From ONCE UPON A TIME to THE GOOD WIFE to REVENGE, there is a whole new breed of mothers who will not only kill to protect their children, but who will do all sorts of diabolical things in the name of love.
In ONCE UPON A TIME, Regina’s mother tore her lover’s heart out. In THE GOOD WIFE, Jackie stole the house that her daughter-in-law wanted to buy. And in REVENGE, Victoria had her son brutally beaten up in jail.
These do not sound like acts done with love, but in their own warped way, each thought that they had their children’s best interests at heart. Regina’s mother did not want anyone to stand in the way of her daughter marrying a king, ensuring that Regina would never want for anything for the rest of her life. Jackie thought she was doing the right thing by buying the house for her son Peter and her grandchildren because Alicia had refused to let Jackie be a part of their lives and had kicked Peter out because of his numerous affairs. And Victoria thought the only way to protect her son was to have him attacked by her choice of assailants so he could be put in isolation and away from the general populace where he could suffer more harm.
These acts are definitely made out of love, but in the most twisted form. Regina was so enraged that her mother killed her lover, that she became a creature so monstrous that she enslaved an entire world of people to be her minions and erased their memories of their former lives and loves and made them her play-things in another world. Peter Florrick was also not happy his mother bought him a house without his knowledge, thereby creating further friction in his already tense relationship with his estranged wife. And Daniel Grayson could not fathom how his mother thought she was protecting him from further harm in jail, by having him beat up.
What seems like acts of loving kindness by these mothers is seen as deliberate infliction of pain and suffering by their children; and with Mother’s Day coming up next month, I would hazard to say that these mothers are not going to be warmly received and celebrated by their children.
For is it truly out of love that these mother’s acted the way they did, or were they acting more out of their own selfish motivations? Certainly Regina’s mother on ONCE UPON A TIME craved to have her daughter be queen and to wield power like none had ever seen before. It was not enough to see her daughter taken care of for the rest of her life; Cora wanted Regina to be powerful and feared. In Cora’s mind, money without ultimate power was nothing. In order to unleash Regina’s magical prowess, Cora knew she would have to eliminate the one thing Regina cared for most: the stable boy. She knew that unless properly provoked Regina would be happy and content to live a simple life, and that would never satisfy Cora’s desires and dreams for her daughter. So she ripped out the stable boy’s heart right in front of Regina in order to trigger the latent magic lurking just beneath the surface. And while Regina did indeed become queen and the most powerful woman ever, could Cora have foreseen that Regina’s unending pain would push her to enact a curse to enslave and brainwash everyone? Just where is Cora these days anyway? Is she too safely locked away in one of Regina’s dungeons beneath Storybrooke?
Jackie, Peter’s mother on THE GOOD WIFE, is also a piece of work. In what universe does a grown man want his mother to buy him a home for he and his children, without their knowledge, and presume that she could move in with them? Peter Florrick is on the verge of announcing his decision to run for state governor and that last thing he needs is his manipulative and scheming mother micromanaging his campaign and his personal life. It is going to be miserable enough having the media peeking in every window, snooping through his trash, and following every move he makes. Having Jackie present at every turn would be enough to drive any normal man insane. Plus, it puts a distinct crimp in Peter’s ability to reconcile with his wife who is dubious that he can be trusted ever again. However, the fact that Alicia encouraged Peter to run for governorship gave him a sliver of hope that there may be some residual feelings to build upon. So Jackie needs to stay out of everyone’s business and keep far, far away – stroke or no stroke. Her meddling will only serve to make everyone miserable and to alienate her from her own family.
Then dear, dear Victoria on REVENGE. We have always known that she was so caught up in her version of reality that she could never really see clearly. After all, she handed the man she loves and the father of one of her children over on a silver platter to be framed as a terrorist. What kind of woman pins such an insidious crime on the man she loves? To treat one’s enemy in such a fashion would be despicable enough, but to treat someone you love in such a manner is insane. It therefore should have been no surprise that Victoria then had her own son beaten within an inch of his life. Yet it still shocked us to our core. What kind of mother does THAT?! Even her loving son Daniel cannot fathom it and has rejected her once and for all.
Since when did love give mothers the license to main, kill and torment? Sounds more like stalking and deranged delusions. These are but three terrifying examples of wicked mothers on television today. Undoubtedly, these are just a few of the many. But it feels like mothers are justifying their own motivations under the guise of love. Is it love to humiliate, inflict pain, or bully you own children? Sounds more like a form of child abuse. Thus, let us remember that these mothers are not an example of love, but rather they are selfish beings who would not know what love was even if it hit them in the face. We are thus grateful that these are fictional characters and ones which we can delight in hating and watching in revulsion. Their actions are not to be admired, but to be seen as everything a mother is not.
A good villain is necessary in every great story, but we shudder to imagine what other wicked deeds these mothers are capable of in the name of love. It’s the stuff nightmares are made of! 
Tiffany Vogt is the Senior West Coast Editor, contributing as a columnist and entertainment reporter to TheTVaddict.com. She has a great love for television and firmly believes that entertainment is a world of wondrous adventures that deserves to be shared and explored – she invites you to join her. Please feel free to contact Tiffany at Tiffany_Vogt_2000@yahoo.com or follow her at on Twitter (@TVWatchtower).