When Passions' Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald Crane finally stood up for herself and her unborn baby against her staunchest foes, her portrayer, Lindsay Korman, breathed fresh air into a heretofore sniveling character. Gone were Theresa's trademark tears, traded for a solid spine.

Both Korman and viewers made out on the deal. After milling about town playing the blame game with her conscience, the truth about why Theresa is in her unfortunate predicament crystallized for her when she eavesdropped on unlikely bedfellows Ivy and Rebecca toasting her demise.

When Theresa crashed their private soiree, Korman presented Theresa as a scorned, pregnant widow imbued with fierce determination and a newfound savvy, shedding her usual naivete like yesterday's fashion. She marked her territory and put both of her archenemies in their places in one fell swoop.

Yet Korman retained an undercurrent of the vulnerability that has always made Theresa a character ripe for viewer sympathy. By resisting the temptation to fashion Theresa into an instant hardcore bitch, Korman allowed viewers to watch Theresa's mind at work especially at the epiphanous moment when Theresa realized that the annulment of her marriage to Julian was itself null and void. With that, the real Mrs. Crane did stand up for herself. "You two bitches think you know how to play dirty?" Theresa asked. "Well, you just watch Mama Crane."

We can't speak for Rebecca or Ivy, but we'll be watching.