Chris B

I grew to enjoy this show, but it was very uneven. I loved the diversity of the cast, but I wish there was more show than tell, if that makes sense. I felt like the dialogue was very clunky over explaining everything instead of letting us learn about these characters in a more natural way. Once they got all the explaining out of the way there was a good show to be found. I do wish they got a second season to see if it continued to improve.

I will say, once I powered through that story, the show really picked up steam and the second half of 1972 was excellent. I do hate how dumbed down Althea became, but it was almost worth it for how delicious John was as a villain and I loved his rivalry with Nick/scheming with Cathy. Also I spoke too soon in my previous post because Toni and Billy's mother did show up for a short arc. It was interesting how they tied Vito in with her. I almost wish they had made Vito Billy's father. That would've been explosive, but I believe they quickly wrapped the Vito/Barbara part of the story up. I'm now in January 1973 and they're mentioning Penny a lot so it looks like I'll finally get to see Julia Duffy in the role. I'm excited to see Penny again. Althea has really suffered as a character since being with John and hopefully Penny can make me like her again. Another exciting thing is that Hank finally seems to be getting a storyline and some focus. It's crazy that this is the early 70s and they're investing in a Black character when even today that is rare. I can't leave without mentioning what a powerhouse Mona is. I feel like this is one of those characters that really enhances the dynamics of a show. She has been excellent from her first scene and the actress devours anybody she shares a scene with. I have a feeling we're in for lots of good story now that Ann has also arrived. I plan to enjoy all the time I have left with Carolee Campbell before the recast. She's such a unique talent and while I know Jada Rowland is a good actress, I can't imagine her matching what Campbell brings to the role.

If she's back for more than a drive by, I hope they actually write for Denise Richards, meaning let her be a vixen and sex bomb. It makes no sense you have the ultimate sex symbol and write such a bland character for her.

What annoys me is that in all of this, a potentially great housewife was lost in the shuffle of a bad season: Bershan. I place all the blame on Leah btw. I think Eboni was very irritating, but Leah is the one who truly made that season a nightmare. She ran off Heather, which prevented a Aviva return and she was a party pooper the entire season. Going back to Bershan, I'd love to see her get another shot with the veteran cast. She fits age wise and has an inspiring backstory, has that wacky vibe that works for RHONY and can be fun and still provide drama. She was perfectly cast!

I like Carlos King and I don't mind him overhyping himself. I think that's what he needs to do to take things to the next level. I mean, he's had his own production company for years and he's trying to build his brand. I can't knock his hustle. As a Black creative, it's obviously a more difficult road to travel than his White counterparts. If someone had the success he did with housewives, NBC Universal would've signed him to an overall deal by now. I find it tacky that Bravo asked him to take over RHOD as show runner in season two and has also asked him to return to RHOA in recent years and both times they were only willing to hire him as a contractor and not use his company. It's especially glaring with Dallas whose production company completely failed at launching that series. I hope that with his heightened profile and the success of Love and Marriage he gets more opportunities. On another note: Another Day, Another RHONY rumor: Bravos and Cocktails is reporting that they did test filming with a new group of six women and the plan was to announce the new cast at BravoCon. The footage was terrible and three women have dropped out. They've had such difficulty casting that they're considering rebranding the show and just moving forward with the Legacy cast. They'd also be moving the Legacy show from Peacock to Bravo and it wouldn't have Legacy in the name.

Speaking of Thorne, with Winsor he has always been one of my favorite characters since I started the show. As a child I don't recall liking Jeff in the role and I hated the singing. Now that I'm watching it from the beginning I feel like Jeff is my favorite and I actually find myself loving the singing between him and Macy. I typically don't like singing on soaps, but they have such good chemistry and Jeff is great in the role. Clayton was the best looking Thorne, but I feel like his acting was limited. It's disappointing to hear Jeff fizzled out as Thorne, but that's typical of Brad when he loses interest in someone.

I'm glad I picked up my watch because it seemed the show drastically improved right at the point I'd left off. The Maggie story I hated was quickly ended and the Karen story was coming to an end. I LOVE Karen, but it was no fun having her basically play the same story being in love with Matt and I HATE seeing her portrayed as a villain having seen Steve rape her. I know it's a sign of the times, but him raping her and her being forced to marry him for Erich has always soured me to Steve, no matter how much they try to act like he's a good guy. If that's how Karen is going to be written, I'm happy she's gone. In recent episodes Mona has arrived. I LOVED her from the start. The actress is fantastic and has a great look. I can't wait to see what she brings to the show long term. I love her dislike of Carolee and speaking of mothers, I've appreciated all of the Emma this year. Emma and Carolee have such great chemistry and I also have enjoyed seeing Emma date and also Emma with Mona. I can't wait for Billy to return so I can see how he interacts with Mona. Another great story is the John/Althea/Nick triangle. Althea is being a complete idiot when it comes to John, but she tends to be like that in relationships so it works for me. The Cathy aspect of the story is also great. I like the recent recast who seems more twisted. I imagine this character must be reaching a climax soon and this new actress seems like she'll handle that well. The lab crew has been great this year as well. I was initially disappointed they dropped Toni's search for her mom for this Vito story, but I actually like Vito. I love that Martha see's right through him and won't stay off his neck. Mike's dislike of him makes perfect sense and I hate how wishy washy Toni is in regards to Vito. On one hand she see's that he's trying to break her and Mike up, but then she pulls back and falls into his traps. She needs to keep her head on straight before she's single. The only area of the lab I'd like to see improved is more Hank. I know my hopes are limited since it's a Black character in the 70s, but the actor is so good so I welcome any chance to see more of him.

I'll admit I'm so desperate for soap content that I don't complain about the quality, but it is nice to see how beautiful this HD transfer is. It makes me want to consider a re-watch once it's uploaded.

Tucker is in his 70's...

It could be similar to Bill Bell with Y&R and maybe NBC didn't want to let her out of her contract at DAYS.

No, it was a dead end storyline. Her ex husband Max (who we never met before) was dating Nikki and used her to flirt with Victor to keep Nikki away from him. It never really went anywhere, Victor and Nikki reunited and it was done. Just a complete waste of time and a complete waste of a popular and viable character.

It pains me that they've introduced multiple characters who could be Brooks AND they've brought back Lorie and Leslie, but they've never done anything with any of it. With the family having a background in media they'd be incredibly easy to revamp, but nobody seems to get it right. Even when Jamie Lyn Bauer came back in 2001 the story made no sense and was so disconnected from her history on the show.

Dallas introduced some interesting female characters, but they never amounted to much. I thought Michelle was a good addition, but she was interacting with people who were too old for her so she felt out of place. I also thought they did a great job with re-introducing a stronger, more snarky Lucy, but she sat there for like three seasons with absolutely no story. The best of the bunch for me was Cally, JR's child bride. She had one of the worst introduction stories I've ever seen, but her relationship with JR was surprisingly very interesting and she was a great actress.

So many have returned in recent years I can't imagine who they'd go for if not Victoria Rowell and Tonya Lee Williams. I also don't think Rowell returning is out of the picture. She just finished a recurring role on a primetime CBS soap and is employed almost year round directing or acting in tv movies for them.

Damn! This looks GOOD! There is just an excitement I get from Potomac that none of the others give me. They also look so beautiful in that cast photo.

They paid $1 billion for exclusive rights to WWE. That, like Days, is something that can drive ongoing subscription which is what they say they’re looking for.

Thank you for that info! I just did some research and Peacock's spend for content in 2022 is $3 billion according to MoneyGeek. When you compare the budget for Days to the average streaming/broadcast series on the lower end, even if it's budget was $37 million per year, that would be decent. Broadcast/Streaming shows cost around $2-$3 million per episode so they're spending the same or more for an 8-10 episode season of a show than they would be on an entire season of 250 episodes of Days. With cuts, I wouldn't be surprised if Days' budget is under $30 million per year and in that case it's basically a steal for them if people watch it. Spending $30 million on a show that can drive year round subscriptions is better than spending $30 million for 8 episodes which will get some attention, but die down once it's run ends.

I know she's controversial, but I loved the Latham/Lechowick era of Knots. They recognized that times were changing and that you had to update the format of the show for it to remain relevant. Not everything they did worked, but I liked that they attempted to bring the show forward and they were successful with many of the changes. Most importantly, the show still always felt like Knots. When it comes to LML's time on Y&R, I am in a small minority I know, but I think her Y&R was still very good until she lost Victoria Rowell. You could tell Rowell was a bit of a muse for her and I love the heavy screentime the minority characters got during her tenure. I think had Ed Scott remained as EP and it was a team of LML/Jack Smith/Kay Alden they would've been perfect for the show. I think the biggest issue was making her EP and HW and allowing her to change the show too much.

When you look at how expensive some of these streaming shows are, I wouldn't be surprised if Days is viable for them. By being an ongoing thing, even if they take a summer break, that's 9-10 months of ongoing content which would keep people subscribed. They're spending tons of money on these big budget scripted shows that have like 8 episodes and only drive subscription for a short period of time. If they can make the budget work, the idea of a soap on their platform could be smart long term planning. @ErrolDo we even have a rough estimate on what the yearly budget of Days is? Knowing that, we can compare it to some of the other scripted shows and see just how viable it would be.

Vee, I'm curious on what your take will be when you reach season 7 for the Dallas/Knots writers swap. In retrospect, it's such an odd thing to do considering the season six finale was the first time Knots went to #1. In the end I definitely think Knots got the better end of the stick compared to Dallas, but I still would've loved to have seen where Peter Dunne would've taken the series.

None of that sounds dynamic or dramatic. It sounds like more of the same if I'm being honest, which is just middle of the road. I do wonder who the returning fan favorites could be.

I wasn't crazy about Robert as Noah (a thankless, nothing role), but I am LOVING him as Michael. I hate that they keep doing these pop ups because I get invested in the story and then he leaves and I go back to scrolling through my phone when Chad is back. Especially with this new Willow story, it would be great to have a Michael that is more engaged.

I've put the show off for over a year because I was struggling with the storylines, but I've decided to commit and try to get through 1972. I know The Pollock's were successful on the show, but I find their work so mediocre compared to what came before. Very slow and plot driven and far too many flashbacks. Right now I can't say there is one story I enjoy. The one that drives me the most insane is this story with Maggie and her visions and mysterious illness. I hope that once this story wraps up the show will become more enjoyable for me.

Peacock typically does lots of promo close to the start date of what they're promoting. I imagine that's the plan for Days as Errol mentioned a big promo campaign is coming.

Donna has more long term potential than Quinn does and also works better with Eric. Quinn and Wyatt needed to go years ago. The only thing that saved Quinn in my eyes was the relationship with Carter, which I do think was strong enough to keep her around.