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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mel O&#039;Drama" data-source="post: 261638" data-attributes="member: 23">Deadly Ringer (Parts I and II) (continued)Lisa becoming integrated into Jaime’s life, thinking that Jaime was in a prison graveyard somewhere was so much more than I thought it would be. Her winning over the children in the classroom, feeling moved by the love she felt from Jim and Helen (and it felt more meaningful because it was so darned good to see them both back). Along the way, she made choices to improve her life and choices based on what felt right: she stopped smoking; she turned Matt Devlin in to the police; she decided to stay in Ojai rather than taking the money and running. In acting as Jaime, she became more like Jaime, the lines became blurred and - thanks in part to her adrenalizine addiction affecting her mental state - she ended up thinking she was Jaime. For real. I’d go so far as to say Lisa, in this story, is one of the most psychologically interesting characters to appear on the show, and it’s not surprising that she also got her own musical theme which was as fragile and beautiful as she is. The episodes moved from horror to tragedy, because along the way I realised that in order for Jaime to get her life back, Lisa was going to have to pay a price. It was touching to watch Lisa - physically unwell from the adrenalizine - being held by Helen who by this time knew she wasn’t Jaime, but had grown to love her all the same. And I can relate. Lindsay Wagner’s Emmy win was in large part of the back off these episodes, and it’s easy to see why. They’re beautifully written with so many nuances to the emotional journeys of both characters in these episodes. The scenes looked very emotionally draining to film, and she gives note-perfect readings whatever is required. It’s also worth noting that I also thought she was a standout in Doomsday Is Tomorrow which had its own emotional journey for her. At this stage in the series, I’d say she’s quite an accomplished actor, and it’s good that this was recognised. It’s to Lindsay's credit that she could carry off an emotional confrontation between the two women, one confused, angry and lashing out; the other drained and supportive but driven to get her life back. And I love that the Jaime/Lisa story had a happy-ish ending with Jaime visiting Lisa in hospital and Lisa apologising and willingly agreeing to the plastic surgery. I’m pleasantly surprised that I can feel so joyous and conflicted and sad when watching a scene between two women played by the same actress. This is how Krystle and Rita should have been done. I do worry about the treatment of animals on film in the Seventies, and Plato the little adrenalizine-fuelled rat is an example of this. There’s a scene where he’s shown to be adversely affected by the drug’s side effects and is limping round his cage in quite a poor state. I don’t know what went on behind the scenes in order to get this footage, and it’s probably for the best that I don’t. </blockquote>

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