On the April 22nd episode of Guiding Light, Jessica Leccia’s Natalia took control and didn’t relinquish it for a moment. She faced down Crystal Chappell’s Olivia and told her, in no uncertain terms, that she knows the consequences of telling someone you love them. She knows what’s she done and she is more than willing to take on whatever comes. She shouted down Olivia’s attempts at “saving” Natalia from the shame, the ridicule, of what their love could mean to them.
The look on her face when Emma asked her if she would be attending her play at school, talking over Olivia to tell the Jelly Bean that she “Would love to” brooked no argument and Olivia knew better than to try. At the school she willingly confronted Olivia, calling her out for her actions and attitude, then stood up to the backlash she knew was coming. And there was real conviction in her voice and her expression when she told Olivia the hardest thing she had to do on the day of her wedding to Frank was “telling you that I love you. Telling you how I really feel.”
Her expression was set and she snapped at Olivia on multiple occasions, unwilling to let Ms. Spencer bully her into accepting how she thought it should be. Nat was strong, she was forceful and, once she built up a good head of steam, she was very, very sure of herself. She even managed to tell Olivia off at one point, quite pointedly, I might add. She was not, as she so purposefully told Olivia, at all naïve
She called Olivia to task for selling her short. Angrily and defiantly so. I do find it ironic that Natalia called Olivia on this, since it was always Olivia telling her she was better than the station in life she’d settled for. It was wonderful to see Natalia standing up for herself, for what she was feeling and what she truly believed in, which, honestly, was their love.
She might have completely knocked down the walls Olivia had so carefully constructed after their mutual confessions of love last week if the show hadn’t ended and we hadn’t just absolutely known that Frank would somehow manage to interrupt… Impeccable timing that man has, they could use him over on All My Children whenever Ryan and Kendall get within range of each other…
It takes a very strong actor to be able to stand toe to toe with someone of Crystal Chappell’s caliber and not fade into the background beneath such a commanding presence and formidable performance. Jessica Leccia is just that type of actor. She not only holds her own, but makes herself an equal to the daytime powerhouse and today proved it. Natalia’s confession of love at the gazebo was a powerful moment. But when Natalia faced off with Olivia in Emma’s classroom and took control of the moment, took control of her emotions and the situation, she wasn’t the Natalia Rivera that Olivia mocked and insulted in the weeks following Gus’ death.
She was Olivia’s equal.
Everybody knows what a powerful, talented actor Crystal Chapell is. Now everyone will know that Jessica Leccia is just the same.
***********
Things I learned on GL today (although some of them occurred during the previews for tomorrow):
Billy needs medical attention for what appears to be a massive tapeworm
Frank is a horrible detective, unless it involves Nat then he’s got the tracking skills of a Lakota Warrior
Buzz needs to comb the hair, yet keep away from the hair gel
Roc really sucks at keeping people captive
Never turn your back on the guy holding the gun
Olivia will kill someone someday with those incredible eyes of hers
Bosnia looks curiously like rural New Jersey
Nurse Call/TV remotes in hospital rooms can double as walkie talkies
Tipping Bosnian bellmen really well doesn’t improve their English comprehension
Putting a gun at the bottom of the suitcase, between a couple of shirts, makes it invisible to airline security… And customs…
Bosnian children have very nice Midwestern accents
Never eat at Company if you see Buzz, Billy and a computer on the counter. Especially don’t eat at the counter…
Nice hotels in Bosnia are never very far from wide open rural spaces
Dinah IS Carmen SanDiego… and Carmen SanDiego is in Bosnia right now…
thanks again to YouTube member Yodaluver28 for the clip of Otalia from the April 22nd episode
qqsuited.wordpress.com 
April 22, 2009 at 11:23 pm
I realized while watching today’s show how little I know about Bosnia (even though I do recognize Jersey very well).
the call button at the hospital also bothered me – at first i thought it was a surge protector, reminiscent of the computer mouse around Liv’s neck during the pacemaker story. lol!
you made me chuckle
April 23, 2009 at 9:13 am
I adore your snarky wit, MB. Absolutely adore it. You are spot on about Frank. Kind of a bumbling idiot, unless it involves sniffing out Nat; then he’s like a Blood Hound.
Reading your summary of yesterday’s Otalia scenes brought back the shivers I had when watching them. JL came into her own, with those scenes, and Nat took control; which I love, love. For the first time in her life, Olivia has no defenses against a potential lover. It’s clear that Nat owns her and her heart and has no intention of returning them.
Olivia’s been hurt by love more than Nat, and she’s scared because she can’t fight how she feels.
I’ve said this before on other boards – now is when the hard part begins. Figuring out how the hell they’re gonna do this. The first thing is trust. Trust in themselves and each other. Nat has it, in spades. Olivia’s gotta realize she can trust too.
April 23, 2009 at 10:04 am
Crystal has always been a powerhouse and its great to see Jessica getting the recognition she deserves. Jess has really killed her scenes lately and Otalia has been awesome.
Nat is going to have break down Liv’s walls but I have no doubt she will do so. Nat took charge yesterday and I loved it.
Loved the things I learned about GL today. It was very funny but true.
April 23, 2009 at 10:08 am
I heart take-charge Natalia. She took charge when Liv wanted to die and she will fight for Liv again now. Brilliant job by JLH and EW!
April 23, 2009 at 10:20 am
Jessica Leccia is AMAZING. She has really grown over the past year and truly has great talent. I love the fact that Natalia is taking-charge. Brilliant job by everyone, JL, CC and the writers. I ❤ this show!!
April 23, 2009 at 10:27 am
I loved yesterday’s episode. I love Otalia…this story just keeps getting better and better from scene to scene. I am most happy at the recognition given to Jessica Leccia…there would absolutely be no Otalia without her. I seriously doubt any other daytime actress could stand opposite CC and match her intensity in this SL.
April 23, 2009 at 10:36 am
I couldn’t agree more with your assessment of JL’s performance. It was good to see Natalia stand up and make her voice heard instead of just letting everyone else do the talking for her. I am so honored to be along for this journey with these incredible characters and just have to have thank EW, JLH, CC and JL for creating a storyline about love, friendship, family and faith that is heartwarming and captivating.
April 23, 2009 at 10:36 am
man, jessica has come in to her own, hasn’t she? natalia is being written as the only one who can stand in olivia’s wake. and when she gets all lathered up, that is some wake. we all knew natalia could fight. she certainly fought with olivia after the heart transplant and she fought for olivia with phillip. and now it seems she is gonna have to fight with olivia while fighting for olivia.
i am now convinced that natalia is gonna be the reason otalia happens. she is gonna be the one who initiates the first kiss, she is gonna be the one who stands tall, the one who faces any obstacles they face. she will not cower. and olivia is gonna love every second of it.
great post MB. as for the “what i learned” section, i think you need to head to springfield and offer to give a series of lunch and learn seminars about gun, personal and health safety. those people need some serious help.
April 23, 2009 at 10:38 am
I agree with everything you said. Im glad that gave Jessica/Nat her own moment. Liv’s graveside confession was big and it was hard to beat, although Jess(apparently I call her Jess now) did a nice job, but she needed her own stand alone moment and the school scene was perfect. So well acted and so well written. I heart them all.
April 23, 2009 at 10:42 am
Jessica Leccia’s performance yesterday is brilliant. She works well with Crystal Chappell and she is definitely an equal to the Goddess of Daytime because Jessica is a Goddess, too!!
I loved how Natalia stood up for what she believes in; her love for Olivia and the love for their family. Natalia chose Olivia and that is something Olivia has not experienced. Natalia and Olivia are meant to be and their storyline is currently the best love story on daytime, primetime, and cable TV.
And yes, Frankfurter has a way of interrupting our girls at the wrong time. Blake needs to keep Frank occupied!!
Thanks for your coverage of Jessica Leccia’s strong performances. Guiding Light and Crystal Chappell are lucky to have her.
April 23, 2009 at 10:51 am
Thanks so much – agree totally. Her performance is so subtle yet strong.
April 23, 2009 at 10:54 am
Thank you for this! It always bugs me a bit when people put Jessica Leccia in the shadow of CC. I know it’s probably because Natalia wasn’t telling us what is on her mind, but Jessica showed us without words with her eyes, her face, her body language. Amazing!
Now we’re finally at the arc of this beautiful story where it’s Natalia’s turn to stand up and show the audience. Jessica rocks this scenes! She’s amazingly talented and it’s such a pleasure to watch her and CC in this so well written storyline! I’m in awe….
April 23, 2009 at 10:56 am
JL was great in this episode. Nat is the only one who can stand up to Olivia. Nat will fight for Liv. Man I love these women. Otalia FTW
April 23, 2009 at 11:10 am
Thank goodness Natalia is back to standing up to Olivia. I have missed it. Now she just needs to clear the air with Frank. I want to avoid weeks of “I don’t know how I am going to tell Frank” coming from Natalia.
Jessica is such a talent. Natalia’s meltdown at the altar was a riveting performance.
April 23, 2009 at 11:11 am
“Frank is a horrible detective, unless it involves Nat then he’s got the tracking skills of a Lakota Warrior”
I seriously laughed for a good 10 minutes at this… hilarious!
April 23, 2009 at 11:14 am
Jessica was the star of the show yesturday. Only Natalia can fight as a equal with Olivia, and Jessica definitely has the chops to stand toe-to-toe with the Goddess we all know and love.
I’m amazed at how well this storyline is being written and portrayed. I’m gonna have to expand my vocabulary just to express how much I love this show.
Loved, absolutely loved the “things I learned from GL today”…LMAO!
April 23, 2009 at 11:29 am
Feisty Natalia is back and it’s about time. Jessica Leccia has been masterfully demonstrating that she can stand toe-to-toe with a powerhouse like Crystal Chappell and we saw that convincingly in yesterday’s show. Brava Jess!
April 23, 2009 at 11:32 am
I have been saying for weeks:
Natalia will stop the wedding – CHECK!
Natalia WILL step it up and show that she is a well written, 3 dimensional character – CHECK!
Jessica Leccia is a star in the making – CHECK CHECK CHECK CHECK!
Jessica Leccia has a nuance that makes my heart race. A conviction, delicate and superbly genuine acting ability that I cannot pull myself away from. She is POWERFUL. Yesterday, as I have already posted, those of us lucky enough to have seen it, a STAR was born. This is her break out performance. Yesterday’s episode was the evidence.
She is one that I will watch for years.
And, Olivia and Natalia falling in love is the story I have been waiting all of my life to see. I am swept away and happily so.
April 23, 2009 at 11:42 am
Brilliant summary of Jessica’s performance! So glad she has gotten this time to shine and reveal the consummate actor she truly is!! As you said, anyone who can command the attention of Crystal Chappell on the screen is deserving of any accolades we can bestow on her!
In terms of story line, this episode was pitch perfect!! We needed to see Natalia stand up for herself and address Olivia’s (and the audience’s) concerns about her faith and her strength. And Natalia delivered on all counts! Great writing and absolutely spot-on performance by the beautiful Jessica Leccia!
And your list of things you learned? hilarious! my favorite was Carmen Sandiego! Thanks because I knew she looked like someone!! LMAO!!!
April 23, 2009 at 11:51 am
I really missed feisty Natalia. It is about time she spoke up for herself. I must agree with what others have said, Jessica Leccia has definitely become Crystal’s equal. Jess is extremely gifted, I am excited to see her get the recognition she deserves.
April 23, 2009 at 11:52 am
Excellent blog!!! Jessica Leccia really is perfectly cast for this role! Im in total agreement that she is every bit the equal partner in this acting dou! The ebb and flow between CC and JL is a wonderful thing to watch.
April 23, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Great piece and I completely agree with your assessment of JL’s acting. She held her own for sure and showed us that Natalia truly is Olivia’s equal!
The two lines that cracked me up!!! Oh how I love that you mentioned Carmen Sandiego!!!
Never eat at Company if you see Buzz, Billy and a computer on the counter. Especially don’t eat at the counter…
Dinah IS Carmen SanDiego… and Carmen SanDiego is in Bosnia right now…
April 23, 2009 at 12:08 pm
OMG. I’m still chortling and snorting (like Lily Tomlin’s Ernestine used to do) over that list. Carmen SanDiego! That’s it exactly! I was trying to think what she reminded me of. LOL
And, yes, the glorious Jess as the soft-spoken Nat came into her own as a full partner in this relationship they are slowly building. It was Olivia who helped her to find this new confidence, but the inner strength has been there all along. I always knew she would not let us down. Go for it, Nat! Olivia’s heart belongs to you. Remember way back (after Nat locked Liv in the bathroom) when she said “I’d give you my heart if I could”…mission accomplished.
April 23, 2009 at 12:14 pm
These characters are written to be so three-dimensional. That is why we are all so captured by them. Natalia takes a while to make up her mind, she has weigh everything first. Once she does make up her mind, she is on a mission. She looked like she came out of a coma and is relieved to take charge of her life again. We forget that she is independent and doesn’t need someone to lead her like a sacrificial lamb everywhere. Welcome back Natalia! Olivia needs the real you and JL, you were great!
April 23, 2009 at 12:47 pm
OK so your incredibly beautiful write-up of yesterday’s episode was spot on and perfect. But it didn’t quite prepare me for what followed…ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
OMG, laughing my butt off – yes, yes, in all our reverance of all things Otalia, you can’t help but watch with glee at some of the inanity which surrounds them. its all good fun though – we need it to counter the most angsty love sick couple ever!
April 23, 2009 at 12:49 pm
ditto to all you said!!
April 23, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Great article. Jessica was awesome and she continues to deliever everytime she’s on screen. She and Crystal have amazing chemistry and Natalia will gladly put Olivia in her place whenever she gets out of line. Natalia is really the only person that Olivia will listen to and that says a lot because Olivia doesn’t listen to anybody. I’m glad that the writers finally unleashed fierce Natalia:)
April 23, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Another great write-up, MB! I completely agree about Jessica’s performance…we are truly fortunate to have these two wonderful actresses playing out this story for us.
Oh, and who says soaps aren’t educational! LOL!
April 23, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Lakota Warrior!!!! Score says the fifth grade teacher!!!
Love JL!
April 23, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Jessica Leccia’s perfomance yesterday took my breath away! literally! I agree with you that Jessica became Crystal’s equal in that episode.
April 23, 2009 at 1:30 pm
i’m so happy you’re writing about how JL totally rocked it in this episode. i have to say that i am completely new to this soaps, so while it was clear that Crystal is an amazing, powerhouse actress, it never occurred to me *not* to put Jessica on the same pedestal. The more i see of her in this story, the more impressed i am by her acting.
April 23, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Amen to JL getting some props and attention of her own! She’s had a pretty thankless job of having her character somewhat muzzled for plot necessity (Must create obstacle. Must slow down progress) and while Sphinx!Nat was played with tantalizing ambiguity, Feisty!Nat rules and I’m, so glad she’s been unleashed along with her confession!
I re-watched those school scenes over and over and it was JL I was watching for newly noticed nuances and expressions. And her snark is back!
2 equals going toe to toe and (hopefully soon) lip to lip? Oh, this is gonna be good!
Thanks for the article and for giving Jessica Leccia the love.
April 23, 2009 at 3:08 pm
Yes Jessica great actress, I’m usually Crystal fan, but I found myself a Jessica fan the last couple episode, that’s saying a lot. Glad to see her character give it to Olivia. Please someone pick up this show. It’s the best on TV.
April 23, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Love that Jessica’s getting some recongition of her own. And your “Things I learned…” was great!
April 23, 2009 at 4:00 pm
Jessica Leccia proved what a powerhouse performer she is and it was made quite clear that Natalia might be the dominant personality in the Otalia coupling. Natalia is a woman of many talents and she may be the first person to have succeeded at calling Olivia out on all her excuses. Jessica is a Goddess. Long live Dimples.
April 23, 2009 at 4:02 pm
Go Jess! She was absolutely fabulous yesterday! Natalia finally grew that backbone that Olivia wanted her to grow! This story is so true to life! The writers have done an incredible job! Go Otalia! Guiding Light still has a lot of life left!
April 23, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Otalia! What an awesome team they are!!!!
Loving Otalia!!!!
April 23, 2009 at 5:08 pm
Jessica finally got her moment! … and she hit the ball out of the park! Awesome performance! I heart Jessica! Go, Nat!
April 23, 2009 at 5:31 pm
I liked this entire blog article but I especially loved the segment on things you learned. With much snark and wit, you have a great sense of humor. The remote/walkie-talkie/nurse call apparatus caused me to wonder if these devices really did exist in hospitals and maybe the ones that i have visited aren’t quite up with the technology of GL.
I agree with your thoughts on the performance of Jessica Leccia. Jessica gives her role even more depth and has really succeeded in taking her charater to multi-dimensional status. It is an amazing sight to behold as we watch Natalia as her layers unfold. JL is really doing some wonderful acting and it is a testament to her craft that she can stand on equal footing next to the greatest in Crystal Chappell.
GL has struck gold with Otalia and these two stellar actresses at the helm of this beautiful storyline. This magical love story should be seen entirely to fruition and i believe that with CC & JL, Guiding Light has the perfect performers capable of changing hearts and minds.
April 23, 2009 at 5:43 pm
Excellent post. I really like how you point out that Olivia’s been the one to tell Natalia not to sell herself short, been the one to encourage her to be more than “just” a maid, been the one to give her opportunities… and yet Olivia is the one who is now saying “No, you can’t handle this.”
I love how Natalia seems bent on proving Olivia wrong. 🙂
I also agree that Jessica Leccia is really stepping it up a notch. Crystal Chappell is a formidable presence but JL did not look at all out of place verbally sparring with her.
So good to see such commentary that picks out the subtleties. 🙂
April 23, 2009 at 5:50 pm
Excellent summation of Jessica’s acting ability! She really shined in those moments in the classroom. I am so excited for what’s to come with Olivia and Natalia. They are establishing themselves as equals in their relationship, and Jessica is matching Crystal’s delivery. I also learned that Bosnia looks much like my neighborhood…who knew there was such a resemble between the Balkans and Central Jersey!?
April 24, 2009 at 5:29 am
Yes, Jess was wonderful. A lot of her role through this storyline has involved playing someone who’s feelings are bottled in, anxious to please, reacting rather taking action. It hasn’t given Jessica much scope, though she’s been very believable all through. Now we finally get to see Natalia’s feelings, and Jess really showed she has what it takes.
And I was totally giggling at the “Things I Learned”
April 25, 2009 at 7:48 am
Thanks for recognizing the outstanding work that Jessica Leccia is doing in this storyline. Crystal Chappell is a powerhouse and it goes without saying that she’s been amazing. Natalia is a more understated character, though, and Jess has managed to brilliantly convey the range of her emotions. GL is as good as it’s ever been–this show needs a new home ASAP!
April 25, 2009 at 9:18 pm
I so agree. Jessica as Natalia really showed how much of an equal she is to Crystal/Olivia. The show keeps just giving us these exceptional moments with these two wonderful characters.
Keep on sharing your astute observations.