DRW50

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Tylenol_murders The Hollyoaks story, as one of a million ways they are trying to dump most of their cast, had a number of stressed characters buying pills from the dealers of longtime local thug Warren. He did not know the pills were tainted (if there are more details someone else can fill them in). Two of the people who took them died - one in her father's arms at his wedding. (probably one of the only effective scenes I've seen on there in a while)

That would be an exciting story - maybe it starts with mass headaches from Violet's singing.

Why does the show have so many pill addicts on the current canvas? I know it's an epidemic these days but I'm surprised. They should have done the recent Hollyoaks story where a number of characters accidentally took bad pills and died.

"The truth about Jennifer." Tom also would have been upset. I don't know if they ever asked MES or not. It felt like they mostly stopped caring after 1993 or so - whenever Sabrina's last appearance was.

Colleen Zenk complained in the press about the writing for Barbara in the Barbara/Gavin pairing - she felt that Barbara was being too naive, IIRC. That whole crew was very heavy. I think that's one of the reasons the story is remembered as flagging out, with the Harpers, Daryl, Arthur (one of my final flashes before I go will probably be Rex Smith saying "Arthur"), etc. I think Marland managed to still keep it worth watching, but the real impact was lost due to his death meaning Frannie never returned (cameo aside) and we lost all the drama with Frannie and Barbara we should have had. I still wonder if he was going to pair up Frannie/Hal.

I actually do wonder how he might have been in another role - maybe another of Iva's doomed boyfriends (although she was nearly gone by then). He was just all wrong for Linc.

He was a racist, yes. He was too dull and unpleasant a character for all the airtime he received. Marcy was fun. I remember when she briefly returned in 1994, Michael Logan praised it on Pure Soap as it meant at least something was happening. Similar to Tess, she was probably closer to early Meg than Julie or Emily as she was just a blatant schemer...she was so blatant that it made Linc and his mother look foolish (although neither were known for their brains). It wasn't a strong story but worked fine as a support plot chugging along. I do wish they'd found some way to keep James Wleck as I thought he was just gorgeous. No comment on the recast...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/05/20/trump-muslims-arabs-michigan-election/ The latest shift in the attempt to get Muslim voters to support Trump (something many on the left and right have been doing eagerly for years now and they just use the carnage in Gaza as justification).

I think Leslie was a competent, likeable actress. She was a good balance with Fletcher, as @P.J. mentioned, as he was go-go-go and she wasn't. I just think such a wan role needed a performer who could give more of an inner life. I'd say someone like Cindy Pickett, who made Jackie such a vibrant character even though most of her stories were about pining and suffering.

I wouldn't say the stories should never have existed...I just meant it's depressing going back to that time and feeling the panic and the tilt toward what Guza brought in, followed by the panic over what happened when his filth stopped working for viewers, and the swerve into where the show has been over the past decade. I wish there had been a world where the stories had been better received, although I guess those trends were inevitable.

It matters in the sense that I think the reaction they had to the ratings helped lead directly to where we are today. With that said, if the show was capable of telling these stories now, I'd support them. I'm just not sure viewers as a whole would.

We have, yes, with people who lash out at the story and even send out threats and act like lunatics, but seeing people act physically sick over the whole thing and go on about how Drew was her abuser...that was what felt new to me.

They were, yes. Unfortunately, the response to those (ratings drops and the ushering in of Guza and his sicknesses) does make me wonder again if soap viewers just didn't want to see the real life illness plots. I didn't see any of the older plots either - if there were a large amount of painstakingly realistic illness stories on soaps in the '50s and '60s and '70s, my apologies to the people who wrote them.

I see what you mean, but I would say that only wanting a soap character to have any kind of passion with one character and being so vehement when that doesn't happen is also part of the new puritanism.

I think he's been used a generous amount given his very limited range. I respect him for trying today, and I know he's been going through a lot recently per the article about Kamar, but when I just see the effort, I can't connect. It means that those writers and soaps in general in those years were more likely to be vague about soap illnesses than later writers who felt more obligated to try to write a specific illness even though they weren't capable of making it feel real. People remember the legendary issue stories, but most illness stories back then were not so detailed. The abortion plotline is another subject entirely and I'm not sure what I should say about that part.

It used to be, but I'm not sure these days. The demos who watch soaps now don't seem as interested, younger people don't seem as interested, etc. Looking at the response to Nina/Drew, for example, outside of a few fans, reminded me of how much times have changed. I hear people say they want to see a character being a ho, but the reality seems to be different. I do think the show needs stronger relationships in general, along with actual storylines and characters who have more of a spark to them. The scene where Finn was over Gregoy's corpse, weeping, looked like someone trying to recreate a painting. You could sense the "moment" rather than feeling a genuine response. Coronation Street is currently telling an ALS story which has gone on for over a year, and they've shown the loss of function over that time - no longer being able to walk, or speak, and recently, putting in a feeding tube. I question whether viewers actually want to see this (it hasn't helped the ratings, although Corrie, like all the British soaps, is just about unwatchable these days anyway), but they are committing more. Generally, I do feel like daytime just isn't a great place for this type of plot - much as we all probably used to laugh at "soap opera disease" when we were younger, I wonder if Bell, Nixon, Irna, etc. had the right idea.

I do wonder if there is any particular heat with the twenty/thirtysomething cast, or if any attempt at such is just stumbled upon. Even if Chase left and Amanda Setton got down and dirty, this just isn't that type of show. I know DAYS has a lot more sex, but any time I watch and see them try it just feels cold and forced to me, not helped by charmless Ken dolls like RSW. So even if GH did go in that direction, would it work? Is it worth the effort? I saw some of the Dex and Joss scenes today, which admittedly were not meant to be hot stuff, but I was reminded of how old and played out Joss feels - even more than her mother. The one younger couple I can remember interesting me, somewhat, in recent times was Spencer and Trina, and you know nobody at GH gave a damn about that pairing.

I think that's what led to the therapy story and flashbacks and the visit home, yes. (Hubbard later complained about how the whole thing played out onscreen but I still give Marland and Caso a lot of credit for taking that swing) I need to rewatch some of that soon. I remember some lovely scenes where John went to visit her at the stables or somewhere. That whole period of ATWT, 91-92, will forever fascinate me (well, mostly).

The handling of the betrayal is compelling because there were so many different angles. Connor wanted the company and also wanted to punish Lucinda for her own insecurities and hurting her father. Evan and Kirk just wanted power. Holden felt he owed nothing to Lucinda because she'd already treated him like garbage. There was no good and no bad. Lucinda did pay, but unlike when OLTL did this with Dorian and she would have to go on outlandish revenge schemes, Lucinda refused to let them get her down and she retreated with dignity, only to come back stronger than ever. The whole story was very mature and I could care about everyone involved. One of the few times a corporate espionage story on a soap was worth watching, and a reminder that you can tell these types of stories and have years-long consequences even without a lot of misery or slaughter.

As so many old writers were pushed out, newer people would not know her. If they had brought her back, she likely would have drugged and raped Holden and tried to kill Lucinda and Lily to get their money.

@Vee https://deadline.com/2024/05/fred-roos-dead-francis-ford-coppola-godfather-producer-1235925291/

Freeze and watch frame-by-frame and I bet every one has Katie.

The lack of progressiveness would actually work in this case... I think the show makes a token effort, mostly through Joss and her burgeoning male harem. The viewers they might have gotten through Sprina they seemed to actively resent, for sadly obvious reasons.

The Trump campaign openly saying he will lead a "reich." Yet so many in the media and the public will still tell us both men are the same, or Trump is better than Biden. https://apnews.com/article/trump-election-2024-rhetoric-germany-antisemitism-31002afb91b642c0314223d19e51f427