Death Becomes Her

If Jesse can come back from the dead after dying ON-SCREEN in Angie's arms twenty years ago, I think All My Children can write one of their greatest wrongs by reviving the late Dixie Cooney, most recognizably portrayed by Double Emmy Winner Cady McClain (1989-96, 1998-2002, 2006-07).

McClain just wrapped a six month stint on As the World Turns. She stated in her blog that ABC is yet to contact her about a return to All My Children.

Dixie fell victim to the Satin Slayer, Alexander Cambias, in mid-2007. Fans had waited four years for McClain's return since the character's apparent death in a off-screen car accident in 2002. Instead of the much anticipated reunion of star-crossed lovers Tad Martin (Michael E. Knight) and Dixie Cooney (pictured above in one of their last scenes), we got a promise of a date before her untimely demise, the victim of mistaken identity.

Now with the "Search for Kate Martin" storyline back in full gear (Sydney Penny's maternity leave put a halt to the story), there would be no greater payoff than a reunion for all the Martins, including Dixie. I don't think there will be a dry eye when Dixie finally holds the little girl she lost, in her arms again.

Jesse's return breaks all the rules:

• Jesse died onscreen. So did Dixie.
• Jesse appeared as a spirit to his family. So did Dixie (in a very busty white dress if I say so myself).

There is no excuse as to why Dixie cannot come home. Maybe Dr. David Hayward whisked her off and came up with another miracle cure (like Omar and Taylor on The Bold and the Beautiful). Maybe Palmer Cortlandt staged the death to remove Dixie from the threats at Chandler Mansion. Maybe Dixie took the opportunity to slip out of Pine Valley and continue the search for Kate the only way she knew how, alone.

Give fans what we have waited for: Bring Kate home. Reunite Tad and Dixie.

The Problem with Jesse
With news of Darnall Williams return to All My Children, the inevitable question is whether he will be playing Jesse Hubbard (1981-88, 94, 2001-02) or Jacob Foster (1995, Loving; 1995-97, The City).

I lean towards the idea of Jacob's return. There are too many questions that would need to be answered for Jesse's return to be believable. Where was Jesse for the last twenty years? Since it wasn't Jesse' spirit who visited Tad in 1994 and helped Gillian in 2001, who was it? If it was him, were all those spirits (Jenny, Ray, Natalie, Cindy, Travis, Jeremy, et al) not really dead?

Let's not pull a Michael McBain here. We all saw how that went.

Another question that would need to be addressed is what happened with Angie and Jacob after The City. If they broke up, what happened to their daughter, Cassandra? How will Angie explain to Jesse why she fell in love with his doppleganger?

Jesse's return would be outlandish, even for soap standards. The complexity of the situation is further compromised by the fact that Jacob exists. Any viewer of Loving can tell you that his introduction was a lot to swallow. Why revisit that open wound when we can all just move on?

Angie has a lot more to do in her life now than worry about her long thought dead husband. Maybe Frank finally told her about his son with Mia Saunders, William. We don't know much about Dre... maybe he is William. The search for her grandson can lead Angie back to Pine Valley, the place she said she could never call home again after Jesse's death.