titan1978

Once she became a prominent character, I think she was in just about every episode. No joke. There were times I felt we went weeks without her in an episode. They had her in her own orbit, and a crossover character with other people’s stories. Which was kind of rare on this show. She was in every major character orbit. Either by her lawyer career (Victor), her mom (Abbots), Lauren (Scott), Nina and Phillip (Jill, Katherine, David, Ryan/Victoria), Danny (Rex, Gina, and Phylis), and with Paul lots of criminal stuff. It’s incredible when you think about just how connected she was. Even if she didn’t share scenes with someone like Victoria, she was friends with Nina and involved there as a talk to. It’s even more laughable thinking about it now than it was back then.

Yeah not only did they play popular music a lot back in their heyday, they often drove sales for song prominently used on the shows. Supercouples often had songs that replayed all the time over scenes with said couple.

Genie did have it good until right around the time she left at the end of feb sweeps. In my opinion, even by the end of Levinson (once the show really started seeming like Riche), through the first 6 months of Culliton, the show was overall very well written for her entire return. Labine didn’t always do great by her character, but the show as a whole was well written. She managed to leave as it was falling apart, and didn’t come back until Guza had officially back for like 5 or 6 months.

I have questions. I know from the credits and other sources Kay was very involved, a co-hw ( or Associate HW) for a long time. My question is for those that assume Bell was more hands off far earlier than before- I really do not see it. Maybe for periods of time. But when she was solo things were in the “Bell” style, but she and the team did have a different flavor, pace, and at times tone. The difference between his last year and then her first year solo are not that great as the couple of years before that, when the show was sometimes in a drought, and had gotten kind of bland. I also know from that interview with Bell and Labine, he talks about how important Alden was and is. A shared consciousness about the show. He doesn’t mention anyone else at the show but her by name. And he says he doesn’t write long term bibles. What I think is very possible, is that he put his polish on everything, even if they were actually generating the plots at certain periods of time. He probably tweaked everything. Because even when she was solo it had a different feel without him.

JY was a terrible Lucky recast, I don’t care how hot he was. I do think he got better as JR, but he did not fit in on GH to me. At least not as Lucky. Will Estes and Jensen would have both been much better.

Yes, Genie went on a maternity leave and then just didn’t come back to the show. I feel like she was almost gone a whole year. Guza tried to get her back when he returned from Sunset Beach, and it took months to convince her to come back. The realization, if I remember correctly, was that Stefan was in love with Laura, and was trying to turn Katherine into a version of her. Her hair, her dress. I think they even talk about it before she runs out and ends up dying.

What an exciting return to the show for Genie that was! Every part of Laura’s life was in distress.

After Sheila’s first run on B&B, were any of her returns good?

I wonder if Passions would have even happened if Reilly had been allowed to run with that spin-off. I loved Matt as Jack, but I also grew to really love Mark too. He was definently more of a soap hunk version, but he was still great. He still had sparkling chemistry with Missy. Jason Brooks certainly had plenty of chemistry with her too. Allegedly. By the time we got to Cameron and Wilder that was like the bland of the bland.

Maison Blanche was my favorite. I loved Hope’s return, and Stefano was so much fun back then. And I agree, the Lady in White was just annoying. Was Melissa Reeves still there during Aremid? I know I cared very little for Jennifer storylines when she left.

So many special moments have been highlighted by these selections. I wonder who is making the episode choices? I would love to read why. B&B and Y&R should collaborate on Shelia weeks. I would pick 5 classic era Sheila eps for Y&R, then the following week B&B should do the same for her first run there.

I watched several of the classic Emmy telecasts that have been posted in the GL and ATWT threads in the cancelled soaps section, and in one of the early 1990’s telecasts she is listed as co-head writer during the list of nominees. During that great interview with Bell and Claire Labine, he mentions how distraught both he and Alden were about being basically forced to expand the show to an hour. So she was vitally important back then. I have been watching so much classic soap lately, my YouTube recommendations has led me to the Jill & John Abbott Divorce playlist. I have never seen John’s confrontation with TL’s Jack about the affair. They are both so great here. I miss John, and Terry will always be my preferred Jack.

I remember thinking at the time that he was not well suited to play a cop. Kristen Storms has her charms as Maxie- screwball comedy, bitchy rivalry, and she is capable of drama. Much like LC as Monica though- they have made her into a tragic character several times over the years, and stopped writing to their strengths. She is kind of like a modern Lucy, that unfortunately never was allowed to actually go as far into selfish or as fun as Lucy, and never got that one rival (Bobbie) or romantic pairing to carry her through (Scott). Genie Francis could play light and dark material equally well, although she excelled at emotional material. Kristen is being asked to play that kind of material often, and it just doesn’t sit as well. Oh the summer of sleaze! I was firmly in the Jason Liz camp, and have never understood why it didn’t happen. I recall rumors that it was yet again (SJB’s Carly) a pairing Steve did not want to happen. The only time I enjoyed Sam was when she went bad during this. I also had forgotten how involved Manny was in everything. Even though at the time I was mad Laura was gone and the vets except Luke and Tracy were all but gone, I did enjoy characters like Lorenzo, Patrick, Skye, Jesse, Ric, Georgie and Dillon, etc. I just needed more balance. Also, how typical of JFP and Guza- the majority of characters I liked that they created were the men. The women got such horrible writing.

Was he a cop? The only thing i remember for sure is that he was very cute, and ended up dead. The first of her dead partners.

I thought the train sweeps event was stupid at the time. Greg’s Lucky is really just a generic bland soap hunk. But I liked him better than JY in the role. I was still so into the show at that point, but a few months after this I had enough, and quit watching until the contagion sweeps event, or Laura waking up. I can’t remember which one was first. Too much Courtney, I hated Sam, I was sick of Sonny, Emily was a chore.

You know, I’m one of those people. And what I will admit is that from most angles, she absolutely looks like herself still. “Refreshed” sometimes, but still herself. It’s just when they shoot her from one angle that I had a hard time recognizing her for a bit not that ago. Then the camera angle changed and she started speaking. Part of the problem when I watch the shows now so sporadically. The gradual changes are lost on me because I go months and sometimes years between seeing an entire episode.

I never saw it like that. I saw it exactly like she says it- he’s always been trying to control her, Nikki, everything. From her first boyfriend Ryan through Diego. I don’t think it’s Diego, it’s Victor. She’s tired of him. She angry with him. But I can’t say the show was at its best then. Better than today by far. But still a far cry from her arrival on the show.

I finally got around to listening to the Brad Maule episode on Steve Burton and Bradford Anderson’s podcast. It gets incredibly moving when they talk about the BJ’s heart storyline. SB actually gets choked up and has a hard time speaking while remembering watching them film the scenes where Tony listens to BJ’s heart beating in Maxie. It’s kind of cool to hear how much it impacted the people making it. Especially since that and Stone dying are the two soap opera scenes I can’t watch without crying to this day.

The scenes after the main confrontation at the club, outside, are some of my favorites of Beverlee as Alex. ”Do you find daddy’s words comforting dear?” ”ooh I’m scared to death. Heh heh.” ”I’m ravenous.” She just brings so much with just her voice. Then you add almost impeccable choices as an actress and it’s just so great. The whole video is pretty great, but the outside portion starts around 25 minutes, with Blake and Frank. I know everyone has seen this a million times...😀

Yeah, but he looks great doing it. Oliva’s is also not dramatic, but she looks great and it suits her.

Preach. Especially when we have people willing to spill- Mulcahey seems eager, I bet a few pointed questions could get Martha to let loose too on Goutman and P&G. And add me to the list that think Marland’s writing is exceptional while also being dry. It lacks emotion. I wonder if he had spent less time micromanaging and more time mentoring what could have been. Nobody was as in-control as Bill Bell. And yet he also collaborated and trained successors- PFS on DAYS and Alden on Y&R. The older I have gotten, the more I notice the better scripted shows. I grew up watching GH in the 1980’s, and they had a cast that brought the scripts to life within a plot driven framework. They improvised, they reworked things with Monty- always to bring character to the mostly plot driven show. But when you watch something like the early 1990’s on GL, you really notice the dazzling scripts.

I did not like the porn intro overall. However, the regular intro had become kind of bland by the mid to late 90’s, and the porn intro went in on dramatic shots again. The entire Abbott centric one is great- Ashley with her dress silhouette and turn, Jill shaking her hair out and strutting. I also thought Sharon and Nick looked sexy and cool in their all black shots that dissolve into each other, Brad all in black spin, and Malcolm and Olivia have great shots too. Although it is horrible that they are relegated to one opening, and several characters are in more than one. The show often had no clue just how good and important their black cast was to the audience. But the old intro had been boring for a few years. Especially when you compare it to Nikki’s hair flip, Katherine’s necklace, Ashley being given a rose, even Danny rocking out. They stopped going for the drama. This video has all the 1999 intros in one place, and you can really see the jolt the new one arrives with. Porn one starts at 1:56

What I loved about today’s episode was that John was the character asking the questions about how wrong Victor staying away was. It’s so perfectly in character. Not just his concern for Jack and his company being taken away again. John would never let his kids think he was dead, or return in such a shocking and hurtful way. Someone needed to speak to the bad part of Victor’s behavior that had credibility. They never do stuff like this now. Same with Lauren being worried that Brad would just go back to Newman. Yes they all had jobs, but the career stuff was mostly about relationships. Jack walking past Victor on the floor is one of the all time great and most heinous things he ever did. PB’s Jack lacks the charm Terry had, so to me he always comes across as a spoiled slime ball. I never like Blade. Seeing him again was a reminder that almost the entire time I watched Y&R back then, there was always one character (besides Cricket) that was a waste of space. Speaking of Cricket- I hated her during this time. I think I disliked her more around this time than I did when she was on nearly every day as a teen.

What a great clip @victoria foxton! I kind of wish the show had let Mickey keep having story like this as time went on. I only know him as uncle Mickey, a lawyer you often do not want on your side lol. Watching so much classic Y&R with Katherine, I am now imagining a Mickey that revisits the torment of his life over the decades, and what a missed opportunity. Ir should have been nearly impossible for him to see Mike with Bill and Laura. I imagine that Flannery leaving and getting rid of Bill didn’t help keep driving that story though.

AD’s Diane would have been a formidable sparring partner with Stafford for years if they had not recast and then sidelined (and ultimately killed off). It seemed to me for a long time when I watched as a kid that Victor really did still love Nikki and was torn and always pulled towards her. The recent classic with Nikki being drunk and stripping a great example. He looked in pain for and about her. But when he married her on her deathbed...he seemed torn again to me. At first he didn’t want to hurt Diane. But I remember thinking he wasn’t really that into this marriage. Watching the episode with the attic fight brought that all back. I think post Hope, Victor was different with his feelings for Nikki. All these episodes show it. I had to lol when MTS spent her whole intro for this episode talking about herself and nothing about the actual main event in this show.