Written by Alan Sarapa
Liam Spencer is a cancer to The Bold and the Beautiful. Brad Bell has a propensity for hiring and discarding actors from other soaps, so most of us saw Scott Clifton’s debut as computer nerd Liam in the summer of 2010 as a temporary gig. Unfortunately for fans, that harmless dope evolved into a toxic cheater with a spine full of jelly who is the lead of this show. But how do you fix him? A lot of you probably think there’s nothing to be done and Liam should be taken out behind a shack and shot like Old Yeller, but there are ways to make him more palatable.
Option 1: Just make Liam a villain.
Liam Spencer already functionally is the villain of B&B. His actions have been driving the drama and angst for the past decade. From treating Hope and Steffy like his penis is some great reward they have to fight for, to sleeping with Steffy because Thomas was horny for a mannequin, he is the true antagonist of the series. Yet B&B treats him like he’s the hero. Brooke actively encouraged her daughter Hope to get back with a man who was just looking for an excuse to cheat on her. His toxic behavior is portrayed like a foible that could happen to anyone.
This would be more acceptable if they just embraced Liam Spencer as the villain. Have his inability to let women move on from him be played as malicious. It would be an easy shift. Have Hope leave him after finding out he turned Vinny into a speed bump and lied about it. Then put Hope with Thomas. Having both of the women he strung along for years moving on would be enough to make him snap.
Liam could use Spencer Publications to attack Thomas, Hope, and Forrester Creations as a whole. Have a reporter write a salacious article about Thomas’ various misdeeds from trying to blow up Rick years ago to running Emma off the road two years ago. Have that lead into a social media campaign #JusticeForEmma that tanks the Hope For The Future line and the other FC lines. Murder isn’t really good for a brand. Women might like Thomas’ designs, but would you want to wear a dress designed by someone who ran a girl off the road because he wanted a woman to keep thinking her baby was dead?
After that, Liam could sue Hope for full custody of Beth on the grounds that she’s an unfit parent for being with Thomas. At trial, Liam could use Thomas’ gaslighting and abusive behavior with his son Douglas against them. Have Douglas testify about his dad terrorizing him with a “ghost” and grabbing him. Have Liam get full custody of Beth and just grin in court as Hope sobs.
Then have Liam set his sights on Steffy and Finn. Liam could enlist a newly returned-to-town Amber Moore into breaking them up. Reveal that Finn and Amber dated a few years back and it was pretty hot and heavy. This would be good because it does two things: 1. It uses Liam’s history with Amber playing games with him to build on his heel turn, and 2. it causes angst for Steffy/Finn that involves Finn as the focus and isn’t just Finn reacting to whatever mistake Steffy has made.
There’s so much dramatic potential in Liam as a villain and I think fans would prefer it over writing him as emotionally abusive and then telling us he’s a great guy. It would really give Scott Clifton material that he could sink his teeth into because you can tell that man is thinking about pizza in his scenes.
Option 2: Amnesia. Again.
Liam had amnesia in 2016 when Quinn convinced him he was Adam and she was Eve all in a bid to keep Liam away so Wyatt could be with Steffy. Liam was actually tolerable as Adam. He wasn’t wishy-washy. He was all about Eve. That has me thinking Liam should get amnesia again and have it be permanent this time.
Amnesia would be a great way to reset the character. You could give him a whole new personality. You could erase his polyamorous desire to always string Hope and Steffy along. Amnesia Liam could have no interest in Hope or Steffy. This would allow Hope and Steffy to move on from him and finally end that triangle. Giving Liam the Jason Morgan treatment could be the best thing for that character.
Option 3: Maybe don’t write him as an emotional terrorist?
This could be crazy talk, but it is an option to just make Liam like 15% more decisive. Ridge ping-ponged between Brooke and Taylor for years, but not to the degree that Liam does. They had other relationships and it wasn’t like Ridge was changing his mind every other day. If Brad Bell would just ease back on Liam being a comically indecisive clown, he’d be more tolerable.
Liam walked in on a man kissing a mannequin of his wife, and instead of confronting them, he saw that, took it at face value, and immediately slept with his ex. How am I supposed to take this idiot seriously? Why would I root for him to be with any woman? That’s somehow worse than the other cheaters on soaps. They just cheated. They didn’t wait around for the first excuse they could latch onto to cheat. And afterward, Liam told Steffy he loved her and didn’t regret it. Later, he told Hope he regretted it. Which one is it? He’s lying to one of them.
At this point, the only people rooting for Liam to be with Hope or Steffy just want their preferred woman to win. It isn’t about Liam at all. He’s trash and not even fun trash like his father Bill. I think this whole arc with Liam feeling guilty over turning Vinny into roadkill is supposed to make us feel sorry for him, but it isn’t working. You actually have to make him slightly more likable, Brad Bell.
Option 4: Make him suffer.
Crying over running Vinny over like a suicidal squirrel isn’t enough for me. Put him in prison and then have him get shanked in the spine in prison, which leads to him being paralyzed. Then have him get out of prison and have him rolling around LA depressed while Hope and Steffy are having great lives. This is an option because I feel the audience would like to see him suffer. Liam is always causing misery for those around and doesn’t really pay for it. Having actual consequences for his actions would go a long way in making him likable again.
Think about it. If they had Liam just have the year from hell, have him actually be introspective about his bad behavior, and show actual character growth, it could be the redemption arc he desperately needs. Even if fans don’t take to a redemption arc, it would still be enjoyable to see him not victorious for an extended period.
Option 5: Rest him for six months or a good year.
It would be nice if B&B could take a page out of the Days of Our Lives playbook and just have Liam Spencer leave town for six months to a year. It is beneficial in some cases to rest an overused character. Give different characters that screen time. Then after you’ve rested the character, the audience is more amenable to that character because they got a break from them. Think about it, Brad Bell. B&B has enough characters that Liam can rest his dong in New York for a while.
Option 6: Kill him. Duh.
The nuclear option and the one I think most of the people reading this column likely support. It would solve the problem of Liam as a character and if told correctly, be a good source of drama. I know B&B usually likes to kill off characters in car accidents, but I would prefer for Liam to be murdered. There are just so many characters with reasons to want him to cease to exist. Hope and Steffy for obvious reasons. Thomas because Liam pulled an Alexis Davis on Vinny. Bill because Liam is just a pain in the butt. Ridge because Liam has played with Steffy’s feelings more times than I can count.
Liam getting murdered could really energize the whole show. The last time B&B truly shocked fans was when supervillain Sheila returned, but that didn’t really go the way fans wanted. The woman who once murdered a man with bees spent her time serving breadsticks! Killing off Liam Spencer would be shocking and fan-pleasing. There’s a reason why most of the people reading this are like “Yes! Kill him! I would pay to see Liam get shot! Or stabbed! I’m not picky!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfgDfv8Ixt4
Option 7: Kill him, but bring Scott Clifton back as a new character.
AKA the General Hospital option. This is probably my least favorite option because even if Liam died choking on a walnut, I’m 90% sure Brad would make Liam’s doppelganger Cousin Biff exactly like Liam Spencer. Maybe there would be an accent that would disappear after six months, but Cousin Biff would be playing Hope and Steffy off each other. Liam is bad, but I don’t know if I want the lateral move. Maybe Cousin Biff taking Hope to the pig beauty pageant as Biff’s mother (played by an out of work, 50-something soap actress) fakes a heart attack to keep them apart could be fun. Okay, I might have just talked myself into this. Bring on Cousin Biff! Put Scott Clifton into overalls with no shirt and a straw hat. I’m ready to be a Cousin Biff stan!
Option 8: Make Hope and Steffy a couple.
AKA the New Jersey years of Guiding Light option. If Hope and Steffy became a couple, it would eliminate the need to compete for Liam. He’d be a moot point because they’d have each other for the love and validation that only comes from him depending on the week. The bonus of this option is that it would make Liam miserable.
Could you imagine the look on Liam’s face seeing Hope and Steffy kiss? I can, and it is glorious. It would be his worst nightmare. He’d no longer be able to play them off each other. No more fallback option if one makes a mistake or gets tired of him. He’d be all alone and it is what he deserves. No matter what you think about Steffy or Hope, I think you’ll agree that they both can do better than Liam Spencer.
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Hopefully a new direction does happen with Liam this year because keeping him as the same fickle slut is untenable. B&B has played every possible story you can with that. It’s time for a new direction. Just pick one.
Dispatches from Soap Land:
*I’m going to need for Carly on GH to be rested for a full month. I’m burnt out on her and I need a break. No character should be on this much.
*I want Sally on Y&R to hook up with Nick. He’s older, but it isn’t a gross age gap. Jack & Sally is just too big of an age gap. Peter Bergman was ten years old when JFK was assassinated. When Courtney Hope was ten years old, The Sixth Sense came out and Napster became a thing.
*I’m going to need at least a year before anyone on Days wears a mask again. Too many masks. At this rate, Kristen is going to be in a Chad mask before the end of the year. I can suspend my disbelief about Kristen turning into petite Sarah, but I draw the line at Kristen turning into bubble-butted Chad.
*CBS needs to start throwing their weight around with Brad Bell. I know he owns B&B, but you guys are the network. Stop him from doing stuff like having Zoe drug her sister with laxatives. That is not the kind of explosive drama I want.
