Well, Gina's plan has finally been enacted. It was exciting to finally get to the episodes where it all played out. This was the point where I started watching Santa Barbara regularly, back in 1985. This was the story that sucked me in and hooked me.
There are so many perfect atmospheric touches accompanying the climax of the story. It's Halloween, so there are Halloween decorations all over the Capwell mansion and of course it's stormy, rainy night, the night of Eden's big party.
Gina establishes an alibi staying at the Capwell Hotel--which also happens to be where Eden's party is being hosted. She shows up uninvited to Eden's party and offers her some champagne spiked with the pills she tested out a few episodes back. She also throws shrimp cocktail on Eden's dress--forcing Eden to have to change clothes. Gina manages to substitute Eden's change of dress for the dress she's been wearing in her nightmares about shutting off CC's life support. The pills start taking effect and Eden starts falling apart. Gina, meanwhile is waiting at home, wearing her Eden wig and the same dress Eden is. So much of Gina's plot doesn't really make sense. It's the kind of soap plan that relies on the schemer predicting exactly how the other characters are going to behave in response to the schemers plans. What would have happened if Eden had just gone home with Cruz or if she had passed out like she did at the cocktail party? But let's not ask silly question or deal in silly logic, assume Gina is a genius and just enjoy all the excitement. Kirk brings Eden back to the mansion after Cruz and Eden have a big fight. Eden, still under the influence of the pills, goes to her father's room and nearly pulls the plug while Gina hides in a closet watching. Eden passes out and Gina finishes the job by taking Eden's hand and pulling the plug with it. Gina has to hide again, as the alarms from the machines bring Kirk to the room. He takes a still passed out Eden and escapes out the window.
Now, I did wonder what the point of Gina disguising herself as Eden was. Her plan seemed to be to goad and drug Eden into pulling the plug herself. So why was looking like Eden necessary? Well, those are more silly questions, as Kirk showing up and swooping Eden away gives Gina the perfect opportunity to use her disguise. She waits on the window ledge, with her back to the room until Mary comes in and sees her and then she slips out the window leaving Mary thinking she saw Eden and also leaving a little piece of her dress caught on a nail on the window ledge.
As convoluted as Gina's plan ends up being--it's extremely fun to watch it all go down, mostly thanks to Gibboney's performance. It also sets up lots of interesting plot going forward. It breaks up Cruz and Eden, propels Eden into a marriage with Kirk, leads to Cruz's involvement with Santana, eventually puts Gina in the hot seat when Kirk figures out what she did, puts Cruz in the tricky position of being a cop and thinking the woman he loves committed attempted murder, and even puts a strain on Mason and Mary's relationship because she feels guilty that she was having romantic time with Mason in the study when this all went down on her watch. Plus it all culminates in one of my favorite soap location shoots of all time at Aqualand.
Meanwhile, with the exception of Mary and Mason, the rest of the show isn't that compelling. Kelly and Nick and Dylan are dealing with Joe Mascolo and a stolen treasure map that I mostly fast forward through. Brick and Amy are planning their wedding and Brick still hasn't learned he's Channing and Sophia and Julia and Augusta don't have enough to do.
Gina: "Goodbye CC. See you in hell."