Story Blurbs- Editor's Choice

1997 Editor's Choice- Maddie's Daddies (SOD 12/9/1997): 
"When Dimitri and Maria slept together last summer, AMC fans revolted en masse. 'Just trust us,' begged the powers-that-were, but by that point, the writers had murdered Laurel, zombified Noah and Julia and turned Erica into a drug addict. There was no reason to trust the show anymore, and it seemed like the duo's single night of illict passion was nothing but the latest in a string of blunders.
    As it turned out, the seeds that were sown (literally) that night grew into one of the best-told, most fascinating storylines of the year. In January, Skye changed a pregnant Maria's paternity test so Maria would think Dimitri, not Edmund, was her baby's father. Ever since, fabulous plot points have blossomed in succession like flowers in a well-planned garden. In February, Erica delivered Maria's baby. By March, Erica had claimed it as her adopted Russsian infant, Sonya. Erica 'fessed up in June, but Maria was killed in a plane crash in August. In October, Dimitri realized he wasn't Maddie's daddy, but by that point, he had to keep the child to retain Gloria's love. And now, finally, Edmund knows the whole truth, too. 
    In one single, flabbergastingly fabulous week of episodes, the payoffs flew fast and furious. First up? An incarcerated Erica figured out the truth about Maddie's paternity and resovled to settle things once and for all- an important step that brings her even closer to her eventual redemption.
    Next, Edmund learned the truth from Erica- his perceived enemy. In an interesting twist, the writers didn't try to drag out the drama with lots of denials and recriminations on Edmund's part. Instead, he accepted the truth without hesitation. 'I always knew she was mine,' he said softly, as he held Maddie as his biological daughter for the very first time. The camera pulled back and we saw that he was strategically positioned between Erica and Skye. The former was on her way back from hell; the latter was just about to go.
    And what hell it was! After Erica left, Skye gave in to months of longing and cradled Edmund in her arms. Then, knowing Erica had her checkmate, she whispered her complicity in Maddie's troubled life. When Edmund blasted her for the bottomless heartache she caused almost everyone in Pine Valley for a year, it was hard not to burst out in spontaneous applause.
    Best of all, the story is nowhere near over. Dimitri fled to Budapest, with Maddie and Gloria in tow. Edmund and Tad followed in hot pursuit, both to reclaim the baby and to snatch Gloria from the Count's clutches. The chase was a brilliant way to bring Tad into the story full force, much the same way that Adam, Hayley, Mateo and Brooke were tied into the Maddie saga when the TransGlobal plane crashed. 
    Can Edmund and Dimitri's battle for Maddie go on forever? Probably not. The storyline's been going strong for well over a year now, and sooner or later it'll have to be resolved. But by then, the Maddie uber-arc will have spawned off even more storylines than it already has. Those tales will propel AMC into the future, all the while cementing Maddie's place in AMC's very rich history."

2000 Editor's Choice- Brotherly Love Story (SOD 10/3/2000): 
"For months, viewers have pondered what would happen when presumed-dead Dimitri was reunited with wife Alexandra, who, in her husband's absence, had become involved with his brother, Edmund. Along the way, AMC mercilessly teased the audience with fake-outs and near misses. And so when Dixie, eager to reveal that Dimitri was alive, but sworn to secrecy, sent Alex to the hunting lodge, there was no reason to believe that she would actually come face-to-face with the count. When the reunion at last arrived, fans were caught off guard almost as much as Alex was.
    In a wordless scene set to haunting music, an incredulous Alex stared at the great love she thought had perished. Clearly frightened- perhaps her mind was once again playing tricks on her- Alex slowly approached Dimitri. In a moment fraught with tension, she reached out a hand to touch him, asking, 'Are you real?'
    The anguished count offered to disappear for good so that Alex could go back to her new life, but instead she rushed into his arms. Thankfully, this wasn't a chatty reunion- there was time to play catch-up later. After the briefest rundown on what happened to him, the couple shared a knowing look that showcased the great chemistry between performers Finola Hughes and Michael Nader, and a tasteful, romantic love scene ensued. (Not the easiest thing for the crew to pull off when an actress is a couple of months away from giving birth.)
    But there was a shadow looming over the afterglow. In the cold light of day, it was time to talk about Edmund. Seconds after Alex and Dimitri decided that she would be the one to break the news to Edmund, she left the room to change and her fiance came bursting through the door with a heartbreaking, expectant look on his face.
    In scenes played to perfection, every thought going through Edmund's head registered on portrayer's John Callahan's face. At first, he was startled at the sight of his brother, who was presumed dead three times over the course of a year. 'We've been down this road before,' he noted wryly. 'You want to fill me in?'
    When Alex entered the room, it all came together for Edmund as he glimpsed her discarded lingerie from the night before and observed that she wasn't wearing her engagement ring. 
    There are two sides to every love triangle, and already, viewers have drawn their battle lines. Edmund and Dimitri's confrontation expressed the views of both camps. Edmund lashed out at Dimitri for refusing to let him tell Alex that he was alive the second time the count came back from the dead and then for faking his own death. 'Is this some kind of sick game?' he queried. 'You die and come back from th grave!'
    When Alex suggested that Edmund should be happy that Dimitri was alive, Edmund scoffed, 'I should be grateful my fiancee slept with my brother?' Echoing the sentiments of fans in the Dimitri/Alex camp, she responded, 'Well, Edmund, he's my husband.'
    One chapter of this serpentine saga has reached a conclusion, but it's clear that this well-acted and well-scripted tale is far from over. The relationship between bastard son Edmund and to-the-manor-born Dimitri has always been complex and compelling. Now, we'll sit back and watch this triangle take shape."