23/06)

As longtime soap fans, we've seen our fair share of split-personality storylines -- including One Life to Live's infamous Niki/Viki/et al saga, which may well be the standard-bearer. However, it wasn't until Tess came along that we actually got to see an alter suffer its own identity crisis! Our hearts broke as Tess told Viki, "I never had any innocence. Remember? I was born broken." Things only became more emotional when the character -- and Tess is every bit as much a flesh-and-blood resident of Llanview as Jessica is -- questioned how she could be a mother to her child or a wife to Nash given her own lack of legal status. For the first time, an alter has become more than a plot device...she is someone we know, love and want to keep around for years to come.