| An analysis of the "Desire" episodes of the show Port Charles, formerly of ABC-TV. This site will focus on the scenes featuring the vampire character Caleb Morley/Stephen Clay (portrayed by actor Michael Easton). The character of Caleb Morley/Stephen Clay and any other characters relating to Port Charles are the property of ABC and their creators. This is a fan-run site and is not an official site, nor is it affiliated in any way with ABC, Port Charles, or the actors portraying any of the Port Charles characters. No copyright infringement is intended. The writings on this site are copyrighted by the author, Alison Armstrong, and may not be reproduced without the author's express permission. |
| "Desire": Analysis of the "Desire" Arc of ABC-TV's Port Charles
(c) Alison Armstrong |
| "Desire" Analysis #1 “Give me back my broken night my mirrored room, my secret life it's lonely here, there's no one left to torture Give me absolute control over every living soul And lie beside me, baby, that's an order! . . . Things are going to slide, slide in all directions Won't be nothing Nothing you can measure anymore The blizzard, the blizzard of the world has crossed the threshold and it has overturned the order of the soul . . . I've seen the nations rise and fall I've heard their stories, heard them all but love's the only engine of survival Your servant here, he has been told to say it clear, to say it cold: It's over, it ain't going any further And now the wheels of heaven stop you feel the devil's riding crop Get ready for the future: it is murder. . . . ” “The Future” by Leonard Cohen The “Desire” arc begins with scenes of devastation and despair. Having detonated the blast that destroyed the healing springs, Joshua plots to establish a tyranny of bloodshed with himself as absolute ruler over the populace of Port Charles. His ruthless climb to power throughout this arc sets into motion an apocalyptic showdown in which the forces of light and darkness must merge in order to defeat him. “Desire,” my least favorite of the Port Charles arcs featuring Caleb Morley/Stephen Clay, is often depressing and, at times, ridiculously campy. The magic, beauty, and seductiveness so prevalent in the other Caleb arcs seems to have vanished along with the disappearance of Caleb’s vampire immortality. Caleb, that sublime icon of entrancing, decadent, dangerous passion, has been transformed into an anguished, victimized mortal. Although this arc brilliantly showcases Michael Easton’s versatility and agonized intensity, it trivializes the vampire mystique Port Charles had so beautifully evoked in previous arcs. To have the wickedly funny yet cartoonish villain Joshua begin transforming Port Charles’s residents, including its elderly socialites, into vampires drastically diminishes the allure and otherworldly glamour traditionally associated with vampires. Unlike the rebellious, creative Caleb and the vampires of Anne Rice’s novels, Joshua’s vampires, lacking passion, aestheticism, and seductiveness, are just as mundane, materialistic, and bourgeois as any commonplace human. It is painful to watch the exquisitely sensual Caleb languish in mortal misery while a legion of banal, boring Port Charles inhabitants flash their fangs and gracelessly infiltrate the power structure of the town, assuming the role of bureaucrats and corporate directors. The first few scenes of “Desire,” taking place after the explosion, set the dismal, desolate tone for the rest of the arc. Dust and rocks are all that remain of the once-magnificent springs. The springs’ magical secrets exploited, they are laid to waste, victims of the Slayers’ anti-vampire vendetta and Joshua’s malevolent lust for power. In the midst of their rubble, Caleb lies. Like the springs, his power and magic have been stolen, stripped from him by the forces of vengeance and ruthless ambition. Close nearby lies Lucy, also half-buried and unconscious, two enemies, the slayer and the former vampire, both felled by the explosion. Ian tends to Lucy, frantically trying to revive her, while Caleb is subject to the sadistic whims of his other foes. Sensing that Caleb is in danger, Livvie stands on the balcony of the Villa, the silken curtains shrouding her tear-drenched face. The rosy glow of candles has grown ashen, a gauze of grey enveloping her in gloom and dread. |
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| Snappies of "Surrender"/"Desire" scenes taken by A. Armstrong |