All My Children fans have been waiting to hear if Bianca Montgomery would be part of the move to the internet when the soap-turned-web series premieres on Prospect Park this spring. The good news is Eden Riegel will be back to play the role she originated and subsequently won several awards for, including a Daytime Emmy. The 30-minute episodes will air for free on Hulu every weekday, and hopefully we’ll see a lot of out lesbian Bianca. When last we left the character, she was played by Christina Bennett Lind, who replaced Eden once she moved on to The Young and the Restless. Before the show was cancelled in September of 2011, Bianca and her best friend Marissa (Sarah Glendening) were involved in a romance (affectionately referred to as Minx) that never quite fully played out as viewers hoped, leaving there plenty of room for development in the web series. Fans enjoyed Christina’s portrayal and likeness, but Eden really helped lesbian visibility on television by coming out as the sole openly lesbian character on daytime TV in 2000 and partaking in the first ever daytime television lesbian wedding. Although Bianca and her marriage to Reese were very short-lived, it was history in the making and an indication that progress is being made, albeit slowly. Only two other lesbian couples have existed on daytime TV since then: Olivia and Natalia on Guiding Light and The Bold and the Beautiful‘s Dani and Karen.
If you’ve never watched an episode of All My Children, you can read our backlog of lesbianish recaps and commentary to catch up on Bianca’s background and storylines before the series launches this spring. And if you are a fan, how do you feel about Eden coming back to the role?
