DRW50

I can't remember either. Wasn't this when Kendall and Janet were close? Was it tied to Del?

I think it would depend on what kind of work he is doing...but yes. Good for him though. That makes sense. I could also see her becoming a madam but trying to be a "good" madam. The idea of a Same Time, Next Year scenario makes sense for Karen and Larry. I'd love to see that (and her reaction to him and Dan dating the same woman).

They never would have paired her with a white man, but they could have tried her more with Zak or brought in a new man - maybe a new executive at Cory who could be tied into another developing story. Maybe he could have been tied to Reginald's dirty deeds and bringing him back to Bay City, sort of the evil mirror of Quinn helping bring Steve back to Bay City. In this story Reginald might have been less slimy and one-note and instead had more of a business rivalry with Mac, leading Quinn to be torn between friends and a new love, possibly even become a double agent for the Corys. Great idea. I wonder if Denise could have worked as Janet Matthews.

You're right. And it did work with Ordinary People. And these dramas/dramedies fared better than her variety shows. I sometimes wonder where TV would be now if the dramedies of the late '80s had been more popular with viewers. Poor Lucy tried once, with Stone Pillow, which I think was mentioned as doing well, but also caused severe health problems.

That could have worked. I think the show did start referencing Susannah again later on (or am I making that up).

Thanks @Paul Raven appreciate hearing about the earliest days of this show in such detail.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/denis-arndt-dead-heisenberg-david-e-kelley-shows-1236175515/ The recent passing of Arndt reminded me of Annie McGuire, a few episodes of which are on Youtube. This isn't a bad show, but beyond this premise (liberal wife/conservative husband) rarely working for viewers in such explicit terms, I wonder how much Mary Tyler Moore at this point in her career was hurt by people just seeing her as Mary Tyler Moore. That the very first episode is so heavily about a guest character (who is more compelling than any of the regulars) kind of says it all.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/30/arts/television/richard-chamberlain-shogun-thorn-birds.html Nothing that amazing here, but I appreciated them writing about Chamberlain's arguably biggest roles and that era of miniseries in a way that didn't feel sneering.

I have a vague memory of Mindy having a flashback where she was in a soda shop or somewhere with Lujack, to try to imply she'd had feelings for Lujack which would I guess further give motivation for her being with Nick. I remember Nick and Lillian also having a talk soon after his arrival. It's too bad they didn't do more, but I don't know what they could do anyway - the only part of the story which had juice was Beverlee's responses, and the show took that for granted. JFP really was deluded enough to believe the only person in that story GL fans cared about was Vincent.

I am curious - when Larry was brainwashed into proposing to Karen again, did he still love her but had just tried to move on? I can't see them lasting if Karen had stayed. I love the idea for Karen, and the show needed that, especially when you think of how many lost souls were around in the '80s who could have been brought into Llanview. The '80s was a lost decade, in many ways. Your idea is so much better than what they were going to do with Karen if Judith had returned for the finale (allegedly), even if some soap stenos at the time tried to drag Judith for not agreeing to it.

Thanks @DemetriKane I'd never heard this.

By that point I was skipping large portions of the show, but I do remember this was when he and Alan Michael were heated rivals. I'm not sure who they thought cared.

Those are very good ideas, and very fitting for the time (the gym/eatery). The family drama for the Todds too. Maisie and Vince would have made more sense to me in the long run than Vince and Mary reunited.

It was worse than that for me because I felt like Mindy also went under the bus and she and Alexandra both just suffered for the sake of Nick. I remember lots and lots of Nick being a sanctimonious ass to them and various others to the point where it was only his final year on the show, when they had clearly given up on the character, that he behaved in a remotely kind or human manner. You aren't wrong. Coleman did a good job with the story, but the story was a mistake. It was too soon to bring Annie back, and while I appreciated how cold and sharp Coleman was compared to how OTT Watros could be by the end, there just was no need for her. The whole idea of her using poisoned aftershave to make Josh want Cassie felt like a rejected Dynasty plotline. And then she ends up stuck in a boring relationship with Alan before she skips town - I can't even remember what her exit was...did she go on the run? The only positive was her confrontation scenes with Alex in the attic during Marj's brief 98/99 return - some of Marj's best work in the role.

More great ideas. The idea of a Quinn/Dennis pairing is something I can't believe I never thought of - she is just his type of classy, remote older woman. And Iris would definitely question the racial element. I can see Iris being involved with Mitch too. I hadn't even considered someone impersonating Mikey, but it makes sense. Maybe a more coherent version of all that Sandy/Jonathan mess on GL, without puppets.

It's such a moving scene, especially when I see that it carried over to the beauty shot (maybe one of the strongest beauty shots I've seen - a great example of the power they could have). So many who write soaps in recent years often just want to write bitchery and "camp" between female characters. It's cheap and easy, a way to get fans talking and to get attention on social media. They could have gone that way with Karen, especially if they had stuck to the earlier shadings of the character but having her trying to look out for the other broken dolls, giving them the support Viki had given her in her lowest moments, is so much more impactful for me. A gorgeous moment that the world needs more of now.

Thanks @Efulton that's a great find!

I think Mindy was beneath her talents, to be honest (and I am a Mindy fan). Still, it would have been more logical than what they did with Tangie. @P.J. Thanks. I think I watched the episode a few years ago, but that one moment is still visceral in my mind.

I do enjoy the Buchanans, but episodes like this remind me of the consequences of their devouring the show. You have such a beautiful scene near the end of the episode with Karen and Edwina (she really did have very pretty hair - no wonder her cutting it got such notice), two outsiders, very broken, trying to survive, and Karen can only try to take Edwina into her arms to share her pain. That was one of the cores of OLTL - outsiders, outcasts. And then you have Asa and the whole jamboree, hee and haw. You know which one ends up winning. In the Rauch era, you mostly just have those characters being absorbed into the Buchanan circle and the focus shifts to the danger they bring to the "good" characters, rather than focusing on their brokenness. It still works, in some ways, thanks to the work from Andrea Evans and Fiona Hutchinson, and some tender writing here and there, but it does turn OLTL into something it was not intended to be.

I can't remember if this one had ever been up before, but just in case it hasn't been: This has some of the Paris location shoot, including a neat little sighting of a Pat Ashley Show clapperboard and some footage of Pat actually filming her show. (I didn't realize how long the Paris sojourn was as there are still moments there in September) A big location shoot and hoopla with Asa too for...a party being thrown for Samantha Vernon and Mimi King (sure, why not). I was trying to figure out if this is the "Asa raps!" episode but I don't think it is? Didn't fully check though. I do wonder how viewers at the time felt about the sudden yee-hawization of their Llanview. Fascinating they were doing all this location work in August, not even a sweeps period. Some fun moments here with Dorian, Clint and Viki where Dorian asks Viki if she'd save her if she was drowning: "Dorian, I would think about it." It's nice to see this lighter Dorian, a reminder we are still early into Robin's run. Oh, there's a really good scene with Katrina and "Mario" near the end of this episode. Nancy Snyder brought so much believability to a role that was basically an extended plot device. Good scene in here of Karen blasting the hell out of "Mario" because he still has the horn for Tina and is just a trashy, sloppy mess in general (poor Edwina...). The layers of deception with Karen and Marco are fascinating (and they casually talk with Katrina even though IIRC they had already stolen her child by this point). It's a credit to Judith Light and Gerald Anthony that viewers were still on their side. @Vee @Franko @Paul Raven @slick jones @EricMontreal22 @FrenchFan @vetsoapfan @Khan @Soaplovers @SFK @dc11786 @chrisml @Marco Dane @Jagger1966 @MissPalmer @dragonflies @janea4old @TheyStartedOnSoaps @BetterForgotten @Kane @Soapsuds @Contessa Donatella @Maxim @All My Shadows

@Paul Raven Love your ideas. So many are no-brainers - Pammy and Gerald should have returned, if anyone at AW by then even remembered them. Ben should have come back. And Vicky vs Iris writes itself. I really want a Michael Randolph return too and I had a lot of ideas on that.

Thanks. I knew it had to be some short-lived blonde. I get her and the first Laurel mixed up at times.

Thanks. Very sloppy to just not ever talk about him again, although I guess they figured most viewers wouldn't remember or care. Mid 1986 AW and late 1987 AW are almost like two different worlds. They likely would have trashed the Millers in some way, although we barely ever saw them enough to where they'd have to work hard to make them look bad. Maybe he turns out to be lying about them and was just tired of being poor and feels like he's a burden to his parents as they are still paying off the money they spent fighting for him. Donna and Michael help him and the Millers end up letting him stay (or maybe he's already 18 by that point).

I probably should have said we didn't know - I think there was mention here of them laying groundwork (beyond bringing the kids back) but it was never confirmed.