Maeve Quinlan / Paula Carlin

[azuline]

Growing up Maeve enjoyed an amazing junior, collegiate and professional career in tennis before becoming an actress. She dedicates her time to many non-profit organizations, supporting charities ranging from ovarian cancer research to those benefiting abused and abandoned animals.

[azuline]

Paula Carlin (Maeve Quinlan)
When Paula moved her family to Los Angeles for a lucrative job as a surgeon in the ER, it created a strain between herself and her husband, Arthur. Now she splits her time between the hospital and trying to keep up with the kids' lives – a race she seems to be losing. She wants the world for her kids (at least, her idea of what the world should be), which is why Spencer’s relationship with wild-child Ashley causes her so much grief.

***

Maeve Quinlan (Paula Carlin)
Until now, Maeve Quinlan has probably been best known for her role as Megan Conley on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. Before joining South of Nowhere, she enjoyed 11 years on the hit soap and was named one of Soap's "Most Beautiful People." Maeve's other recent television credits include the nighttime drama South Beach, as well as starring roles in Hallmark's McBride series and holiday movie Boyfriend for Christmas. But it has been her brave performances and chameleon-like choices as an independent film actress that has recently gained her attention, ranging from the broad comedies like Totally Blonde and the quirky comedy Tennis, Anyone with Donal Logue, Paul Rudd and Stephen Dorf to edgy dramas like The Nickel Children, and Heart of America in which she has earned rave reviews.

According to the actress, the role of Paula Carlin on The N’s South of Nowhere has proved to be her most challenging and rewarding role. Maeve, whose family hails from Ireland grew up in a suburb of Chicago, she enjoyed a stellar junior, collegiate and professional career in women's tennis before becoming an actress. She dedicates her time to many non-profit organizations, passionately supporting all charities involved with ovarian cancer and those benefiting abused and abandoned animals. She is single and resides in Los Angeles with her Golden Retriever Mr. Guinness.

[makro]

One of the (few) reasons I can watch Mama C. on the screen without wanting to throw up is that she NEVER, EVER wins. Don't get me wrong, I still want to rip her face off (figuratively speaking) because she represents just about everything I detest in a person, but I'm able to restrict myself to gnashing my teeth at her narrow-mindedness and suffocating self-righteousness because she actually NEVER wins.
When she was lying (by omission) to her husband during their (her?) decision-making process about coming to L.A., she probably thought she was THIS close to having it all. Big city medicine, a compliant husband willing to let her dominate, an old and potentially new again lover, and three perfect children. Perfect by her definition of course. The star jock, the overachieving academic, and the pretty cheerleader; all progressing steadily down the perfect path of athletic glory, academic honors, heterosexuality, and, of course, regular churchgoing.
Of course, she didn't have a clue; and she still doesn't.
The second Ashley came on the scene and began working her "evil" on Spencer, Mama C. went from having three "perfect" children to two. While she spent her time fulminating about Evil Ashley's over-riding influence on Spencer (which never actually existed), at least she had Glen and Clay to carry the mantle of Carlin perfection while she was busy "fixing" Spencer. And since Papa C. not only didn't share her relentless fear of Ashley (in fact he even went so far as to trust Spencer to make her own decisions!), he also had this inexplicable reaction of actually feeling she had been wrong in deceiving him about who hired her for the hospital; so naturally he became worthy only of her contempt and ridicule. I mean, the nerve of him disagreeing with her!
So let's look at what Mama C. has now. Golden Boy Glen is a pill-popping addict, his athletic glory is in serious question (and certainly unlikely to get a free ride to college through his scholarly efforts). Mama hasn't quite figured out the pill problem yet, of course, having been fully concentrated on "saving" Spencer from Ashley. I've not been able to quite figure out, by the way, how Mama C., in her zeal for a religion which doesn't condone either pre-marital sex or birth control, can manage to overlook Glen's history of bonking any female who moves and still have him be the apple of her eye.
Then we have Clay. Mama C. has been gushing over his relationship with sweet Chelsea, because after all Chelsea is "normal" (unlike Evil Ashley). They are her "favorite couple". Theirs is a "real relationship". Clay "shouldn't let her get away". Of course not only does Mama not know her "favorite couple" is preggers (at least she doesn't have to worry about THAT with Ashley and Spencer), she doesn't know about Clay's successful search for his birth mother and what effect that may have on the family.
There is also the minor matter of her marriage. Mama seems a bit confused to find her hubby somewhat less-anxious than usual to follow her lead. Nor does he seem to be turning somersaults to get her back in his bed. And could he actually be preparing to assert himself regarding Spencer? Horrors!
Mama C. has spent the entire life of the show to-date obsessing about Spencer's Ashley-induced slide toward homosexual purgatory while secure in the knowledge that her two "normal" children are still firmly on the path of righteousness. Oops!
And what has her obsessing about Spencer accomplished? Absolutely nothing, of course. Spencer, seemingly unknown to her mother, is possessed of a steely determination to follow her own heart, her own mind, her own path. So there was never a chance that Mama C.'s efforts would be rewarded anyway, no matter how many altar boys or Ohio BFF's she throws Spencer's way. Meanwhile, while her brothers are tanking big time, Spencer is in a developing, loving, monogamous relationship. She is warily, but eagerly taking in a whole new world. And although she wants family acceptance, along with that of the rest of the world, she could survive without it. Face it, Mama; she isn't going to be "fixed".
As I see it, Mama is zero for four. She really should be considered sad and pathetic rather than evil, but I really do enjoy seeing her fail. Now, if we could only add in a professional crisis for her.......
Having her narrow, prejudiced, self-righteous little world little world collapse around her is just punishment for Mama C. In fact, one could almost call it Divine.

[makro]

It makes me sick to see this hideous person heap abuse and degradation on Spencer for the "sin" of loving Ashley while doling out nothing but love and compassion to her promiscuous, pill-popping son and her other son who has impregnated his girlfriend. Aren't those things against her particular religion also? I've gotten to the point of hoping something happens to her to shake her from her stifling self-righteousness, such as getting fired from her job or Arthur telling her to take a hike.

[tantucky]

Word Makro.

My jaw dropped when she waved at Ashley last episode. But then you see her being a bitch to her again in the new trailer haha.

[azuline]

I am just now catching up on season two of SoN since I missed a ton of episodes.

When Paula walked in on Spencer and Ashley.... That woman was insane!!! I was literally just staring at the tv with my mouth hanging open. That was crazy.

Good acting though.

[letthemusicplay]

shes on 90210 now! i saw her and i was like...isnt she from south of nowhere? haha.