Beyond The Gates: Brandon Claybon (Martin Richardson) and Mike Manning (Smitty) are soap Kings for the month of July!
Claybon and Manning
For the last few months, Beyond The Gates has dropped a little breadcrumb here and a little breadcrumb there in relation to what was behind Martin’s nightmares. This month, Martin’s secret was finally and fully exposed, and the widespread ramifications were felt throughout Fairmont Crest.
One late night two years ago, Martin killed a racist and beat the crap out of his brother, defending, he and his grandfather, Vernon’s (Clifton Davis) lives. Given the obvious (them black, other men white) and Martin’s career in Congress, Vernon thought it best to cover it up. The cover-up is always worse than the crime. For the past two years, Martin, Vernon, and everyone else who had a hand in the cover-up did their best to bury the memories of and the evidence from that awful night. But then Kenneth (Jason Vendryes) popped into town, making threats and demanding big bucks to keep his mouth shut.
As Martin was doing his best to keep his life from imploding, hubby, sleuth, Smitty was sniffing around the trail of a hot story he stumbled upon involving police corruption, Joey Armstrong, and payoffs that ironically led Smitty right to his and Martin’s doorstep. The two individually and collectively spent their time fighting, investigating, lying, ducking, dodging, threatening, covering up, uncovering, scrambling, punching, and panicking. They did a little bit of everything.
A Performance to Remember
One thing we love about these two is that they can be at odds with each other, but when it comes to their kids, they both switch into full protector mode. They did so in different ways, but each did what they thought was best to protect them. In the end, all secrets came to light, Smitty put Martin out, and the family has been split apart. Sigh.
But that is what good drama is all about! And Claybon and Manning were so good! They didn’t disappoint. They laid it all out there as we watched two people in love trying to keep themselves and their family together as the ground underneath them shifted and shook and their world crumbled in front of them. Claybon and Manning gifted soap fans with the kind of payoff we want with the culmination and reveal of a months-long A story. Thank you, gentlemen!
Katelyn MacMullen
Willow (Katelyn MacMullen) has had no Christmas in July. She lost custody of her kids, she found out the man she was in love with, Drew (Cameron Mathison) slept with her mom, Nina, (Cynthia Watros), confirmed by her mom on her wedding day no less, confronted Drew, left him at the altar, tried to see her kids, was turned away and had a breakdown, or two, or three. WHEW.
Willow unraveled. Who could blame her? Yes, choices have consequences, but who among us hasn’t made unwise choices when it comes to matters of the heart? We all have. Some fans might have felt for Willow, while some celebrated her downfall, but everyone has been cheering for MacMullen. She is our soap Queen for the month of July!
As we reported the week MacMullen was crowned Soap Opera News Performer of the Week (July 21 through July 25), she “brought down the house.” Well, guess what? She brought it down again this week (week of July 28th).
MacMullen produced so many standout performances (this month) that it is hard to select just one. But when Willow’s pain and tear-filled face looked through the window and saw Wiley (Viron Weaver) in Carly’s (Laura Wright) arms, and she bawled, the soap angels sang their praises. That’s how you do it!
Congratulations to Brandon Claybon, Mike Manning, and Katelyn MacMullen, Soap Opera News’ Stars of the Month for July 2025! (Photos: ABC/CBS.)
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