MichaelGL

I see it as a chance for a soap (other than Hollyoaks, which really bungled the attempt) to finally have a gay villain, Plus, I want to see what all the fuss is about the actor that plays Phil. I was never really impressed with him when I started watching, but I caught the end of the crack story, so this will be a make it or break for me where Steve McFadden is concerned.

Finally..... Spoilerish: EE's next coming out story.

I'm a Janine fan, but I don't really blame Pat and Ricky for how they've been treating Janine, especially after she played them for fools in regards to Ryan and Stacey. And Janine could have been more...humble....in offering Ricky the money, and she could have offered it earlier too, but she didn't, and she's partly to blame for Ricky going to Dubai. Not entirely to blame, but that was Pat acting out on the hurt she was feeling. I'm always amused by your dislike for Tiffany, as the posters on DS seem to adore her. You should have seen some of the posts on there after Janine revealed to Tiffany she had gotten her nothing, while getting Morgan and Liam gifts. There were a few posters up in arms about that. I really don't have a overall opinion of Tiffany, but the cutesy childish stuff they have her do, do get on my nerves. I was however liking it when they had Tiffany spend time with Lydia, and some of Lydia(and Janine) was rubbing off on Tiffany. However that side of Tiffany seems to have been forgotten. As for Pat, there's a possible spoiler that states... I do hope for a two-hander between Pat and Janine before Pam St. Clements leaves. This is where I hope Kirkwood's admiration for character of Janine comes into play and sees that there needs to be such a episode.

Being a preteen when San Cristobel made its debut on GL, I loved all of it, but didn't like how it resulted in Josh and Reva eventually breaking up. Then as time went on, I got a bit older, I grew tired of that damn island.

Thanks dc for the clarification.

I think Danny was one of the characters offed during the plague, unfortunately. And you're right Carl, John Pankow does resemble the actor that plays Luke, from that scan you posted.

My curiosity is piqued about this Danny character. I've read in past recaps from The Doctors, that he was well intentioned character, willing to go the lengths to protect his friends such as Natalie. What was his connection to Natalie? I know he was involved in the story where Billy blackmailed her, and Danny tried to get Billy to back down, as Natalie tried keep her relationship with Luke intact.

I might have an ounce of respect for Coburn than I do for most of the Republicans in Congress because of this....he actually suggests tax increases. Coburn Proposes Budget

Who says Christmas isn't in July? Thank you saynotoursoap!

That's quite the find Carl, I don't think I've ever seen a cast photo for The Doctors.

I hope Zainab develops an addiction to pills, as I see it as the only way to rid her of "clinginess" to her religion and eventually wake her up and see reality. So I hope it isn't a storyline that isn't dropped, like some others under Kirkwood (Vanessa's apparent OCD for example).

Thanks so much for these Carl. The SOW article really sheds light on TD's early years. I never knew Maggie's sister Nora stayed on the show long enough to have a romance. I am surprised they never brought her back later on in the show's run. I never knew Rita Lakin was so successful on TD, she's one of those barely known writers to me. While the Katy story seems quite bizarre, I like the idea of the writers throwing something different at Mike, rather than the usual heroine or damsel in distress. Mike had been widowed twice by two loving and sympathetic characters(Toni and Sarah). I would have ended the Katy/Mike story on a different note, turning their obvious hostile relationship, one which Katy was the only one with feelings of affection, into one where Mike would eventually fall for her, but only to lose her in the end to her obvious mental problems. It wouldn't have been your typical tragic love story for Mike. Maybe down the road Mike actually meets someone else, this time someone similar to Toni and Sarah, sympathetic and a heroine, and he finds himself torn between this new love and Katy who would be institutionalized at the time. Well that would have been my story idea, I find plenty of potential in the show in 1981 and 1982, however it's apparent that the execution and follow through with the storylines was horrible.

My mistake, I'm so use to you posting those scans of TD in here. Thanks to you PaulRaven! Yes, Stuart was at OLTL well into the late 70s, he departed in 1983 actually. While OLTL got one of TD's earliest EP's, TD hired one of OLTL's earliest EP's, Doris Quinlan to take over in 1980.

Thanks for these scans Carl. Joe Stuart does resemble James Pritchett in this picture. He would later go on to producer OLTL during its glory years.

Re: Best Exits special Looking at the episode, there seemed to be an excess of mobsters in Walford at some point in the 2000s, what was all that about? Was this Berridge's tenure as EP? What did everyone think of the storyline of Ben's abuse at the hands of Phil's fiance? It seems like a rather interesting storyline from the bits and pieces I've seen, how was this period for the show? I'm guessing it was before Santer became showrunner? I'm interested in looking at some episodes pre-Santer, just out of sheer boredom.

Lauren's crushing/pursuing Ryan, something I don't really have an explanation for. Kirkwood seems to really emphasize character and raw emotion, which got me back into watching the show on a regular basis. He's made me grow to like people such as Ronnie, Syed, and even tolerate and sympathize for Jack. I think the good outweighs the bad for him, but there are a few weak spots. I don't like the constant revolving door of characters. Normally when a viewer says this, it's because the canvas is being filled with new characters, but that's not exactly EE's problem. The show introduces much needed new blood, and then quickly gets rid of said new character just as viewers are beginning to like them. I think new blood is what the show needs right now considering all the exits it's had to sustain within the last few months, and I believe there are a few characters in Walford that have left or on their way out that could help fill that void somewhat. However the revolving doors continues.... Kirkwood got me interested in the Jack/Ronnie and Syed/Christian drama, yet I'm not holding my breath in me growing to like Roxy now that Ronnie is gone, even though it seems like the only option they have right now is to flesh her character out. I honestly don't see myself ever liking the actress.

Believe it or not, today was the first episode where I liked Rainie as a character, and not just the actress. I liked that she seemed to be on the top of things at the cafe, how she wanted to keep Phil from getting one last hit, and how she ended her friendship with Phil(I think?). This is the kind of character development I want with Rainie, not the pathetic one that bedded Jack. Speaking of Jack, if there's one thing I do like about his character, is how he's sticking by Ronnie these days. It really endears me to the couple.

Whattttt? No comments on yesterday's brilliant episode, that ended with the Yusef reveal?

Gotta love the anonymous comment under the article. Now I'm really intrigued about Cora's return to the square. I honestly believed it was going to be short term, and she would be playing a supporting role in stories. From the sound of it, Kirkwood wants to make Cora a bigger part of the square. I like how he described Mandy's return to the square, to that of a hurricane. Having watched clips of the character from the 90s, she was quite the trouble maker, I wonder if she hasn't changed much.

Did Sonni shoot Alan? I thought that was one of the reasons Alex and Sonni had a falling out.

I'm assuming it would have been either one of the following writing teams depending on when Paley first arrived on the show.

Today's scenes between Lydia and Janine were brilliant. Top notch acting from both actresses.

Thanks for the vids Carl. I've seen much of them, but oddly enough the woman shown arguing with Justin in the acting reel looks so different than the one in the vids you posted, and I'm quite positive the woman was Jackie due to the argument they were having.

Was that the brilliant Cindy Pickett in one of the clips from the acting reel? If so, dayum, now I'm dying to see more scenes of her in the role of Jackie.

So I'm trying to get into Coronation Street, well past Coronation Street, via videos on youtube. What are some of the good periods the show has had throughout its run?