Soaplovers

I think these scripts were written after Ron C was shown the door. His ideas were probably in place, but I have a feeling the new head writers had a hand in how these scripts were written. To me, it seems as though these last few episodes are tying up the Ron C era, but I'm not sure exactly where the new writing team will be focusing on based on these last few episodes.

It looks as though Ron C's talent lies in being a breakdown writer (same as Jean Passante back in the day).. and he should never ever be elevated to a head-writer again. Nicole/Vanessa have nicely eased into a nice friendship chemistry.. and I loved the Joey's mom rising from the dead in 3 days line. Perfect timing due to Easter being just around the corner. I'll be curious to see Nicole's reaction once Ted's past activities come to life. Doug should totally be upgraded to contract player since he actually can act and can be provide layers to his role. Ashley and Shanice are nicely being used these past two days... but would like to see both of them interact with Eva again soon. Dani/Pamela... still on the fence on this friendship. I have trouble getting behind mean girls, but at least Dani isn't being all doom and gloom about Bill for a change. It's about time the writers finally give Chelsea some more layers. She's been constantly controlled by Dani and I'm still waiting to see if any follow up will be done on Chelsea's personal life. Kat means well.. but she had Nicole as a mother so she can't emphasize with Chelsea. It makes sense Naomi looks to Anita as a mother figure since she probably had to parent Dani all the time.. and she's more like Bill then she's like Dani. I did notice that we're slowly getting some soap opera facial expressions before the scene cuts to a commercial break (ala Doug's reaction to seeing Joey and Vanessa's expression at Nicole asking if she has feelings for Joey). Next week: Silk Press Sheila and Eva

TPTB really didn't value the contributions that performs put toward playing a character, or else why would the show insist on recasting Stephanie and Liza in 1984/1985 when both characters were playing by very popular performers that had that something special. Seeing the three 1985 episodes uploaded with the first two episodes of Sherry Mathis playing Liza and then the last episode played by L. Gideon... it was like seeing two different characters and probably was jarring. And the Wendy character of 1982 and 1983 is so vastly different then the character of Wendy in 1985. It did seem as though the writers were sort of restoring Wendy back to the less scheming version of the 1982 in her finals weeks of her stint in 1985. Jo also seemed to have more focus/attention by the writers in 1983 then she had in 1985... And that Kate McCleary character in 1983 was so not needed... she was too drab/boring.

I hate to say it, but sometimes toxicity makes a soap opera more engaging and interesting to watch. Marland's obsession with therapy was evident in his content, especially by 1982. That obsession sometimes made watching a soap episode kind of difficult without any sort of balance to that. He also seemed unable to infuse his stories and scenes with any sort of passion or oomph. For example, Kelly was shirtless/in a speedo all the time.. but he was just so devoid of any sensuality/personality.. same with Josh, Tony, etc. They all seemed one note.. and his ability to write female characters that he didn't create was also a struggle for him. Amanda, Rita, Holly, Evie, Hilary, Katie, etc.. all became more one note with the layers/complexities of the Dobsons. The one thing I can say about Pam Long was that she knew how to write men and how to write male friendships. That kind of writer is so lacking on soaps and most television shows nowadays. She also was able to restore some of the spirit/strength/personality to such characters as Amanda, Hilary, Katie, and she seemed to wisely write Trish as the peace-maker within the Lewis Family (and it explained why she was estranged from them for so many years.. because she was tired of being the peacemaker).

The three plaintiffs are the last people to be given any power or input. They come off as incompetent, and delusional about their abilities. However, since this is a feminist soap.. I'm sure they'll be girl bosses by summer time. No Dani today I have to admit that I kind of missed Ashley and Derek, though I'm confused about the acting choices by the actor playing Derek. I'm not sure if he's still adjusting to soap opera acting, or if he's not able to bring anything to the role. Smitty knows better then Martin yet again. Tyrell's going to be played yet again.. all because of a pretty girl. Men need to stay strong and learn not to trust a pretty face. Vanessa and Shanice would be a nice pair to see interact outside the hospital, and I liked that Shanice was toned down (she seems more campy on Ron C scripted days). Can I say that it was nice to get a break from Dani? LOL

Claire Labine wrote a few tv movies in the early 90s, I always wondered why soap writers didn't think to write tv movies in between soap opera writing gigs. The Bride in Black - 1990 - Starring Susan Lucci She Woke up - 1992 - Starring Lindsay Wagner Star - 1993 - Starring Jennie Garth (A Danielle Steel Adaptation)

Andre is too good for Dani. She's a walking red flag that screams 'Stay away' This is one of the rare times that I side with the husband and mistress. Also, I'd love if one day the show does cast Dominique Jennings in a role... and be given more freedom to act on a better written soap as opposed to Sunset Beach

Some thoughts on the episode for today: - Andre is too good to be saddled with the entitled and toxic Dani. - I'm interested in seeing Cady as she molds the character of Pamela, her first original character. Pamela is nothing like Dixie nor Rosanna today... she reminds me of Olga (the modeling guru that helped Erica Kane with her career on AMC) and the late Carrie Donovan (Link) - I'm team Hayley. Dani is just so unlikable that I'm glad Bill cheated on her and dumped her. - Jacob and Naomi have a nice chemistry and rapport with one another. The thing Naomi refuses to see is that the reason she's such a pragmatic/logical person and is good at her job is because of her father Bill. It underscores the importance and contributions of fathers to not only their sons, but their daughters. - Bill was a little scary in his scenes with Mike, but you need those scenes to contrast with the scenes of Bill as a father. The show is at least recognizing that you need a strong male character that you love to hate. - Smitty/Martin need a recommendation for a good marriage counselor from Nicole

I know Cady says she's trying to channel Opal to Dani's Erica.. but I'm seeing that she's more like Olga then Opal.

RHOBH: I haven't watched the show in a season or two, but I had some thoughts on the Garcelle departure situation. - Ericka stating that Garcelle doesn't share her life on the show made me laugh considering Kyle and Ericka have both been guilty of not sharing any details and becoming almost mafia like when anyone broaches the subject of their personal lives. - Garcelle's first season on the show was basically her sharing her life and not being around the group quite as much. In fact, some of the women made it a point to paint Garcelle as being stand offish and not wanting to associate with the other women.. so Garcelle course corrected in the follow up season. - Garcelle became a target starting with her 2nd season on the show when she rightfully raked Rinna over the coals for how she threw Denise under the bus. What was telling was when Garcelle asked how she could be sure Rinna wouldn't pull the same thing on her like she pulled on Denise.. and Rinna said 'I'm better friends with you'. Garcelle knew to be on her guard after that conversation, especially when Rinna admitted she isn't trustworthy. - I think the dragging Roz did to both Garcelle and Sutton put Garcelle in a bad headspace.. and when Sutton seemed willing to go back for more abuse from the other women.. she basically was over the whole reunion and walked out as quickly as she could once the toast was completed. - If Tilly is smart, she doesn't come back for another season in a friend of nor housewife role... because she might have a Rinna pulled on her by Sutton.. or she could pull a Rinna on Sutton.

Of the Marah's, I actually thought Lindsay McKeon's Marah seemed the most like Josh with little to no traits of Reva in her. I thought that version of Marah was more interesting when interacting with Reva.. as opposed to the Laura Bundy version that was too Reva and too Broadway for the soap.

For some reason Salem was established in Illinois even though it seemed more New England than the Midwest to me. There is an actual Salem in Illinois, but it's not the massive urban city that is portrayed on the show. So I'm just going to assume it's Salem in a different universe. Based on past accounts, even though the new regime doesn't start till next week, I do believe that the breakdown/script writers usually handle episodes a few weeks after the head-writer outlines them. So I'm sure that the breakdown/script writers are working under the direction of the new head-writing team this week hence the somewhat improved flow of the most recent episodes.

Unrelated to Santa Barbara, but on Tubi.. Marcy Walker's short lived series Palace Guard is there to view in all its short lived glory https://tubitv.com/series/300004619/palace-guard

From what I understand, this soap was supposed to be CBS' answer to Days Of Our Lives with the focus on the sexual and psychological exploits of the Hathaway family. My late mom sample the show when it aired, and she said it was awkward/slow at the start and didn't pick up till later on (I assume once Depriest/Scofield stopped head-writing). Depriest actually got her soap writing career started at Edge of Night and wrote alongside Scofield. That soap and this soap would explain her deep fascination with serial killer mysteries and with the psychological/sexual dynamics between men and women.. which carried over into most of the soaps she head-wrote. Maybe she couldn't focus on just the psychological elements that CBS required for this soap so she was replaced by writers more able to write that.

I saw that once on Encore Mystery... it was intense and she kicked butt. Some of my favorite tv movies from the 1980s Deadly Messages from 1985. Don't Go to Sleep from 1982.

The Georgie story made sense up to the Dr. Caspian plot. She was the peacemaker, she was the one to cover up her mother's alcoholism, she was the one that kept the family together. She had this need to always be the one for others to depend on, and realistically having to deal with her husband being unemployed, her son's cancer, and then her other son's issues caused Georgie to break. I actually think Georgie's story was in character.

I know a few people that are attorneys, and cases like the one Naomi is handling generally settle out of court and usually the settlement is a bit less than what was offered by Bill. Casting needed to do a better job with the three plaintiffs because they didn't act as if they're competent at their jobs.

Run Andre Run! You're far too young and sweet to attach yourself to someone damaged and pathetic as Dani. Shame if Eva does turn out to be related to him, because he has the best chemistry with Eva..imho With that said, there was no point in featuring Dani today. It's basically rinse, lather, and repeat...and the viewers deserve a break from her. Vanessa/Diego stuff would have been more effective if social climber Hayley was on and discovered the two together. It would have been an effective first step for Hayley to gain entry into the country club world without Bill's help.. and she's already shown that she has potential to be a problem solver. Bill/Naomi had some great father/daughter scenes. I've always believed that Chelsea is going to be a tougher nut to crack for Bill than Naomi. Chelsea has the added weight of being caretaker for Dani.. so she has to have some resentment toward Bill that runs deeper then Naomi's (whose resentment is far greater for Hayley than Bill). Martin/Smitty family scenes were well written.. but I'm more interested in whatever Martin is hiding and how that will affect his marriage, career, and his relationship with his kids. Tyrell and Samantha shouldn't be leading story.. they're teens. Maybe the show should have held off introducing them into the summer (the traditional time when teens were featured in stories).

Even though this show seems shy about showing off their men sans shirt so far, here is what we might have to look forward to from this actor from a physical stand point

There's a Youtube channel with some video shorts of this particular individual. While he isn't exactly Shakespeare, he does seem to have some acting ability.

What I loved about the show was that the first two or three seasons reminded me a spoof of a primetime soap opera with the close knit family and all the various men that came and went from the sisters lives. When the show veered into the darker subject matter, it lost the charm/whimsy of the earlier seasons. In regards to the Georgie/John story... I remember the high school or college reunion where John was wanting to get back together with Georgie because he realized how badly he was treating her.. and she turned him down flat because she was 'in love' with the Dr. I think the final episode where the two looked to be taking the first step toward getting back together was a good ending. Since she did push away her husband and realized once she was single that she really threw away her marriage.

Of Erica's contemporaries.. Brooke and Barbara were Erica's best fued. Of the next generation down, Annie was Erica's best feud... especially when both were at Oak Haven. The way Annie kept reminding Erica that she was no better then her, that she also had stabbed a man, and then wondered out loud 'And people think I'm the crazy one' once she found out about Janet/Erica's burying Kinder in her backyard.

Ironically, Rachel regained some of her spirit and former personality during the year that Carl was presumed dead. The way she helped run Cory Publishing during a spell, quickly deduced that Jordan Stark was not to be trusted, and during the time he was holding her hostage, she was trying to figure out ways to escape to help save her daughter Amanda from him. Those actions reminded me of the Rachel of old instead of the Rachel that seemed in a trance once she/Carl got together in late 1993/early 1994. The one smart thing the show did do on the final episode was have the final scene be Rachel looking at all of the photos in the Cory living room before she and Carl head upstairs to bed.

This story has/had the potential to be very nuanced and not so cut and dry. All three women have proven to not be very bright so I'm betting that the performance reviews all three received at work were legit, but because slimy Mike had harassed all three women.. they have a case. The ironic thing is that Hayley might actually have deserved the promotion, but because of the actions of Mike and also her having an affair with Bill.. that is called into question. There have a few instances where Hayley has displayed skills that would make one a good paralegal. She's detail oriented (she figured out Dani had broken into their house), she's rightly questioned certain statements from Bill, had a few good points in her interactions with Naomi, and today's pregnancy talk was in an area where she's manipulating him.. but also be upfront/pro-active. Maybe they'll be a twist and Bill won't let her opt out of the case because of his pride and wanting to go up against the best. In regards to todays episode: Today was a character development day, and Danielle Paige is settling in nicely as a soap opera script writer. The ironic thing about Kat/Tomas is that they might not be a long term couple because of her persona/looking down on Eva.. not because of anything Eva is doing to them. Dana is still the breakout character..imho.

Jessie and Calla could have worked if they'd kept the original dynamic and backstory of the characters. Calla was very cold and manipulative.. especially when she was guilting Lillian about helping her with Beth when they were penniless. Once Long left the writing team, Calla became just a love interest of Ross' and sucking up to Alexandra as her personal assistant... while Jessie was paired with Simon (which I recall even the actors that played Simon and Jessie were surprised about because it happened randomly). Staab, as shown later, was quite capable of playing a grey character.. but since this was the start of her acting career.. she probably didn't have the confidence nor instincts to apply layers to the character. Follyworld! I had completely forgot about that fan fic series, which was created by a Fletcher/Holly fan originally in order to give them story/airtime that the show wasn't giving them. If I recall, the fan fic writers wrote some interesting stuff for Holly, Fletcher, Beth, Nick, Phillip, and even Tangie had an interesting story arc. I believe that the owner of the website welcomed freelance writers, but it's been so many years that I don't recall if that memory is accurate or not.