The Morality Debate: Sam, Abigail, and Will
I know there have always been debates over this particular episode, mostly stemming from the Sam/Abigail/Will triangle. Many viewers have said that, while the love story is heartbreaking and well-written, at the same time, it seemed wildly inappropriate and completely out of character for Sam.
While it is true that, unlike in Temptation Eyes where Tamlin actually knows who Sam really is, Abigail is unaware that Sam and Will have switched places, I would argue that Abigail actually could sense that there was some kind of physical/spiritual difference between the Will she has always known and the "Will" who is present in the episode. Not only does she comment that she felt sleeping with Will somehow felt wrong until Sam leaped in, wherein she replies that, "everything just fit," but she also seems to still sense his presence in the next episode, "The Last Door" when Sam is in the guise of Larry Stanton. When they meet again in the police station for the first time in 12 years, the way she looks at him and her reactions leave no question that she looked into his eyes and sensed something...something familiar that she only associated with her 'new' feelings towards Will after they slept together the first time, before Sam initially leapt in.
While it is true that it wasn't entirely appropriate for Sam to give in in this way, knowing full well that Abigail had no idea it wasn't Will she was with, I must take issue with some viewers who think he has done this kind of thing before. He absolutely, with the exception of Temptation Eyes, has never slept with someone on a leap. Kissing, cuddling, necking, and even some heavy petting - yes. I won't deny that. However, everything he did with these people was in service of the leap and the mission and he never went farther than was necessary. Was he attracted to some of the women? Of course. I would even venture to say, upon a recent series re-watch, that Sam is actually highly attracted to tough, independent, and even somewhat abrasive women. He seems to like women who challenge him and drive him a little crazy. I find that very much in his character for the fact that it was likely very hard for Sam to find dateable women that could challenge him on an intellectual and emotional level. It's not always easy being a genius.
Temptation Eyes I can give a pass on because Tamlin knew who Sam really was, and honestly, after four f-ing years of have to hide himself, lie, be someone else and have absolutely no one to talk to or understand his situation other that Al, I totally understand him wanting to lose himself in her a bit because, for once, he could finally be himself. He didn't have to hide. He could open up to her and be vulnerable in a way he hadn't been able to in a very long time.
The situation with Abigail was different, though. I have to admit, I've never really liked Donna. Scott Bakula has chemistry with virtually everyone I've seen him with on screen. The man could make a paper sack blush. However, the actress who played Donna was just not one of those people. Even in The Leap Back, you could tell that Scott was giving it his all to show how much he loved Donna, but I just didn't feel the reciprocation. They just suck all the chemistry out of every scene they are in together. That, and the fact that she was willing to leave Al to die in 1945, just made me lose serious respect for her. I respected her for the fact that she so many sacrifices for Sam while he was lost to her, but honestly? If they had never brought her onto the show at all, I don't think it would have made an ounce of difference. I can accept that Donna was his first meaningful, adult relationship, and therefore, he was determined to make things right with her, as he would for anyone. I just don't think that helping her salvage her relationship with her father was enough to make her not leave him at the altar. I just don't buy it.
The person you marry isn't always the person you were meant to be with. Never was that more apparent than in this trilogy. I get that it seems creepy because Sam initially leaped into Abigail's father, but I feel like his instant connection with Abigail, even in childhood, was fatherly affection to a point, but also more than that. When one meets one's soulmate, you can't always count on the timing to be perfect. I believe that he sensed there was some kind of powerful connection between them as Clayton Fuller, but initially chalked it up to fatherly love. I don't think Sam even fully understood it. When he leaped into will, however, that's when everything finally clicked into place. Yes, he was overrun by Will's emotions at first, but as the episode wore on, his aching need for her became less an affectation of Will and much more Sam's own desires. When he touched her that night, all of Will was gone. When he went to her that night, it wasn't Will driving him. It was his own desire for Abigail. The fact that he still felt that connection with her in the third part of the Trilogy speaks volumes to that point. Sam was destined to be with Abigail. Destined to give her a child. It breaks my heart to think that he will never know her and her mother will never know the truth.
I know she remarried and moved to Chicago and had a happy life, but some part of me still believes that Abigail is searching for a missing part of herself that she may never find - her soulmate, Sam Beckett.
I also believe, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the reason Will left before they made it down the aisle, is because he absolutely Sammie Jo was not his child. He might not have understood what actually happened and it might only be an inner feeling that something just wasn't right, but I am sure he left for this reason.
If the reboot rumors are true, then aside from bringing Sam home -PLEASE!- I desperately need this storyline to be addressed. Sam needs to see Abigail and Sammie Jo again. The truth needs to come out so that everyone can find some peace.
