Soaplovers

Blake was the other one Long had mentioned. The actress was cast, but before she was set to film.. the strike happened.. and Blake was still introduced and Pam Long was surprised since the scabs had no outlines or direction on where the character was going to go... so Blake spent the time talking on the phone to someone mysterious and wondering around a playground acting tortured... and when Long returned from the strike, she asked who Blake was talking to and why she was so tortured.. and the scabs didn't know.. they were making it up as they went along.. so Long/Curlee had to do a plan B. Rumor has it that if this hadn't happened... Roger/Holly might not have returned since Blake wasn't supposed to have been Christina.. but who knows for sure.

The actress decided to leave..and it was during the writers strike so the scabs killed her off... and no, her body was found and she died at Cedars. Pam Long had said had the actress opted to leave while she was head-writing, she wouldn't have killed her off.

I did like Maeve/Fletcher.. and by 1988.. she was more of a strong supporting character than a lead character so I think the show sensed that as well. I do recall one of her last episodes before the death of her character had her having lunch with Blake.. and her instincts instantly knew that Blake was hiding something and was going to find out what her story was.. and than bam.. she had the helicopter crash and passed away.

I do know she didn't Peapack... hence why Reva always acted drunk cause the actress was drinking heavily during that time LOL. It's interesting that GL dressed Reva in such yucky clothes when Reva of the 80s/90s/early 2000s was such a fashion label lover. I know the actress put on weight, but it was like the show didn't care to feature Zimmer in the best possible light. Her wardrobe improved quite a bit during her year long stint as Echo where they dressed her in blazers and her clothes were fit properly.. and she looked much better.

Tina should never have been created or featured. She was like nails on a chalkboard to me. The show fired the likable Amelia Marshall, whose character was an attorney and dating Adrian.. for this nitwit.

@Cat I'm not surprised the OC isn't pulling in ratings that are closer to 2 mil (like in previous seasons). Season 12 was a disaster.. and the shows refusal to fire Vicki is what is killing the show. A lot of Housewife fans I've talked to in Chicago have cited Vicki as their primary reason they've tuned out of the OC... Facebook message replies on the RHOC page also indicate Vicki should have been fired, and even Twitter has said the same thing. Yes, Vicki is the OG.. but lets face it... Nene and Bethenny left their shows and the shows carried on without them.. so I think it is time for the OC to shed their OG and focus onto the future. She isn't married, her primary filming partner (Brianna) isn't on this year so we won't see her as a mother nor as a grandmother... I'm still questioning why she wasn't downgraded to friend of status since she doesn't have anything to offer that Shannon/Tamra/Kelly can offer.

Is there anything to set Dallas and Potomac apart from the rest of the franchises? I think in the earlier days of the franchise, the location played as big of character as the women did. Atlanta showed itself off as the epicenter of the south in terms of production/wealth/entertainment (lots of things are filmed in Atlanta nowadays), Orange County was new money/Olive Garden esque tastes, Beverly Hills was what Orange County thought they were, New York was high end, and Jersey was all about family/loyalty, etc. Dallas, from what I've seen, does seem to show the flashy over the top everything is larger than life.. but what is the main identity of the Potomac? I think the problem with all the franchises is that they've become too alike. Fighting, contrived gatherings, girls trips, spa days, etc... there isn't a lot of variety in these shows anymore. I think the OC is so far repairing itself nicely showing more fun stuff.. and I do like that the two new girls have kids (though I'd love to see a train wreck teen like in the good old days... since Shannon/Tamra/Kelly/Vicki's blood seems even tempered compared to their moms. NY has pretty much given up being about married women.. or about their family lives.. so it's all the girls hanging together all the time... but that can be limiting. I've never watched Potomac.. but why is the show on fire now vs in its previous seasons? Has the focus changed on Potomac (more about shading/fighting than about their day to day lives, etc) this season?

I say fire all of them RHOBH women and start over from scratch. Find non actresses to be housewives. RHOC: Andales came back!!! I despise stroller moms in real life, and don't real like watching them (I think all future housewives hired on OC should have at least one teen... 6 little brats is too much). With that said, it appeals to younger moms.. while the Andales scenes and Tamra being carried around appealed to those like me that wish I could wake up bright and sunny the morning after hard partying.

Jill as a 'Friend of'.. I could see... but she'd be so thristy she'd make the season toxic in an attempt at getting an apple instead of just enjoying herself with all the perks without having to start drama. Aviva, hell no! She's as vile/nasty as Cindy from season 4 was. I want new blood.. married blood or else just change the bloody of the show.

I have a feeling that Dr. Paul's story about his son falling into gambling, etc.. isn't the truth.. that it perhaps is Dr. Paul that fell into gambling. I also think Mona is wanting a larger house because she's used to a high class house, and also to remove reminders of Carolee. If anything, Dr Paul's recent arrival has kind of renewed my interest.. a possible new villain that has a past with Ann, an interesting rapport with Stacy, and it seems as if he and Matt Powers had a bad run in in the past. I'm intrigued for sure

Don't all the housewives do this to an extent? It's why I like housewives like Shannon on the OC... that girl features everything and the kitchen sink from her life.

What she says is what I personally feel about brunches (the hallmark of Sunday mornings in Chicago).

Don't forget Kandi. Nene never could get the best of Kandi.. no matter what she tried.

I don't know... I watched RHONY and it seems like it's a rehash.. so maybe more women in addition to Carole need to leave.. so we can get some new blood.

There were rumors years back that Andy Cohen and co tried to get Cat from RH of DC to do RHONY ...but that she was now back in Europe due to her girls going to school there. Not sure if it was confirmed or not. RHOC is doing the reboot after season 12's uneven season. Vicki vs Kelly would be interesting because both of them are hotheads that act before they think. It would be a relief from a redux of Vicki vs Tamra.. or the ages old feud of Shannon vs Tamra. It will be interesting to see both Shannon/Tamra being friendly with both Kelly and Vicki. Not sure how the newbies will fit in.. but it sounds like Shannon won't like either of them LOL RHONY... the show needs total reboot... if Carole is leaving.. can Tinsley please go with? RHOBH... they need to take their time before filming resumes. Denise R would be interesting because she has the interesting home life and her dad was always so nice and calming (still loved when she had her dad appear on Millonaire matchmaker and he was interested in one of the choices unaware that she was into bondage, etc... and Denise was being protective of her dad.. it was cute)... but is she capable of doing the whole drama/fighting thing?

You put Jeff Ryder above the Dobson's? Well we all have our favs. To me I thought Curlee/Long worked well together since Curlee was good with strong character/tight plotting.. while Long was good with emotion/family/whimsical (Kim Zimmer in an interview said when she auditioned to play Reva.. she didn't get a summary of the character, but a bible on the character). While I do love 1991 to 1993, I have to admit there was a spirit that was missing that we had in the 1988-1990 episodes that Long/Curlee wrote together. I would have switched Marland and the Dobson's because their style was more laid back and their characters were a little more naunced... while Marland's characters sometimes seemed static.

Same old Vicki... it's almost as if she doesn't realize she's lying.. kinda scary.

I recall liking Henry and Maddie's sister Eve.. she was played by a decent actress and she and Jack did have decent chemistry with one another. In the old days, writers/producers would have adjusted the story if a character worked and/or had chemistry with another character... but by this point.. they didn't.

Why do you think RHOBH is having trouble finding that right mix of women... but shows like RHONY and RHOC seem to be able to correct troubled waters? RHOC, especiallly manages to evolve with a constant rotating of the cast (except sadly for Vicki).

When Camille Grammar is your cleanest and most classiest one... you know at the core, RHOBH is trashy LOL Not since Camille have I seen a housewife reading classic novels LOL

I don't know how I feel about this. I know her and Lisa Rinna have been close for over a decade.. and it seems like friendships never really last once they join this particular franchise. Kyle/Lisa V have never been the same.. Lisa V/Lisa R are the same way... and Kim R/Lisa R also don't speak anymore. Still.. Denise does have the home life.. and her dad was always a quirky individual that provided a calming stability to the household.

I often wonder if there was this much resistance when soaps made the switch from radio to tv? Only Guiding Light survived long term in the tv format.. and I know before they were canceled that there was talk about moving it online.. but it fell through.. which is a shame because if any soap could have started the process.. it could have been GL. Hulu worked for AMC/OLTL because it was back during the free option era of Hulu.. but I remember a lot of people in message boards explaining that it wasn't they were opposed to watching on their computer, etc.. it was that they lived in areas where the internet didn't support watching large amounts of content online. I'm sure that's changed in the last five years.. but it could still affect small towns/rural areas. And these same people complain if the online show is about 10 to 12 minutes per episode.. and when I say soaps used to be 15 minutes with commercials.. they have a look of 'really?'.

RHOC is back and I thought it was a good reset. You can tell Tamra/Vicki/Shannon only called a truce due to being told to do so by the behind the scenes people... so now it will be interesting to see if it will stick or not. Shannon saying 4000 square foot house is roughing it makes me laugh... I live in a 600 sq ft studio in Chicago.. that is what I call roughing it lol. I have a feeling David and Michael letting their daughters film with their mothers is all due to money... because if Shannon/Kelly are getting paid extra if their kids film.. than that is less alimony and possible child support having to be paid. I think Tamra's situation was different because Simon was a control freak and he couldn't control how the kids would be filmed... plus, Tamra had her than new relationship with Eddie and her oldest son Ryan to film with in season 6/7/8 before the gym opened and Tamra became a grandma. I read up on Eddie's condition.. and it turns out it is genetic and it can come about if you are a hardcore athlete/cyclist because of the vast amounts of blood pumped through the heart. It hits starting in your 40s/50s... so I think I'll just be a leisure biker of 5 to 10 miles a couple times a week lol I'm with Kelly on the math thing. Steve is checked out... perhaps if Vicki backed off than Steve might be more receptive. @Cat yes, I agree that Brooks was such a phony train wreck.. but sometimes I'd take a little bit of boredom over feeling like I'm giving con artists like him a platform. Emily.... too soon to tell.. but her marriage seems atypical... just like Jeana's was. A clip from next weeks show has Emily asking where the nearest exit is so she can avoid exercise (something Jeana would have said). Interesting backstory with Tamra/Emily... and that Emily was friendly with Gretchen/Ricky.... Tamra.. watch your back... and Emily.. watch your back WWHL... it seems like Shannon won't be getting along with Gina or Emily this season LOL I like the family aspect, and I have to admit that course was pretty scary. OC is my fav show and if what Shannon/Tamra said on WWHL turns out to be true... it will be far less toxic than season 12 was.

Was Annabelle the one that was associated with Alexander McQueen and took his death hard? Sometimes when dealing with loss, you tend to sadly neglect your health.

I remember Camille in the late 90s... and I enjoyed her. She got some airtime and focus, but I always thought even with the increased airtime.. her character still had loads of story to tell that never got explored including who her father was, being a bi-racial child, her unresolved relationship with Ben and her all too brief relationship with Brad Snyder (I think that was due to recasting the character..imho).. and her interactions with Denise (hints of colorism??). I don't recall how Camille was introduced. I know she was a nurse, but did she just appear one day.. or was she properly introduced?