This Will Not Be the End: A Beyond the Gates commentary by Soap Central founder Dan J Kroll for the week ending March 27, 2026.
I’ve always thought that the definition of “good storytelling” is story that is so good, you are fixated on the scene and don’t want to miss a single second of it. It wasn’t until this week’s episodes of Beyond the Gates that I realized that good storytelling can also be story that is hard to watch.
Soap opera fans have a unique relationship with the characters we have seen on-screen five days each week. We – well, at least most of us – know that these characters are make-believe. But they are still very much real. You can’t help but develop some sort of feelings – love, hate, concern – for these people that you spend so much time with.
Still Waters Run Deep
Tamara Tunie delivered a masterful performance as Anita lay in a hospital fighting for her life and contemplating her future. The restrictive nature of the bed required, perhaps even demanded, that Tunie find ways to convey everything Anita was thinking and feeling without the physicality of being able to wander around a room. It isn’t easy to be still and still command attention.
As Anita talked about being tired from fighting cancer and wanting to stop her treatment, it suddenly became really hard to watch the show. Not because the episode was bad, but because the emotions the scene made me feel were not emotions that I personally wanted to revisit.
It’s often hard, I think, to set aside one’s personal feelings and be objective when watching a television show or movie. In my discussions on social media with other fans, many expressed that their own experiences with cancer weigh heavily when watching Anita. For me, it was having the end of life discussion with my Nana that hit home. While Anita might be a fictional character, it doesn’t mean that we can’t see very real people in her. To circle back a few paragraphs, that’s what keeps so many fans tuning in each and every day.
A Perfect Partner
No man (or woman) is an island and having the right scene partner can be the difference between “cinema,” as the kids say, and just a regular degular schmegular scene. Iona Morris was absolutely the perfect choice to share those scenes with Tamara Tunie. I don’t know if their previous on-screen relationship as sisters on As the World Turns played into that perfection, or if this was simply a case of two actresses delivering peak performances.
This was the first time we saw Morris’ Monica McCormick as anything other than a little messy. She previously grilled Ted and ogled Kial. We know that Monica is clearly a brilliant woman since she heads the oncology department at a prestigious cancer center. We just hadn’t gotten to see any of that on-screen.
Since Monica didn’t have an existing relationship with Anita, it allowed Monica to be more stoic. In fact, there were camera shots of Monica where she was standing still, listening intently to Anita. That contrasted greatly with the emotional fireworks that we saw later with Anita, Dani, Nicole, and Vernon. Soaps tend to be stereotyped as having over-the-top histrionics and melodrama. That’s a disservice because soaps are often at their best when they are still and understated.
If I can be a little picky, I did think that Anita tearing up the DNR orders was a little soapy.
And a quick note since I was asked about this quite a lot on social media. While Tamara Tunie’s performance this week was absolutely Emmy-worthy, those scenes will not be considered for the Daytime Emmys until 2027. All of this year’s nominations will be for work that aired between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2025.
How to Con a Con
I love that Randy and Hayley are working together to try to neutralize the threat that Lynette Rice could pose to their other con, killing Bill and taking his money. I’ll admit that I honestly thought that Randy has been bedding Lynette because he still had feelings for her. Clearly, I’d be a good mark for his sneaky con ways.
The only question that needs to be answered is whether or not Lynette knows that she’s being played. She did ask some questions, but I think Hayley and Randy gave convincing enough responses to buy a little time.
I am trying to figure out exactly how Lynette could blow up Hayley’s scheme. Obviously, she could tell Bill that she, Hayley, and not-Sammy are all schemers. Would Bill believe her? It certainly would help make sense of why Hayley went to bat for Lynette. If I am being honest, I still think big dummy Bill would forgive Hayley.
But fear not! Katlock is on the case. Thanks to Tomas walking the tightrope of attorney/client privilege, Kat is now interested in knowing why Lynette has no past to speak of. It took Katlock 2-point-3 seconds to suggest that Lynette might be using an alias. Will Kat be the one to blow the whole thing open or will she move on to the next shiny object before figuring out the truth?
Rashad, Jacob, and Everyone In Between
I have never worked as an undercover police officer, so I might not have all the insight needed to make an informed assessment. That said, Jacob – sorry, Rashad – is doing everything he is not supposed to be doing.
First, it seems like everyone in the DMV knows that he is working undercover. Second, I am pretty sure working with Grayson would be frowned upon. That said, his ability to pivot to save his undercoveredness (That’s not a word, but when you write a column you get certain liberties. Mine is being able to make up words.) should be commended.
If you read last week’s column (and if you haven’t you can read it here), you’ll know that I said that I’d be upset if no one gets injured in this harrowing “red market” blood theft story. It’s not that I want someone to get hurt. I just feel that since we’ve been given so many heavy-handed warnings that something bad is going to happen, that something bad has to happen. This week, we got yet another warning of imminent doom. This time it was from Darlene Hawthorne.
Beyond the Gates | Photo: CBS
Doomsoaping: The Undercover Edition
I am wondering if all the Jacob-related warnings are a red market red herring. An argument could be made that Grayson and Smitty are equally in harm’s way. There’s also DracLia (I am still workshopping this nickname for Lia Whitmore), but I don’t know that we care enough about her to be concerned about her welfare.
I did come up with a new theory. Now that we’ve met Darlene (more on that later in the column), I see her being more present in story. She’s clearly not thrilled about Jacob working such a dangerous mission. I see Darlene having discussions with Chief Hubby Elon about Jacob and possibly convincing him to pull Jacob from the mission. Perhaps Elon goes to find Jacob in that weird back alley, gets recognized, and ends up on the receiving end of a bullet.
I was also a little nervous about how Ren ended up across the counter from Naomi at Orphey Gene’s. I think that was a bit of a misdirection to get fans talking, but there is always the possibility that Ren knows that Jacob is a cop.
Beside, Behind, and Beyond The Gates: The Speed Round
Here are some of the thoughts and observations about other things happening on Beyond the Gates.
Pleased to Meet You
After months of waiting, we finally got to meet Darlene Hawthorne. Other than Deanna McBride, I think Darlene was the character that most fans have repeatedly said they wanted to meet. I have to say, it was worth the wait.
Though we’ve just met her, Monique Mosee seems like the perfect choice for the role. Mosee conveyed a woman who is equal parts career cop and doting mother. I can also see Mosee’s Darlene being the perfect counterbalance to Malachi Malik’s Elon.
Building a Better Ted
Ted has caught a lot of flack for being a less-than-great dad over the past year. It was nice to see him finally taking steps to address that. I thought the coffee catch-up with Kat was really nicely done. Ted admitted his faults and actually apologized for them. I don’t know if this new, more present Ted has staying power, but it’s definitely a start toward making up for a lot of his recent shortcomings.
Bill-ding a Better Bill?
We are really getting hammered with the Dani and Bill reunion talk lately. Nicole once again pressed for details about whether or Dani would entertain the idea. Now, Anita has made Bill the coexecutor of her estate. Will Hayley seemingly getting closer and closer to being exposed, I do have to wonder if there is a possibility that they really will get back together.
Who’s That Girl?
I find myself wanting to know more about Caroline. The relationship that she has with Bill is interesting. This week, after Bill lamented that Anita was too weak to insult him, Caroline quickly spoke up to say that she had “year of zingers” that she as just itching to hurl Bill’s way.
The Enemy of My Enemy
Tomas is not exactly at the top of my “Characters I Like” list, but I feel bad that Hayley is trying to get him in trouble. I know she’s targeted Tomas because she thinks he could expose her and Lynette, but it sorta sucks that now that he’s moderately interesting someone decides to punish him for it.
Quick Takes
It looks like Leslie is planning a whole statuary at her (s)house. Not only will there be the aforementioned Michelangelo’s David in the form of Idris Elba, but Leslie has also ordered statues of The Young and the Restless alum Shemar Moore and Watson star Morris Chestnut.
Now that both Deanna and Darlene have made an appearance on our screens, I think it’s high time that we get to meet Rowena.
I know that hospitals nowadays are quick to kick people out, but I don’t know if I believe that Anita would have been discharged from Garland Memorial in under 24 hours.
Speaking of the hospital, I find it hard to believe that Lia would speak about her side hustle as a blood smuggler out in the open. Surely she would have pulled Grayson into a room somewhere. Also, it was interesting to hear Ashley say that DracLia had been warm and kind until recently. I wonder what caused her shift to the dark side.
Beyond the Gates: Lines of the Week
The Beyond the Gates writing team seems to be having a little too much fun. Here are some of the lines of dialogue that tickled my funny bone or that I found memorable over the past week (and haven’t already mentioned in this column).
“Change is not Princess Kat’s first language.”
Nicole’s response to Dani asking how Kat was handling not having Chelsea as a roommate any more.
“Who would you drive for 100,000 miles?”
Dani asking Nicole which member of her “sexy man buffet” she was most interested in.
“He is the one who wants to be Mr. Nicole.”
Dani’s assessment of Kial.
“I coulda done with some pancakes.”
Peaches after tasting the country club’s most expensive caviar.
“We have rules about excessive fawning.”
A heartbroken Kat trying to honor her move-in promise to Anita about being too emotional and prying.
“If you believe that you are nuttier than that fruitcake you gave to Anita and me.”
Vernon’s response to Leslie claiming that she was a pillar of society.
Gatecrashers: Reader and Viewer Feedback
I love interacting with other Beyond the Gates fans. So I thought I’d create a section to share some of the comments I’ve received on my columns and social media posts. If you’d like to see your comments shared here, you can scroll down to the Comments section below this column and post away. You can also chat with me on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, Facebook, and/or TwitterX.
While viewers thinking the Anita storyline is hitting it out of the park, a couple of the other stories are grounding out.
Finally seeing Darlene Hawthorne was a highlight for viewers, but there are still some other mentioned-but-not-yet-seen characters that viewers want to meet.
Follow my Random Acts of Dan
That’s all I have for this week’s My View From Beyond the Gates column. Thank you for reading and, as always, please feel free to share your thoughts on my column or Beyond the Gates in the Comments section below.
If you’ve enjoyed my column this week and want to see what I have written about Beyond the Gates in previous weeks, you can check those out in the My View From Beyond the Gates archive.
Have a penchant for gardening, interior design, or fixing up old houses? Check out my Manor Makeover series where I write about all of the things I’ve been up to here at Kroll Manor in Allentown, PA, over the past decade.
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Life outside the gates
Two of my former Two Scoops columnists from Soap Central, Liz Masters and Tamilu, have joined me here on my personal web site — and they are still writing about General Hospital. Tamilu is on deck with week with a new column called, Dial K For Killow.
To read more thoughts, opinions, rants, and raves about daytime television, be sure to check out our Editorial section.
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