Huntress

Some casting news: Oliver Franck has joined the cast of GZSZ in the contract role of Martin Ahrens. He is Nina's (Maria Wedig) husband, Luis's (Maximilian Braun) father and works as lawyer. Wedig and Braun first appeared on August 3rd, 2017, while Franck debuted on August 28th, 2017. The Ahrens family is apparently harboring a dark secret that will slowly unfold. Christina Klein will depart AWZ on October 19, 2017. The 26-year old actress and singer joined the cast in October 2014 as Iva Lukowski. For most of her run, Iva didn't have a major storyline and only appeared as a sidekick to Marie, Michelle and Vanessa. Her biggest storyline involved her being stalked by one of her bandmates. Robert Maaser (Tim Hayer) made his final appearance on AWZ on September 1st, 2017. He only joined the cast this past March. When it was announced that Stefan Bockelmann would depart UU after being on contract for 16 consecutive years, it was speculated that his on-screen partner Ines Kurenbach might also be on her way out. The two actors are indeed leaving the show together on September 18th, 2017, when their characters Malte Winter and Caro Kasper Winter decide to start a new life in South Africa. Kurenbach's Caro entered the scene in August 2014. In turn, Alexander Milo has joined the cast of UU in the new contract role Jakob Huber, Benedikt's (Jens Hajek) younger and much nicer brother. Saskia Weigel (Antonia Michalsky) falls in love with him on first sight. Also on UU, it's very likely that Aaron Koszuta (Valentin Huber) is on his way out. Last month, his agency disclosed that Koszuta is "available for new projects". Meanwhile Andrea Brix (Roswitha Küpper-Pütz) has been placed on contract. She is now listed among the show's stars on the official website. The 80-year old actress first appeared on-screen in July 2015 and had been recurring ever since. Roswitha is Robert's mother, Andrea's grandmother and Valentin's great-grandmother. There also rumors that Conor Weigel will be SORASed soon. The son of Till Weigel and Ute Kiefer Kern Weigel Fink was born in January 2003 and was portrayed by a set of twin child actors until 2010 when Conor was sent to a boarding school. In 2012, he made sporadic guest appearances, now played by a prepubescent child actor. Last month, UU's annual fan event took place on the studio set in Cologne. For the first time, it was organized as a joined event with AWZ as both shows are filmed next to each other. The 2017 Cast of "Unter Uns" Back row: Luca Maric (Robert Küpper), Benjamin Heinrich (Benno "Bambi" Hirschberger), Petra Blossey (Irene Weigel Küpper), Milos Vukovic (Paco Weigel), Andrea Brix (Roswitha Küpper Pütz), Claudelle Deckert (Eva Wagner Weigel), Nora Koppen (Elli Schneider), Stefano Ligorio (Gianni Aurino), Pauline Angert (Katharina "Kay-C" Schneider), Lars Steinhöfel (Ingo "Easy" Winter), Timothy Boldt (Ringo Beckmann), Valea Scalabrino (Sina Uhland Hirschberger), Patrick Müller (Tobias Lassner), Tabea Heynig (Britta Schönfeld), Ramon Ademes (Roger Schmitz) Middle row: Cronis Karakassidis (Nikos Karadimas), Lena Klöber (Sarah Fuchs), Antonia Michalsky (Saskia Weigel), Kai Noll (Rufus Sturm), Isabell Hertel (Ute Kiefer Kern Weigel Fink), Stefan Bockelmann (Malte Winter) Front row: Aaron Koszuta (Valentin Huber), Astrid Leberti (Andrea Huber), Jens Hajek (Benedikt Huber) Absent: Ben Ruedinger (Till Weigel) The 2017 Cast of "Alles was zählt" Back row: Lars Korten (Christoph Lukowski), Dorothee Föllmer (Linda Engels), Jörg Rohde (Ben Steinkamp), Silvan Pierre-Leirich (Richard Steinkamp), Madlen Kaniuth (Brigitte Schnell), Franziska Benz (Michelle Bauer), Daniel Buder (Vincent Thalbach), André Dietz (Ingo Zadek), Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen (Jenny Steinkamp), Ania Niedieck (Isabelle Reichenbach Steinkamp), Cheyenne Pahde (Marie Schmidt) Middle row: Bela Klentze (Ronny Bergmann), Juliette Greco (Lena Bergmann Öztürk) Front row: Sam Eisenstein (Marian Öztürk), Ralf-Maximilian Prack (Alexander von Altenburg Öztürk), Heike Warmuth (Carmen Bauer), Igor Dolgatschew (Deniz Öztürk), Christina Klein (Iva Lukowski), Julia Augustin (Vanessa Steinkamp Lukowski), Ingeborg Brings (Renate Scholz) Absent: Tatjana Clasing (Simone Steinkamp), Tanja Szewczenko (Diana Sommer)

Preview Pictures August 2017 Unter uns 01. While Andrea (Astrid Leberti) has a lucky streak at the casino, Benedikt (Jens Hajek) suspects that his wife has turned to gambling to distract herself from her trauma of shooting a man 02. Easy (Lars Steinhöfel) kisses Finn (Jan-Martin Müller) for the very first time 03. Bambi (Benjamin Heinrich) and Sina (Valea Scalabrino) don't know how to react when their daughter Amelie catches them while they are having sex 04. Streetkid Manu (new series regular Lea Freund) has been disappointed by Schillerallee residents Rufus and Britta and returns to the streets 05. Britta (Tabea Heynig), Rufus (Kai Noll), Irene (Petra Blossey) and Easy take care of Malte (Stefan Bockelmann) who fears that his wife Caro has been killed in a plane accident 06. In prison, Kay-C (Pauline Angert, left) fights with her cellmate 07. Easy has sex with another man for the first time 08. Valentin (Aaron Koszuta) and Benedikt once again have a heated argument 09. Easy, who wants to keep his affair with Finn a secret, gets in trouble when Ringo (Timothy Boldt) gets a hold of his cell phone 10. Till (Ben Ruedinger) and Eva (Claudelle Deckert, right) are shocked when Ute (Isabell Hertel) asks Eva to become Ute and Till's daughter's godmother. The problem is that Ute doesn't know that the babies were switched at the hospital and that she's raising another woman's daughter! Alles was zählt 01. Jenny (Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen) is happy that she's not pregnant, but Deniz is a bit disappointed... 02. Vanessa (Julia Augustin) is shocked when Iva (Christina Klein) suddenly suffers from a sepsis after an operation that Vanessa performed 03. Jenny and Deniz are wondering who Richard's (Silvan-Pierre Leirich) new business partner might be 04. Ben (Jörg Rohde) blames Carmen (Heike Warmuth) for his financial troubles 05. Christoph (Lars Korten) and Vanessa are worried about Iva's condition 06. With the help of the devious Stephanie (Ann-Cathrin Schaible), Vincent (Daniel Buder) tries to sabotage Jenny and Deniz's business 07. Stephanie is responsible for Jenny falling into a lake during a promotional event 08. Michelle (Franziska Benz) breaks things off with Ronny (Bela Klentze) 09. Diana (Tanja Szewczenko) and Ingo (André Dietz) tell Ronny that they are confident that they can stay in their apartment 10. Simone (Tatjana Clasing) calls on Richard to choose between Ben and the family business Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten 01. While searching for Jasmin, Emily (Anne Menden) gets lost in Venice 02. With Emily and Katrin (Ulrike Frank, right) at her side, Jasmin (Janina Uhse) is ready to take her future in hand [and Janina Uhse departs the show after 9 1/2 years) 03. Nina Ahrens (new series regular Maria Wedig) and her teenage son Luis (new series regular Maximilian Braun) arrive in Berlin 04. Lilly (Iris Mareike Steen) celebrates her birthday with Paul (Niklas Osterloh), Anni (Linda Marlen Runge), Chris (Eric Stehfest) and Tuner (Thomas Drechsel) 05. Jule (Luise von Finckh) is mugged at the café 06. Anni is heartbroken when Katrin tells her that Jasmin has easily settled into her new life without her 07. Jule and Anni try to be there for one another 08. Paul and Emily argue about Emily's business plans 09. Maren (Eva Mona Rodekirchen) asks John (Felix von Jascheroff) to come clean about his illegal money transactions 10. Laura (Chryssanthi Kavazi) tries to get buddy-buddy with Luis and Katrin

As far as I remember, both Sly and Jasmine worked at the Bikini Bar (after Jasmine had left Spectra). She fell in love with Sly, but he only wanted Jessica – mainly because he wanted to marry into the Forrester dynasty. Jasmine found out about this and told Jessica that Sly was only interested in her family's money. When Jessica showed Sly the cold shoulder, he raped her in disguise. Jessica was able to spot a tattoo on the rapist's groin. A bit later, Jasmine saw the tattoo on Sly's body and was shocked. Sly locked Jessica and Jasmine inside the Bikini Bar and set the place on the fire. While Dylan rescued the two girls, Sly died in the flames. Shortly after, Jasmine was written off the show without explanation, and Jessica and Dylan left town as well at the end of 1996. The only character of that younger mid 90s crowd who survived into 1997 was Dylan's roommate Michael Lai (Lindsay Price). She was actually Grant's first love interest before he married Brooke and later Macy. During that time they also teased Clarke/Brooke and Ridge/Lauren.

Easy's first gay kiss takes place in episode #5657 (airdate: July 27th, 2017) Finn is played by Jan-Martin Müller (http://janmartinmueller.de/). Quite a handsome guy... with and without a beard.

I've always wondered about this myself, considering that all other soaps, past and present – even some of the short-lived ones that only ran for a year – featured at least one LGBT character long before UU did. But in the same way, German soaps suck at diversity in general. It's all very whitewashed, even though they all take place in cities which have a large percentage of immigrants and are known as gay "hotspots". If you take a look at the current casts of GZSZ http://www.soapsworld.de/gute-zeiten-schlechte-zeiten-gzsz/besetzung, UU http://www.soapsworld.de/unter-uns-uu/besetzung and AWZ http://www.soapsworld.de/alles-was-zaehlt-awz/besetzung, you will see that there's hardly anybody with foreign roots. Until earlier this year, GZSZ had 4 contract roles that were of Turkish origin (Tayfun, Ayla, Selma and Mesut), but they were all written off the show within the span of 6 months. They recently added Greek actress Chryssanthi Kavazi in a new contract role, but her character Laura is supposed to be German. AWZ has Deniz and Marian with Turkish roots (but their portrayers are not Turkish), and UU has Paco who was born in Ecuador (but is half-German). The actor himself is of Serbian descent. And that's it.

Actually it doesn't make any sense at all and somehow I think that this will put an end to the Ringo/Valentin story. Easy's portrayer Lars Steinhöfel is gay in real life so this might play a factor in the character suddenly turning to men. Besides Ringo's short-lived romance with Yannik in 2013 and him having some one-night-stands with random extras, UU has never featured a "full-on" gay storyline let alone a homosexual contract role. Ringo identifies as bisexual because he's also had relationships with girls. In the show's first year, Armin Franke pretended to be gay so that Corinna, Jennifer and Melanie, who were sick of their ex-boyfriends and of men in general, allowed him to move in with them. But that's it. In 2011/2012, the show featured a storyline where Bine Kern, who was verbally and physically abused by her boyfriend Nils, grew feelings for her best friend Rebecca, who was married to Rufus at that time. The story received a lot of backlash because it came out of nowhere and felt too contrived. The show reacted quickly and put Bine back with Nils, while Rebecca reunited with Rufus. Bine and Nils were sent packing later that year, and Rebecca was brutally murdered by Rolf. Today UU announced that Stefan Bockelmann will be leaving the soap after 16 years. He will last air in September 2017. Bockelmann joined the show in September 2001 as Malte Winter. The character was originally introduced as a small-time criminal, who eventually learned to leave his shady past behind. He has been the owner of the "Schiller" bar for several years. He has also battled alcoholism repeatedly and was married to Rebecca and Britta Schönfeld. Currently Malte's patching his troubled marriage to Caro Kasper, and according to Bockelmann, Malte will receive a happy ending. This probably means that Caro's portrayer Ines Kurenbach is also on her way out.

Besides Valentin & Ringo, Unter uns will also feature a second gay storyline in the next weeks involving Easy Winter. Easy, as played by Lars Steinhöfel, first appeared in May 2005 as the rebellious teenage cousin of Björn and Malte Winter. He had to stay with his cousins after his father had been sent to jail. After some time adjusting to his new environment, Easy softened up and became friends with the younger crowd of Schilerallee 10. At first, the character was 15 years old. Over the years, Easy has had relationships with Romy Sturm, Lilli Mattern, Josephine Johlke, Suji Wagner and Fiona Jäger, and he was also briefly married to Charlotte Sommer. Easy turned out to be a talented photographer. Due to his friendship with Valentin and Ringo, he tags along to Cologne's Christopher Street Day parade and meets a guy named Finn. They click instantly and agree to work together on a photoshoot. A bit later Easy realizes that he is attracted to Finn and almost kisses him! This story is about to unfold in mid-July. There's also a new contract role arriving: Paco Weigel (Milos Vukovic) learns that his father Ulrich has died. Shortly after, a young woman named Saskia (Antonia Michalsky) appears and turns out to be Paco's sister whom he has never heard of before. Paco has been on the show since April 2000. Ulrich was a recurring character in 2001 and again in 2007, played by two different actors. In 2007, Paco's evil wife Lara Martensen was found dead in the courtyard. Ulrich was revealed to be the murderer and was sent to prison. Paco himself has been in a wheelchair for 2 years now. GZSZ tweeted a mysterious image today, claiming that a new contract role is about to be revealed. Apparently the new character is linked to Katrin (Ulrike Frank) and Laura (Chryssanthi Kavazi).

Even though most of the show is available online, Verbotene Liebe, which ran from 1995 to 2015 on ARD, will be repeated on ONE starting June 19th, 2017. ONE (known as EinsFestival until last year) belongs to the ARD group. They regularly broadcast shows from ARD's vast archive. This youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEg8dmaYzd0X7hu4KNHcuNA/videos has uploaded quite a large number of Marienhof (1992-2011) episodes from 1995, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010, 2011. Another youtube channel with various Marienof episodes and opening themes: https://www.youtube.com/user/masterof1990/videos From 1992 to 1994, Marienhof ran twice a week. In January 1995, it was transformed into a daily soap. This was the first daily episode #170 (original airdate: January 2nd, 1995). Verbotene Liebe premiered on the same day. The final episode #4053 (original airdate: June 15th, 2011)

Official GZSZ promo for the next few weeks: "Der Sommer der Entscheidung" ("The Summer of Decisions"). Featuring... Jasmin and Anni are rekindling their romance just as Jasmin is about to leave for New York. Jasmin's final scenes were filmed in Venice, Italy (as seen at the end of the promo). Chris is still kept at the psychiatric ward thanks to his brother Felix. Sunny is torn between her feelings for Felix and Chris. Lilly tries to prove Chris's innocence. The mysterious Laura Weber appears in Berlin and introduces herself to Katrin as an old friend of the late Till. Katrin trusts Laura and offers her a job, but what is Laura really up to? The "Mauerwerk" bar is in danger because John has used illegal money to pay the bills. Now Leon, John and Maren's jobs are on the line.

Minor casting news: Daniel Brockhaus is departing AWZ on June 14th, 2017. The actor joined the show in January 2015 as Dr. Thomas Brück, the ex-husband of Sonja and father of Leo and Flo Brück. Thomas is the last member of the Brück family to leave the show, as Sonja and Flo were written out in January 2016 and Leo departed in March 2017. Other than being the resident doctor and having an ongoing affair with Isabelle Reichenbach, Thomas didn't really have much to do. Maria Wedig is the latest addition to GZSZ's contract cast. The actress started filming on May 22nd, 2017, and will much likely appear on-screen at the end of July. She plays Nina Ahrens "who comes to Berlin to start a new life" (what else is new?). Wedig is no stranger to soaps, having starred on AWZ as Juli von Altenburg from 2008 to 2009 and having played the lead heroine during the 4th and final cycle of the telenovala "Anna und die Liebe" from 2011 to 2012. Right in time for Janina Uhse's departure on GZSZ, the show is revisiting Jasmin and Anni's lesbian relationship. The two girls were a couple from 2013 to 2015 and are now on the way of getting back together. However, Jasmin receives an unique job offer in Italy. Will Anni eventually let her go? The gay storyline on UU is also heating up, with Ringo and Valentin growing closer and closer. They even have a foursome with two girls which leaves Ringo craving for more. A bit later, Ringo invites Valentin out partying at a gay club where Valentin has a lot of fun. Valentin is also involved in a storyline with his parents Benedikt and Andrea. When one of Benedikt's evil business partners seeks revenge on Benedikt, he threatens to kill Valentin. Andrea, the quiet and oppressed housewife, wants to protect her son and kills the man in self-defense. This will change her life forever. --- And this is GZSZ's new opening which premiered on May 17th, 2017. For the first time in the show's history, there are now 3 different versions rotating every day. From 1992 to 1998, there was just one version. Since 1998, the show has always had two different versions (although briefly in 2002 and from 2008 to 2010, the show only used one heavily edited version that only featured characters who were still on the canvas). This is the first opening to feature Thaddäus Meilinger als Felix, Luise von Finckh as Jule, Niklas Osterloh as Paul, and Chryssanthi Kavazi as Laura. The latter debuts on-screen on June 6th, 2017. Version A: Valentine Pahde as Sunny Richter – Ulrike Frank as Katrin Flemming – Wolfgang Bahro as Dr. Jo Gerner – Berlin, Alexanderplatz – Jörn Schlönvoigt as Dr. Philip Höfer & Felix von Jascheroff as John Bachmann – Thaddäus Meilinger as Felix Lehmann – Brandenburg Gate – Janina Uhse as Jasmin Flemming – Eric Stehfest as Chris Lehmann – Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten Version B: Eric Stehfest as Chris Lehmann – Wolfgang Bahro as Dr. Jo Gerner – Ulrike Frank as Katrin Flemming – Berlin, Alexanderplatz – Luise von Finckh as Jule Vogt & Iris Mareike Steen as Lilly Seefeld – Chryssanthi Kavazi as Laura Weber – Brandenburg Gate – Linda Marlen Runge as Anni Brehme, Thomas Drechsel as Max "Tuner" Krüger, Luise von Finckh as Jule Vogt & Iris Mareike Steen as Lilly Seefeld – Thomas Drechsel as Max "Tuner" Krüger & Linda Marlen Runge as Anni Brehme – Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten * When this version debuted on the official GZSZ website, it featured Mustafa Alin as Mesut Yildiz in second position. The tv version features Wolfgang Bahro as Jo Gerner and Ulrike Frank as Katrin Flemming in Alin's place. Alin's status with the show is still unclear, even though the actor has stated that will return during the summer. Version C: Anne Menden as Emily Höfer – Clemens Löhr as Alexander Cöster – Eva Mona Rodekirchen as Maren Seefeld – Berlin, Alexanderplatz – Felix van Deventer as Jonas Seefeld & Niklas Osterloh as Paul Wiedmann – Lea Marlen Woitack as Sophie Lindh Moreno – Brandenburg Gate – Daniel Fehlow as Leon Moreno – Janina Uhse as Jasmin Flemming – Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten

The only official way to watch it is http://www.tvnow.de/rtl/gzsz/jahr/2017/5 Someone finally uploaded UU's current openings to youtube (okay, almost current, because Kristin Meyer was removed from version B two weeks ago). And AWZ, although those are not the latest versions, but those from 2016. These versions still feature Judith Neumann as Marie and Carsten Clemens as Veit. Since July 2016, Marie has been played by Cheyenne Pahde, and Carsten Clemens's sequence has been replaced by Tanja Szewczenko (Diana).

GZSZ's new opening will debut on tv on May 17th, 2017, but it can already be watched online. From now, on there will be 3 different versions. Version 1: Valentina Pahde (Sunny) – Ulrike Frank (Katrin) – Wolfgang Bahro (Jo) – Berlin Alexanderplatz – Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip) & Felix von Jascheroff (John) – Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix) – Brandenburg Gate – Janina Uhse (Jasmin) – Eric Stehfest (Berlin) – GZSZ Version 2: Eric Stehfest (Chris) – Mustafa (Mesut) – Berlin Alexanderplatz – Luise von Finckh (Jule) & Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly) – Chryssanthi Kavazi (Laura) – Brandenburg Gate – Linda Marlen Runge (Anni), Thomas Drechsel (Tuner), Luise von Finckh (Jule) & Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly) – Thomas Drechsel (Tuner) & Linda Marlen Runge (Anni) Version 3: Anne Menden (Emily) – Clemens Löhr (Alexander) – Eva Mona Rodekirchen (Maren) – Berlin Alexanderplatz – Felix van Deventer (Jonas) & Niklas Osterloh (Paul) – Lea Marlen Woitack (Sophie) – Brandenburg Gate – Daniel Fehlow (Leon) – Janina Uhse (Jasmin) This is the 1st version: Making-of videos:

Some more promotional pictures of GZSZ's anniversary... Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix), Valentina Pahde (Sunny) & Eric Stehfest (Chris) Felix von Jascheroff (John), Anne Menden (Emily), Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip) & Niklas Osterloh (Paul) Eric Stehfest (Chris), Felix von Jascheroff (John), Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip), Thomas Drechsel (Tuner) & Niklas Osterloh (Paul) Niklas Osterloh (Paul), Felix van Deventer (Jonas) & Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip) Ulrike Frank (Katrin) & Wolfgang Bahro (Jo) Felix van Deventer (Jonas), Clemens Löhr (Alexander), Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly) & Eva Mona Rodekirchen (Maren) Thomas Drechsel (Tuner) & Luise von Finckh (Jule) Eric Stehfest (Chris), Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip), Felix von Jascheroff (John), Wolfgang Bahro (Jo), Linda Marlen Runge (Anni), Janina Uhse (Jasmin) & Niklas Osterloh (Paul) Lea Marlen Woitack (Sophie), Anne Menden (Emily) & Janina Uhse (Jasmin)

In early April, GZSZ had its best ratings since 2013: A market share of 22%. GZSZ's average yearly ratings were: 2011: 3,75m / 22,6% 2012: 3,36m / 20,2% 2013: 3,25m / 20,3% 2014: 2,90m / 17,8% 2015: 2,66m / 16,9% 2016: 2,84m / 18,1% So it's pretty much guaranteed that it will continue for many years to come. TPTB are also actively trying to keep fans invested in the show and its characters. UU is also pretty stable since it has a very loyal fanbase. AWZ on the other hand can go either way. They just don't have the same fanbase like GZSZ and UU do. While GZSZ and UU have survived the loss of many fan favorites over the years and have re-invented themselves several times, AWZ seems to rely on the same old characters in the same storylines. The Steinkamps have become caricatures of themselves, Ingo, Diana, Marian, Lena and Deniz are a huge bore, and most of the fresh faces get the axe before they have the chance to unfold their potential.

The motto of GZSZ's anniversary is "25 Years at Your Side". Besides plenty of promotional pictures, RTL has also created a promotional video. According to reports, the show will also receive a new opening sequence. Order of appearance in the video: Berlin – Ulrike Frank (Katrin) – Wolfgang Bahro (Jo) – Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix) – Valentina Pahde (Sunny) – Eric Stehfest (Chris) – Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly) – Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip) – Lea Marlen Woitack (Sophie) – Daniel Fehlow (Leon) – Felix van Deventer (Jonas) & Niklas Osterloh (Paul) – Janina Uhse (Jasmin) – Jörn Schlönvoigt (Philip) & Felix von Jascheroff (John) – Mustafa Alin (Mesut) – Anne Menden (Emily) – Linda Marlen Runge (Anni), Thomas Drechsel (Tuner), Luise von Finckh (Jule) & Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly) – Clemens Löhr (Alexander) – Eva Mona Rodekirchen (Maren) – Group scene including new cast member Cryssanthi Kazavi (Laura)

It's the other way around Chris (played by Eric Stehfest) works as a DJ. When he was first introduced, he was an extreme environmental activist and did a lot of illegal things, posing under the name "WHY". After the death of his grandfather (who had to leave his property so that new apartments could be built on that piece of land), Chris had cut all ties to his family because they were only interested in money and wealth. Chris hates capitalism. Chris's backstory was explored last year when his mother Rosa (played by Joana Schümer) and his brother Felix (played by Thaddäus Meilinger) appeared in town. They both worked for the "Lehmann Bank", the family business. Felix had always been jealous of Chris because Rosa liked Chris better than him, even though Felix did everything for Rosa and helped her rescueing the bank. Rosa reached out for Chris, but he was still bitter. The two brothers got in a lot of fights. Didn't help that both of them fell in love with the same girl, Sunny (played by Valentina Pahde), Jo Gerner's granddaughter. Felix turned out to be quite a meanie: He betrayed Rosa and also did some illegal trading behind her back. Now Felix tries to frame Chris for a fire that Felix himself had started. At the same time, Sunny trusts Felix and wants to marry him. Also involved in that story is Lilly (played by Iris Mareike Steen) who seems to be the only sane person in that scenario. She tries to proof Chris's innocence and warns Sunny of Felix's true intentions.

I love her. No, seriously, Janina's a great actress and she's portrayed Jasmin with perfection, considering she's such a flawed character. Just remember what Jasmin's been through in roughly 10 years: In January 2008, she was introduced as a budding fashion designer, then was thought to be Katrin Flemming's half-sister Melanie who was given up for adoption as a young child. Later in 2008 it was revealed that she was Katrin's daughter. Since she was sexually abused by her adoptive father Dieter, Jasmin suffered from several traumas. After Katrin had shot Dieter to protect Jasmin in early 2009, Jasmin and Katrin eventually connected. Jasmin had a rocky relationship with Dominik Gundlach, the son of Katrin's husband Jo Gerner between 2008 and 2010. The two almost married, but Jasmin felt it was too rushed and she broke up with Dominik in early 2010. She also had a brief fling with Dominik's evil half brother Patrick in 2010. When Dominik was abducted in 2011 and suffered a trauma himself, Jasmin was there for him still. A bit later, Jasmin wanted to become famous and married rock star Kurt LeRoy in late 2012. The two even had their own reality soap. When their fame waned, Jasmin released a porn tape to get attention again and claimed that someone stole it from her laptop. Her plan backfired, however, when it was revealed that Jasmin herself had released the tape. All of her friends couldn't believe how low Jasmin had sank and turned their backs on her. Jasmin and Kurt broke up at the end of 2013, and Jasmin found comfort in her roommate Anni. The two women embarked on a relationship which was ruined by Anni's mood changes and her being clingy. In the meantime, Jasmin had also become a famous designer and founded her own business "Tussi Attack" with her frenemy Emily and good friend Sophie. In late 2015, Jasmin met the man of her dreams: Dr. Frederic Riefflin, a renowned surgeon. Unbeknownst to her, Frederic was Jasmin's biological father Rico! Father and daughter fell in love and even wanted to get married. After a while, Katrin found out the horrifying truth. She confronted Frederic, told him to leave and never return again. Frederic tried to kill Katrin, but he was killed by Katrin's best friend Maren in self-defense. Katrin, Maren and Anni buried Frederic's body while Jasmin was heartbroken about Frederic's disappearance. The storyline culminated in the 6000th episode (May 2016). After the incest storyline had finished, Jasmin was more or less placed on the backburner and she has only been involved in storylines surrounding her business. You probably mean Rosa Lehmann, played by Joana Schümer. The character is still on recurring status and pops up here and there. However, she's not involved with Anni anymore as they broke up in December 2016. One of the main stories right now is Sunny being torn between brothers Chris and Felix (good vs. evil), Rosa's sons. Rosa will also appear in the anniversary episodes since Felix and Sunny will get married.

RTL has released a lot of glamorous promotional images for the 25th anniversary of their flagship GZSZ. From left to right, clockwise: Anne Menden (Emily Badak), Niklas Osterloh (Paul Wiedmann), Wolfgang Bahro (Dr. Jo Gerner), Ulrike Frank (Katrin Flemming), Felix von Jascheroff (John Bachmann), Janina Uhse (Jasmin Flemming), Jörn Schlönvoigt (Dr. Philip Höfer), Valentina Pahde (Sunny Richter), Eric Stehfest (Chris Lehmann), Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix Lehmann), Linda Marlen Runge (Anni Brehme) Anne Menden (Emily Badak) & Lea Marlen Woitack (Sophie Lindh) Valentina Pahde (Sunny Richter) Felix van Deventer (Jonas Seefeld), Eva Mona Rodekirchen (Maren Seefeld), Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly Seefeld) & Clemens Löhr (Alexander Cöster) Janina Uhse (Jasmin Flemming) Luise von Finckh (Jule Vogt) & Thomas Drechsel (Max Krüger) Ulrike Frank (Katrin Flemming) Linda Marlen Runge (Anni Brehme) & Janina Uhse (Jasmin Flemming) Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix Lehmann) Niklas Osterloh (Paul Wiedmann) & Anne Menden (Emily Badak) The primetime special on May 17th, 2017, consists of episodes #6255, #6256 and #6257. The following actors are currently part of the contract cast: Wolfgang Bahro as Dr. Jo Gerner (first airdate: #185 / February 1993) Daniel Fehlow as Leon Moreno (first airdate: #961 / April 1996) Felix von Jascheroff as John Bachmann (first airdate: #2277 / July 2001) Ulrike Frank as Katrin Flemming (first airdate: #2631 / December 2002) Anne Menden as Emily Badak (first airdate: #3114 / December 2004) Jörn Schlönvoigt as Dr. Philip Höfer (first airdate: #3114 / December 2004) Janina Uhse as Jasmin Flemming (first airdate: #3902 / January 2008) Thomas Drechsel as Max "Tuner" Krüger (first airdate: #4227 / April 2009) Clemens Löhr as Alexander Cöster #2 (first airdate: #4266 / June 2009) Eva Mona Rodekirchen as Maren Seefeld (first airdate: #4616 / November 2010) Iris Mareike Steen as Lilly Seefeld (first airdate: #4629 / December 2010) Linda Marlen Runge as Anni Brehme (first airdate: #5295 / July 2013) Lea Marlen Woitack as Sophie Lindh (first airdate: #5464 / March 2014) Felix van Deventer as Jonas Seefeld (first airdate: #5544 / July 2014) Eric Stehfest as Chris Lehmann (first airdate: #5640 / December 2014) Valentina Pahde as Sunny Richter (first airdate: #5671 / January 2015) Thaddäus Meilinger as Felix Lehmann (first airdate: #6064 / August 2016) Luise von Finckh as Jule Vogt (first airdate: #6126 / November 2016) Niklas Osterloh as Paul Wiedmann (first airdate: #6142 / December 2016) Janina Uhse is reportedly taking a long break from the show (or leaving for good?). She will continue taping until the summer. Mustafa Alin's (Mesut Yildiz) current status with the show is unclear. The actor made his first appearance in May 2011. Originally a member of a criminal gang, Mesut was redeemed in 2013 and Alin was upgraded to contract status in January 2014. However, he has mostly been used as comic relief. Mesut has been MIA for some weeks now but according to RTL the actor is just on vacation.

Ah yes, that was last year when Sophie had a miscarriage. Because she totally pulled away from him, Sophie and Leon almost got a divorce, but they have reconciled since. Here are some episode stills from the upcoming Ringo & Valentin storyline on UU. Timothy Boldt joined the cast as Ringo Beckmann in August 2012. Ringo originally arrived with his parents Paul and Sonja and his twin sister Kira. Other members of the Beckmann family include Sonja's younger sister Leonie Weidenfeld and Paul's illegitimate son Tobias Lassner. Paul and Sonja were killed off in early 2014, and Kira left town later that year. Leonie said goodbye in 2015. A scheming teenager and a bully, Ringo came out as bisexual in 2013. Aaron Koszuta joined the cast as Valentin Huber in April 2016. Valentin is the son of Benedikt and Andrea Huber and the grandson of Robert Küpper, who married original cast member Irene Weigel last year. Valentin also has a sister who hasn't been shown on-screen yet. Valentin (front) sees Ringo making out with another guy (in the background) and is shocked because he didn't know that Ringo is bisexual. Valentin's parents Benedikt and Andrea At a school dance, Valentin surprises Ringo with a kiss – to scare off a pushy girl who doesn't leave his side

That's Daniel Fehlow. He's played Leon Moreno since April 1996 (with a short break between 1999 and 2001). Now he's of course 20 years older. Leon's character page on GZSZ's official website: http://www.rtl.de/cms/gzsz-rolle-leon-moreno-631685.html Leon's a professional cook, owner of the "Mauerwerk" restaurant, and a former ladies' man. His ex-wives include Cora Hinze Moreno and the late Verena Koch Moreno. Currently he's married to Sophie Lindh Moreno. Leon has two children: An illegitimate son, Vince, and another son, Oskar, with Verena. He's definitely not the most exciting character, but he's not annoying, either. Some casting news: Elena Garcia Gerlach's final airdate on GZSZ is May 16th, 2017 – so she leaves one episode before the show celebrates its 25th anniversary. Her alter ego Elena Gundlach realizes that she must end her relationship with her dead husband's father Jo Gerner. Elena breaks up with Jo and moves back to her native Spain. Also on GZSZ, Clemens Löhr (Alexander Cöster) and Felix von Jascheroff (John Bachmann) have extended their contracts *yawn*. They join the list of actors who have long overstayed their welcome. Alexander and John haven't had a decent story in ages. On UU, there's going to be a recast as Kristin Meyer has departed the role of Andrea Huber after less than a year. She last aired on March 30th, 2017. On April 19th, Meyer's replacement Astrid Leberti makes her first appearance. Andrea is the daughter of Robert Küpper, wife of Benedikt Huber, and mother of Valentin Huber. Originally portrayed as a surpressed housewife, Andrea has slowly grown a backbone and has recently seen through Benedikt's schemes. According to Leberti, "something really terrible" will happen to Andrea soon. Will do that

Actually, many fans were rooting for Ringo and Valentin's father Benedikt to hook up – that would've been quite a twist. Benedikt and Valentin have a lousy father-son relationship because Benedikt is a ruthless businessman and Valentin doesn't want to become like his father. Then Ringo came along, and he was the "perfect son" in Benedikt's eyes, so he took him under his wings while dismissing Valentin. So far there have been no signs that Valentin might be gay or bi, but since Valentin has always been written as someone who is looking for his true self, it kind of makes sense for him to turn experiment with men. --- Tomorrow, GZSZ will reveal the details about its upcoming 25th anniversary which is due in May 2017. Apparently there will be another 90-minutes primetime special. Back in 1996, GZSZ celebrated its 1000th episode... only two cast members are still on board. Shortly before the 1000th episode aired, half of the contract cast had been replaced by new faces. Back row: Julian Scheunemann as Karlheinz "Charlie" Fierek † (recurring 1993-1994, contract 1994-1998), Hans Christiani as Argamennon Rufus "A.R." Daniel (contract 1992-2009), Lisa Riecken as Elisabeth Meinhart Daniel Buhr Richter (contract 1992-2010, guest 2011), Daniel Enzweiler as Jörg Reuter (contract 1996-1998), Sandra Keller as Tina Ullrich Zimmermann #1 (contract 1992-1996), Raphael Schneider as Andreas "Andy" Lehmann † (contract 1995-2000), Claudia Weiske as Elke Opitz-Graf † (contract 1992-1997, guest 1999, killed off-screen 2012), Raphael Vogt as Nico A. Weimershaus (contract 1996-2005), Frank-Thomas Mende as Clemens Richter (contract 1992-2010, guest 2011) Middle row: Nicole Diercks as Carolin Carnet (recurring 1996), Wolfgang Bahro as Dr. Hans-Joachim "Jo" Gerner (contract 1993-present), Maren Thurm as Barbara Wiebe-Graf #2 (contract 1996-1999), Ralf Benson as Fabian Moreno (contract 1996-2000, recurring 2003-2004), Nadine Dehmel as Nataly Jäger (contract 1996-2000), Daniel Fehlow as Leon Moreno (contract 1996-1999, 2001-present), Angela Neumann as Vera Richter (contract 1992-1997) Front row: Rhea Harder as Princess Florentine "Flo" Spirandelli di Montalban (contract 1996-2002, guest 2002) Not pictured: Anne Brendler as Vanessa Moreno Richter (contract 1996-1998, recurring 2015-2016)

I watched Pacific Palisades a few years ago. The show even has its own topic here: I still think that the show wasn't bad, but I can see why it failed. For a show that was supposed to be about the residents of a neighborhood, there was no feeling of community between the characters. Even though most of them knew each other, they were trapped in their own little storylines bubbles, much like Melrose Place became in its later seasons. There wasn't even a local bar or a restaurant where characters could have randomly met. They could have used that shopping mall as a popular location, but instead they let it collapse in one of the first episodes.

Yeah, why not Some minor casting news: Rumours about her departing the show already surfaced last fall, now RTL has confirmed that Elena Garcia Gerlach will indeed leave GZSZ in May 2017. The 31-year-old actress joined the cast in the recurring role of Elena Gundlach (née Castillo) in July 2013. Garcia Gerlach left in September 2013, returned for a few weeks in early 2014, and was then offered a contract in October 2014. Julian Bayer makes his last appearance on AWZ on March 29th, 2017. He joined the cast in the contract role of Leo Brück in November 2015. In an interview Bayer stated that the producers decided to drop Leo because the character was not important enough. The vacant slot among the contract cast has been filled with actor and stuntman Robert Maaser who has joined the soap in the role of extreme athlete Tim Hayer on March 8th, 2017. Preview Pictures March/April 2017 Unter uns 01. 02. 03. 04. 05. 06. 07. 08. 09. 10. Alles was zählt 01. Deniz (Igor Dolgatschew) and Jenny (Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen) are happier than never before 02. Leo (Julian Bayer) has to flee the country and says goodbye to his father Thomas (Daniel Brockhaus) and Marian (Sam Eisenstein) 03. Thomas finds consolidation in Isabelle's (Ania Niedieck) arms 04. Ronny (Bela Klentze), Tim (Robert Maaser), Marie (Cheyenne Pahde), Michelle (Franziska) and Iva (Christina Klein) spend a spa day together 05. Michelle and Ronny grow closer ... 06. ... as do Tim and Marie 07. Vincent (Daniel Buder, left) tricks Maximilian (Francisco Medina) during a confrontation with a cop 08. After having found out that Simone and Vincent spent a night together, Richard (Silvan-Pierre Leirich) is furious and has to be calmed down by Ben (Jörg Rohde) 09. Lena (Juliette Greco) watches as Maximilian says goodbye to their son Alexander 10. The gang has ruined Richard's portrait Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten 01. With Maren's (Eva Mona Rodekirchen, right) help, Katrin (Ulrike Frank) finds the strength to clear out Till's room 02. Even though they know it's wrong, Elena (Elena Garcia Gerlach) and Jo (Wolfgang Bahro) can't resist their feelings anymore 03. Anni (Linda Marlen Runge), who's still suffering from sudden deafness, doesn't listen to Jasmin's (Janine Uhse) and Sophie's (Lea Marlen Woitack) advice that she should spare herself 04. Paul (Niklas Osterloh) and Emily (Anne Menden) celebrate a romantic reunion 05. Felix (Thaddäus Meilinger) succeeds in antagonizing Sunny (Valentina Pahde) against Chris 06. Sunny tries to intervene when Chris (Eric Stehfest, left) and Felix have a fight 07. Sunny asks Lilly (Iris Mareike Steen) about Chris's whereabouts 08. Alexander (Clemens Löhr, right) tries to talk some sense into Jonas (Felix van Deventer) who's about to fail his A-Levels 09. Lilly, Elena, Sunny, Jasmin and Sophie are shocked that Sunny's engagement has been stolen during a subway ride 10. Rosa's (Joana Schümer) trust in Chris dwindles

I don't know how viral this video has become in the US. A Dutch tv station made fun of Trump's mantra "America First" and his "alternative facts". Now several other European countries have created similar videos:

Some background info: A few weeks ago, Till had been diagnosed with a terminal disease. Katrin and his friends tried to find some cure, but Till already had settled his affairs. During a trip to Sweden, he told Katrin that he wanted to end his life. She assured her lover that she would support him. Till broke down at the beach because he couldn't feel his legs anymore. Later, he told Katrin that he could walk again, but he didn't tell her that the pain hadn't gone away. Till called his best friend Chris in Berlin and told him that he would end his life soon. Chris visited Maren and informed her about Till's plan. Till also asked Maren to be there for Katrin after his death. Maren and Jasmin tried to reach Katrin, but to no avail. That night, Till quietly said goodbye to Katrin and left the cottage. The next morning, Katrin woke up only to find out that Till was gone. She ran to the beach, but only found his shoes and his jacket. In a flashback, we saw Till at the beach, taking off his shoes and his jacket and walking into the water. The episode ended with Katrin weeping over his clothes.