Oh Erica

 

I can still hear Mona say ‘Oh Erica’ over the years in exasperation about whatever Erica had done. I found myself saying those words as I watched AMC and Koma Kendall. Here’s the amazing thing: Only sometimes did I say those words in exasperation.

 

I understand where Erica is coming from in the battle of who to save – Kendall or the baby. I keep thinking that if it were my daughter, I would want to save her, too. That’s not to say that I don’t understand Zach’s point of view. He knows that Kendall as a mother would want to say her child.

 

Erica tends toward the melodramatic. (Okay, tends toward the melodramatic may be an understatement.) That’s just her character. Sometimes, I hate her. Sometimes, I like her. Sometimes, I’m terribly annoyed with her. Sometimes, I sympathize with her. Sometimes, I just want to slap her. All of those things were true recently.

 

Erica has given some exasperating ‘Oh Erica’ moments over past week. I begin to lose sympathy when she blamed Zach and manipulated Ryan. Everything is always Zach’s fault. Oh Erica, you just don’t understand that Zach is a good guy. Then she told Ryan that if he didn’t go along with the c-section, Kendall’s death would be his fault. Oh Erica, how controlling can you be? Hiring a private investigator to dig up dirt on Zach was malicious. Using it in court was callous. Oh Erica. And you called Zach the manipulator when it's you who tries to manipulate.

 

Other moments stood out as well. When the doctor informed them that the pressure in Kendall’s brain was increasing, and time was running out, Erica calmly appealed to her son-in-law. “Kendall is my daughter. I love her,” she told Zach. No melodrama, just genuineness.  

 

Erica may be experiencing some guilt here as well. For years, she treated Kendall as the inferior child. Her love was hardly unconditional, until be past couple of years. Even now, she seems to love Kendall in spite of what she perceives as Kendall’s moronic behavior. Oh Erica. You underestimate Kendall. She has offered her life more than once for someone she loves, including Bianca and Greenlee. Would it be such a stretch that she would want to do the same for her child?

 

Oh Erica. You compounded the problem by calling Derek. My only question here is how he got there so fast with a SWAT team in tow.

 

Some people have commented that Kendall shouldn't forgive Erica. I disagree. How can you not forgive your mother for wanting you to live. She was whiny, melodramatic and manipulative. But in the end, she just wanted to save her daughter.

 

Oh Erica.