Huntress

Even though the show is virtually dead, Verbotene Liebe is receiving a double DVD release at the end of June. UFA Serial Drama, Das Erste and Diamant Video issue the complete first season of the weekly version for 18 € and a 20 year anniversary box for 32 €. The content of the latter box was determined through an online poll. The cover art features Julia & Jan (the original "forbidden love"), Clarissa, Charlie, Arno, Ansgar, Elisabeth, Carla, Olli, Andi, Tristan, Tanja and Nico. Diamant Video previously published two box sets of VL with episodes 1-50 and 51-100 plus single anniversary DVDs for the 2500th, 3000th and the 3500th episodes. They also released 4 box sets of GZSZ spanning episodes 1 to 200 plus a collection of anniversary episodes, and one box of UU with the show's first 50 episodes. Because of poor sales, no other sets were released. Marienhof, which was cancelled in May 2011 (God, it's been 4 years already), had two DVD releases: One box includes the first 10 episodes from 1992 and 20 selected episodes ranging from 1995 to 2011 as well as several specials including the farewell party and the teardown of the show's sets. A second box consists of episodes 170 to 219 from 1995, which were the first 50 episodes after the show had been transformed from a weekly to a daily soap. Meanwhile, the 10th box of The Bold and the Beautiful featuring episodes 225 to 250 was released in April. Looks like this will be the last set, though, because Fernsehjuwelen has not issued any further boxes for pre-order yet. Their releases of Guiding Light and Neighbours were discontinued after one and two boxes, respectively.

Like I've written before, UU is definitely the most stable soap. It never really had a phase where it was completely unwatchable, and its fanbase is very loyal. The show's problem are its ever-changing lead-ins. From 1994 to 1998, the game show "Jeopardy" was UU's lead-in, followed by "The Nanny" from 1998 to 2002. In 2007, another soap named "Ahornallee" debuted at 5 pm, but it was cancelled after a few weeks due to low ratings. Since then, UU's lead-in have been various reality shows which don't really attract the same audience as UU does. In other news: Former GZSZ actress Yvonne Catterfeld is currently celebrating her comeback as a singer. Catterfeld starred as Julia Blum on GZSZ from 2001 to 2005. In 2001, she released her first single, but it wasn't until spring 2003 that she scored her first #1 hit with "Für dich" (For You). The song and the corresponding album "Meine Welt" (My World) went platinum. Catterfeld wasn't the only singer on GZSZ, though: Her co-star Jeannette Biedermann, who portrayed Marie Balzer from 1999 to 2004, was just as successful. Their music style was different, though, with Biedermann mainly doing pop-rock in English and Catterfeld singing in German. Biedermann eventually left the show in March 2004, while Catterfeld made her final appearance in February 2005. In 2004, Catterfeld released her second album "Farben meiner Welt" (Colors of My World), followed by "Unterwegs" (Travelling) in 2005. Both albums went gold, and Catterfeld scored three more top 10 singles, the latest being "Erinner mich, dich zu vergessen" (Remind Me to Forget You) in 2006. The following three albums "Aura", "Blau in Blau" (Blue in Blue) and "Lieber so" (Rather Like That) were commercial flops and Catterfeld turned to acting instead. Following Catterfeld's appearance on the tv show "Sing meinen Song" (Sing My Song) – a show where several musicians cover each other's songs (there are several versions of this show in different European countries, see Wikipedia – on May 19th, 2015, the album "Lieber so", which was originally released in 2013, received a major sales boost and hit the album charts at #14 this week, with the single of the same entering the singles charts at #24. I'm glad that she's having commercial success again, because Yvonne has always been a talented performer. http://youtu.be/ak2P7ukW2j0 Live performance in 2013: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_P4t6oidWI Live performance in 2005: http://youtu.be/WfRO3HULuBg http://youtu.be/TTW4rJXrE3E

Well, this period belongs to a time when German soaps were very different from today, even though it's only been ~ 13 years that these episodes were shot. The lighting was glary, the sets looked like theater stages, the camera work was static, the characters were very stereotypical, storylines were fast-paced, most cast members only stayed for 2-3 years, and the acting was hit and miss. The transformation to a more realistic approach began around 2005, and today production values and acting are top-notch (except for a few exceptions here and there). From a nostalgic viewpoint, watching these episodes can be fun. I recently watched the first year of GZSZ from 1992/1993 on DVD and I really enjoyed it for what it was, even though the acting was wooden, hardly any emotions were conveyed, and the storylines included tons of WTF moments. Back then, the shows didn't take themselves too seriously. I don't really remember much about Tom on VL other than him being unattractive (IMO) and always frowning at people. The whole squad around Tom, Jule, Nina and Simon was really boring. The only character out of that group that was a bit interesting was Isabell, and the actress was really beautiful. ––– On Monday's episode of Unter Uns, Sina (Valea Scalabrino) and Bambi (Benjamin Heinrich) eventually get married. For this occasion, the show released a new cast picture. Back row (from left to right): Claudelle Deckert as Eva Wagner Weigel (2001-2006; 2008-present), Ben Ruedinger as Till Weigel #2 (2000-present), Marvin Linke as Moritz Schönfeld (2010-present), Stefano Ligorio as Gianni (recurring, 2015-present), Lars Steinhöfel as Easy Winter (2005-present), Patrick Müller as Tobias Lassner (2006-present), Benjamin Kiss as Henning Fink #2 (2010-present), Isabell Hertel as Ute Kiefer Kern Weigel Fink (1995-present), Stefan Bockelmann as Malte Winter (2001-present), Kai Noll as Rufus Sturm (2003-present), Tabea Heynig as Britta Schönfeld (2010-present) Middle row (from left to right): Frank Voß as Uli Hirschberger (recurring, 2014-present), Petra Nadolny as Susanne Hirschberger (recurring, 2014-present), Valea Scalabrino as Sina Uhland Hirschberger (2010-present), Benjamin Heinrich as Bambi Hirschberger (2013-present), Petra Blossey as Irene Weigel (1994-present), Luca Maric as Robert Küpper (2015-present), Maria Kempken as Leonie Weidenfeld #2 (2014-present), Amrei Haardt as Jule Kasper (2015-present), Ines Kurenbach as Caro Kasper (2014-present) Front row (from left to right): Thomas Maximilian Held as Mathieu (guest, 2015), Milos Vukovic as Paco Weigel (2000-present) Missing contract cast members: Timothy Boldt as Ringo Beckmann (2012-present), Olivia Burkhart as Fiona Novak (2015-present), Alexander Sholti as Sascha Brenner (2013-present)

Wow, I didn't know that channel. The first episode that was uploaded is #1537 from June 20th, 2001 with the most recent episode being #2021 from July 21st, 2003. The main story in 2001 was the romance between Henning von Anstetten and Marie von Beyenbach. Tanja von Anstetten who had rejoined the show in early 2001 wanted to marry Henning herself and made him and Marie believe that they were siblings. Henning and Tanja's arch nemesis Clarissa uncovered Tanja's plans and staged a wedding for Henning and Tanja. In order to receive his family fortune, Tanja planned on shooting Henning, but he wore a bullet-proof vest. Tanja then tried to flee the country. When Clarissa boarded a plane to the Bahamas, Tanja was also there dressed as a stewardess. Clarissa held Tanja at gunpoint and said "Game over, Tanja!" Then the plane crashed and both Tanja and Clarissa were presumed dead. Tanja returned in 2004 (and is still part of the weekly version) and Clarissa returned in 2011 during the Mallorca storyline. 2001 to 2003 is also considered to be the von Beyenbach era. The von Beyenbachs replaced the von Anstettens as the main aristocratic family. They consisted of patriarch Martin, mother Beatrice, and their children Marie, Felix and Franziska. In 2003, Martin's evil brother Bernd and his daughter Vanessa joined the show. Beatrice fell in love with Bernd. The von Beyenbachs were gradually phased out in the summer of 2003 with Franziska leaving to New York to start a model career, Marie becoming HIV-positive and starting a new life somewhere else, and Martin and Beatrice being killed off in a boat explosion. Felix and Vanessa lasted until 2006, and Bernd until 2007. The von Beyenbachs were replaced by the von Lahnsteins in late 2003. Most storylines involved love triangles in all kinds of variations which has always been VL's main story formula. Best friends fighting for the same man/woman, father and son fighting for the same woman, sisters fighting for the same guy, a guy or a woman in a straight relationship falling in love with a gay character etc. pp. Looking at the opening credits from #1537, there were the following characters: Clarissa von Anstetten (played by Isa Jank from 1995-2001; 2011-2013): Mentioned above. Carolin von Anstetten (played by Jutta Fastian from 1998-2000): Henning's ex-wife, had an affair with Christoph and got pregnant with his child, had already left the canvas at that point Henning von Anstetten (played by Markus Hoffmann from 1995-1996; Hendrik Martz from 1998-1999; Patrik Fichte from 1999-2002): Eventually married Marie in 2002 only to fall from a tower on his wedding day. He died immediately. Christoph von Anstetten (played by Jürgen Zartmann from 1995-2000): Henning's father and Clarissa's ex-husband, had an affair with his son's wife, was pushed into suicide by Clarissa in late 2000 Christian Toppe (played by Luke Wilkins from 1999-2001): Younger brother of the late Heino Toppe, had a fling with Lara Cornelius, wanted to become a famous pop star and left town Lara Cornelius (played by Karoline Schuch from 2000-2002; Clara Gerst from 2014-2015): Grew up believing that Elisabeth Ryan Brandner was her aunt, moved in with the Branders, then found out that her cousin Nina Ryan is her biological mother and Elisabeth is her grandmother, had a fling with Christian and a brief relationship with Andi, followed Nina to Greece, came back to town for a brief time in 2014 Ulli Prozeski (played by Andreas Stenschke from 1997-2000): Youngest son of the Prozeski family, Clarissa's nephew, after brief relationships with girls he turned out to be gay and was in a relationship with Tom Seifert. eventually left for Munich, had already left the canvas at that time Charlie Schneider (played by Gabriele Metzger from 1995-2015): Clarissa's former best friend, restaurant owner, always unlucky in love (at least until she eventually got married in 2014) Daniel Fritzsche (played by Markus Prinz from 1999-2002; Dirk Moritz from 2011-2012): Andi's older brother, a sports student, was in a relationship with Gabriella Santos until it was revealed that he had a child with another woman, moves to France; the character was brought back years later for a brief period Gabriella Santos (played by Kerstin Radt from 1999-2002): Originally from Venzuela, had to endure a rape, was a in a relationship with Daniel, cheated on him with his best friend Jonas, followed Daniel to France Elisabeth Ryan Brandner (played by Martina Servatius from 1999-2015): Nina's mother, Lara's grandmother, at that time Arno Brander's wife, later she married Johannes Count von Lahnstein and after that Johannes's brother Ludwig Count von Lahnstein Arno Brandner (played by Konrad Krauss from 1995-2012): patriarch of the Brandner family, fatherly figure for everyone, died of Alzheimer's in 2012 Jonas Schilling (played by Matthias Beier from 2000-2001): Daniel's best friend, had affairs with Kati and Gabriella, had already left the canvas at that point Tom Seifert (played by Kay Böger from 1999-2003): Alexa's older brother, a doctor and openly gay, had relationships with Ulli and Olli, tried to conceive a child with his best friend Jule, grew jealous of Jule's relationship with Florian Brandner, moved to Nepal Alexa Seifert (played by Kerstin Kramer from 2000-2004): Tom's annoying little sister, Lara's best friend, wanted to become a dancer, had relationships with Felix von Beyenbach and Robin Brandner Jule Roth (played by Tanja Lanäus from 2000-2002): A bisexual woman who had relationships with Simon, Nina and Florian, conceived a child with Tom and later moved to Greece to live with Nina and Simon Simon Roloff (played by Clemens Löhr from 2000-2002): Older brother of Mark and Lukas, had a relationship with Jule, moved to Greece Nina Ryan (played by Freya Trampert from 1998-2001): A lesbian woman who had relationships with Arno's second wife Erika and later with Jule, Lara Cornelius was revealed to be her daughter, moved to Greece Marie von Beyenbach (played by Solveig Duda from 2000-2003): Mentioned above. Henning Clarissa Kati von Sterneck (played by Insa Magdalena Steinhaus in 1995; Kerstin Landsmann from 1995-2001): Daughter of Barbara von Sterneck, Christoph's step-daughter, lost her great love Heino Toppe in a plane crash, had already left the canvas at that point Christoph Mark Roloff (played by Carsten Spengemann from 1999-2003): Former bodyguard and a ladies' man, had affairs with Kati, Isabell, Marie and Cecile, felt guilty for Henning's death and eventually fell off the same tower that Henning fell down Isabell Mohr (played by Tanja Wenzel from 1999-2004): Carolin's younger sister, was stalked by her ex-boyfriend Sebastian, later married Florian Brandner, was drugged and raped, became pregnant by her rapist Carolin The opening credits changed in episode #1605 and were completely re-done, Even though this was Clarissa's final episode, she was still featured, although only for a few days. Marie Henning Martin von Beyenbach (played by Günter Clemens from 2000-2001; Gerry Hungbauer from 2001-2003) Beatrice von Beyenbach (played by Jeannine Burch from 2001-2003) Franziska von Beyenbach (played by Lina Tiedtke from 2001-2003) Clarissa Tom Oliver "Olli" Sabel (played by Jo Weil from 2000-2002; 2007-2014) Charlie Mark Felix von Beyenbach (played by Andreas Potulski from 2001-2003; Stefan Kirch from 2003-2006) Christian Alexa Lara Andi Fritzsche (played by Dominic Saleh-Zaki from 2001-2007; 2009-2015) Daniel Gabriella Elisabeth Arno Jule Isabell Lukas Roloff (played by Christoph Dostal from 2001-2002): Mark and Simon's criminal brother, had affairs with Tanja and Charlie, went to prison after a robbery Henning In episode #1617, Clarissa's shot was replaced by Cecile de Maron (played by Yvonne Burbach from 2001-2006): Was briefly engaged to Henning during his break-up from Marie, was in a relationship with Robin Brandner, later married Johannes Count von Lahnstein, but eventually fell in love with Johannes's son Leonard, was hit by a car and died The next opening update occured in episode #1902 after half of the contract cast had left the show at the end of the year 2002: Marie Lars Schneider (played by Herbert Ulrich from 2002-2005): Charlie's younger brother, Olli's uncle, a lawyer, was torn between sisters Sylvia Jones and Hanna Novak Hanna Novak (played by Katharina Dalichau from 2002-2004): Sylvia's younger sister, was once married to David, fell in love with Lars but lost him to her sister, later embarked on a lesbian relationship with Carla von Lahnstein, died of a kidney failure (Hanna was a very popular character back in the day) Florian Brandner (played by Frederic A. Komp from 1995-1998; Alex Huber from 2002-2004): Arno's youngest son, was a troublemaker during his teenage days, later became a photographer and was involved with Jule and Isabell Isabell Tom Charlie Beatrice Franziska Cecile Robin Brandner (played by Nils Brunkhorst from 2002-2005): Arno's nephew, older brother of Jana and Nico, had relationships with Cecile, Alexa and Coco Jana Brandner (played by Friederike Sipp from 2002-2005; Vanessa Jung from 2005-2008): Arno's niece, younger sister of Robin, twin sister of Nico, was originally a shy girl but ended up taking drugs and working as a prostitute, was in a relationship with Andi and later married Leonard von Lahnstein, died in a car crash Nico Brandner von Lahnstein (played by Verena Zimmermann from 2002-2007; 2010-2012; 2015) Andi Elisabeth Arno Franziska Felix Alexa Beatrice Martin Sylvia Jones (played by Heike Trinker from 2002-2005): A mysterious woman who turns out to be Martin's ex-wife and Felix's biological mother Several of these characters returned in short scenes for VL's 10th anniversary in January 2005. Except for a few instances, they did not interact with any of the current characters but appeared in the same locations. Among these characters were Carolin, Ulli, Daniel, Gabriella, Tom, Simon and Kati (and several characters pre-2000).

Some casting news: Stefan Franz is back as villain Rolf Jäger on "Unter Uns". New Schillerallee resident Fiona Novak, played by Olivia Burkhart, is indeed Rolf's daughter Fiona. I wrote about Rolf and Fiona's history in this post. Ramona Dempsey's days on GZSZ might be numbered. There were reports that her contract has not been renewed so that she will most likely exit the soap this summer. Dempsey joined the soap in August 2013 as Nele Lehmann. Nele has just married Mesut (Mustafa Alin) after being unlucky in love for most of her run. Also out is fellow actress Franziska van der Heide, who joined the cast as street kid Mieke "Mieze" Lutze one week after Dempsey. Her exit has already been confirmed. Actor Thando Walbaum has been cast in the role of Amar, a political refugee from Mali, who comes to Berlin to seek a better life. His first airdate is June 19th, 2015. The crossover between GZSZ and AWZ which started this past February and which saw Isabell Horn's character Pia Koch switch between both soaps every other week will come to an end in May. Horn will become a permanent cast member on AWZ, while Pia's husband John (played by Felix von Jascheroff) stays on GZSZ. It's been announced that the popular couple will split up in the process. Both characters returned to GZSZ in February 2015 after one year of absence. Following Pia's departure, John will hook up with Jasmin (Janina Uhse), who is currently in a lesbian relationship with Anni (Linda Marlen Runge). Two cast members are out at AWZ: Anna Katharina Samsel (Katja Bergmann) and Volkan Isbert (Can Öztürk) will exit the soap next July. Samsel joined the soap in December 2009 and was the show's main heroine until 2012. Katja was initially introduced as an aspiring ice figure skater. She turned out to be Annette and Lena's half sister. Katja joined the Steinkamp's ice skating quad and fell in love with Ben Steinkamp (Jörg Rohde), much to the dismay of Isabelle Reichenbach (Ania Niedieck). Katja and Isabelle became sworn enemies because both wanted success on the ice – and both wanted to be Ben's wife. In the summer of 2010, Ben and Isabelle got married. Katja had a brief relationship with Isabelle's brother Tom, but she still loved Ben. Because of Ben's feelings for Katja, his and Isabelle's marriage fell apart. Isabelle swore revenge on Katja. She sedated her and locked her inside a container for days. Ben freed Katja andthey eventually became a couple. However, their relationship didn't last and Katja had a dangerous affair with Maximilian (Francisco Medina). In 2012, the Steinkamps abandoned the ice skating squad and Katja's role on the show dwindled. But somehow Katja was a writer's pet, so she was put in the most absurd storylines and had brief flings with Ingo and Deniz. In 2013, Katja became the coach of the Steinkamp's soccer team where she met Deniz's cousin Can. The latter was introduced in December 2012 as a chavvy ladies' man. Can started a relationship with Ingo's daughter Zoé which ended abruptly when Zoé left town. At first Katja and Can couldn't stand each other, but then one day they ended up in bed together. Since then, they have been in a relationship. Samsel will last air on July 1st, while Isbert exists the soap two weeks later. In addition, GZSZ has launched a new image campaign with 10 tv spots, each depicting a different character, highlighting their ambigious character traits via voice-over. The spots will air on RTL until the end of May. The following versions exist: Ayla (Nadine Menz): "Lämmchen – oder Löwin?" (Lambkin or Lioness?) Chris (Eric Stehfest): "Terrorist – oder Träumer?" (Terrorist – or Dreamer?) David (Philipp Christopher): "Verbrecher – oder Verführer?" (Criminal – or Seducer?) Emily (Anne Menden): "Opfer – oder Täter?" (Victim – or Offender?) Gerner (Wolfgang Bahro): "Fiesling – oder Legende?" (Villain – or Legend?) Katrin (Ulrike Frank): "Biest – oder Powerfrau?" (Bitch – or Woman of Power?) Leon (Daniel Fehlow): "Verlierer – oder Held?" (Loser – or Hero?) Sunny (Valentina Pahde): "Prinzessin – oder Kämpferin?" (Princess – or Warrior?) Tayfun (Tayfun Baydar): "Macho – oder Softie?" (Macho – or Softie?) Vince (Vincent Krüger): "Schläger – oder Beschützer?" (Bully – or Guardian?)

Nope. But considering the show had such a stellar cast such as Cassidy Rae (of "Models Inc." fame), Carmen Electra (of "Baywatch" fame), Mark-Paul Gosselaar (of "Saved by the Bell" fame) and Christina Moore, I probably didn't miss much

Actually, Heigl was the best part of "Roswell" I watched the show from beginning to end (even the awful 3rd season on UPN where the show had completely lost its focus) and I enjoyed Heigl's character the most. The two main couples – Max & Liz and Michael & Maria – got on my nerves most of the time. I also faithfully watched "Popular" and "Dawson's Creek" back then, caught an episode of "Charmed" here and then, and sometimes tuned in to "7th Heaven" (when nothing else was on). In my country, none of these shows were shown in primetime (except "7th Heaven" for a brief time and "Charmed" during the later seasons because it had gathered quite a following). "7th Heaven" was shown weekdays around 4 p.m.; "Popular", "Dawson's Creek", "Felicity", "Party of Five", "Roswell" and early "Charmed" seasons were shown on Saturday afternoons which was the usual time when teenagers in the late 90s/early 00s would watch television. It all started when "Beverly Hills 90210" premiered on a Saturday in 1991, and then all American shows aimed at teenagers were subsequently placed between 3 and 6 p.m. on different channels. This basically ended around 2003/2004 when the genre was pretty much dead. Nowadays, these timeslots are filled with sitcoms or scripted reality. "Safe Harbor", "Wasteland" and "Jack & Jill" never aired here. I guess they were cancelled rather quickly?

Starting with episode 6, the weekly version of Verbotene Liebe received an updated opening. Tatjana Kästel (Rebecca), Martina Servatius (Elisabeth), Henrike Fehrs (Alexa) and Bernd Reheuser (Vincent) were removed, while Verena Zimmermann (Nico), Nic Romm (Frederic), Martin Semm (Martin) and Stephanie Rösner (Mila) were added. http://youtu.be/FRRBvWtHYsc Strangely enough, the closing credits still list everyone as being on contract. Ansgar, Tanja, Sebastian, Tristan and Kim are the only characters from the daily version that still appear on the opening credits.

AWZ did indeed hire Jo Weil! Today it was announced that he has joined the cast and will first air in July: http://www.bild.de/unterhaltung/tv/verbotene-liebe/star-jo-weil-jetzt-bei-alles-was-zaehlt-40455872.bild.html Apparently he will not play a gay character, because his new role is supposed to be Vanessa's (Julia Augustin) new love interest. It's also unclear if he's on contract or if it's just a short-term gig.

I don't really remember what happened to Sascha. He was listed in the end credits of the 2nd weekly episode, but I don't think he actually appeared in that episode. Olli didn't have a proper exit, either. He was mentioned in the latest episode as being in London. Back in 2014, Jo Weil stated that he wouldn't be part of the 1st weekly season, but he would love to come back if they find decent storylines for Olli – and of course if there is a 2nd weekly season. Well, GZSZ has Jasmin and Anni, a lesbian couple. Both have been together for almost a year now. Speaking of GZSZ: The show is bringing back a character from the distant past... and it's Vanessa Moreno Richter who was last seen in November 1998. More importantly, she will be played by her original portrayer Anne Brendler, who was on contract from April 1996 until Vanessa's exit. Her first airdate is June 10th, 2015. Vanessa is Jo Gerner's (Wolfgang Bahro) oldest daughter, Sunny Richter's (Valentina Pahde) mother and Leon Moreno's (Daniel Fehlow) adoptive brother. Brendler's return is said to be short-term. Vanessa is only the second contract character that exited in the 90s to be brought back in a later decade. The other one was Udo Thies as Dr. Michael Gundlach who appeared in a handful episodes in December 2007 and January 2008 when his grown-up adoptive son Dominik was introduced as a contract role. Thies was on contract from 1993 to 1994. Interestingly, Dominik's biological father was Jo Gerner as well. From left to right: Daniel Fehlow, Anne Brendler, Valentina Pahde and Wolfgang Bahro

They haven't improved, but they haven't declined either. February 27nd – #4650 – 1.2 million – market share: 4.8% March 6th – #4651 – 1.12 million – market share: 4.7% March 13th – no episode due to live coverage of winter sports March 20th – #4652 – 1.17 million – market share: 4.9% There are 12 episodes left until the first season of the weekly series is over. Since there will be no new episodes on April 3rd and May 1st due to national holidays. the season will probably end in the last week of June. All of these episodes were filmed in November 2014. A big problem is that the focus has shifted completely onto the von Lahnstein family while all the other characters were quietly reduced to supporting players. For example, original character Charlie Schneider has only appeared in one scene so far where she was seen working in her restaurant. On the official website, Olli and Sascha are still listed as regulars, but Sascha's exit story has been cut from the last daily airings and Olli is also gone. A few new characters will be introduced in episode 4656, among them Mila von Draskow (played by Stephanie Rösner), Jannik Anders (played by Daniel Axt) and Frederic Schwarz (played by Nic Romm).

Preview Pictures for March/April 2015 Unter uns 01. Kimberley (Maja Lehrer) falls into a coma after accidentially being hit on the head by Henning 02. Eva (Claudelle Deckert) is in danger 03. Sina's (Valea Scalabrino) surprise for Bambi (Benjamin Heinrich) falls flat 04. Eva, Ringo, Irene, Leonie, Easy, Ute, Caro and Malte wish Paco (Milos Vukovic) good luck for his upcoming therapy 05. Rufus (Kai Noll) tells a dumbfounded Britta (Tabea Heynig) that he has no interest in pursuing a relationship with her 06. Will Eva and Till (Ben Ruedinger) eventually reconcile? 07. During sex with Sina, Bambi suffers a penis fracture 08. Kimberley leaves town 09. Irene (Petra Blossey) and Robert (Luca Maric) become a couple 10. Jule (Amrei Haardt) becomes interested in Moritz (Marvin Linke) Alles was zählt 01. Deniz (Igor Dolgatschew) and Can (Volkan Isbert) argue about business problems 02. During his trial, Maximilian (Francisco Medina) takes a prison guard hostage as Richard (Silvan-Pierre Leirich) and Simone (Tatjana Clasing) look on 03. Jenny (Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen) visits Maximilian in prison 04. After finding out that her own father Richard murdered her husband Erik, Jenny swears revenge 05. Vanessa (Julia Augustin) is still crazy in love with Christoph (Lars Korten) 06. Ben (Jörg Rohde) and Iva (Christina Klein) grow closer 07. Vanessa and Simone try to help Richard who has suffered a heart attack while Jenny looks on in disinterest 08. Bea (Caroline Frier) shaves off Ingo's (André Dietz) hair 09. Vanessa tries to talk some sense into Jenny 10. Sonja (Barbara Sotelsek) and Deniz kiss Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten 01. John (Felix von Jascheroff), Tayfun (Tayfun Baydar) and Leon (Daniel Fehlow) team up against David (Philipp Christopher) 02. Sunny (Valentina Pahde) helps Jo (Wolfgang) who has been hit by a thrown stone 03. Leon is taken into custody when the police thinks that he has thrown the stone; Vince (Vincent Krüger), who is the true culprit, keeps silent 04. Ayla (Nadine Menz) tries to comfort Tayfun 05. Alex (Clemens Löhr) continues his affair with Olivia (Anna Juliana Jaenner) 06. Nele (Ramona Dempsey) and Mesut (Mustafa Alin) get married with Jasmin (Janina Uhse) and Tayfun as their witnesses 07. Katrin (Ulrike Frank) tries to rescue Maren (Eva Mona Rodekirchen) from her burning apartment 08. Chris (Eric Stehfest) and Lilly (Iris Mareike Steen) discuss their next political activities 09. After her apartment has been destroyed by a fire, Katrin moves in with Maren, much to the dismay of Alex, Jonas (Felix van Deventer) and Mieze (Franziska van der Heide) 10. Jasmin and Anni (Linda Marlen Runge) overcome their relationship problems Verbotene Liebe 01. After being shot by her own dad, Alexa (Henrike Fehrs) dies in Ansgar's (Wolfram Grandezka) arms 02. Vincent Berg (Bernd Reheuser) threatens to kill Justus (Claus Thull-Emden) who is being aided by Elisabeth (Martina Servatius) 03. Elisabeth herself is shot down and Justus carries her from the castle 04. Elisabeth is brought to the hospital as Justus and Frank (Christoph Kottenkamp) look on 05. During the hostage situation at the castle, Tanja (Miriam Lahnstein) suffers a breakdown while Rebecca (Tatjana Kästel) tries to stay calm 06. Ansgar and Elisabeth attend Alexa's funeral 07. Berg threatens to kill Hannes (Melvin Eisenstein) 08. Emilio (Florian Wünsche) rescues Ansgar from falling from a roof 09. After Berg has been killed, the von Lahnstein family clan (Sebastian, Tanja, Tim, Rebecca, Elisabeth, Justus, Kim, Emilio and Tristan) looks happily into the future – not knowing that the next big problem is on the horizon... 10. Tanja and Sebastian remarry 11. Nico (Verena Zimmermann, right) is back in town and has brought her new best friend Mila (Stephanie Rösner) with her 12. Tristan (Jens Hartwig) flirts with Mila, not knowing that she harbors a dark secret that could destroy his whole family

In Europe's biggest music markets (UK and Germany), Madonna's last few singles charted much better. In the UK, "4 Minutes" was her last #1 and "Celebration" her last Top 10 hit. "Living For Love" peaked at #23. In Germany, her last #1 was "4 Minutes" as well with "Give It 2 Me", "Celebration" and "Give Me All Your Luvin" reaching the Top 10. "Miles Away" peaked at #11. However, all the singles after "Give Me All Your Luvin" failed to chart, and "Living For Love" only reached a dismal #81. I think "Living For Love" is her best song since "Hung up" – I didn't like any of the singles from "Hard Candy", and "MDNA" was a major disappointment as well. Most of the stuff on "Rebel Heart" isn't my taste either. Besides "Living For Love", I only enjoy "Ghosttown" and "Joan of Arc".

http://youtu.be/68LlgGd9Y88 http://youtu.be/c7RvX1IDPZc http://youtu.be/yFLtfaJwyfw http://youtu.be/hi24Ms8wwdQ

Yesterday the first weekly episode of Verbotene Liebe aired on ARD in the show's new timeslot at 6.50 pm. The episode was watched by 1.2 million people which is basically the same amount that the daily airings had. This is the opening of the weekly version: Order: Wolfram Grandezka as Ansgar von Lahnstein (2004-present) – Miriam Lahnstein as Tanja von Lahnstein (1995-1998; 2001; 2004-present) – Sebastian Schlemmer as Sebastian von Lahnstein #2 (2009-present) – Jens Hartwig as Tristan von Lahnstein (2009-present) – Nicole Mieth as Kim von Lahnstein (2011-present) – Tatjana Kästel as Rebecca von Lahnstein #2 (2012-present) – Martina Servatius as Elisabeth Ryan Brandner von Lahnstein (1999-present) – Henrike Fehrs as Alexa Berg (2013-present) – Bernd Reheuser as Vincent Berg (2013-2014; 2015-present) http://youtu.be/AyDPcUgE1Hk Only the members of the von Lahnstein family (plus Alexa and her father) are shown on the opening sequence. In the closing credits, Marc Bartel (Tim Helmke), Mickey Hardt (Jo Helmke), Christoph Kottenkamp (Frank Helmke) and Dominic Saleh-Zaki (Andi Fritzsche) – who also starred on the daily version – were listed among the contract cast as well. Most notably missing from the first weekly airing was original cast member Gabriele Metzger (Charlie Schneider).

Not anymore, at least not for free. The show is quite depressing to watch now with five main characters dead within a short span of time. In yesterday's episode sisters Isabelle and Larissa also left town after destroying the "Steinkamp Dance Academy" for good by telling the press that the accident was Simone's fault. John and Pia returned to GZSZ this week, but Pia was shipped off to AWZ after two episodes. She will first appear there on today's episode – but nobody really cares. Pia won't even have a story on AWZ other than being a supporting player for Iva. The producers desperately try to make Iva happen as a character (she's the only cast addition of 2014 to have survived through 2015), and now she's also getting a family. Her father Christoph is Vanessa's new love interest. At least that story seems promising, and Vanessa is always a reason to tune in. In the meantime, John won't have a story on GZSZ either – until he thinks that he has slept with Anni, the show's resident lesbian, who's currently in a relationship with Jasmin and who once also had a one night stand with Pia (Pia and Jasmin shared a kiss as well back in 2009 or so). Verbotene Liebe's transition into a weekly soap didn't work out as planned. The last daily episode was supposed to air on January 29th, 2015. Because of pre-emptions due to live coverage of the Paris terror attacks, two episodes weren't broadcast at their regular time. Episodes #4048 and #4049 were each cut down to 25 minutes (instead of the usual 50 minutes) and combined to one single episode that will air tonight. The first regular weekly episode is supposed to air on February 27nd, 2015. It has been announced that the main cast will be trimmed down to less than 10 characters. During the final daily episodes, 13 characters are left (Alexa, Andi, Ansgar, Bella, Charlie, Elisabeth, Emilio, Frank, Jo, Kim, Olli, Rebecca, Sascha, Sebastian, Tanja, Tim, and Tristan).

The bus crash which happened on Alles was zählt last week was among the best soap episodes I've ever seen. The week before, the wedding of Jenny Steinkamp (Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen) and Erik Schulte (Alexander Wüst) took place which culminated in Erik's death after he had been pushed from a tower by a mysterious person. Who committed the crime? Was it Jenny's dad Richard (Silvan-Pierre Leirich), Jenny's paternal half-brother Ben (Jörg Rohde) or Jenny's maternal half-brother Maximilian (Francisco Medina)? Four episodes later, it was all or nothing for the dancers of the "Steinkamp Dance Factory": While the second-year students – among them Julia Meyer (Jenny Bach) and Raquel Santana (Yara Hassan) – faced their intermediate exam, the new applicants – among them Toni Fuchs (Michèle Fichtner) and Larissa Schuhmann (Naima Fehrenbacher) – had to take part in try-outs to receive a place at the academy. All the students went to the event by bus. Before leaving town, Julia said goodbye to her boyfriend Ben. Julia and Raquel gave everything during their performance, as did Toni and Larissa. Little did they know that this would be their last dance ever... In the meantime, Julia's sister Bea Meyer (Caroline Frier); who is quite superstitious, asked her tarot cards about the future. Little Alexander had mixed Bea's tarot cards with one of his children's card games, so Bea drew the Death card and a card depicting a bus. Bea was worried about the cards' meaning. Simone Steinkamp (Tatjana Clasing) told Julia, Raquel and the other second-year students that they had all passed their intermediate exams. Now it was time to decide whether Toni or Larissa would receive a place at the academy. To everyone's surprise, Toni was accepted while Larissa missed out. Larissa was furious and revealed that Toni had faked her age and that she was too old to join the academy. Simone accepted Toni nevertheless. While the other students went home by bus and celebrated their success on the way, Larissa's dream of becoming a professional dancer was over for good. In Essen, a worried Bea talked to her friend Katja Bergmann (Anna Katharina Samsel) about the tarot cards. She thought that something bad might happen to her husband Ingo (André Dietz) who had just been diagnosed with leukemia. Ingo had accompanied the dancers to the event. Julia called Bea and told her that she had passed her intermediate exam. Two new characters entered the scene: A woman named Sonja (Barbara Sotelsek) and her daughter Flo (Julia Albrecht) drove towards the bus with the dancers on board. Suddenly the bus driver had a heart attack and the bus lost its way, pulling off the road. Sonja and Flo witnessed the accident. In Essen, Vanessa Steinkamp (Julia Augustin) told Bea and Lena Bergmann (Juliette Greco) about her encounter with a guy who had rescued her from an angry stray dog that morning. A few moments later, Vanessa was called to the hospital. When Vanessa arrived at the hospital, she was told about a bus accident that had happened close by. Inside the bus, the occupants slowly realized what had happened. The bus driver was dead. To their horror, Raquel and Julia discovered that Toni had died of a broken neck. In Essen, Richard and Simone comforted their daughter Jenny who was still suffering from her wedding nightmare. At the crash site, Ingo and Raquel discovered that Toni's best friend Iva (Christina Klein) hung halfway through a window and was unconscious. Ingo noticed that the bus was hanging over a cliff and could fall down any moment. Sonja and Juli arrived at the scene and informed the crash victims that they had called for help. Ben called Julia from his cell, but he couldn't understand a word she was saying. Julia broke down in tears. Sonja and Juli tried to save the bus from falling by tieing a rope to a large rock, but it was too late: The bus crashed down the cliff. At the last moment, Sonja and Juli pulled Iva from the window. Julia and Raquel held hands and exchanged glances. Fade to black... Sonja was brought to the hospital in a wheelchair with Juli by her side. She told her daughter that everything will be fine. At "No.7", Bea – with the help of Marian (Sam Eisenstein), Lena, Ben, Deniz (Igor Dolgatschew), Can (Volkan Isbert) and Katja – had organized a party to celebrate Julia's success. Everyone was wondering why she was running late. Richard received a call from the hospital as Simone looked on. In the end, the aftermath of the bus crash was shown. Only Ingo opened his eyes. Fade to black. (This was the final episode for contract cast members Jenny Bach, Yara Hassan and Michèle Fichtner.)

Some casting news: GZSZ is introducing a new contract role on January 28th, 2015 when Sunny Richter appears in Berlin. The part is played by 20-year-old actress Valentina Pahde, who is no stranger to soaps: From 2010 to 2011 she recurred on "Marienhof" as the first (and only) teenage Carolina Behrens until that show's cancellation. Sunny Richter is the daughter of two former characters and thus related to a string of other characters, past and present. In the summer of 1997, Vanessa Moreno and Frank Richter met and instantly fell in love. While Vanessa is the oldest daughter of Dr. Jo Gerner (and the adoptive sister of Leon and Fabian Moreno), Frank is the nephew of original character Clemens Richter. In November 1998, Vanessa fled town after being blackmailed with a porn tape. In January 1999, she called Frank from Taiwan where she had opened up a hotel. Frank followed her to Asia, and aside from a brief guest appearance of Frank's in December 1999, both characters never returned to the screen, although Vanessa has been mentioned here and then from time to time. In 2005, Frank's adoptive daughter Cora and her two infant children also moved to Taiwan to live with Frank and Vanessa. As the last member of the Richter clan, Clemens left town in 2010. He was last seen in 2011 as a guest at Verena Koch Moreno's funeral. Now Sunny comes to Berlin to live with her grandfather Jo, and soon after her arrival, she will set her sights on Leon's son Vince. Jo and Leon are currently on the outs since Leon came between Jo and his fiancé Sophie. If done right, this is going to be some good drama. Unter uns also introduced a new teenager to its canvas: Amrei Haardt first appeared as Jule Kasper on January 9th, 2015. Jule is the daughter of Caro (Ines Kurenbach) and spent the last few years in South Africa. While Jule is supposed to be 16 years old, her performer is 10 years older – and only 10 years younger than Kurenbach who plays her mother. At the end of April, there will be a new family moving into the apartment building: The Novaks, consisting of mother Tanja (Mimi Fiedler), father Patrick (Hanno Friedrich) and daughter Fiona (Olivia Burkhart). While Fiedler and Friedrich will reportedly only appear in a recurring capacity, Burkhart will be on contract. According to a press release, the Novaks appear as a friendly bunch but in reality they want to take revenge on the Weigel family. There's already speculation that Fiona could be a grown-up Fiona Fischer, the daughter of Daniela Fischer and resident villain Rolf Jäger! Rolf first appeared in the spring of 2002 as a new, mysterious Schillerallee resident. Soon after it was revealed that he was Wolfgang Weigel's illegitimate son. Rolf tried to find his place in the family, but nobody trusted him. Rolf met Daniela in 2003, and she was the only woman who returned the psychopath's feelings. However, when she found out that Rolf had only donated his bone marrow to his half-brother Till in exchange for a large sum of money, she broke up with him and left town, not telling him that she was expecting his child. A year later, Daniela and Rolf's paths crossed again. In the meantime, their daughter Fiona had been born. Rolf found out that he was the father and was furious with Daniela. She grabbed Fiona, ran away and was run over by a car. She died at the hospital. To keep Fiona away from Rolf, Weigel matriarch Margot faked Fiona's death and sent her to Argentina to live with Daniela's brother. At first Margot was the only one who knew the secret, but later all the Weigel family members got to know the truth – including Rolf, who tried to track down his daughter, but to no avail. Four years later, Rolf had another daughter, Marie, with Dr. Pia Lassner. When Pia had an accident, Rolf left her to die in the snow, but she survived and suffered from amnesia. A while later, she regained her memory and tried to kill Rolf with poison, but almost killed Irene Weigel instead. After that incident, Pia almost lost her license to practice medicine and was forced to leave town. Rolf continued to wreak havoc, and after his father Wolfgang's death in 2009, he finally saw his chance to become the head of the Weigel family, much to Till's dismay. In the fall of 2012, Rolf beat long-running character Rebecca Mattern to death. He was committed into an instituion in the spring of 2013, but was eventually released in the fall of 2014. Rolf acted as if he was sane, but he only wanted to steal his half-sister Sina's new born baby. Eventually, Rolf gave up his plans and fled to Brazil last month.

We usually get detailed daily previews six or seven weeks in advance. If an actor leaves, it is often revealed half a year in advance. But that also depends on the soap and the popularity of the affected actor. Until a few years ago, there was hardly any media coverage on any of the soaps, and the networks didn't need to promote their shows much, either, because ratings were solid. Then gossip websites boomed and the soaps' ratings decreased, and suddenly everybody's reporting on backstage drama, the actors' private lifes, exits, storyline turns etc. GZSZ and AWZ get the most press (the latter because RTL tries to promote the hell out of it), while UU is usually neglected. Hardly anyone cared about the ARD soaps and Marienhof's cancellation in 2010 went by rather unnoticed. VL's cancellation/transformation/whatever has received a lot of coverage, though.

No, I don't think so. While the actress is quite pretty and looks like a grown-up version of her predecessor Karoline Schuch (who played the part from 2000 to 2002), she is also a bit bland and doesn't have chemistry with anyone. I will miss Sascha and Bella, though. Today Alles was zählt announced what will happen after the bus crash: Several new characters appear on the scene – and for the first time ever, the main story will be told in the present and in the past simultaneously! The new contract cast members are Barbara Sotelsek and Helena Reetz as Sonja Brück, Daniel Brockhaus and Lars Dickel as Thomas Brück, Julia Albrecht as Flo Brück, and Lars Korten as Christoph Lubowski. In the present, Sonja and her teenage daughter Flo witness the bus crash and thus become entangled with the other main characters. Sonja is currently divorcing her husband Thomas and wants a fresh start. Soon she'll be dating Deniz (Igor Dolgatschew). Via flashbacks (which are set in the 90s), the audience will learn how Sonja and Thomas met and how their relationship blossomed. The big question is: Will Sonja and Thomas eventually get together? Another big storyline will be Vanessa Steinkamp's (Julia Augustin) romance with Christoph, a married man. Jenny Elvers, a quite famous (or rather notorious) actress, has been cast in the recurring role of Christoph's wife Sylvie. Ingo (André Dietz) has to battle leukemia, and then there's of course the AWZ/GZSZ crossover which brings GZSZ's Pia (Isabell Horn) permanently from Berlin to Essen. Horn's contract status is still unclear, though, because she's still supposed on GZSZ to appear from time to time. Her first airdate on AWZ is February 9th, 2015. The new contract cast after January 29th, 2015: Julia Albrecht as Flo Brück (2015-present) ​Julia Augustin as Vanessa Steinkamp (2006-2009; 2010-2012; 2013; 2014-present) Daniel Brockhaus as Thomas Brück* (2015-present) Tatjana Clasing as Simone Steinkamp (2006-present) André Dietz as Ingo Zadek (2006-present) Igor Dolgatschew as Deniz Öztürk (2007-present) Sam Eisenstein as Marian Öztürk (2006-present) Caroline Frier as Bea Meyer Steinkamp Zadek (2012-present) Juliette Greco as Lena Bergmann von Altenburg Öztürk (2007-present) Volkan Isbert as Can Öztürk (2012-present) Christina Klein as Iva Lubowski (2014-present) Lars Korten as Christoph Lubowski (2015-present) Silvan-Pierre Leirich as Richard Steinkamp (2006-present) Francisco Medina as Maximilian von Altenburg (2007-2013; 2014-present) Jörg Rohde as Ben Steinkamp #2 (2009-present) Anna Katharina Samsel as Katja Bergmann (2009-present) Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen as Jenny Steinkamp #4 (2011-present) Barbara Sotelsek as Sonja Brück* (2015-present) * characters are played by Lars Dickel and Helena Reetz in the 90s flashbacks Leaving before or shortly after January 29, 2015: Jenny Bach as Julia Meyer (2013-2015) -> dies in the bus crash Naima Fehrenbacher as Larissa Schuhmann (2014-2015) -> leaves town together with Isabelle Michèle Fichtner as Toni Fuchs (2014-2015) -> dies in the bus crash Yara Hassan as Raquel Santana (2013-2015) -> dies in the bus crash Ania Niedieck as Isabelle Reichenbach Steinkamp (2010-2015) -> leaves town together with Larissa, unconfirmed if she's out or just taking a break Alexander Wüst as Erik Schulte (2014-2015) -> dies after falling from a tower

Well, it's striking that all the members of the von Lahnstein family survived the cut. Other than that, the three Helmke brothers are left plus their love interests Olli and Charlie (who are also related, Charlie is Olli's aunt). Emilio is married to Kim. The only character currently not tied to the von Lahnsteins is Andi but he's probably going to be paired up with his ex-girlfriend Nico (they first dated when they were both teens 12 years ago). This is the official preview video for the upcoming weeks: The main storyline is a diamond theft instructed by Alexa. She finally wants revenge on the von Lahnsteins. Because of the theft, the once so powerful family clan is ruined. People will get shot, people will go to prison, people will drink poison... http://youtu.be/x_XlFZl171s

Well, I guess "Hanna" is more of a safe bet for HRT because that telenovela only consists of 130 episodes. I never watched a single episode of it. Even though ARD has run Verbotene Liebe into the ground, they are heavily promoting the show's 20th anniversary in January 2015. A new cast picture has been released featuring the cast members that will appear in the last few daily episodes before the show eventually switches to weekly broadcasts. Once the weekly episodes begin, a few new characters will be introduced. On the other hand, a handful of characters will exit the show before the transition phase begins, and their portrayers were ommitted from being included in the anniversary picture. Back row: Mickey Hardt as Dr. Jo Helmke (2014-present), Verena Zimmermann-Bonato as Nicola "Nico" Countess von Lahnstein (2002-2007; 2008; 2010-2012; 2015-present), Dominic Saleh-Zaki as Andi Fritzsche (2001-2007; 2009-present) Middle row: Florian Wünsche as Emilio Sanchez (2011-present), Claus Thull-Emden as Butler Justus Stiehl (recurring: 2007-present) Front row: Nicole Mieth as Kim von Lahnstein (2011-present), Wolfram Grandezka as Ansgar Count von Lahnstein (2004-present), Christoph Kottenkamp as Officer Frank Helmke (recurring 2011-2012; contract 2013-present), Gabriele Metzger as Charlotte "Charlie" Schneider Helmke (original cast member), Jo Weil as Oliver "Olli" Sabel (2000-2002; 2007-present), Martina Servatius as Elisabeth Ryan Brandner Countess von Lahnstein (1999-present), Tatjana Kästel as Rebecca Countess von Lahnstein #2 (2012-present), Marc Barthel as Tim Helmke (2014-present), Miriam Lahnstein as Tanja Countess von Lahnstein (1995-1998; 2001; 2004-present), Jens Hartwig as Tristan Count von Lahnstein (2009-present), Sebastian Schlemmer as Sebastian Count von Lahnstein #2 (2009-present) Kneeling: Melvin-Maximilian Eisenstein as Hannes von Lahnstein (recurring: 2011-present) The following cast members are thus no longer part of the ensemble: Janina Isabell Batoly as Bella Jacob (2012-2015), Charlie's daughter and Olli's half-sister, ex-girlfriend of Andi and Tristan, ex-affair of Sascha and Jo, is most likely to be killed off since she falls into a coma soon Henrike Fehrs as Alexa Berg (2013-2015), ex-girlfriend of Tristan, con artist Daniel Fritz as Per Mertens (2014-2015), Secretary of State, nemesis of the von Lahnstein clan Clara Gerst as Lara Cornelius #2 (2014-2015), Elisabeth's daughter, the character was only brought back in November after a 12-year absence Sascha Pederiva as Sascha Vukovic (2013-2015), Olli's roommate and ex-fling, will probably go to prison

Another cast member has been let go from AWZ: Alexander Wüst who has played the contract role of Officer Erik Schulte since May 2014 will last air on January 23rd, 2015. Erik will die during his wedding to Jenny Steinkamp (Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen). During a struggle with Jenny's dad Richard (Silvan-Pierre Leirich), Erik falls from a tower and later dies in Jenny's arms. A week later, another tragedy hits the Steinkamps and the "Dance Factory": All the dancers and staff members of the "Dance Factory" travel by bus to an important competition. When the bus driver suddenly has a heart attack, the bus is about to fall down a slope. Only two characters will survive the accident – everyone else will die. RTL calls this catastrophe "the new beginning of AWZ". Making of: According to the press release, the following characters will remain: The Steinkamp family (which most likely includes Simone, Richard, Jenny, Vanessa, Ben and Isabelle), Ingo, Bea, Lena, Marian, Katja and Can. We can also assume that Deniz and Iva stay. This means that Julia, Raquel, Toni and Larissa will all be killed off since their exits were confirmed weeks ago. Never before have so many characters been killed off in such a short span of time (the four dancers plus Erik and Letizia means 6 deceased contract roles in 3 months).

The style of the opening with those blurred camera shots remained the same until 2010. Roughly every two years, a complete new sequence was filmed, though. Here and there people were removed and added. In August 2010, they introduced that cartoon-like opening which lasted until this past July. Until 2003, only the young cast members were included in the opening. The older generation was always missing. The following characters appeared in the original sequence: Stephen Dürr as Till Weigel & Bodo Frank as Marc Albrecht – Milena Dreißig as Antonia Schwarz – Tatiani Katrantzi as Jennifer Turner & Cecilia Kunz as Corinna Bach – Sebastian Feicht as Alexander Albrecht – Björn Kegel-Casapietra as Armin Franke, Jennifer, Corinna & Oliver Bootz as Chris Weigel – Katja Frenzel-Röhl as Melanie Hoffmeister – Armin & Chris – Till – Marc – Alexander, Corinna, Chris, Jennifer, Armin & Melanie – Janis Rattenni as Anna Weigel* – Till – Alexander – Jennifer – Group scene * When the show began, Rattenni was 12 years old. Technically she was on contract, but she only appeared infrequently because of child protection laws. When Rattenni came of age, she was eventually involved in major storylines. I posted a synopsis of the first episode including a cast overview two years ago: http://boards.soapoperanetwork.com/topic/27994-german-soaps-gzsz-uu-awz/page-12#entry1120871

UU's original opening sequence: http://youtu.be/GIEkY4yhGR0