Chris B

I just finished binging GH and I thought this week was damn good. From Portia/Ava to Isaiah/Jordan and all the Quartermaine drama, I was very impressed. I also loved the scenes with Sidwell and Alexis. The highlights of the week for me were the scenes between Tracy and Sonny about Gio. Maurice Benard doesn't always give it his all but you could tell Jane Elliot pulled it out of him. Then the scenes with Lulu telling Carly, I found Laura Wright's performance to be so layered in a way I didn't expect from those scenes. I truly bought everything she said about Brook Lyn reminding her of Bobbie. The final highlight for me was Lulu confronting Brook Lynn. I don't think I realized that Brook Lynn didn't even now she had a son. I find her to be the most boring character on the show most of the time but I was completely invested in a way I haven't been about this missing baby saga.

Yes, I agree. I'm sure it'll come together in the end. I do like that from what we've learned, they took the extra time they had to re-shoot and re-tool things to try and get it right. If these were part of those changes then more power to them for quickly working to improve the show. One of the biggest problems we face with the other soaps is that they aren't willing to make changes when things aren't working. They'll burn it to the ground before making even the slightest pivot. I feel like here the goal is really to make the best show possible so I feel comfortable knowing they'll make the changes necessary to get the show where it needs to be. I feel the same about some of the cast choices that I'm not 100% sold on. I know it's a new format for many of these actors and that they'll do what they need to do when the time comes.

I feel like that is very typical of what type of bars are popular in the US now, especially in Black circles. The only thing missing is a hookah at each table and the bottle girls.

Cady's character seems like a re-write. We first met Dani with Vanessa and the later comments establishing her as Nicole's best friend seem bizarre. Not only can I not see them as friends but I don't think they've shared on scene together. When it came time to bring on Cady's character, she should've been brought in as Nicole's friend or even Smitty's mom. We're only two weeks in so I'll give her time, but so far I'm with you, she has made no impression on me. It literally seems like they inserted her scenes into the episodes.

I feel like it speaks to his character that he did it. We've seen people arrest family on soaps before but he did it with no empathy for Dani or care for how it would affect his family. Plus we saw his dad telling him to chill so I wouldn't be surprised if he jumped at the chance. I'm very interested in seeing how Naomi reacts to him next week.

I feel like they've already addressed this. From the beginning they let us know something is off about Martin, that he killed someone which is doesn't remember and the he has nightmares. Obviously the Martin we're seeing is a Martin with a lot of issues stemming from that incident. I think once he deals with that we will get a better idea of who Smitty fell in love with and who the family seems to adore. Kudos to Danielle Paige on a great friday script! I feel like this flowed much better than yesterdays episode and the show is developing a nice rhythm to it. At first I questioned why certain characters were included but I feel like each player makes sense within the world and they're doing a good job of slowly introducing them. I like that it took until Week 2 to really start diving into who Jacob was and of course today we just met Jon Lindstrom's character. We still have yet to really see the Tomas character and he's on contract. It's nice to know we still have people to meet. Kat vs Eva continues to be a delight and I enjoyed the rooftop scenes with Kat and Chelsea. That relationship is going a long way to humanize Kat and keep her from appearing too judgmental when it comes to Eva. Silk Press Sheila in her first disguise had me in stiches. You could never make me hate her. I'm sorry Nicole, but this is my girl! Next week looks even better. I also have to say the lighting has improved tremendously which is so nice to see. I was worried about that ultra-bright light from the promos and the pilot but I'm glad they worked through that. The actors and the sets look much better now.

Lesbians are going to be considered safer than male gay characters plus their execution of that was just as clunky as Martin and Smitty's kiss on the cheek. I'm happy they're attempting the story and will give them time. It's better than them not including these characters at all. If six months on things are the same I'll say something then but I give them grace right now considering the obvious constraints they're under.

I did some digging with primetime and cable ratings and I saw a report from January-April of last year and saw that Y&R made the list with 16 billion minutes viewed during that time frame. Shogun, a show that was budgeted at $250 million dollars and got endless promotion managed 4.93 billion minutes viewed during the same time frame. Y&R's budget is probably $30-40 million and they're getting so much more value out of it. I feel like it's kinda like the old days when daytime paid for primetime. Obviously not to the extent that they did in the past but I feel like each soap is more valuable to their networks than we think. It's just a matter of the people in charge being willing to accept that and value what they bring which I hope BTG will challenge them to do.

I was most worried about him based on The Bay and I can't say this episode did anything to satisfy my worries.

This felt more like filler but had some nice moments. As I pay attention to the script writer/breakdown writers it's interesting to see the differences. This felt like the weakest breakdown we got but I felt like we got some good scenes out of it. Something about the inclusion of Nicole and Ted felt incomplete for me. I could've used another scene with them to tie things up better. I loved the scenes with Haley and Dani and it's nice seeing Karla Mosley settle into the role. I think it was a big mistake not giving Bill or Haley any family so they have an outlet to their feelings. They run the risk of becoming too isolated without a solid talk-to. I know Haley has Caroline but she needs someone they're willing to give screentime to. Maybe if Ashley was friends with Haley instead of Naomi that would've worked better but then again I love Naomi with Ashley so maybe not. Another character that needs an outlet is Smitty. Might've been a good idea to make Cady's character his mother. I will say, I'm enjoying Martin and Smitty more and more each episode. I get the complaints about the lack of affection but we know this is a risky new soap launch and CBS Daytime is conservative. Hopefully in time they can be more affectionate as the show is successful they may be willing to take more chances. From a story standpoint it works for now so I'm not too bothered by it. I'm just happy the actors are getting more comfortable. Martin is building himself up so much that I see his downfall being delicious once we get to it.

Nicole is one of the bittersweet pinch me moments in these early days as I adjust to us having this new Black led soap. Seeing how natural and strong Daphne's performances are make me think of the amount of time that has been wasted that she could've been leading a soap. It's sad to think of how much Black talent has been neglected in the soap community. I feel the same way when I think of MVJ headwriting this show. Sure it's not perfect and has room to grow (what soap didn't at the beginning?) but she's made so many strong choices in building a solid foundation for the show that I can only imagine what she could've given *any* of the other soaps as they rotate the same few white HWs back-to-back. And not just Michele, but all the other talented Black soap writers or people who wanted to get into soaps but couldn't because of the color of their skin. Whenever I get these feelings I just remind myself of what a powerful moment this is. Not just for the soap opera genre, but for representation in general. This is a huge step forward and I'm happy that soaps are finally starting to catch up with primetime, cable and streamers. I hope that the next time one of the other soaps looks for a new HW they look to BTG and consider everybody who is qualified regardless of the color of their skin and give their vision a chance.

Yes, he's just doing breakdowns on BTG.

But this is so common on American soaps. This isn't like UK or Australian soaps where people are allowed to age normally. Every US soap on the air has the exact same thing, in some cases much worse. I go based off what I see on screen and I find it to be working, for me at least. I was worried about Dani having kids in their 20s but on screen I find the chemistry believable. Nicole feels natural with Martin and Smitty. Plus Black people tend to look younger than their natural ages so without it being brought up I really don't think I would've given it much thought.

I feel like a lot of the hate Jamey gets is from his past on Daytime Confidential. From the moment Ambitions was announced there were people rooting for him to fail. He assembled a great team, including giving Michele Val Jean and Susan Dansby a chance at a primetime show with Producer titles which both said was a career highlight. Together this team created a great soap that lived on in streaming. Many of the writing staff has gone on to get jobs on the other soaps. Black voices we did not have prior to Jamey platforming them on Ambitions. He's currently in his second season headwriting Sistas which continues to raise in the ratings and is always trending on Twitter and this is a show that's been on for years. Jamey breaking through as a fan and a Black writer is impressive and he's done a lot for Black writers on soaps and I'll always be greatful for that. I'll also mention that today's script writer was Jazmen Darnell Brown, the fourth writer from Ambitions to be added to the staff. If that doesn't speak to the experience MVJ had on that show, I don't know what will. And people have been raving about his script today.

I think the lessons from the strike are what helped push BTG over the line and also made it an easy decision to renew Days on Peacock. One of the main struggles Peacock said they were having is that when they'd have a hit show, people would cancel when it was over. Sure they may get higher views than a show like Days but does it really even out when they unsubscribe after three months and you've spent $100+ million on 8 episodes? I think the days of these ridiculously priced limited series are over. I noticed when Max launched The Pitt they went with a network model with a much lower budget and when casting the series they created payment tiers and didn't allow negotiations to stay within budget. This allowed them to stretch the season to 15 episodes and still spend less money than they would on a normal series. And of course it ended up being a big success because all people want is a good story.

But he's older than that in real life? Both Brandon and Mike are over 35 so I wouldn't imagine their characters would be any different. I normally don't love political storylines on soaps but I do think it fits here with the show being set in the DMV. Plus with what we already know about his background, there is no way he'd ever make it to the presidency so I'm willing to go along for the ride. I agree with you 100% here. This episode was a big step forward for both actors IMO. I felt like both felt more comfortable in their characters skin. We really needed a break from Dani and Bill so the rest of the cast can start to breathe and develop as well. I have to give a shout out to Jazmen Darnell Brown on an excellent script! He's one of the younger writers on the team and I'd also like to note, his first regular gig was with Jamey Giddeons, Michele Val Jean and Susan Dansby on Ambitions where IMO, they all did great work. This is another reason I'm not worried about Jamey on this show. I know the complaints about Jamey on Days, but Sistas has been doing well since he became the HW and he's already proven he can work well with MVJ. Also on Days he was under a headwriter generating awful storylines so I wouldn't expect greatness from anybody working under Ron, especially as stubborn as he is.

I agree with you about the 30 minute format and I always see people mention Edge of Night and I think that would be such a smart format to go with. They could craft a season long mystery for a set amount of episodes so if it doesn't work they can drop it, but still have resolution. I feel like that would be the best way for a streamer to go about it if they were to do a soap. The other one I'd consider is Dark Shadows just based on how strong it's legacy is.

Brown did an excellent job with his first script. This is a good example of why you should give young talent a chance. I found the dialogue to be so natural and all of the slang felt very current on on brand for each character.

The character is reminiscent of Sheila Carter from the Bell Universe and she has a sickening silk press!

She does look gorgeous on her IG! The one thing I'd like them to work on is her makeup. I feel like her foundation doesn't quite match and she looks a little grey on screen compared to how she looks on her social media. I just finished today's episode and watching it on my big screen I couldn't get it off my mind once I noticed it. Overall I thought this was a great episode and the highlight of the week for me. I was beginning to get burnt out on the Dani/Bill storyline and was starting to get curious about some of the other characters. There's been a lack of focus on Nicole's family and we know there is stuff simmering there so it was nice to get to see more of her, particularly with Smitty and Martin. Now that they've established things I'd like them to give more focus to this branch of the Dupree family. Silk Press Sheila continues to give me life and if she said she didn't do it, she didn't do it! Don't tell me what my eyes saw, my queen is so convincing and she is a good honorable woman. I hope Eva listens to her Mama! I've been wanting Eva to be Ted's brothers child but seeing how good her chemistry was with Kat has me second guessing things. I'd love to see them as feuding sisters from opposite sides of the track. Whatever happens, they've definitely created a mystery that I'm invested in. It was also nice to see more of Vanessa and her husband whose name escapes me. I am not typically a fan of gambling stories but I'm willing to see where this goes. I still don't know what to think of their relationship though. I hope this isn't wrong of me to say but he doesn't seem like he's into women. I need to learn more to understand what is going on here.

I loooove her look and I find myself enjoying this character more than I thought I would. I find her look to be very Hillary Banks.

I don't think Days is the only thing that helped save Peacock, but at the time I believe it was one of two launches they had during that time period so it had to be a big part of it. I don't think they'd ever publicly admit a soap saved them, but I feel like the renewal and sense of calm from the show suggests they're getting positive feedback. I do agree with this but this is where soaps have a leg up because there is great value in their streaming which is at least some form of additional revenue for them compared to those news programs which rely so much on the live viewership. Similarly, I think Brad Bell uploading the entire series on YouTube was a big game changer because that is something that will continue to generate revenue for them directly. The more money soaps can pull from different pots, the better.

This wouldn't surprise me. When building out a team it makes sense to throw a lot of people in the mix to find the right group of people to work with. Yet another reason I'm excited to see how the show develops throughout the year.

CBS stopped focusing solely on live viewing in 2014. Here is an article that confirms that. To say streaming means little in 2025 is not accurate. Part of the streamers becoming profitable is their programming and soaps in particular are an important part of that. Just like Peacock was failing badly and then they add Days of Our Lives and suddenly they had their best quarter ever for new subscriptions. Between paid subscriptions and people paying for the ad free versions, this is still more money these shows are taking in so obviously it would be important to them when looking at the overall picture. Post strike streamers are looking for things that drive long term subscriptions. Soaps can provide that because they require a year round subscription. Also when BTG was picked up this was mentioned as being a key part of their strategy. The Talk was low rated but also had no replay value on Paramount+ or other platforms like YouTube. Not to mention the fact that soaps have now become one of the most affordable scripted options on tv. Again, I'm not saying live ratings don't matter but they are only part of the picture.

I am thrilled for BTG but it's simply not true that live broadcast is most important. I'm pretty sure every network has stopped using those as a success metric at this point. Hell, the reason The Talk was canceled was partly because they couldn't monetize it any further because it had no replay value. Of course live ratings do matter, but the network is going to be focused on Live+3, Live+7 and streaming numbers as well when determining if any show is a success and that goes for Beyond the Gates as well. GH is regularly in the top ten on Hulu, daily, so it has it's audience. I'm not trying to pin either show against each other (these are the only two US soaps I watch), but I did want to clarify when it comes to what the networks are looking at in terms of ratings.