Soaplovers

If I were to cast a Soap Opera veteran as Jan.. I would have picked Krista Allen (of Days and B & B fame) since she did move to the Atlanta area in late 2023... and knows all there is about the Soap opera way of filming. And I could see her playing Ashley's mom.

I like that there are a lot of local performers on this soap and I'm glad they've resisted so far on hiring too many soap performers. Cady has been awkward on the show thus far and Jon seems to have polarizing as well. I say focus on the local talent and giving those people a job and exposure.. and leave the P & G soap opera performers in the past.

This episode was probably the most we've ever seen of Jan.. and it took long enough. The phone conversation between Jan/Ashley also shed light on their backstory.. and I think it explains why Ashley seems to live in a dreamworld and why she's having difficulties with living with Derek. Derek could be doing everything right and Ashley would still have a problem because she was an only child, didn't see her mother model positive male/female interactions, and sounds as if she was alone a lot of the time. Nicole is modeling healthy human behavior and she would be smart not to listen to Dani's advice... well intentioned as it is. Eva is the character you root for because she's suffering the consequences of her actions. And if I were Eva, I wouldn't want to be part of the Dupree world. I'm hoping the Doug/Joey scenes today is signaling that we're finally moving to the next stage of this story... Doug either asking Vanessa for the money, or letting Joey have dibs on Vanessa's business books, etc. And Joey finally showing his true colors makes me think we might be approaching that next stage of this story.

It could still be possible. Ashley could know who her dad is, but her mother stating that her father was a ruthless man so she opted to listen to her mom and kept her distance. It also could be a change in storyline direction since we're now approaching the period of episodes being filmed when the show debuted. The actress playing Ashley posted an IG two weeks ago with her saying she got to work with new characters and old time favorites. So I do wonder if some new details will emerge between Episode 51 and whatever she was filming at the end of April.

Xander was the bigger person apologizing to Cat when he didn't do anything wrong. he wasn't yelling at Felicity whatsoever, he was asking if she possibly had given them the wrong order by mistake. He was trying to get to the bottom of what was going on, but Chad/Cat were trying to white knight Felicity even though Felicity was being treated just like anyone else in that situation. She was the one to bring the order out to them, and usually the person that brings the order out is the one that puts the order together. I'm still getting a read on the Cat character. I think she seems to work well when interacting with everyone other than Chad. Perhaps the new writers can move Cat out of Chad's orbit into another orbit. Paulina has been written quite well the few times she's been on since the writer change. I think Jackee is enjoying the new writing.. you can tell when she's on screen.

We probably would if the writers bothered to write for them... but they've proven unable to write anything for them. Even though Ashley has potential as a character. @janea4oldMy theory is that Joey might end up being Ashley's father... but time will tell.

She's been featured way more since the reveal than Nicole has. Also, she may not be written as OTT or obnoxious... but Karla is playing the lines as such. And Dani has been featured more than she needed to be. The Bill/Dani scene should have been Bill/Naomi or Bill/Chelsea... and the Ted confrontation scene should have been Anita solo.

Scenes like that yesterday and today make me view Dani as the antagonist. I don't know if MVJ was intending that or not. I actually prefer Ashley/Derek to Dani... only because they're not meant to be a lead so lower expectations.

I always wondered if Jackie wasn't going to be recast after being persumed dead... if Marland was going to pair Evie and Justin as a couple reunited in grief over Jackie's death. The one consistent thing I noticed about Evie during those months she was still on the show was that she was kind of a second mother to Phillip after Jackie's 'death' and Elizabeth no longer on the canvas. But then one of the three interim writer teams decided to pair up Helena with Justin.. which left Evie even less to do than she had at the start of 1983. You're right that Evie was a unique character on the soap. She was sweet and trusting, yet she had a quiet strength that made it difficult to push her around (at least when the Dobson's were writing her). The Ben/Amanda/Eve triangle was an interesting triangle because neither of the women were evil... and Ben did have chemistry and a connection with both women. It had a pretty decent run from 1978/9 to 1982 before Amanda was spun off into her mother's new marriage to Mark as the other woman.

There was a few times when Silk Press Sheila came into her apartment after going grocery shopping.. she could have been unloading her items as she talked to Eva or Ted and saw a few of the products on the counter that are P & G products.

Wow.... Anita and Dani are the ultimate symbol of mean girls. I hate to tell this to Dani... but Eva's ability to do hair is a much more coveted job and skill than Dani's modeling. I doubt Dani could cut it if she lost her money and was truly forced to start over from square 1.

That's how I feel when I see Dani LOL I knew a few people that purchased those products based on the product placement on the show. It's loads better than when ATWT and Days used to do it.

That would require Dani to think about someone/something other than herself.. and we all know Dani only thinks about Dani. Including her butting into Nicole's business instead of just being a supportive sister.

I recall in one of the interviews given by one of the stars at the time of the premiere that 200 episodes had been picked up for season 1 so I'm going to assume it will be at least 250 or more episodes for season 2.

I assume Holly is Nicole's kid, right? If so, the casting on the actress was spot on since she totally had some of Nicole's mannerisms/aura. Kristen is being shown as human again.. which we haven't seen from the character since Eileen's 1 year return back in the early 2010s. Kate is now running the Brady Pub?

Mona... quit being a 'pick me'. You're nothing to the Duprees except the help. Now when you find out what Silk Press Sheila did to Laura than you can go off on her... until then.. stay quiet. I prefer the Joey/Vanessa scenes because they aren't the Duprees. Am I supposed to root for the Duprees? I don't tend to root for, nor sympathize with those that come from privilege. I'll always root for the underdog.

I'm glad for the TPTB so now they can start mapping out the stories/plot for another year instead of trying to figure out how to resolve their plots. I'm also glad they picked it up for another year because it takes two to three years for a soap to obtain loyalty. And I'd miss the stellar performances from Tide and Febreeze that I've come to love

It's such a shame that the conflict couldn't be resolved in a mature way between the two actors.. especially since Albee was a bigger asset for the show in terms of character and his popular will they/won't they pairing with Deborah Saxon. One of the things about Edge was that it was just as popular with male viewers as it was with women. It's one of things I think the show forgot in the final year or two with the deemphasis on the male characters.

I don't really care about what the men are wearing, or not wearing. What I care about is focusing on the writing and character development for each of the male characters. Andre really doesn't have a lot of character development that sets him apart from the other male characters except that he seems content to be degraded and mistreated by the elitist Dani. I would like to know why a good looking younger guy like Andre would willingly be at the mercy of an emotional vampire such as Dani. Martin, on the other hand, seems to have decent character development.. and it is partly due to how the actor chooses to recite his lines. Martin was raised in a very privileged household and probably went to the best schools... so it makes sense that he would come across as thinking he was above everyone else. Most people raised in a upper class situation as the Duprees would view themselves as better than others (it's the same trait Dani seems to employ on those she feels superior to). It makes me wonder how Nicole came out of that family being so warm and nurturing when her family dynamics seemed very appearance oriented.

Marland was long gone by this point. He quit in either August/September 1982. I think it was due to letting the actress play out her contract and use her for party scenes and/or scenes with Phillip/Justin. I was surprised she was still on in June 1983 myself, because I figured she had been written out before Pam Long joined the writing staff. Thankfully, having episodes uploaded during this period on Spauldingfield YT site has helped to connect some of the dots. It looks as though Pam Long starts the first week or so of May 1983.. and in those first few weeks: Morgan and Evie were both written off and Lillian/Mindy/Billy/Beth/Annabelle all come onto the show.

Also, the lawsuit story was not the right story to bring Naomi and Bill into a court battle since those types of lawsuits are usually resolved via settlements.

I know that Sara did eventually become Carrie's therapist, but I was curious if the show had her make comments regarding Carrie's stunts of making it seem as though Justin was cheating on Jackie. Given that Justin cheated on Sara with both Jackie and Brandy, I wondered if it was wise of her to counsel Carrie given the conflict of interest involved. @DRW50I think once Adam/Sara end up married.. Marland didn't see any reason to explore Sara's personal life after the actor playing Adam was released. I know that Sara lasts until at least Christmas 1982 on the show.. but I don't think she ended up staying on for very long into 1983. The period between Marland quitting and Pam Long starting was the perfect time to clean house on characters that had outgrown their usefulness (i.e. Ben, Evie, Sara, Jennifer, Morgan).. and tying up stories started by Marland that were too complex (Mona Enright, Mark/Jennifer/Amanda triangle).

Unpopular opinion: The focus on the soap opera tropes over the mysteries and crimes was partly what did the show in. Also, featuring characters not involved in the legal, police, and criminal elements also hurt the show and took away what made it unique. Featuring characters like Jody, Raven, Sky, etc hurt the show long term. The show ABCified starting in 1976/1977 and then went through a youthification period starting in 1981.

I think the arrival of the Spauldings (Alan/Elizabeth/Phillip) caused the erosion of Sara's character on the show since Elizabeth took over Sara's place in the whole Justin/Jackie story. Sara's brief marriage to another deceptive man sounded like it paled in comparison to the previous deceptive man story that she had played the decade beforehand.. and it was probably done because of the whole Alan/Jackie/Mike/Elizabeth cluster that took off story wise. I know the show had introduced Brandy, the woman Justin cheated on Jackie with... but I don't believe she lasted more than a year.. and didn't make much of an impression. While the Dobson's were good at writing/juggling multiple characters/stories.. they weren't perfect though they did manage to make use of characters not in the front burner like Sara, Ann, etc. I do know that Sara/Adam looked to be starting up at the end of the Dobson era with a jealous/regretful Barbara looking on.. which played out during the Roger/Holly rape story and Hollys prison story. I don't know if Marland was as inspired by that story when he took over

I always get the vibe that Martin/Smitty have an emotional abusive relationship set up... but I doubt the show will really go there with that element given that Martin is a Dupree (and we can't have the Duprees be portrayed in a negative light), and because it's a gay male relationship. Even though abuse in the physical or emotional sense is a huge thing in a lot of gay and lesbian relationships. The Ashley/Naomi scene reads off to me for one reason.... Ashley was talking about the new scandal without any sort of mention and/or subtext.. considering she knew both Silk Press Sheila and Eva. I'm not sure if the writers have forgotten, if Jen Jacobs isn't able to play subtext, or what. It's just apparent the writers do not know how to write a young white millennial couple.. and perhaps they need to get a younger white script writer to be on staff... or let the actors play around with the lines to make them more natural/realistic.