"The Gift": Analysis of "The Gift" Arc of ABC-TV's Port Charles
(c) Alison Armstrong
(c) Alison Armstrong
An analysis of the "The Gift" 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.
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.
"The Gift" Analysis #28
Having meddled with forces only Caleb and his forebears have the expertise to master, Livvie and Rafe must face
the dire consequences of their reckless and misguided acts.
As a result of his foolhardy quest to attain the ring, Rafe has landed himself in Hell, where he remains, imprisoned
by demons and fierce predatory beings like those he had spent his life struggling to destroy. “You have traveled
to a place you know you don’t belong, expecting to get something you know isn’t yours, ” a sinister sepulchral
voice reprimands. Tossing Rafe around like a piece of lint in a windstorm, the invisible bass-voiced entity is
unconvinced by Rafe’s self-righteous claim that he would not use the ring for himself but only wants to send it
back to Hell. “So you say,” it laughs mirthlessly. “But once in your hands, do you think you could avoid the
temptation to use the ring, to make just this one wish?” “The fate of everybody will soon be tied to the ring,” it
predicts, warning him that he should have listened to Alison instead of leaving her alone, unprotected.
The fate of everybody now rests in the hands of Livvie. Holding the ring, Livvie is tempted yet frightened by the
nearly unlimited power passively awaiting her command. Always needy, always craving, she suddenly finds
herself unable to decide what she most dearly wants to obtain. Like a child at a candy store, she cannot make up
her mind—too many choices, too many delicious possibilities. But unlike the child browsing for delectable treats,
Livvie must be extremely careful to choose wisely, for a wish poorly chosen or ambiguously expressed could
bring poisonous results.
Having meddled with forces only Caleb and his forebears have the expertise to master, Livvie and Rafe must face
the dire consequences of their reckless and misguided acts.
As a result of his foolhardy quest to attain the ring, Rafe has landed himself in Hell, where he remains, imprisoned
by demons and fierce predatory beings like those he had spent his life struggling to destroy. “You have traveled
to a place you know you don’t belong, expecting to get something you know isn’t yours, ” a sinister sepulchral
voice reprimands. Tossing Rafe around like a piece of lint in a windstorm, the invisible bass-voiced entity is
unconvinced by Rafe’s self-righteous claim that he would not use the ring for himself but only wants to send it
back to Hell. “So you say,” it laughs mirthlessly. “But once in your hands, do you think you could avoid the
temptation to use the ring, to make just this one wish?” “The fate of everybody will soon be tied to the ring,” it
predicts, warning him that he should have listened to Alison instead of leaving her alone, unprotected.
The fate of everybody now rests in the hands of Livvie. Holding the ring, Livvie is tempted yet frightened by the
nearly unlimited power passively awaiting her command. Always needy, always craving, she suddenly finds
herself unable to decide what she most dearly wants to obtain. Like a child at a candy store, she cannot make up
her mind—too many choices, too many delicious possibilities. But unlike the child browsing for delectable treats,
Livvie must be extremely careful to choose wisely, for a wish poorly chosen or ambiguously expressed could
bring poisonous results.
Snappies of "The Gift" scenes taken by
A. Armstrong
A. Armstrong
While Livvie is deliberating her choices, preparing to test the ring’s power, Alison feels powerless over her
future and Rafe’s fate. Rafe has ignored her pleas, deliberately summoning the forces of darkness so that he
could be sent to Hell and thereby discover the secrets of the ring. Alone, despairing, frightened for his life and
soul, she heads towards the barn where she and Rafe had made love. Here, the site of their pastoral romance,
she tries to figure out how she can somehow rescue her soulmate.
“I’m not going to cry,” she admonishes herself. “I’m not going to. I’m so sick of crying. It’s time for me to
do whatever I can. Caleb’s not going to help me. I should never have even asked.”
Unseen, unheard, Caleb has entered the barn and now hovers beside Alison, listening to her self-chastising
lament. “You’re right, Alison,” he smiles sardonically. “That was stupid.”
future and Rafe’s fate. Rafe has ignored her pleas, deliberately summoning the forces of darkness so that he
could be sent to Hell and thereby discover the secrets of the ring. Alone, despairing, frightened for his life and
soul, she heads towards the barn where she and Rafe had made love. Here, the site of their pastoral romance,
she tries to figure out how she can somehow rescue her soulmate.
“I’m not going to cry,” she admonishes herself. “I’m not going to. I’m so sick of crying. It’s time for me to
do whatever I can. Caleb’s not going to help me. I should never have even asked.”
Unseen, unheard, Caleb has entered the barn and now hovers beside Alison, listening to her self-chastising
lament. “You’re right, Alison,” he smiles sardonically. “That was stupid.”
“I will never make that mistake ever again,” she vows.
“Oh, I’m pretty sure you will,” Caleb, like a Greek chorus, wryly observes. He knows that she will do anything
to save Rafe, even if it is against her own better nature and to her own detriment.
“Rafe made his way back from Heaven, and I know he’s going to make his way back from Hell, too,” she tries
to convince herself. “I just have to believe. Yeah, if I believe that I have enough faith, maybe my faith will
move mountains. It has to.”
“Oh, I’m pretty sure you will,” Caleb, like a Greek chorus, wryly observes. He knows that she will do anything
to save Rafe, even if it is against her own better nature and to her own detriment.
“Rafe made his way back from Heaven, and I know he’s going to make his way back from Hell, too,” she tries
to convince herself. “I just have to believe. Yeah, if I believe that I have enough faith, maybe my faith will
move mountains. It has to.”