Soap Opera Digest; 
September 28, 1999 

Ever since Sunset Beach's manipulative Tess and Tim broke up supercouple Meg and Ben, it's been a sad state of affairs for the estranged lovers. 

Separating a popular pair is par for the course of daytime - it gets the audience rooting for their big reunion. However, while the two are apart, the story must still move forward. Unfortunatel, Ben and Meg are in a boring rerun loop. We're tired of watching money-hungry Tess and her lackey, Tim, employ dirty tricks and little Benjy to keep the clueless pair separated. Each week seems to bring yet another ruse to convince Ben that Meg loves Casey and make Meg believe that Ben loves Maria. Zzzzzzz. 

Another problem: Ben and Meg share very little screen time together. When a soap copule is apart, circumstances must continually force them into each other's path so we can see by the look in their eyes and their awkward conversation how much they still love each other. Ya gotta keep hope alive! (By the way, there'd be time for this if there were fewer Ben/Benjy buddy scenes. We get it - they've bonded.) 

This story needs to shift into high gear, pronto. 
 
 

Soap Opera Digest; 
August 17, 1999 

# 3   Ben Evans, Sunset Beach 
         Course: Child-Rearing 102 

Yes, Ben has been very patient and kind with his progeny since he learned a few months ago that he had a son, Benjy, by presumed-dead wife Maria. But now, it's time to move on to discipline -- time-out time -- before the hopelessly indulged tyke also becomes hopelessly unbearable. 
 
 

Soap Opera Digest,
July 27, 1999 

Relationship Milestone:  Breaking Up.

The Scene:  Meg's world came crashing down when Ben's son, Benjy, was kidnapped while in her care. The tyke was recovered, but meg couldn't shake her guilt. After tearfully confessing that a part of her wishes benjy had never come to town, Meg moved out of Beb's home.

Stumbling Blocks:  Meg and Ben's relationship has been shaky ever since Maria, Ben's presumed-dead wife and benjy's mom, turned up alive. Benjy's stubborn refusal to give meg a chancehasn't made the situation any easier. Meanwhile, Benjy's nanny, Tess, and Meg's fiance, Tim, are working overtime to keep the couple apart - Tess staged benjy's kidnapping in an attempt to reunite Maria and ben. Tim and Tess are hoping that if Maria's back with ben, she'll give Tess the million bucks she once promised her.

Current Status: Ben and Meg are seeking comfort in the arms of Maria and casey, respectively.

The Odds: Ben and Meg are soulmates. But do you really think that Beach will give its hottest couple a one-way ticket to dullsville by letting them live happily ever after?
 
 

Soap Opera Digest; 
June 22, 1999 

# 5 To Ben, From Benjy 

    So nice to know you 
    and learn you are my dad. 
    A chance that in my early days, 
    I never knew I'd have. 
    I like this shiny mansion, 
    and living by the sand, 
    if we could just get rid of Meg, 
    my life would be so grand. 
        
    (PS: If I get Meg to leave, can I turn her walk-in closet into a video arcade? Just askin'.)
 
 

Soap Opera Digest; June 1, 1999 

We realize that shows sometimes need to stretch credibility to advance a story, but what's happening with little Benjy on SUNSET BEACH is downright absurd.  Yes, Benjy is Ben and Maria's son, but Ben loves Meg, and seconds before Tess showed with Benjy, Maria was ready to divorce Ben so he and Meg could wed.  Now that Benjy's in the picture, Maria suddenly wants her and Ben to raise their son together - a totally reasonable expectation - but in the same house! 
    
Get real.  Many divorced couples do a fine job of raising their kids without living under the same roof.  Haven't these people heard of joint custody?  Odd, since that phrase is being bandied about a lot in the Richards family, where Gregory and Olivia are battling for baby Trey. 
    
While it creates plot possibilities if Ben, Meg, Maria (and Benjy) live together, looking at their situation you can't help but say, "Huh?"  Ben and Maria agree that Benjy will get the life he deserves if he resides with Dad.  If Maria moved in with Carmen, she'd be minutes away.  And it's not like the adults are on bad terms.  Why everyone has to bunk in the same abode makes no sense.
 
 

Soap Opera Digest; 
May 18, 1999  

SUNSET BEACH, Maria Torres Evans 

Ben was menaced by memories of his wife, Maria, when everybody believed she was dead.  And now that Maria has turned up at the BEACH very much alive,  she continues to haunt the poor guy.  First, she put the kibosh on Ben's  marriage to Meg.  Now, it looks like Maria and Ben have a kid together.  How do you solve a problem like Maria? 
 
 

Soap Opera Digest; 
November 24, 1998
 

Soap triangles usually follow a predictable format: Nice guy falls for nice gal, but bad gal wants him, yada, yada, yada. Wel,Sunset Beach put a refreshing twist on this geometric shape. So far, Meg, Ben and Maria are... well... friends! 
    
For nearly two years, we figured that Ben's presumed-dead wife, Maria, would return to much things up for him and Meg. We also figured she'd either be a witch or (worse) pathetic victim. Surprise: Maria is neither. She's spirited and honest. Bigger surprise: Maria and Meg have bonded, and a compelling alliance has emerged. (Meg befriended "Dana", unaware that her new pal was Ben's amnesiac spouse.) 
    
The major players, Susan Wars (Meg), Clive Robertson (Ben) and Christina Chambers (Maria) are doing exceptional work, but two hankie up for Ward. (With all that crying, it's a wonder her tear ducts haven't closed up.) It's unlikely that these three will continue to play nice, but we plan to enjoy it while it lasts. 
 
 

Soap Opera Magazine; 

There's Something About Maria 

Maria interrupts Ben and Meg's Wedding reception and comes face to face with family and friends 

As Ben and Meg's long  awaited wedding ceremony starts, Maria arrives at the Mission but has a problem finding the right chapel. Time could be on her side, as one interruption after another slows down the would-be Evanses' nuptials. 
    
Tim and Annie walk in late, so Ben stops the ceremony and blasts the couple. "We got through the part with Madame Carmen screaming at us and waving a gun," says Clive Robertson (Ben). "Then Tim and Annie arrive, even though Ben warned him not to come. That's because the night before the wedding, the old fisherman, Quint, came to Ben and told him he's seen Maria at the marina.  When Ben went down there, he found Tim and Annie on the boat, and Ben assumed Tim was up to his old tricks again. Ben told Tim to go to hell and that if Tim shows up at the wedding, Ben would send him there himself. So at that point, Ben is losing it a bit and physically removes Tim from the chapel and has a go with him outside." 
    
Meanwhile, Maria realizes she's too late for the wedding. While the newlyweds are enjoying their celebration with family and friends, they have their first dance and the cake-cutting ritual. Eventually, Maria finds her way to the reception area. She enters just in time to catch the bridal bouquet tossed by Meg, stunning everyone who knew her. 
    
"It's shock, horror, disbelief!" says Robertson of Maria's sudden appearance. "And he's only been married to Meg about an hour or so. Ben and Meg say little, but the depth of their emotion at this moment is clear. There's also some sense of relief underneath it all - no one will accuse him of killing Maria anymore. 
    
Ben also realizes Maria has amnesia. "It's immediately clear that she doesn't recognize her mother, brothers or anyone else," says Robertson. They take Maria to a separate room, and Ben tends to show concern and affection. "Ben truly loved Maria years ago," says Robertson, "but in the  meanwhile, he put her behind him. I honestly believe that if Ben had known Maria is alive, he'd still have chosen Meg." 
 
 

Soap Opera Digest;

WHO WAS INVOLVED:  Meg, Ben and Maria 

A LITTLE HISTORY, PLEASE:  After the "Shockwave" earthquake rattled Sunset Beach, Meg found herself trapped in a hospital room.  There she met Dana, a young woman who had lost her memory.  While Dana was shy and frightened at first, the two eventually formed a special bond. 

IT JUST SO HAPPENED THAT:  Faster than you can hum, "People, let me tell you about my best friend," the audience (and Tim and Annie) realized that Dana  was actually none other than Maria, Ben's presumed-dead wife.  Her arrival on the Beach would have been welcome had Ben not already fallen in love with - and was betrothed to - Meg.  Tim and Annie managed to keep Maria's identity a secret until Ben and Meg's wedding day.  That's when Maria caught the bridal bouquet. 

ASSESSING THE FALLOUT: While Maria's memory was missing in action, she did everything she could to help Ben and Meg stay together.  But when she regained her recollection of the lost time (except for the five years she was missing from town), she realized that she couldn't give Ben up without a fight, no way, not  now.  Even though Ben swears his devotion to Meg, it'sunlikely this triangle will become a twosome any time soon.