DRW50

I hadn't even known until the last few years that they had Pat on Loving, as by the time I started she wasn't seen (that I can remember). It is too bad they didn't have her make more appearances; the glimpses I've seen of her on AMC, like counseling Natalie, are compelling. In SOD's best/worst of '94 issue they listed killing Janie as the worst decision of 1994. I still don't really know why that happened. It's such an odd and rushed choice. Your idea of bringing Matt back is great. I never could take to Tony, he was just overbearing to me.

I hadn't heard that. So sad. I'm sure she must be very upset as well. And didn't Russia legalize domestic violence a few years ago? Another heartbreaking story: The right wing media is pushing these Michigan protests hard, trying to find their latest Brooks Brothers Riot to frighten Democratic governors into backing down.

I'd forgotten about Mario (and that they brought Angie and Jesse back to AMC). The latter was by far the best move AMC made in its last years. I guess Rauch or P&G probably stopped them from being able to do much at GL.

It's already been mentioned a few times in this thread, but what Loving managed to accomplish with their black canvas in 94-95 is very rare, and is one of the reasons these episodes hold up so well. Fine, charismatic actors are given juicy material that was generally not given to black performers on most soaps, outside of Y&R (even on AMC in the '80s, Debbi Morgan struggled with the limited writing for Angie). Debbi and Maggie are especially riveting to watch, with Darnell close behind, but everyone is great. It's a shame this didn't hold up on The City, which had that badly received racism story and chose to focus so much on Angie wanting a baby above most other character traits, but I guess they still tried. I've sometimes wondered if GL took a page from Loving by expanding their black canvas and even hiring Geoffrey Ewing in what was initially a very complex role. Unfortunately, Laibson and McTavish made an awful, offensive mess of the whole thing.

I think Bree just leaves with Charles and Lorraine. I can't remember. Maggie Rush is someone else who was far more luminous than the show likely had in mind. I really thought she and Charles were wonderful together so a part of me was slightly sad to know they broke up, but hearing she was on The City is one of the reasons I tuned in to their final months. I think they must have hoped Heinle would re-sign or come back after maternity leave but it was probably just a hook to try to keep the young and sexy 20somethings moving to the big city element going. My main memory of her on there was that they filmed a sex scene with Tony and a heavily pregnant Steffi, likely intended to be hip and edgy. Marlena de la Croix wrote in one of her columns that the whole thing was a big grossout, which made me laugh.

dc will have more detail, but I think Danny saved Tyler when he was stuck somewhere. Ally then set Danny up on false rape charges, but changed her mind. I feel like B&E wanted to pair Ally and Danny as a couple, as this was teased on both shows, and if The City had run longer there was a clear Tony/Ally/Carla/Danny quad in full swing, but they likely faced negative audience reaction. If memory serves Danny was supposed to be a short term sleaze, but Ted King was so charismatic that the show decided to keep him around. This is one of the main stories going on when I started watching Loving. Laura Wright had a real edge to her work that made what could have been a very generic long-suffering heroine role seem more real. It's the same she'd end up doing on GL for years, successfully, until she started to become a little too cold in her last years there. Seeing these again reminds me of how I first got into Loving in the midst of the murder mystery story, after reading about it in my first soap magazines. Pretty much everything interested me, but more than anything I was hooked on Ava - Lisa Peluso was just fabulous and had so much screen presence. She was the type of character I was not getting on my old CBS soaps by this point. The soap magazines at the time panned Ava's writing and exit - they said she never would have been so weak or afraid - but I think Peluso plays it believably.

My main memory was that tacky story on The City where she was revealed to be turning tricks because of abuse or something. He seems to be a realtor now. His work in this episode was very good...the part where he realizes Buck is no longer going to be around (telling him he's the man of the house) is a scene that would not have been effective without a strong actor in the part. The episode was mostly a lot of Emoting to cover a somewhat padded set of scenes, but still, it was effective emoting. I was probably most interested in the Shana and Leo material. Shana as a new mother to a special needs child as well as acting as a lawyer provided so many story possibilities, instead of just removing her from the show.

These look 'new' to me for YT? Are they? I don't remember ever seeing Travis' last moments. @amybrickwallace

I agree. It's been a real tonic in a hard time to have the increased uploads the last few years, and dc's commentary and threading stories together has helped a great deal to add to what we know and can enjoy.

Not surprised.

I never can remember whether they asked Lisa and she said she needed a break or if they never asked her. When The City was wrapping up they seemed to be hinting she might appear.

Ha ha ha pigfuckers. Rigging, likely costing voters their lives, and you lost even more than you were already going to lose. I hope this is just the start of your losing, you pieces of [!@#$%^&*].

It's too early to say, but I've rarely seen a well-respected senator self-immolate this way, especially since Maine is not a reactionary state. I can only guess that Olympia Snowe's well-known dislike for her was right on the money, and it just took enough time for the mask to slip.

If you've ever heard "do a barrel roll" you've heard Rick May.

I can't imagine how much of a shock this must have been to viewers at the time who didn't read soap magazines. "She looked so pretty." Debbi Morgan does so much with that one line.

Not directly Joan but I thought this was awkwardly cute.

Wilbur Ross...the man who bragged about COVID-19 and how it would help our economy?

We'll all be keeping you and your brother in our thoughts.

Thanks for sharing that, @DramatistDreamer . I see that the NYT put out a piece on Biden's accuser today, which of course has been controversial and blown up the whole thing even more. I don't have the stomach to read it. Her story is just full of holes for me, namely how much she has changed key portions. I also feel like I have no real right to be in a position to judge though. The whole thing is just depressing and is only getting started.

I hadn't even heard about that last one. Ugh. I guess there's also whatever went on with Martha and her reasons for leaving for good.

Oh wow. Never thought I'd see something like this. I always wanted to see exploration of this period. Thanks so much. I never would've known otherwise.

It's not new, but defunding during a pandemic feels like an escalation even for them.

Also Irna Philips vs Rosemary Prinz and Jane House. Oh and Irna vs Helen Wagner, as she fired her at one point.