In Which I Flail Endlessly and Scream Like a Tween

Ohmigod, you guys.

 
OHMIGOD, YOU GUYS.

 
OHMIGOD, YOU GUYS.

 
O!H!M!I!G!OD!Y!O!U!G!U!Y!S!

 
The first few drafts of this blog post basically consisted of nothing but exclamation points and straight transcriptions of dialogue, occasionally accompanied by parenthetical notations such as "I love my life!" and "At this point, I let out a giggle of delight that was less a giggle and more a jag of obnoxious, braying laughter".

I have such unconditional love for the Leo/Greenlee era of All My Children that I was going to love anything and everything about Josh Duhamel's brief return; such unconditional love that I actually--hand to God!--contemplated seeing Life as We Know It in theaters and considering my white-hot hatred of Katherine Heigl, that is saying something for ridiculous, embarrassing fangirl devotion. The braying laughter probably would have come even if their scenes were terrible, or if they didn't share scenes at all.

But THANKFULLY, it did not come to that. We got scenes. And oh, what scenes we got. Yes, it was a dream. And yes, as we totally called back when this most epic of epic returns was announced, there was a whole lot of Rylee pimping going on. But the dream itself? And the chemistry between Rebecca Budig and Josh Duhamel that has remained sparkling and unchanged after so many years? I KVELL.

Leo: God, I missed you.
Greenlee: How did this happen? How is this even possible? How long have you been here?
Leo: Shh. I just want to look at you.

Please imagine me cupping my hands over my mouth and letting forth a scream of pure glee. PERFECTION.

Leo: You're gonna have to let go eventually.
Greenlee: I never thought I'd feel this again.
Leo: We're still a perfect fit. I'm right here.
Greenlee: You didn't promise me.
Leo: I promise, huh? You know, they're easier to make than keep. All right. Why don't we just go with what we have? Ok. All that matters is the moment you have standing next to the man you love.
Greenlee: I said that at our wedding.

And now imagine me doing my best, albeit shrillest, imitation of a preteen girl watching The Beatles at Shea Stadium.

I was so totally, overwhelmingly charmed by their interaction and am completely blown away by how effortless and adorable Budig and Duhamel still were almost ten years after Leo died (I guess I can officially give up the dream of Leo returning from the dead and whisking Greenlee away to a life of Parisian adorability and skip the use of airquotes there, huh?). And I was so--hold onto your hats, folks, because this is going to sound insane--proud of the AMC writing staff for honoring this couple's history and making their conversation so wonderful and memory-filled. It all felt...it felt right. It felt good. It felt giddy-making.

So naturally, the show had to ass it all up by acknowleding the gigantic douchebag in the room.

Leo: And you lived. You fell in love. You found your happily ever after with Ryan.

Leo: But Ryan was there, too, and he understood, remember? He lost someone, too. He knew how to take care of you. I just want you to be happy, Greenlee. That's all I ever wanted, and if you can't be with me in Bhutan [!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!--Ed.], then why not right here in Pine Valley with Ryan?

Dream (and Dreamy) Leo, why are you saying these things?! Fight harder for your woman! Escape the dreamscape, come back from the dead and free Greenlee!

But I hadn't even finished my eyeroll--granted, it was Olympic-caliber and, as such, took a while--when the squealing came again.

 
Who am I kidding with this squealing nonsense? I started crying and could only imagine a tearful, sniffly smile. It was perfect and I loved it. My heart is totally warmed, you guys. I am so, so beyond thrilled that Josh Duhamel came back for this and that AMC made it worth his--and our--while, because it was almost everything I could have asked for and more.

If you need me, I'll be spending the next few hours/days watching classic YouTube clips, thank you. And when I tear myself away from that, it will be time for ZACH.

 
!!! SO MANY EXCLAMATION POINT WORTHY THINGS ARE HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, YOU GUYS. I LOVE MY LIFE!

Comments

[Ron]

Greenlee and Leo.....my my my, how completely I had forgotten that once upon a time, there was a Greenlee I actually enjoyed. And it was all due to Leo. And what a wonderful breath of wry, fresh, funny, poignant air he brought to the show once again.

[Dawn]

@Ron, I have to agree with you. With Leo was the ONLY time I liked Greelee. Before him, she was a spoiled rotten, entitled brat. After him she became nothing more than a prop for Ryan. I loved their scenes together but I wish it was more than just a dream. Hopefully it will be and once Greenlee gets back to Ryan she will realize that LEO is the man she really and truly loves and dumps Ryan's sorry ass to go find Leo, because maybe it wasn't a dream after all. :)

[Ashley]

If I had blogged this episode, my post would have consisted of exclamation marks and high school squeals too. I was a complete nutjob watching it Friday. There may have been shouting of another variety when it was revealed to be a dream.

And sidenote: if you want some adorable Josh Duhamel, watch Beezus and Ramona. The movie is cute to begin with, but he just made it amazing.

[summerofsoaps]

There was so much squeeing. I wish we were getting Greenlee and Leo riding off together for the end, but no, we gotta get damn Rylee. Ah, well, at least I will have my Zendall.

[KatT]

I'm still jazzed Esta Terblanche is coming back...I'd LOVE to see those pairings going at it..but yes, Leo made Greenlee likeable. On a sad note, don't know if anyone's seen, but Francesco Quinn (Anthony's son) who was on Y&R, passed away at a way too young 48 today. I loved him on the show and wish he could have stayed around longer.

[Margie]

Mallory, you said all what I was feeling. Their scenes were incredible and I was squealing right along with you and crying too! I am complete now.

[C]

Tons of chemistry between JD and RB in those scenes. Seems like they were able to jump back into it years after they last filmed together, which is pretty amazing. And did you read that when the show got cancelled, JD sent RB a bunch of flowers and a card that said "Greenlee and Leo Forever"? So cute.

Also...I knew it was Zach, but when the music got all suspenseful when Greenlee went to look, I got chills.

[LadyBug]

Greenlee and Ryan both had superior pairings with Leo and Gillian that they could never find again. I never understood why AMC killed of Gillian since she was the only woman besides the first pairing of Kendall/Ryan that I ever liked. Ryan is now a slime ball (he had an affair with Erica Kane! his son's grandmother...gross!) and his pairing with Greenlee is boring.

[kelly]

thank God I wasn't the only one who squealed with delight when Leo opened his eyes and whispered "Greens." And when Greenlee woke up I screamed again. I know he has a career and Transformers can't be made without him but I wanted them to go on forever and for her to be all "Ryan who?" But the time we had with them was just magical and worth the wait!!!! I just sighed and melted and wanted the episode to never end.

[Jill]

I, too, squealed and yelled "LEO!!!" Loved that we got a bunch of flashbacks, too. Their chemistry is undeniable. I would have loved for it to have not been a dream and for them to have run away together. A girl can dream, right?!

[Smooshiest]

I honestly can't remember whether I squealed or not; I can say that I was weeping like a baby the entire time they were on screen together. Several times, I got up for a tissue, only needing more. At the end of the episode, I had to get up and wash my face. At this point, my husband came home from work, was upset that I was sad, until he realized why. What he said made watching the episode all the more worth it, "I'm gonna need to see that, too. Hope you saved it.". Mind you all, he doesn't normally watch the show, but knows my love for it and loves that it is part of me.

[M]

I heart Smooshiest's hubby for that comment...

[Smooshiest]

@M: That's sweet!! Really, he was there for the beginning of Greenleo and he watched the horrible waterfall scenes with me then. That he's completely okay with me having a total crush on Josh Duhamel is a plus, too.

[Ron]

^^
You have got a good husband, there!

[Ron]

There were some really good scenes on AMC today - none of those involved Ryan in any way, however - but Tad and Dixie......I think I almost forgot to breathe, they were so good. Now I know what Cady meant about how much we'd like her and Tad together again.

He's done with the terrible part of his grief, but Dixie is still deep in his heart. Then, he has his heart-to-heart with the night sky, and he hears her voice. MEK played it perfectly. The stunned disbelief turning to shocked happiness. And Cady did the same. Her utter relief, her feelings stripped down to love, her fragility. It was just great.