Soaplovers

I think 1980 through 1982 were transition years..so bill bell was experimenting..testing characters out, etc. Probably the rare time he actually wasnt writing in story bubbles. I recall actors loving holiday parties, costume bells, etc because it meant working with others they normally didnt work with. Bill bell was big into story bubbles with little overlap..and Marland was huge into overlap even when it didnt make sense for characters to interact. Nixon/labine were better at balancing out story bubbles and story overlap..imho

I always kind of thought Bob cheating on kim with Susan was perfect karma..since kim pursued bob when he was married to her sister Jennifer. Glad Nancy pointed that out to kim.

It's better to start before Barnabas arrives because the other characters have character development.. and there is one story that plays out alongside Barnabas arrival that started before the Barnabas story. I actually liked the pre-Barnabas stuff better..imho.

I think I read peggy left him at the altar..and she left town..and he did as well shortly thereafter. He also dated Jill briefly as well..so he had ties to the show. It was short sighted writing him off and never bringing him back...same with writing off Patty in the mid 80s.

Personally... Lecy's Becky reminds me more of Roseanne than Darlene ever did. Darlene was more like Dan with Roseanne's wit... while Becky was more moody like Roseanne was.

What was his relationship like with Paul, patty, mary and Carl? I think once Patty left in late 1984...the show turned Mary into a busybody because there wasnt othe4 facets to show. It would have been interesting having steven on as a reporter especially during the rawlins case, kimball case...etc. Maybe even interacting with leanna love. Imagine Mary's face if she had her as daughter in law lol Plus, he could have been a buffer for impulsive Paul and Carl/Mary.

So has there been any noticeable changes with the change of head-writer? The changes were obvious when it went from the Pollacks to Cenderella to Depriest to Marland... so just curious if there was a noticeable change with these new writers? I think in a few months time, Grover will take over.. and from what I read.. she made an effort to write a good show.. but was in over her head... we shall see if my impression of her will hold true. I honestly assumed that Depriest would be lousy on this show and she was well above average.. and I assumed Marland would tighten up the show (since he wrote some strong hospital content on ATWT and GH)... and he was lousy on this show.

Brown had the chip on her shoulder vibe that worked for the character...guarded with a heart of gold..and was her own worst enemy. She would hurt people because she assumed they would hurt her in the long run. A defense mechanism. Braun had a more demure vibe..a little rough around the edges..but seemed more like she'd be coy and attack from behind instead of to your face. Bransford seemed more like a live wire that would attack for no reason. Wright is more entitled, chip on her shoulder and more harsh. None of the heart underneath the rough exterior like brown, the coy manner of Braun, or the crazy emotional intensity of Bransford.

I think it's time for rhobh to do the individual narrative format with some group interaction. If the women were required to film their own lives...they might actually be forced to...gasp...share their lives...and be docked pay if they contrive stupid stuff like panty gate and dog gate. If you're gonna generate drama..at least be creative about it. Bethenny is rich for ragging on dog ga4e when she bemoaned being 'homeless' and cried anytime someone pointed out her bs. She can take several seats. I think what we're witnessing on the housewives is a wearing out of the drama for the sake of drama format. I think all the shows need to go back to 13 episode seasons plus 2 part reunions...and a fun unseen footage episode like in the old days. This way, the women dont have to stretch out pointless drama. rhonj worked this year cause it was a shorter season..and there were multiple spats that didnt get dragged out. I will say Jennifer's backstory about her mom at the reunion was fascinating...and wish more of those nuggets were revealed during the season.

Smith's daughter obviously didn't realize that Marland and faster-moving storylines didn't mix. Brez's are worse than Marland???. If so, that's pretty bad sicne Marland was lackluster on this stint and I fell asleep watching the episodes he was head-writer of. Pollack's and Depriest were a better fit for the show..imho.

Watching those 1988 episodes, Donna had more purpose than Brooke due to the modeling story, majoring in Journalism, etc. I was surprised Katie had focus and the family seemed closer knit than the Forrester family...so I never understood why Brooke was always unsatisfied and wanting to be wealthy. Even in 1988..brooke was a chemist but only had ties in a romantic sense with the Forresters...while Donna had more avenues to explore..but after 1989.was just a talk to for Brooke and Macy before leaving in 1991

Some goodies from 1988 has been uploaded.

And yet that ugly snyder set survived yo the end.

I think Ellen came back that Thanksgiving in 1998... and I think a year or so later, Penny came as a surprise for Nancy.. arranged by Emily. And I think in late 2000, Lyla came back for a visit.. basically exposing that Katie lied about her being a neglectful mom, etc... which seemed out of character for Lyla when Katie was first introduced.. and I think that was the only way the writers saw to undo that out of character action.. by having it revealed Katie was lying (which made sense since Katie and the truth parted ways a long time ago).

I'm wondering if the show felt Emily filled the function that Dee did.. and that's why Marland and company didn't think to bring Dee back.

I wonder if we'll see the whole Danny/Patty/Traci story with Danny/Traci married and Patty accidently causing Traci's miscarriage.. that happened during that late 1984 period of time.

Even in these models...viewership still counts I guess. I watched it and thought it was funny. I think we are seeing people want escapism again from real life. Or they want something more melancholy than what one a day at a time offered. Shows balancing the escapism and real life like odaat suffer. Still..I'd rather the show go out in top notch quality over continuing with their quality diminishing..like the original version did...and other Netflix shows.

I always thought JLB came across as aloof, cool, and seductive... and I think that's difficult to play and still have the audience love you... so it's a testament to JLB's talent that she could play those facets of Lorie's personality and have the audience behind her. Anyone else stepping into the part (even short term) would probably try to play those same things.. and it comes across as @YRfan23 stated.. as too stiff and cold. Sometimes the writing can be great, but how a performer delivers it can influence how a character comes across to the audience, etc. How did Leslie change when Janice Lynde left and Victoria Mallory took over? How did Chris change as a character when the actress was recast? I bet even Bill Bell adjusted both characters when the characters were recast.

I do agree that BH should remember what made their first season flow like magic... real life stuff being talked about and discussed... Camille/Kelsey's marriage imploding, the hints of Paul/Adrienne's future divorce, Kim/Kyle's dysfunctional sisterly relationship where Kyle outed Kim being an alcoholic (and I recall Kim got more of the sympathy than Kyle did after the finale aired.. even though Kyle was correct... Kyle came across mean/abusive/vengeful than concerned. I often think Brandi was kind of right in an odd way of Kyle wishing Kim would fail.. but not in the way she was meaning). It's fascinating to me that Kim stopped being a full time cast member after season 5.. yet season 6 felt empty without her full time presence... and that Rinna and Kyle basically were using Kim for story/content for many seasons after season 5.. because both Rinna and Kyle aren't natural dramatic/fun personalities.. and need to generate drama to be relevant. LVP.. I could watch her in scenes with her family/staff/on her own and be entertained.

I miss the early days when the housewives were casual...these wardrobes are over the top and make all the housewives look ridiculous

I love her frankness and honesty.. because soap actors (at least back in the day) had a potential for developing bad acting choices/habits the longer they stayed in a role. She's a little nicer about her soap experience than some other actors.

The Coopers would have been easier to stomach going into the 2000s had Nadine remained....imho.

In 1984, Lily seemed more reserved/sad.. than spoiled princess. I recall the scene between Lucinda/Lily where Lily admitted feeling guilt over the suicide of her father and blaming herself for it. I often thought having Lily being adopted was unnecessary.. because just the suicide alone was enough of a barrier angst for Lucinda/Lily without the whole adoption angle. I know the original actress playing Lily left in the spring of 1985.. did the writers decide to make Lily more of a spoiled princess when she was playing the role.. or after Martha Byrne took over? Also, I thought Noelle Beck and Heather Rattray played closer to the original version of Lily circa 1984 to 1985 than Martha Bryne did.

Only downside of the story was killing off Nadine....the same effect could have been achieved if she'd been put in a coma, etc so she could return later. At the same time, killing her off raised the stakes especially at a time when Nadine had become a better person and was taking control of her life..while putting others ahead of herself on occasion.

I recall that particular scene was the set up for a great 1988 story when Thorne (drunk on alcohol/sleeping pills) shoots Ridge with Stephanie witnessing it.. and Stephanie covering it up especially when Thorne forgets that he pulled the trigger.. while Stephanie takes the rap and ends up in prison. I don't recall if this story was before or after Eric/Beth broke up and before Steve Logan came back into the picture or not. 1988 was a good year for the soap.. it was fairly balanced.