2001 Fight

Soaps In Depth
June 12, 2001

Fight to the Death

by unknown

This week on One Life to Live, Gina's obsession with Ben threatens to turn deadly - for Viki!  Will Ben be able to rescue his beloved Blondie from the Mafia princess' clutches?

Viki Vanishes!

After a heated confrontation with Ben, Gina finally admits that she's been hiding Viki in her basement.  But when Gina opens the cellar door to show him his "altered" wife, Viki is nowhere to be found!  Gina then gloats that his Blondie is suffering another bout of multiple personality disorder, and that "Jean" must have escaped her makeshift prison. 

When Ben balks at Gina's revelation, she shows him proof in the form of a videotape.  As Ben watches Niki, Jean, et al., in horror, Gina makes a mad dash for the door.  Ben races after her,  but is stopped by her henchmen.  Meanwhile, Gina heads to the cliffs, where she had James bring "Jean."

Gina and "Jean" Face Off!

As Gina and "Jean" go toe-to-toe, it is evident that Gina will stop at nothing to get her man...even murder.  "Ben is the only man she was ever with," explains executive producer Gary Tomlin, "so it's this undying fantasy, this idyllic love that her monstrous father basically put and end to years ago.  But it never ended in her mind."

Further fueling Gina's fury is the fact that Ben still cares for her on some level.  "He did have feelings for all those years ago," Tomlin continues.  "But her emotional development was stunted by her father, whereas Ben has gone on and lived his life.  It's difficult for him to perceive that this woman would be that obsessed with him because it's been a long time."

A Motive for Murder!

In fact, not a day has gone by that Gina hasn't longed for Ben.  "All those years ago, Ben and Gina were going to get married," explains the lady mobster's portrayer, Lisa Peluso.  "They were going to leave their families and get out of the life' altogether, but her father threatened to kill him [if they ran away together].  So she cannot accept reality because she's been so wronged by her daddy.

"The reason she worked so hard to be head honcho [after her father died] was to wield the power to get Ben back," she explains.

Tomlin adds that Gina's problems with her father parallel Viki's dysfunctional relationship with Victor Lord.  "Viki's mental illness is [a result of] what happened with her father, and Gina is not very sympathetic," she says.  "In Gina's mind, she was stronger; she didn't have to split into other personalities to [cope]."

A Shot is Fired!

As the women struggle furiously, Gina pulls out a gun to kill "Jean" as they veer dangerously close to a cliff.  Just then "Jean" morphs into "Niki" and then, finally, "Tori,"  Viki's most violent persona.  As Ben arrives the gun goes off!  When the dust settles, who will be left standing?