Chris B

It's so hard to say because of all the different time periods but with the exception of Days, I feel you could argue all the current soaps took time before they became hits. Launching a soap post-B&B has been very difficult so BTG not being a breakout hit (as far as we know since we don't know streaming numbers) shouldn't be a surprise if we're being realistic. I'd argue you could consider Passions and Port Charles success stories, especially Passions which had a unique fanbase that still talks about the show. With Port Charles and The City, they were in a timeslot with clearance issues so I don't know that either had a true opportunity for real success and Sunset Beach wasn't a good show.

Of course, as Errol has perfectly outlined, this is all speculation but on the ratings standpoint, lets say CBS is not pleased, I do wonder what they have in mind to change that. It's not uncommon for a soap to start out low in the ratings and gradually build overtime so I could see them increasing their ratings but I'm curious what types of changes they'll make for that to happen. Unlike most new soaps, we've seen very little change to the cast. We've had one recast and of course Madison and Carlton are new characters but I'm not sure how much they'll use either. I do think both would be good to keep long term, especially Carlton. What I think they really need is a splashy new character they can spin a promo campaign around. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Victoria Rowell--in a meaningful, contract role. Attach her to someone and create a secondary family to rival the Duprees. This has saved so many soaps in the past and I'm sure BTG will get there one way or another. I can't wait until we get to the point where we can see what changes they make to improve viewership. Knowing they're filming November sweeps, I hope they have something big planned.

The weather in Atlanta is really not that different from DC where they'd have to do anything like that to make it look more realistic. It's colder in DC but it does snow in Atlanta. I think the exteriors they did in week one fit perfectly and didn't read like it was the wrong location.

I co-sign all the comments about exteriors. That was my one big hope and it didn't end up happening which I find so disappointing, especially with the studio they're in. I think it would be helpful to lure in younger viewers and also it just opens a show up. I hate that we're in the middle of summer and they haven't even given us a studio outdoor set. The is typically the time you get the cast in more casual clothes yet it's business as usual here. You mean to tell me they can't throw together an outdoor set for the country club?

I find the whole season thing to be so confusing. I know they do a primetime schedule where its roughly September-August for a season but we know their initial studio contract was through August 2025 which would've given them episodes through December. So either they always had a two season pickup and it just wasn't announced or they were off schedule. But as you said, this could all be resolved if they said something. Just randomly dropping a week is going to cause a stir since people are invested in the show.

I know it's controversial but I actually didn't hate the Kirkland invasion. I didn't like how when Labine returned she basically disregarded everything to reset the show to where she left it. I think she could've made the Kirkland family (and Rae and Kimberly) work in a more balanced world of Ryan's Hope.

For me personally, much like the other soaps, I'd like them to get better at regularly posting key clips on their social media. I'm not saying they don't do it at all, but it's often just random clips and not the highlights that go viral on social media.

They're currently filming the week of November 16th so I don't think they're retooling. At least, I don't think that's the reason for the break. They have more than enough episodes where if they needed to take a break and retool, they could. Now with that said, I do think we'll see some retooled storylines considering the writing staff has had a shake up. The more I think about this and the more I think it's just a way to keep the episodes in sync due to all of the previous preemptions. Nothing else really makes sense.

He cheated on her and had a baby with another woman.

I feel like the writing has been strong and only gotten better over time. I'm curious how it will feel once Thomson arrives. Hopefully she is a good addition to the team!

Considering its off next week, I wish they hadn't done such a detailed Next On preview. The next week looks AMAZING and I feel it's going to lose momentum being off a week.

I have to say, at least their social media team is definitely lacking. I notice they always fail to clip the highlight scenes which could build momentum for the show online. I first took notice when they didn't post Anita's karaoke performance and I've been noticing that it's a continuous theme with them. As for a week of repeats, they're going to catch hell for this. The show has already been pre-empted so much that people are going to be naturally upset. The story is also hot and it's not common for this to happen with a soap. I'm curious if this is to retool something? But with them filming 3 months ahead I can't see the need for that. Very strange.

What if the announcement is a timeslot shift?

The actress who plays Ashley just had a story on CBS Mornings relating to her schedule at work so I don't see her going anywhere. Derek was also excited in the videos for the season two announcement. I am very curious who will be the first character written out but for now, I just hope they fix the direction for these characters if they have to stick around. I will say, I did enjoy the Ashley/Dani scenes on Wednesday. I wouldn't mind if that became her story, investigating Hayley's pregnancy and meddling in that way. Any romance they need to just revisit in a few months with someone other than Derek or Andre.

I wonder if this could be why Lynn Martin's contract wasn't renewed.

Caroline’s lawsuit is moving along and the more I hear about it, the more this feels like she was embarrassed and just doesn’t want it to air. What we’re learning now is that Caroline returned to film confessionals and the complete 7 episode series was delivered to the network in October 2023. She only got upset and filed this lawsuit when she realized this story would cover multiple episodes (3-6 it seems). I think this is pretty shocking because I just assumed it was unfinished and I never imagined she would’ve gone back to shoot confessionals. Still no idea if this will ever air but Bravo will 100% get this dismissed. Between the detailed footage they’re providing (both raw footage and edited episodes), plus the entire cast siding with Brandi, I just don’t see how Caroline wins this.

There has been a thing with homophobic men luring gay guys to their death using apps. I think that would be a bold move if they went there. I find it so odd that Smitty saw what he did and didn't try to find out what happened. That has me side eyeing him now. I will say though that I love how so many of the characters have a little grey to them instead of being all good or bad. Today's episode was another home run! I cannot wait for each episode to find out this damn secret!

I don't even think it was pride, I feel like Vernon feels betrayed by Bill. He accepted him despite his initial reservations and helped him build himself into the successful man he is. Then he had to watch Bill cheating on his daughter for years only to leave her for his granddaughters friend. Yes Bill can argue the family went to him as counsel/a fixer but Bill is only who he is because of them. He could've divorced Dani the right way and moved on and we wouldn't be having this problem. Bill made his bed and deserves all the scorn he gets from Vernon and the others.

I feel like to be the head of a family like this you have to be a little grey but at the same time, I'm not convinced Vernon was wrong to cover this up. We still don't know the full details but we do know racism was involved.

I loved those Vernon and Bill scenes! They are amongst the finest this series has ever produced. They truly went toe to toe and it kept me on my toes. I kept expecting Vernon to have to back down and I love how he didn't in the end. I get both of their argument but I feel like Vernon's deep love for Dani is what made him stand his ground. I loved seeing a darker side to him.

I get it with Chelsea but there is something about Madison that I don't trust. She's a doctor and probably a little older and more experienced. Why is she acting so naive? I feel like she's hiding something. I want my girl to be happy but I'm not seeing it.

Oh I love how you think!

Yes and as always, it's the best show on Bravo! The biggest surprise for me this far is that for once I'm taking Larsa's side. It took Jody morphing into a creep for me to appreciate the brilliance of Larsa. She is immature and her delivery is harsh but she is right this time. Alexia always has such a fascinating life but I'm over Todd and disappointed she'd stay with him after the way he left her. Frankie is the heart of the show and to know he'd move out in front of him is unforgivable. If it were Peter or someone else that would be one thing but he had to know that would confuse Frankie and cause him stress. I get that Alexia depends on men to survive but she can find another man. Another thing that has my eye is Julia vs Guerdy. I've never been a big Guerdy fan. I felt like in previous seasons she tried too hard and struggled to find a solid place in the ground. Last season she overcame that and now I do think she fits in perfectly with the cast. Julia, on the other hand, has been one of my favorites since she first appeared. This season I can't stand Julia. I hate a housewife who makes up a story but this one is so poorly done and clearly made up that I hope EVERYONE drops her. This needs to be her last season. Beyond that, I'm loving everything. Everybody is wonderful and I can't wait for the future episodes. I'm glad Miami is back because Atlanta was not doing it for me. I feel like we're about to have a good run with Miami, OC and then Salt Lake. I hope Peacock ends up showing London but I have a Hayu subscription and a VPN so I'll be watching that either way!

My earliest soap memories are of ATWT and Y&R. I'd watch with my grandparents and those are the two that stuck with me at a very young age. Y&R what drew me in were the Black characters and Victor. On ATWT it was Kathryn Hayes. I remember Y&R was easier for me to understand but my grandpa knew all of the ATWT history and would always fill me in on who was related to who and what was going on.

What was sending me was seeing Joey in the room! I can't imagine what would make the Duprees team up with him. Makes me wonder if maybe he's not as bad as we've thought? Yep. I feel like they keep showing us that they know what they're doing and they have a plan. Nothing feels thrown together. We will have to wait and see what happens but I'm going in confident whatever they have planned will land.