Daily Musing: Dare I Hope? Josh Duhamel Returns to AMC!

Since seeing the news, and Google front-page no less, a few weeks ago that Josh Duhamel will reprise the role of the utterly charming Leo DuPres on All My Children briefly before it signs off ABC after 40+ years, I have been secretly (sadly, soap-watching is even less popular among my friends now than it was 10 years ago) nursing my rising hope that I might *just might* see a happy ending after all for my all time favorite soap couple, Greenlee and Leo (who else!?).

I'm sure this is not some kind of publicity stunt a la James Franco and his stint on General Hospital.  Transformers 3 did just fine in the dough-making department -- not as great as, or most likely because of, the craptastic TF2, which itself had benefited from the surprisingly decent TF1, but my bitterness in that department is a story for a different post.  Point is, JD probably just wanted to give something back to the show that helped him start his career - he did win a daytime emmy before moving on to babysit fight along-side Shia Labeouf ... major props.

However, while I'm ecstatic to see one of my favorites return to Pine Valley for one last go-around, there is a chance this cameo turns into every Greenleo fan's total nightmare ...

Last we saw of Leo, he was at least still alive, albeit on the verge of drowning and clinging to a skimpy branch in the midst of heavy currents (but hey at least in true soap fashion he had survived that fall from a waterfall that alone should've killed him).  Since then, after an unusually drawn-out mourning period (for soap operas of course), his soulmate and wife/"widow" Greenlee Smythe (played by Rebecca Budig) finally decided to move on to other men, most notably an on-and-off relationship with one Ryan Lavery who many AMC fans (or ex-fans) such as myself can only call toxic (in the interest of full disclosure, I must admit this relationship in particular, and the lack of interesting buildup/storylines in general, have kept me only marginally engaged with the show in recent years).  I do know, though, that very recently (oddly soon after the announcement that Leo would be back), Greenlee and Ryan ("Rylee") got married (again).

So, the game changing question would be: will Leo be back alive?  If my wish comes true and he is, then I have no doubt he WILL reunite with Greenlee, and they will ride off into the sunset.  This would imo be the smart move and end the show with a fan-pleaser, as Greenleo >>>>> Rylee. Despite a relatively short romance (JD was only on AMC from 1999-2002), Greenlee and Leo achieved "supercouple" status that is still inspiring loyal fan support to this day, yours truly included (they even have their own wikipedia entry as couple).  On the other end of the spectrum, despite being pushed as AMC's "true love" couple for almost the last decade, Rylee has inspired ... not much that I'm aware of other than vicious criticism from some of the most vocal fans of the show ... no couple wiki entry ...

Which brings us to the terrifying thought that, if he comes in the form of a dream or as a ghost, dream-Leo or ghost-Leo might appear just to give his blessings to the Rylee pairing.  I would be OUTRAGED if this happens - I would saying AMC would be dead to me if it won't already actually be dead (call me a skeptic on the whole webisodes business).  This potential development would be the ultimate slap-in-the-face to Greenlee/Leo fans, considering their relationship came about because Leo saved her from her crazy obsession with Ryan in the first place (or in other words she woke up to her crazy obsession because she realized her love for Leo) - they were a couple who were, in their words, flawed but fabulous.  Real!Leo would NOT approve of a Greenlee/Ryan union, of that I am sure, and AMC better not try to convince me of otherwise!  

Bottom-line: this appearance can end in two ways, with most fans satisfied, or forever tainting one of the most beautiful relationship there ever was on AMC ... your call, ABC/AMC writers - redeem yourselves!  

Edit: Alternate scenario I might be able to swallow is if Leo is a dream or ghost and is, as some suspect, back to help ease the tension between Greenlee and Leo's older bro David.  I would be still be highly disappointed, but at least I won't be heartbroken or completely murderous.  Actually, I hope that, no matter how he comes back, Leo will share a scene with David ... best brothers everrrr!

EDIT 2 (1/1/12):  Well should've known they would screw this up and leave the fans hanging.  Still, the "reunion" scene was enjoyable even if bittersweet.  The spark was still alive despite the decade-long hiatus for the couple.  I suspect this scene may have led to perhaps ultimately a happy ending for Greenlee/Leo had the Prospect Park deal not been on the horizon (there are rumors Josh Duhamel had filmed an additional scene that was not included, and the ending of AMC was retooled to be more open-ended due to the possibility to continue the series online).  Now that the PP deal fell through as well (totally called it!), we can only wonder what could've been ... farewell Greenleo, farewell All My Children!