All My Shadows

Finished Paper Dolls, and I am UPSET that this was cancelled halfway through the season! So many juicy cliffhangers! Is Marjorie dead? Probably so! What did Mark find out about Racine? I bet she has a kid! David is a huge loser, so will the review from Carr finally push him to off himself? I hope so. What will Laurie's stalker do next? He better leave my Chris alone. There were ups and downs with this series, but it ultimately was as good as any of the longer-running primetime soaps. Once we got out of the John Waite nonsense and David with the loan shark, things really improved. Colette Ferrier's arrival was not as interesting as it could have been, though I figure there would have been more juiciness with her once Racine and Wesley's schemes were revealed. I think one of the problems with the show is that it was missing that central rivalry that is so important to business-based soaps. The closest we got to it was Wesley vs. David, but these guys were in two totally different leagues. Wesley vs. Colette would have been much better had the show had more time to develop that, but alas. Julia vs. Dinah was fun, but we never really had a reason to root for Julia outside of her just being a fun bitch. The cast also had some filler, and it's like they knew it. Most of the cast gets multiple shots in the opening, but then there's that quick sequence of Anne Schedeen, John Bennett Perry, and Nancy Olson right in the middle, as if to say "Hey, they're here, but...they're not gonna do much. But they're here." They all could have been written out after serving their initial purposes. Racine was a fun character. I appreciate that she wasn't just a schemer. Outside of her plots with Wesley, she was just an assertive and savvy businesswoman with a taste for men. I'm just so sad that this didn't last at least a full season. I think of Yellow Rose, which just limped along for 22 episodes not really knowing what it wanted to be, never really feeling its footing, but then Paper Dolls hit the ground running, rolled through some meh story, and then settled into great primetime soap but was gone in an instant. Emerald Point NAS is next on my list of short-lived nighttime soaps. Any thoughts from anyone?

General Hospital has never ever been "my" soap, and I've never gone through a period of fascination and obsession with watching old episodes, reading synopses, etc. I think I'd like the 60s/70s era of it, but when I tell you that I have nooooo interest whatsoever in its 80s heyday, I cannot express it enough. The Labine years, maybe, but I'm so turned off by the characters because I associate them with the stupid 80s sht, that I don't even care enough to watch them.

So sorry to hear that news from Melissa. She/Natalie was one of my favorites from my OLTL watching days, and idk how long ago it was taken, but her dad looks so young and vibrant in that photo.

Yes, everything kinda started happening right away. I was surprised to see the "To be continued..." at the end of each episode like early Dynasty - figured that wouldn't be a necessity by 1984 when primetime TV had already been knee-deep in soapland for years, but the way they started it, I can see why they would want to make sure viewers never missed an episode. The story with David and the loan shark advanced a lot in just three or four episodes. It also gives me miniseries vibes, like Valley of the Dolls + Hollywood Wives + Dynasty + Knots Landing. The Dack/Morgan combo is gold. Two people synonymous with the 80s primetime soap glamour who deserved more prominent, longer-running roles.

That makes a lot of sense, though! I love that they do make jokes about her name, like in the episode where they go to the rib restaurant, and the guy says "Oh, like Wisconsin." I'm surprised at how much we're seeing of Laurie outside of the agency. Before I really dug into what the show was, I always assumed it was dueling modeling agencies, Racine's and the Harpers'. The storylines are interesting, so I'm enjoying it. Lol at them making such a huge deal out of [Taryn in the opening]John Waite!?[/Taryn]. Re: Glitter. Lalo Schifrin really said "Two solid minutes, damn it."

I was in favor of all soaps going back to thirty minutes in the mid-2000s when I still watched regularly, but I've never really agreed with the idea that they would benefit from cutting down the number of episodes per week. The UK soaps don't all air five times a week, but they're in primetime. US daytime television is stripped, especially on the networks, and if a person is going to be there to watch a show on MWF, then they'll be there on the Tuesday and Thursday, too. If I had my way, instead of GL/ATWT/AMC/OLTL being cancelled, they would have been scaled down to 30 minutes, with each network being left with one hour-long soap. If the return to the half-hour was successful, then those hour-longs might have been reduced at some point, too.

See, I've never read this scene as overdramatic or campy because in my 30-almost-31 years, I've gone to at least 20 funerals, and in my family, this is type of heart-wrenching grieving is extremely common. I actually find it hard to watch because it feels so real.

I recently started Paper Dolls and I'm loving it! For the first few episodes I was wondering why they never established Racine's last name, but then there was a scene with her and Roscoe Born where she literally told him her last name doesn't matter Also, Brenda Vaccaro is cracking me up every time she comes on screen.

What's your rationale on that? Not trying to challenge the thought, just curious as to what circumstances would prevent that. I paid basically no attention at all to the legal battles that ensued with ABC and PP, so I'm wondering if it's just a wise decision on their part to ignore it.

I would absolutely be in for a show that focuses on the children of the major players. I mean, if the mothership was still rolling, that's basically where'd we be right now, anyway. What interests me, though, is will they SORAS characters born in the last ten years, which would make them in their 20s/30s, or will they ignore SORAS and have them as teenagers? As much as I loathe SORAS, I'd much rather the former as it keeps continuity (as screwy as it is) and also gives us adults instead of kids. The CW is the only network that targets teens, so I'm gonna assume our core characters, whoever they are, will be older. Let's start talking possible characters, guys! My body is ready for 25-year-old AJ Chandler, and I would assume Hayley and Mateo's son Enzo would be around at a year or two older (with a wife, husband, or other significant other?). Characters like Colby and Pete would be in their 30s. Erica has a shtload of random grandchildren at this point, they could honestly take their pick on who to have as her anchor to the core.

The bold part is exactly it. I think it's insane that people think it's okay to make commentary on how other people choose to acknowledge the death of a person they actually knew. Like for fcks sake, what exactly does Philippe Berry get out of tweeting that (besides, like you said, the likes and attention). Learn when to stfu!

The best soaps are the slow-moving ones with a pace that is true to life, IMO. Once you start getting wrapped up in the idiotic sci-fi and action/adventure crap, I'm out.

Nina was said to be sickly throughout most of her childhood and had diabetes. I believe it was something along the lines of appendicitis that put her in the hospital and into Cliff's orbit. The blind storyline came after they already met. I think the 1980 wedding was supposed to be at Cortlandt Manor. Palmer and the Dobermans was at a masquerade held for Nina's birthday at the manor in February 1980. EricMontreal, a longtime SON poster, generously posted the two episodes on YT years ago. I hope they're still there. Monique's last name was "Jonvil."

Palmer was super controlling of Melanie and her love life, but I wouldn't say it was as bad as it was with Nina. Hopefully, by then, he'd learned his lesson - the harder you try to keep them apart, the more likely they are to end up together.

But...Elizabeth Montgomery is dead. I'm confused.

It was Jim Craig who had that line, not Vinnie. He did have Karen and Larry recreate the “first cake-cutting” moment later in the episode. I’ve watched the 1975 ep and first 1977 ep so far, and they were SO GOOD. It’s weird to watch a pre-Buchanan OLTL because the show had so many established characters who were tentpoles that would eventually be written out not even five years after these episodes aired. Eileen seemed like such a neurotic 70s mom, contrasting with cool and calm Anna and Carla. Then you have Jim, Joe, Steve, and Ed basically running Llanview. I’ve never been big on the Buchanans, but getting a real taste of how the show was before their arrival just makes them less appealing to me. The music score - so big and sweeping!

Amazing finds, and I can't wait to watch them! Hopefully this is just the beginning of that channel sharing more from soaps from that era. It seems like there are quite a few channels with miscellaneous tapes from the early/mid 70s out there.

I started this last weekend and am squeezing it in when I can. Not much to say other than I'm enjoying it and SH!T that Simon could get it.

I was unaware of the Simone spin-off until y'all brought it up. Just read up on it, and I can get behind the concept, just not interested in seeing her as the center of a show. That could have easily been Kia. A Laura/Mo conflict would hit SO hard!

Thanks for the tag! Phoebe is too precious, all concerned about "Corinth society" as she very vaguely has an air of "Thank God I'm from the Valley and not this place!" And of course, Enid back at home dying to know what's going on even though none of it concerns her one bit.

I also enjoyed the premiere. It was so easy to get back into these characters, whom I've missed so much! Not much to say besides...I strongly dislike Simone. I love love love Patience. I'm really nervous about a Spencer/Olivia/Asher/Layla quad - I do love a good quad, but I'm not sure if this can be a good quad. The show's strengths have been in concepts that aren't as blatantly soapy, but if they can make it happen, I'm ready for the ride. Lamon Archey is ABSOLUTELY sexy as hell as the new principal. I'm with you on Mo, @ChitHappens. Everything about her since her arrival has been classic soap villain-goddess, and I absolutely want that to continue, but at the same time...I could love her as a rough upstart trying to clean up the streets. Side note - the call-backs to Coach's mom being a legendary history teacher at South Crenshaw are always so sweet. The one thing that Friday Night Lights let me down on back in the day was the lack of establishing Dillon High as an actual school with teachers and a culture outside of football.

Between Three's Company, Dynasty, and his one-off appearances on other shows, Peter Mark Richman is definitely one of my fave TV stars of all time. May he rest.

Am I understanding this right - her boyfriend was with her in the hospital, and when she closed her eyes, he assumed she died, so he just left the hospital without telling anyone...but he told the rep when he showed up??? That sounds...weird. And the video of him receiving the phone call that she's alive? Do we trust this dude? He seems off as hell to me.

Thanks for sharing, Forever8! I originally posted that audio on YouTube, ripped from another source, so it's nice to see people appreciating it. All four of the basic AMC themes (including 2013) were great, IMO. I know the David Benoit composition from the late 90s/early 00s isn't a favorite for most, but I always thought it had more of a "classic AMC" feel than the Barber/Israel theme.