Natalie Buchanan
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| Natalie Buchanan | |||||||||||||||||||
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 Melissa Archer as Natalie Buchanan in the One Life to Live opening sequence |
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| One Life to Live | |||||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Melissa Archer (2001-present) | ||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | July 16, 2001 [1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Created by | Lorraine Broderick & Christopher Whitesell | ||||||||||||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||||||||||||
| Aliases | Natalie Balsom | ||||||||||||||||||
| Gender | Female | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | September 23, 1978 [2] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Buchanan Enterprises executive and board member | ||||||||||||||||||
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Natalie Buchanan (previously Vega) is fictional character on the ABC soap opera, One Life to Live. The role was originated in July 2001 by Melissa Archer.
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[edit] Character biography
[edit] Origins
Natalie Balsom appears in Llanview on July 16, 2001, [1] immediately befriending Jessica Buchanan [3] and ingratiating herself to the Buchanan family. She later makes the startling claim that she is in fact the biological daughter of Jessica's parents Clint Buchanan and Victoria Lord Davidson, which is confirmed by a DNA test. At first it is believed that when Allison Perkins had kidnapped the Buchanan baby in 1986, another child had been returned and had grown up to be Jessica. Jessica begins a tenuous relationship with Natalie's wild adoptive mother Roxy Balsom, whom Jessica believed to be her own biological mother, and with Roxy's biological son Rex.
| “ | Your daughter? ... Oh, she's not your daughter. She's nothing. I'm your daughter.[4] | ” |
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— Natalie, One Life to Live, 2001
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Natalie's accomplice and lover Seth Anderson — an old friend of Cristian Vega's from Angel Square[5] who had crossed paths with Jessica in their youth[6] — had arrived in Llanview before Natalie in May 2001 [5] with the task of getting close to Jessica and thus facilitating Natalie's own insinuation into the family. But Seth falls for Jessica, and is conflicted as Natalie's scheme erupts. Just as the new-found sisters begin to call a truce, Natalie discovers that Seth and Jessica are seeing each other, and she and Jessica are at odds again.
When a DNA test on Jessica later proves that she is also Viki's daughter, the real story comes out. Viki's enemy Mitch Laurence had secretly raped a drugged Viki around the same time she had conceived a child with Clint. Viki had unknowingly become pregnant with fraternal twins, one fathered by Clint (Natalie) and the other fathered by Mitch (Jessica). Dr. Walter Balsom, who had been one of religious leader Mitch's disciples, had taken Mitch's daughter during delivery, and Viki had never known that she had more than one child. Mitch, however, had wanted his daughter to grow up loved by Viki in the lap of luxury, and had sent Allison to kidnap Clint's child. They had replaced her with Mitch's daughter (who would become Jessica), and had given Clint's daughter (who would become Natalie) to Dr. Balsom and his wife Roxy.
[edit] Further adventures
After settling in town, Natalie meets Jessica's ex-boyfriend Cristian Vega. Viki's alternate personality, Niki Smith, returns in 2002 and pushes Viki's husband, Ben Davidson, out of a window; he is left in a coma, and Niki makes sure Natalie takes the blame. Cristian is the only person to believe Natalie's protestations of innocence, and he takes it upon himself to find the real culprit. Cristian discovers that Niki has returned, and when Natalie is cleared they begin a relationship. She and Cristian marry in 2003.
Later that year, FBI agent John McBain arrives in Llanview; Cristian becomes involved in one of John's investigations and is soon kidnapped and later presumed dead. Despite his guilt over Cristian's death, John gets close to Natalie and they ultimately pursue a relationship. Cristian returns in 2004 with no memories, and is believed to be an impostor; he kills mobster Tico Santi and his memories return, but he makes John swear not to reveal his true identity to spare his family from watching him go to prison. In [2005]], attorney Evangeline Williamson appeals his conviction — proving that he had been brainwashed into killing Tico — and Cristian is released. He reveals himself to his overjoyed mother, Carlotta; furious over the deception, Natalie ends her relationship with John and asks Cristian for a divorce. Over the course of 2006, however, Natalie reunites with John after working with him to prove her uncle Todd Manning innocent of the "murder" of Margaret Cochran, and helping him finger Spencer Truman as the man who killed John's father.
Natalie takes a job as receptionist for the Llanview Police Department, and soon shows an interest in the forensics program. Working closely with John, her relationship with him deepens; Natalie begins to hope for marriage. But after a horrifying car accident in which John is badly burned and thought dead for weeks, Natalie's bond with John begins to fray; he becomes volatile and verbally abusive, unwilling to communicate. Thinking she is protecting John, Natalie tampers with evidence at the crime scene of Spencer Truman's murder; when the truth comes out, she is dismissed from the forensics program. Her relationship with John disintegrates as well, but they ultimately part friends, with John admitting he should have treated her better. Moving forward with her life, Natalie ventures into the family business Buchanan Enterprises.
The mysterious Jared Banks comes to town in 2007 with a interest in the Buchanan family. He and Natalie clash as he seeks a job with BE, and it is soon revealed that he is seeking revenge against Jessica for her alter "Tess's" part in sending him to prison. Blackmailing Jessica and Natalie with the knowledge of Tess's crimes, Jared secures a job at BE alongside Natalie. Though Jared is a skilled executive who reveres the legacy of Natalie's late grandfather Asa Buchanan, his arrogant and abrasive personality causes him to butt heads with Natalie constantly. Jared's manipulation of her family fuels Natalie's animosity, but the two cannot fight their mutual attraction. Irritated when Jared takes her cousin Sarah out on a date and flaunts himself in front of her, Natalie retaliates by staging a tryst with longtime Buchanan ranch hand Chuck Wilson III in Texas while the family is there for the reading of Asa's will. Jared and Natalie's sparring comes to a head when they admit their feelings for each other by the campfire and fall into a passionate embrace. That same night, however, Jared stumbles upon the opportunity to pose as Asa's long-lost son. Having idolized Asa since childhood, Jared cannot resist, choosing fortune and ambition over love. Now "related" as uncle and niece, Jared and Natalie struggle to distance themselves from each other, but as his feelings deepen, Jared is tempted to drop the ruse. In April 2008 Jared reveals the truth to Natalie, who decides to keep his secret to protect the Buchanans from the real heir, greedy con artist David Vickers. Though at first disgusted with Jared for this plot against her family, Natalie still battles her attraction. They make love on May 5, 2008.
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ a b One Life to Live recap (7/16/01) - ABC.com
- ^ The character of Jessica is born onscreen on 23 September 1986, and in 2001 Natalie is established as her kidnapped fraternal twin. However, Jessica has been rapidly aged slightly over time; in the 22 March 2005 episode, Antonio Vega notes that Jessica is 26 years old, which would be the same for Natalie. Her historical onscreen birthdate of September 23 has been used here for calculation, with the birth year adjusted accordingly.
- ^ One Life to Live recap (7/20/01) - ABC.com
- ^ "Editor's Choice: The Changeling, OLTL." Soap Opera Digest, Vol. 26, No. 45, November 13, 2001.
- ^ a b One Life to Live recap (May 2001) - ABC.com
- ^ One Life to Live recap (7/3/01) - ABC.com
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