Soaplovers

4 hours ago, dragonflies said:

 

If these interim agreements work...then it will make the streaming services and studios realize that what each union wants will be.of a benefit to all.

And we're not even into the strike written episodes yet..wonder what they will be like when they start airing during the holidays/post holidays 

On 8/24/2023 at 8:30 AM, Forever8 said:

Jennifer Ashe is going to be on Alan's show on September 1st, at 3PM ET. 

 

She was pretty vocal during the Loving reunion about Loving so I hope she keeps that energy on this one.

13 hours ago, DRW50 said:

Even with all Eddie Drueding's old writeups of how unpleasant and plot-driven this story was, it's still tough to take - hearing Felicia shame Sharlene for becoming a prostitute through sexual abuse is just despicable.

Ironically I just finished the episode during the 1988 writer strike where Felicia/Sharlene first met.. and how friendly they were with one another.  

I'm going to be honest and say that there was some actual character driven activity at first in regards to the John/Sharlene/Felicia story.. that quickly veered into plot driven over-drive.  Felicia had lost 2 husbands, and had endured the Misery like hostage situation so she was obviously adrift and kind of bitter at the world.  Remember.. Felicia wasn't a nice person when she first joined the show. 

However, I do agree that Felicia would never hit below the belt like that with Sharlene.. no matter how much tension there was between two women.  Felicia also had a horrible upbringing and had her child stolen from her at birth.. there was a no way she would ever say those things to anyone.

NYC:

Nice to meet Brynn's ex fiance Gideon...I see why Erin and Sai was singing his praises.  He's too good for Brynn...and she needs to work on her issues before she has a kid.

Jessel could have a girl...I think you could fertilize eggs to increase your chances of a girl..but no guarantees.  I can't help..but like her..in all her awkwardness... she's a combination of Alex Mccord and Ramona.

Erin is too pressed and needs to chill.

Jenna seems cool...but I don't trust her.  I forsee a Gretchen Christine handbag or a Bethenny Skinny girl themed room in her future 

Sai is on here to take her influencer brand to the next level.

I remember in the late 80s, NBC daytime started to regain ratings ground...and one of the strategies used was appealing to the 20 and 30 something viewer figuring they were less likely to be attached to a particular network of soaps.

It did kind of work...but more women were working and cable was becoming more dominant by the late 80s...and NBC was never patient nor understanding of the soap opera concept of slow and steady wins the race.

Only when Days had a consistent rebirth ratings wise in the mid 90s did NBC try again to nurture a viable daytime schedule.  Once AW and SunBeach got axed in 1999...was the writing on the wall that NBC had thrown in the towel.

I think housewife reunions should only be 2 parts.. even if they had a stellar season.  

I think one of the main issues with all the housewife shows are that the seasons are too long and the reunions are too long.  I'd rather have a strong 10 to 12 episode season with a 2 part reunion then a long drawn out 18 episode season with a 3 part reunion.   less is more.

On 8/21/2023 at 11:51 AM, Broderick said:

Half-sister, I believe.  My recollection is that Ben Travis had an affair with Jody's mother while he was married to Nicole's mother.  It was a touchy subject when Jody first appeared, having to tell Nicole that (a) "your dad had an affair" and (b) "I'm your little sister".  

I agree that April Cavanaugh was a far more complex character than Jody ever was.  

April had that whole mysterious thing going on with the visions she sometimes suffered from, after her heart stopped beating for a few minutes; no one was ever sure whether to take her premonitions seriously or not.  Also, she wasn't some spineless little jellyfish.  When Raven started badgering her mercilessly, she would roll her eyes, flick her hair out of her face and tell Raven, "Get out, and don't come back."  It was refreshing to see an ingenue stand up for herself, the way April often did.  

Jody is a prime example of a weak character becoming famous/featured due to the actress vs the character.  Lori L was cute, warmth, and earnestness that she infused into the character of Jody.   Once Lori left, it became very apparent that Jody was almost a non entity as a character.

April is a prime example that you can have an ingenue with a backbone and still be interesting/likable. I always wonder had the actress not left.. how she would have fit into EON beyond 1981.. and how she would have interacted with Raven/Sky.

I also partial to his 3rd series he helped create in the late 80s called Paradise/guns of Paradise.  It lasted 2 full seasons and partial 3rd season.

It was a hybrid of self contained and hybrid stories that took place in California in the late 19th century about orphan kids coming to live with their single uncle..who had a love/hate relationship with the town banker (they became a couple later).

He had great ideas and sadly he wasn't always listened to.

I was surprised years ago when Nancy first took over as Cecile that she was a lot more low key and cunning.  She seemed to mirror what Susan Keith had done with the part.. but I think her natural comedic abilities eventually changed Cecile from an outright villainess.. to a more comical character.

My late mom had a soft spot for Nancy F since she had previously played Tara on AMC.. a complete 180 from Cecile.

Both sides need to compromise because the longer the strike goes on...the longer the damage from the strike will take to be repaired.

RHONY:

I liked the individual scenes better than the gathering.

We got a look into the marital dynamics of Erin, Sai, and Jessel..while seeing a bit more into Jenna's professional life.  More of this please.

Brynn is the friend you keep away from your significant other only because they don't respect boundaries.  I had a friend that I said if I ever dated someone seriously I wouldn't ever introduced them to one another because this friend didn't respect boundaries (and we're no longer friends).

Jessel is a combination of Alex/Ramona...while Erin is so Jill (holds grudges, takes things personally)...though I don't recall if Jill ever starved anyone at one of her gatherings or not.

Lastly..if Erin is hosting an event..you pre game or sneak in snacks since the girl loves to starve everyone.  At least Jessel had food at her gathering last week.

With the writer strike ongoing, I was glad to see that a majority of the 1988 writer strike episodes were still on YT for AW.

On an episode to episode basis, I think the scenes and dialogue are not too bad.  There seems to be more of a focus on smaller moments/filler then having actual ongoing plots.. other then the Jamie/Lisa/Vicky situation.. and the start of the Drew Marston arc.

I just finished watching the June 1st episode and it the perfect example of this smaller/filler moments.  You have newlywed scenes with Sam/Amanda, the high school graduation scenes involving Matt, Ada/Jamie scene, Lisa/Cheryl hanging out at Tops, and the introduction of Chris.

I'm intrigued with the Chris character only because she was randomly introduced during the strike.. and I wondered if she was a planned character pre-strike or if the scab writers needed to fill up time so they created the Chris character. 

In her debut episode, she seems over wrought.. yet demanding an equal chance of working in construction.  I'm not sure if the writing intended to show this clashing of first impressions, or if it was an acting choice.

18 hours ago, danfling said:

I do remember that in the spring of 1967, when most of the shows were not being produced due to the big writers' strike, the production of Dark Shadows was not interrupted.   I had been curious about this, and I was told (probably here) that the show managed to get a waiver.  Robert Gerringer was replaced because he refused to work during the strike.    I think that maybe Daniel Keys was also replaced due to the same problem.   (These gentlemen played Dr. Woodard and the Eagle Hill Cemetary caretaker.)

During that time on CBS, reruns of The Jack Benny Program and The Millionaire were among the shows that were aired.

I also wonder how many shows were then airing live.   I know that As the World Turns and The Edge of Night were, but I wonder if others were.    If a soap opera were normally live and then resumed being produced following the writers' strike, I wonder if the initial episodes were live or pre-recorded.

I would love to hear some of the living performers (such as Jada Rowland, Victoria Wyndham, Millette Alexander, Don Hastings, Marie Masters, Judith Barcroft, Robin Strasser, etc.) talk about this time.

I do not remember the episodes that you have mentioned.   I do know that there was one episode (I thought during the 1897 series of episodes) that there was a recapitulation of the show (for fans to "catch up" with the plots.

Now, I really want to see the episodes that you mentioned!

From what I understood...Dan curtis paid the fines the actors got for crossing picket lines during this strike.

Early Frank had a chip on his shoulder as surrogate father/big brother to Harley.  Up to 1993, that element made his character workable.

Buzz coming on actually made Frank's character redundant.  After the Eleni/Julie/Frank story ended in mid 1994...Frank had no story or presence 

I think I remember once a long time Jen Lilley saying that she wasn't playing herself.. but a character.. and that there was motivation for Theresa being the way that she was (i.e. at her core, Theresa is a good person.. but has been burned so many times that she strikes first before someone strikes at her)... whenever people were going after her for playing a character like Theresa when she was a Christian. 

RHONY:

Twitter seems cool with Jessel.. calling her the sober Ramona... and with her tendency to insert foot in mouth, I can see why people think that.  She does seem to know a lot of people in the fashion industry.. she had a lot of people at her event.

Erin seems to think she's the expert on all things New York.. but I swear she is a dog with a bone LOL

While I'm an introvert and I do commend Jenna for setting boundaries, I do think that Jenna tends to play up the introvert tendencies in order to get out of trouble (i.e. when she claimed she didn't know why she stirred the pot, saying she had an event when it was just time with her son and god-daughters) and out of filming with the other women.  And she does kind of seem elitist.

I confess I would have preferred seeing Brynn playing chess against that guy instead of another scene rehashing the Jessel/Erin coffee chat.  Chess playing.. rather at parks or in buildings.. is a huge thing in NYC and I would prefer seeing more of the city.

Not much from Ubah in this episode... though I like her way better than her witch of a cousin Aylan.

I liked the segment showing Sai at her job.. and her backstory on how she developed into a pretty successful influencer.  She would have to be pretty successful if she's able to offer her assistants/employees health insurance.

15 hours ago, Michael said:

The Whitney/Heather drama is NOT working. It was exhausting last year, it was exhausting on RHUGT... I feel like they think this is some Bethenny/Carole [!@#$%^&*], and it is not.

17 hours ago, alwaysAMC said:

 

I'm growing tired of the Heather/Whitney drama though - just be friends/cousins and move on.  

If this show comes back for season 5...either Heather or Whitney need to go.  I would vote for Littlw girl since I want to see Heather vs Lisa so bad.

And Lisa...I'm happy seeing her out in the wilds of society.  Her fishing, trying to cook, and her obsession with Taco Bell.....she is reality tv gold.

On 8/10/2023 at 3:30 AM, Paul Raven said:

Some of NBC's issues over the years.

Failing to establish a successful soap beyond Days,AW and TD. For whatever reason they couldn't get that 4th soap to work. The best time was late 60's when they were winning 2-3.30 timeslot. But Bright Promise couldn't build an audience. If they had another strong show then it would have given them more flexilbility.

Then Somerset, RTPP, HTSAM , L&F/FRFP all failed. Was it the shows themselves ?

Revamping Days in 1980.The show had stagnated with too many older characters. But to then bring in another bunch of older, dull characters was madness.

Allowing AW to become a revolving door of characters that really only left Mac and Rachel . 

The Doctors did not introduce one successful new doctor character to infuse new life into the hospital setting. A strong young woman doctor when Althea left was a no brainer. Or a sexy male doctor. One of the Dancys could have been a doctor.

 

I know Sara Dancy did end up working at the hospital..I think as a patient advocate..and she did end up marrying Mike Powers...tying the two families together...but the actress quit and she was killed off quickly.

In 1979, the show did attempt to refocus back on the hospital with the 2 doctors that were brothers, the hospital administrator..and it looked like an unhappy doctors wife was introduced....however..the timeslot changes..regime changes and production company changes did the show in.

4 hours ago, Taoboi said:

SLC

 

GET HER, MARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

SLAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

We already kind of know Angie K so at least the show won't spend too too much time introducing her to us.. except maybe to show her family life.  Her instagram shows she's fully embracing her Greek heritage and that will be nice to see on the show.

Newbie Monica looks like a spitfire.

Mary is to SLC what Kim Richards was to BH.. the quirky/eccentric energy that a housewife show needs.

Quite frankly quality of a lot of shows has diminished so maybe a raise will actually motivate some of these writers to do good work.

I recall Bell always made mention of Nina's mom on and off between 1986 and 1991.  Most memorable was right before Nina's wedding to Phillip where Cricket suggested inviting her mom and Nina flipped out.  If I recall, she was kicked out when she got pregnant as a teen and it cause her to have her child stolen.

I was expecting some mean, cold and trashy character..but we got Flo...whose heart was in the right place, but was almost a kid at heart.  So it was nice to see Nina/Flo's relationship improve during most of the 90s.

Shame the show never brought her back when Ronan was revealed as Nina's kidnapped son.  

18 minutes ago, Cat said:

I am really enjoying nuRHONY despite myself. But I get why @Faulkner you feel it is too slight. This last episode was not strongly anchored, while the past few epis have had sonething of a direction. Also you are right about NYC not being a central character-- yet. I have hope that the season will shift beyond complaints about heating and lingerie and Erin looking for a petty rivalry. The show thus far is a bit stronger than the early episodes of RHODubai were -- my god, if you thought nuRHONY has been slight, S1 Dubai was paper-thin! But it had a very good, but not too toxic, reunion which has nicely segued it for S2. NuRHONY better start building its foundations during this season.

This nuRHONY episode, I liked Brynn talking about growing up biracial, and Erin showing us her work. I also am thinking Jessel is starting to not be afraid of being oblivious and rude. That may not be a bad thing for the show (!), unless she goes too far and becomes toxic or deeply annoying. 

Next week preview had Jessel making an error by calling Tribeca up and coming...and Erin basically in her talking head is saying 'yeah, you don't know New York' in a dismissive tone. Shades of Ramona/Luann about Alex season 1

RHONY:

Erin thinks very highly of herself though I do admit she does seem to take pride in her work.. but she thinks she knows all... probably the reason she and Jessel don't seem to vibe well together.

Brynn's boo hoo story was very effective with some on Twitter thinking they misjudged her, but she's the type of person that you don't trust with anything.

Ubah's segment was so sad, and I'm glad we finally got to know her a bit better.  So far she's way more likable than her entitled witch of a cousin Aylan (who lacks personality).

Jenna.. a little pot stirring and claiming 'old age' when the producer questioned her on why she did the pot stirring LOL 

Sai's hubby is a keeper

12 hours ago, DRW50 said:

Not sure if this episode was already around or not, but someone uploaded it. Another 1981 episode...and a strike episode, always fascinating to see. 

I skimmed through most of that, but when you see Kim Zimmer with crimped hair you have to stop and watch. 

 

I'm assuming Althea is in the midst of grieving hence the oddness and randomness of her scenes.

This MJ seemed annoying, not at all likable like the original MJ

Kim Zimmer wore stranger hair styles in the mid 80s (I think she had her hair in odd spikes when she won her first Emmy) so this hairstyle seems normal.  I do like the gothic vibe of the scenes and she was much more subtle here then she ever was on GL.