Ben in 1993

[Joe]

I read some interviews that produces wanted doug sheehen back ,but couldnt find him,so would you love ben return in last season ? I think val absnet from the show was must to be connection to ben mystrey deputure in season 8.

 

[Daniel Avery]

The budget likely would not have allowed them to bring Ben back, but I could see it happening. While Mack is in jail for suspicion of murdering Loretta Robeson, Ben drops by to visit his old friend. Well, not that casually, of course---he read about Mack's plight and decided to come out of self-imposed "exile" to be Mack's man on the outside who can figure out how to get Mack off the hook. The back-story is that Ben chased Jean to Argentina, was seen trying to kill her, and ended up in jail for a few years. Jean is now dead by someone else's hand. Anyway, once he was released he saw that Val had reunited with Gary and decided not to intrude on her happy (??) life with Gary and the twins, and took a job in San Diego. When Mack's story came across the news wire he realized he needed to help out his old friend, even if it meant facing up to how he deserted Val and the kids. So while Mack cools his heels in jail, Ben does some digging and finds the real killer (Joe, Loretta's brother) and tips off the cops without actually revealing his presence to the whole cul-de-sac crowd. Part of his three/four episode arc is that he will interact with Mack and the cops, but avoids Karen, Gary, and all the others because 1) it's too late to re-introduce him and go through all the issues, and 2) it would remain true to his decision not to intrude on the twins' lives with their father. It would play a bit like Claudia Lonow's short-term return, a "blast from the past" to reward long-term fans with closure on what happened to Ben, and one last "bromance" plot with best buds Ben and Mack.

 

[Franko]

And to add one more wrinkle, Ben (like Gary) would be mourning the presumed-dead Val.

 

[Joe]

Daniel avery Your script is the perfect way it could done,to this day ben is the biggest mystrey in soap history,the only case that never solved.plus we saw val story how ahe deal with ben gone and all what jill did to her with the fake tapes of him,but with mack who was his best friend ,he just moved on to the meni drug story and after that to the williams family stuffl and it was weird.you could expect he will make search and go to south america to find what realy happen,mack wasnt someone who will sit and dont do nothing
And i never understood why greg let jane go away after she try to murder him,it make no sense,the afrid of her may return made ben crazy,

 

[Daniel Avery]

Regarding Jean Hackney's departure/disappearance, Greg arranged to have her shipped off to South America in the wake of breaking up/destroying this network of bad guys she belonged to. But he knew that he was sending her to the very place the bad guys were headquartered--so in essence he was delivering her to the people who would be very, very angry at her for fouling up the whole plan. He did not kill her because he did not want to get his hands dirty--he knew these shady bad guys would do it for him. Ben was still not Greg's favorite person after this whole caper, so he did not make it as clear as he could have that Jean was as good as dead when he shipped her off. Maybe Greg thought Ben needed to be "punished" by being unsure about his safety for a while. When Ben got all obsessive and nutty toward the end, it could have been cleared up rather easily if Greg had just decided to explain his motives to Ben (or to Val or Laura, who could have then told Ben). Instead, Ben took it on himself to go after Jean, and Greg got distracted by Laura giving birth and Peter getting killed around the same time.

 

[Joe]

Regarding Jean Hackney's departure/disappearance, Greg arranged to have her shipped off to South America in the wake of breaking up/destroying this network of bad guys she belonged to. But he knew that he was sending her to the very place the bad guys were headquartered--so in essence he was delivering her to the people who would be very, very angry at her for fouling up the whole plan. He did not kill her because he did not want to get his hands dirty--he knew these shady bad guys would do it for him. Ben was still not Greg's favorite person after this whole caper, so he did not make it as clear as he could have that Jean was as good as dead when he shipped her off. Maybe Greg thought Ben needed to be "punished" by being unsure about his safety for a while. When Ben got all obsessive and nutty toward the end, it could have been cleared up rather easily if Greg had just decided to explain his motives to Ben (or to Val or Laura, who could have then told Ben). Instead, Ben took it on himself to go after Jean, and Greg got distracted by Laura giving birth and Peter getting killed around the same time.

I know many didnt like ben- jean story,it had some fault,but for some reason i was realy in to it,they finaly gave doug sheehen to lead ,and there was very high drama and feel of danger in every episode .and like i told you ,mack should be more involved in ben mystrey after he left,its out of character for mack to move on and not try to figure in detective work ,what the hell happen to his buddy,

 

[Daniel Avery]

I guess it boils down to the fact that Doug Sheehan was let go, that the show wanted everyone to move on from Ben and not dwell on his departure. And since Mack was the good guy who always solved the case and saved the day, they could not write Mack trying to find/save Ben...because he obviously would not find/save Ben and bring him back to KL.

 

[Joe]

I guess it boils down to the fact that Doug Sheehan was let go, that the show wanted everyone to move on from Ben and not dwell on his departure. And since Mack was the good guy who always solved the case and saved the day, they could not write Mack trying to find/save Ben...because he obviously would not find/save Ben and bring him back to KL.

well i think to make end to this story ,even if they couldnt had doug sheehen for it ,they could send mack travel to south america ,find jean who admit her people killed ben ( they could use a look like ben from the back or something ,there is some fight mack kill jean and her guys 'and bring back ben body to cul des ac for an last FAREWELL .by the way i wish jean and jill would had some connection ,jean was evil and jill was psycho they could work good together,there was time in jill psycho obbession with ben fake tapes 'that i thought maybe they will make some alliance and jean may return (before what i thought on mack story should be . Doug sheehen proved that he is epic actor with ben go crazy stuff,