Soaplovers

@Cat I've always been intrigued by the alliances and interactions that occur beneath the surface. Budget Coven is a tight trio, but I do notice Delores/Marge are pretty close (Delores even saying she'd marry Joe if Marge went before him). So maybe Delores sides with Marge over Jennifer because of the friendship? Jackie and Jennifer have always fascinated me...they seem more like frienimies then enemies or friends. I view them like Jo/Blair from Facts of life. They'll shade one another, but if one is attacked..the other will defend them.

Guiding light Reva jumping off the bridge in late 1985 looked like a good idea because we've seen the path to rock bottom play out for 2 years...and had Pam Long not left in January 1986, we could have seen Reva rebuild her life in a organic way. However, we saw her as a nursing volunteer and her taking in the mystery man Cane before she went back to Kyle then Josh again..all in a years time. Young and the Restless Patty's return as Mary Jane masterminded by Victor seemed good on paper..and she was played with conviction by Stacy H....but the writers made her crazy..and it was written as camp instead of a serious story of mental illness.

I like the disjointed islanded feel of this season of OC. It's sort of gone back to its roots. Though next season, we need housewives with older kids...no more small kids.

GH: Holly's return in 1992 was odd timing because Finola had quit a few months before and Tristan was leaving..so she remained for 18 months in some outdated adventure story and paired with Bill Eckert that went nowhere. Nikki Langton in 1992..she was Dawn's half sister and she kind of looked like Dawn..so I could have seen Monica being motherly to her. I think the malpractice lawsuit was a smart idea..and then hooking up with AJ. Would have been interesting to have had her be the nightmare Quartermaine daughter in law...but she was quickly written off.

Y & R I thought Phillip's death was a good story decision. History repeating itself with the car accident, Kay/Jill reunited in grief and also disdain for Nina...Jill trying to do to Nina what Kay had done to her, etc. And it left Nina vulnerable to the likes of David. B & B I actually think Karen was a good idea, and at first, Joanna Johnson made her different than Caroline...she was more a fish out of water. What went wrong was making her too polished too quickly...and not finding a proper story for Karen. There were times she was not an ingenue and even had an edge....but her stories didn't get followed up on (she was paired with Thorne...and had good rival chemistry with Macy...but I don't recall any element calling into question if Thorne was with her because she looked like Caroline, etc). Sunset Beach Rae was dropped a mere few months into the show's run..and I recall people were pissed because she was likable..and she/Casey had chemistry. What was SOD's write up on this story?

It makes sense why she was recast because she mopped the floor with Phyllis. Alex Donnelly had a strong and confident presence even when doing desperate things (i.e. ditching Andy for Doug, ditching Jack for Victor, and spermgate). She didn't have that jittery nervous thing that Stafford had. Susan Walters was a decent replacement as Diane..but she could play up the pathetic vibe better..but also had the sarcastic confident vibe. Maura West...well..miscast and over rated as an actress.

Sharon Gabet was on before Elaine Princi....she seemed more like she was filling a gap. And I think she could have played Melinda as more fragile. She had a dramatic vibe when she played Raven...that she could have channeled into playing Melinda's struggles to readjust to life outside the hospital. In regards to Sarah Brown various roles outside Carly, I think Madison was the character most wasted. She seemed to fit in well on Days...she had a good potential rival in Kate, a frienimie vibe with Sami..and she worked with Brady..and had good friend chemistry with Nicole. Young and the Restless: Jed Saunders (Josh Taylor) first came in with a hint he may have been Nina's dad...then he and Nikki had great chemistry along with having a one night stand with Jill. I was looking forward to a triangle developing....and we all know how Victor would have reacted. Sadly..the show dropped him...and Jill was left in a neverending divorce story while Nikki went back to pining for Victor before getting with Brad.

Reruns are where sitcoms and procedurals rank higher...but serials did better once DVD sets became a thing.... and I think the same of streaming. MSW was a show Hollywood didn't get...according to Angela Lansbury...people in Hollywood watched sitcoms, not shows like MSW. Guess the disconnect between Hollywood and the rest of America was apparent even in the 80s.

Cynthia Watros leaving doomed Kelly....Cady was all wrong for the part. I know on OLTL, that Nora's sister came on as a therapist..and she seemed so calm and serene..complete opposite of Nora's more sarcastic vibe. There were hints they were estranged..but after awhile she vanished.

What caused LOL to decline was CBS moving it from its 11 AM centeal time slot to 10:30 AM slot..because CBS premiered Where the heart is in that slot (in house production) in 1969. LOL went from strong ratings to lower ratings because of that. Only thing that kept it going was the Labine and Depriest regimes..and other CBS shows declining. The move to 3 PM in 1979 was the final nail in the coffin that had been built slowly since 1969.

Would you say Dr Jen is Oc's answer to Teddi? I'm wondering if lawsuit happy Nicole being dropped mid filming is why Jen got an orange? This would have been a year where 5 housewives holding oranges would have been ok. Both Shannon and Heather have teens that would provide content..while Noella is Brownie part deux...with Emily/Gina being blenders because they like to mess things up.

New Jersey: Any sympathy I had for Jennifer dwindled after hearing she was trying to dig up dirt on Jackie..and the cheating rumor. Basically these shows are a portrait into why women would rather be friends with guys than other women lol Gia is the smartest one in her family. I think Joe and melissa didn't know what to make of someone that is calm, forms sentences, and brings up good points.

I grew up in Chicago and Sunset Beach was at 2PM here. Guiding light moved to 9AM in the late 90s, then after outcry moved back to 2PM. However, in Chicago, ratings were higher at 9 AM then at 2PM so it moved back. ABC in Chicago was always #1...and RH aired at 11 AM central, Loving at 11:30 AM. In fact, Loving always won against Y & R in Chicago...and Days and AMC at noon would beat Y & R and B & B in the non hour.

I loved DC...but I wish Cat were on. Speaking of which, here's the time where Luann got put in her place on WWHL by former DC housewife Cat. https://www.bravotv.com/watch-what-happens-live-with-andy-cohen/season-4/episode-29/videos/after-show-with-luann-and-cat-0

I wouldn't have minded Bert having a friendly interaction with H.B. and Henry...and I could see both men being taken with her. Bert was a warm spirited woman who happened to be beautiful...but I couldn't see her returning those feelings. She was content with her life and would have welcome companions her own age...but I could see her not wanting to put herself in a position of a romantic relationship due to her issues with Bill. I loved her blunt she was...and I wish she'd live..because I would have loved to have seen how she and India would have interacted.

Jennifer, Delores, and Teresa have interesting family dynamics..so I find they don't have to cause drama so much. Margaret tries...but she needs to spruce up the personal life so she doesn't have to stir up drama. Melissa is tied to whatever Teresa does..so I'm curious why she isn't just a friend of. Jackie doesn't show her family or work life much...and her hubby is hot so maybe have him shirtless more. I think the blonde with melissa was supposed to be a possible housewife? Although this woman not only stole a married man..but it was when his wife was 8 months pregnant....too messy even for Jersey. I think next season will need a shakeup in the cast. Margaret vs Teresa is the last unexplored avenue with this current cast. Lastly, Jennifer's husband cheating on her years ago does explain why she judges Margaret on cheating. So I take back my previous statement. SLC I'm wondering if Lisa's hot mic moment plus her vs Meredith is an attempt to prove the show can carry on without Mary..and possibly Jen (once she is convicted..that is).

I remember watching Hilary on the Soap Classics DVd's...and she had such a likable tomboy quality. I asked my mom why Hilary was killed and she said 'because the show was stupid'. She and Fletcher would have probably been paired in the long run had she not been killed off.

Jennifer is just a bitch..someone needs to knock her down to size. Garcelle...hmmm...I like her, but I do think she likes to stir stuff up.

I think the only tie that Leslie/Robert had to the 'new' YR was that Robert's daughter Angela was friends with Traci.. and that Leslie helped Victor with Nikki's 'My Fair Lady' story. I do wonder if maybe Bell could have had Robert as socializing with John Abbott due to their daughter's being friendly.. while playing up on Jill/Leslie's past history. I think had Jamie Lynne Bauer not opted to quit, Bell would have kept Lorie and carried her over to the new Y& R. From watching a few episodes in the spring 1982, it seemed like Lorie/Robert were tested as a couple and maybe when she opted to leave, Bell opted to plop Leslie into that story.. when it didn't seem to make sense.

I liked the Beth/Mindy/Rick/Phillip story, plus the introduction of Alexandra & India. 1984 still had some of the elements of the traditional GL and the Bauer's were still the anchor of the show during that year. I actually think 1985 was when the show stopped being the GL of yesteryear in many ways (Reardon's were all but gone by mid 1985, while the Bauer's weren't as frontburner as they were before).

She was pushed into music in her teens when she had cultivated a following from her time on Good Tims, Different Strokes, and Fame. I wish she could summon the 19 year old of Control back...she's still within Janet. She needs to do music on terms and not let anyone dictate what she needs to do.

From watching episodes from when Patty was on, Mary had to keep Carl from butting into Patty's life while Carl had to keep Mary from butting into Paul's life. I think the fact that Todd was in the priest hood made him the favored one

I forgot she apologized. Janet shouldn't have because she was not at fault and did nothing wrong. She should have just kept it moving like Madonna did. She got bad advice from her team.

I will agree that Janet got punished worse than Madge did. Madonna did suffer a lot of damage after doing Erotica/Sex/Body of Evidence... and she had to do a major 180 and came out with 'Bedtime Stories' plus a ballad called 'I'll Remember'. Madonna had to drastically back off the sexual exploits in order to save her career. I don't recall, but did Janet Jackson try to do that after the whole Superbowl scandal?

I think part of Janet's problem was that she was always viewed as the kid sister singing and she also had a weight problem in her teens as well. If you look at her music videos from the Control and Rhythm Nation era(for the most part), she was always in blazers, in black, and usually was covered up from the neck down. Once she did the 'Love will never do without you' video where she was dressed in a more revealing way (for her.. that is). I think she decided to embrace the sexual side that she had kept repressed because she still saw herself as being overweight. Janet in 1993 was a very sensual album that was romantic, tough, and sensual. Velvet Rope saw her dipping more into the sexual side of things, but she still wrote a mean hook. I think she's been treading ground in her music for years focusing more on the beats instead of what made her so popular in the 80s/early 90s.. which were strong hooks, great beats, great lyrics, and a diverse musical soundscape. She listed to men by embracing her sexuality, yet was also punished when those same people thought she went too far (even though Justin T wasn't held under the fire when he was the one that caused the wardrobe malfunction).