Star Of The Week December 8, 1999 Jonathan Jackson
Soap Opera Magazine December 8, 1998 By Robyn Flans
"Lucky's been tyring to change the way he looks at things to not become Luke - not having the same relationship with Nikolas that Luke has with Stefan. He's trying to find his own Spencer."
Sometimes it's harder to watch someone you love to try to cope with a tragedy than to actually be the victim. GH's Lucky Spencer knows all too well that impotent, helpless feeling when there is nothing one can actively do to help a friend in need.
For the last nine months, he has had to stand powerless beside Liz as she has been dealing with the aftermath of her rape. He has not left her side since she crawled out from behind the bushes, her youth and innocence having been stolen from her. He has been there through her shock, her anger, her quest for revenge and the devastation at the realization she would never have it.
In an unexpected twist, Liz came face to face with her rapist as she was tracking Emily's blackmailer. Jonathan's sensitive portrayal of a young man experiencing the awakening of his own male stirrings while horrifies by his hideous act of violence has been magnificent, and you have an amazing character - one that Jackson manipulates to perfection. This young actor's ability to listen, absorbe and react in the moment earns him Soap Opera Magazine's Star of the Week!
Lucky's eyes filled with sympathy as Liz apologized for not being brave when finally confronted with Tom the rapist.
"All I had to do in those scenes was listen," Jackson says. "It was just heartbreaking - seeing this small creature who wanted to be so brave. And she was. She just wouldn't give herself any credit. It was very sad."
Shortly thereafter, Lucky searched the docks for Liz's missing bracelet and encountered his estranged father, who demanded that they resolve their differences. It wasn't until his father, Luke, got hurt, that Lucky's armor ripped just a little. Tony Geary (Luke) had been on a long vacation, so those first scenes back, according to Jackson, were not easy.
"I hadn't work with Tony for a while, so it was difficult to try to figure out where we needed to have evolved to by then." Jackson explains. "Sometimes the scenes that seem like they would be easier are the most difficult because they're not really black and white on the page, so it's a little more unclear as to where the character is. The scenes that are emotional are often the ones that are easier to connect to because the character's feelings and motivations are more right there."
Also that gray area is Lucky's alliance with Nikolas, now that they are growning closer. In order to allow that relationship to evolve, Lucky has had to adandon the prejudice he's been taught and fed his whole life about the "evil" Cassadines.
"I think that's what he's been trying to do since he moved out on his own and tried to break away from his parents," Jackson explains. "Lucky's been trying to change the way he looks at things, to not become Luke. That's part of the process-not having the same relationship with Nikolas that Luke has with Stefan. Lucky said he didn't want anything to do with his family, so he's laready moved away from the Luke part of the Spencers and even part of the Laura. He's trying to find his own Spencer."
That seems to emerge most when he's with Liz. "there are a lot of things I don't handle the way Lucky does," Jackson says. "Like the reaction to the family situation. But his sense of commitment and loyalty is definitley something that can be learned from."
