Chris B

When it comes to the criticism around characters like Ashley and Derek, I think part of the reason we're struggling is because usually those roles would be played by the token Black characters on soaps. Like in all things, Black people have to come ten times more prepared so we often have over-qualified Black actors in these roles. I think people are expecting the same in reverse except those same standards aren't placed on white actors.

I just started this Megan McTavish book and I am stunned that she begins by defending how awful the show was around the time of the unabortion and Josh Madden story. Blaming "fanatic" soap fans for the unabortion not working is insane. She had multiple periods of time on AMC that were good so it's insane that she would start vehemently defending such an awful time for the show. It definitely will cause me to side-eye what she has to say later on.

I will say, I do think that 3 weeks in most of the cast has settled into their roles nicely. The only people I can truly see being in danger of the 13-week chop are Derek and Ashley at this point.

In my experience this is actually realistic. I live in San Antonio which has a heavy latino population and this is how all of my spanish speaking friends talk. I think it's called spanglish. Even myself I use certain spanish words just because it's so common. They've done certain things to establish Ashley but haven't utilized them. Why didn't Naomi go to her friend Ashley to vent when she had issues with Jacob? Why hasn't Ashley talked to her girlfriend about the flirtation between her and Andre? Why did they give her a mom but never have them interact together? I still don't think the idea of a triangle is a bad idea but this storyline feels severely under-developed compared to the others on the show. I've always felt this about them. I believe she is in love but I don't see an ounce of love from Bill. I feel like she was one of many affairs and he got stuck marrying her. I get JR/Cally vibes from them. I do think she's going to fight for a real marriage but you can't win when the man doesn't want you. I hope and pray this doesn't happen. I don't want *any* rape stories. I feel like US soaps cannot do them correctly and I find it so offensive. If I could ban one type of story it would be this. I do not want anymore redeemed rapists which is a trope that US soaps cannot resist.

I like Andre and Dani as a fling but I really don't see them as a couple. I don't think he'd satisfy her. On paper I do understand the idea of Derek/Ashley/Andre and I do think it could work but they'd have to recast at least Derek to gain any momentum. What I want for Dani is Robert Christopher Riley's character to be developed as a love interest for her. I refuse to believe they'd cast him as just a guest star so I'm hoping there are further plan. I'd love to see Dani start to fall for him which would drive Bill crazy and cause further strain to his marriage.

I've been watching Sunset Beach for the first time and it had a similar start. Very strong first month or two and then it felt like nothing happened, especially during the summer when you'd think they'd be trying to court new viewers. The show premiered in January and I'm currently in October and I'm just bored out of my mind. I've heard it gets better the second year so I'm trying to stick with it. With BTG I'm still not bored. The only characters I just can't get behind are Derek and Ashley as a couple but other than that I'm good. Sheila Ducksworth mentioned that the end of April some big stuff starts to happen so I'm hoping they avoid the Santa Barbara/Sunset Beach curse of a hot start followed by a period of boredom. One plus for BTG is that we know they launched with a well thought out bible that MVJ worked on for years. Ducksworth said about 90% of her bible is what we will see on air. That gives me hope they at least have the first year planned out.

GMA3 wasn't outrating GH but was doing much better when TJ and Amy were hosting. The affair gave them a boost but the show was overall better when they were hosting it. To my knowledge it was their first affair but ABC got cold feet due to the negative press.

I don't think GH needs to worry because of BTG. GH's issues are bigger than that. The biggest problem being the poor lead in of GMA3. They should've kept TJ and Amy who were actually able to bring in ratings despite the controversy of their relationship.

I do too. Her other relationships on the show work for me. What makes it hard is when she goes back to Derek. I feel like if they wrote him off or recasted with a stronger actor it would give her more of a chance. I'd also like to see more of her friendship with Naomi.

@AntoyneI agree with what you said about the ages. I find the relationships to be believable. The only characters I don't find believable or to have chemistry are Derek and Ashley. Beyond that all of the family relationships and friendships are believable.

I agree. I'm trying to focus less on the "what if's" and more on what I'm seeing on screen. The most interesting element of the story is what skeletons he has in his closet and that's what I'm focused on, not an imaginary run for president that will never happen. Same goes for the ages of the characters. I thought it was incredibly stupid to give Smitty and Martin teenaged kids but those same kids ended up fitting in perfectly and actually made me like their parents. I'm learning I need to be patient and trust the process. Nothing is happening exactly the way we think it is and I believe the writers will continue to surprise us.

That is interesting! I don't know if he includes Sistas in that but I know he's always been resistant to having writers rooms, especially when they tried to unionize against him years ago. One of the biggest complaints people have with Tyler's writing is how slow it is and the lack of follow through so I imagine that might be a struggle for him when he see's others moving the story forward. I mean, The Have and Have Nots was a primetime series and I wanna say something like a weeks worth of time passed over 7 seasons. He has a very unique way of writing things.

This was one of my favorite episodes so far. I understand the criticism of another event so soon but I think that's very realistic when you compare it to the actual DMV area. On Real Housewives of Potomac there is always an event with a made up award as an excuse to throw a party. It helps remind me of the importance of the Dupree family in the area. I went from not liking Martin and Smitty to really falling for them lately. The kids were actually the sweet spot that helped win me over. Those kids are great and the family unit as a whole gels really well. I also loved Martin's introduction to Eva. I love the quiet joy she expresses when interacting with what she thinks is her family. Everybody looked wonderful and I thought having Silk Press as a caterer was classic soap. Today's episode was mellow but important. I forsee another dynamic cliffhanger friday. I'm curious for next week if they planned for only 3 episodes or if it will throw off the episode rotation. We shall see.

Very interesting! I would imagine this was Taylor but could've been Poppy as well considering her ethnic background. Lauren Buglioli from Beyond the Gates mentioned in a podcast that she came very close to getting a role on Guiding Light when she was 18. Looking at the time table it seems like she was up for the role of Lizzie Spaulding when Crystal Hunt left. Of course Emme Rylan got the role. She said she viewed it as a big career disappointment but when she met with the casting director for BTG the casting director remembered her from her Guiding Light audition and said she was great and very close to getting the role.

I had no idea none of these actors were on contract. I still can't believe I'm actually enjoying Van as Lucas. I wouldn't mind if this character were Natalia and Sidwell's child. Would definitely cause complications if Lucas fell for him considering how he feels about Carly with Sonny and Brennan.

He played such a big role on Dynasty I'm surprised if they got him he wasn't on contract. I wonder if it's recurring role that could end up being upgraded.

Completely out there thought but it would be interesting if Eva was Nicole and Ted's child. I'm getting the sense Nicole may already know about the affair and we know Leslie is spiteful and a bit nuts so I could see a world where Nicole was pregnant and she stole her baby and made her believe it was a stillborn to keep a piece of Ted with her. That may be a little too on the nose Sheila though. I loved the scenes with Martin and his family today. The more I see him the more I'm liking Martin and Smitty as a couple. I really felt it today and thought including his dreams was a good reminder that he isn't fully in his right mind which helps explain why he's been so short with Smitty. I wasn't thrilled with them having teen kids but surprisingly it felt natural and worked.

He should be very proud of his work there. He left the show as the #1 cable program among Black viewers and I know the fans loved what he did with the show. I hope he carries that same positive energy to Beyond the Gates.

It would be interesting if they took more of a UK approach when it comes to people leaving the show, By that I mean not focusing so much on recasts. A good way to keep the show fresh and not so boggled down is introducing new characters and families but US soaps tend to shy away from that. Right now we have so many characters whose past is a mystery and I'd much rather dig into their history in these first few years as opposed to always feeling like you have to recast if someone leaves. We still don't know if Ashley has siblings, we know very little about Bill and Haley's family, we haven't met the McBride kids, etc.

Jamey's primetime series Sistas just got renewed for a ninth season. It's the #1 show on cable amongst Black viewers. I know many didn't like his writing on Days but none of his other work is like that which tells me it's like an issue from the top with Ron's vision. I say this to say I'm not worried about him on BTG. He's shown he can do good work and Sistas is a great example of that.

She will be my first big test for the writers. I find on modern soaps they have a habit of taking villains too far and not wanting to let them go. I'm curious how they will handle Leslie. If they do take her too far then they need to write her off but I hope they see her long term potential and hold back. She can be impactful without killing people and doing things that make it implausible to keep her around.

He didn't see her. He was on his phone and looking in the opposite direction. The only thing that scene established is that she knew him. She would be great on this show. She's one of the people I hope pop up some time during year one.

This would be my song if this was my man! I don't wanna hear nothing about what he may or may not have done!

Billy is really talented so I'm excited to see him do something new. I hope they give him a good character and something decent to work with. It's hard to get excited knowing how dull the show is but if they handle this smartly, it could be great for the show.

Kinda off topic but I just saw a Y&R article on Deadline celebrating Lauralee Bell returning which I found odd. Once I read the article, she's just returning for a couple guest spots like she always does. It made me think of what a waste it was to have a platform like Deadline reporting on your show and you literally have nothing to provide them that's worth posting about. With BTG we've all had our thoughts on the pacing but I commend them for doing something. It is shocking when you compare it to Y&R where they will literally go weeks without one story development.