DynamiteKiddo

Even though they revealed him to be "The Gloved Hand" earlier in the fall, I remember when Sheffer on "Days" did those two INSANE NYE eppys at the end of 2006 where EJ raped Sami, shot John and ran Lexie (and TEK) out of town.  EJ as a supervillain got one helluva grand reveal in those episodes.

Ciara was also born in those eppys and I imagine Shawn & Belle and Steve & Kayla maybe fit in, too.  That was like over 15 years ago but I can't remember any episodes feeling more climatic since, including The Baby Switch, Ben being the Necktie Killer, The Time Jump, etc.

2 hours ago, Lye-C said:

TomSell wrote out Jack, Carrie, and Austin, who were the reason I started watching again, then proceeded to write out Billie, take Bryan off contract, end Lumi, and have openly gay Will have sex with that trash bag Gabi. Oh, and they thoroughly fucked over Drake. They and Josh Griffith are the most destructive writers to ever blemish Days of our Lives. They were hacks and I rejoiced when they were finally fired. 

Ron restored John and Marlena to their proper place at the center of the show. They are the heart and soul of Days and the rightful successors to Tom and Alice. 

I agree with a lot of this.  Jack and Billie are two of my faves and I really like Austin & Carrie, too.  Right off the bat, that hurt.  A lot.  And the constant deification of Daniel Jonas and using Jennifer as the vehicle to propel him to the center of the show was infuriating.  But all I’m saying is that there was very thoughtful dialogue and some characters got very well positioned… on the one hand they DID feel like they were tearing down the foundation of the show, on the other, it felt like they were doing a loving, sensitive historic renovation of it.  Like, it was HORRIBLE that we lost Jack, but they wrote his memory better than any writer since his heyday in the early ‘90s.  And I HATED Dannifer and their transparent agenda to legitimize Daniel through Jenn, but Jenn was positioned as the central heroine of the show and she, Abby and JJ absolutely became the heart of the show in the Horton home, which was lovely.  I feel like with TomSell, there was a LOT of “take the good with the bad.”

3 hours ago, Liberty City said:

This was yummy... back when the writing was worth watching, and the production was still there.

The production, at least visually, was already really, really bad lol.  However, I thought the daily scripts during TomSell were SO good, and I give a lot of credit to Lorraine Broderick being the breakdown writer in those years.  Even if the stories were bad, which they were at the end of their run, the dialogue was so on-point and character and history rich.  This is a great example.  However, if one wanted to say that TomSell were anti-J&M, I wouldn't disagree . . . Marlena was portrayed as a self-righteous martyr in those years and she was sooo supporting.  John was thrown under the bus (but I thought his characterization as a egocentric himbo with a toxic hero complex that caused a lot of collateral damage was a wildly different, interesting interpretation of the character) and Marlena eventually settled into a default background pairing with Roman after John was written out!  Does anyone remember that it felt like TomSell was thisclose to maybe reuniting them?!?  That was a really strange time for Marlena & John.

1 hour ago, carolineg said:

Have Chad and Johnny ever been close historically?

I remember Casey D's Chad having many nice scenes with that cute little Johnny.  In those years, they very, very quickly shoehorned him into the DiMera family--making him very close to EJ and Lexie, then later Kristen.  That's when he was the anti-DiMera good guy, until TomSell let him get pretty shady in the year+ before Casey exited the role.  When Billy Flynn took over and Theo was aged a year later with Kyler Pettis, they made it clear that Chad and Theo were sooo close so it tracks that he has (or should have) a close relationship with Johnny.  I remember when Johnny was first aged, he kept referring to Abby as "Aunt Abigail," which sounded weird to me lol.

16 hours ago, AMCOLTLLover said:

Was Lucky Spencer and Jason Morgan mentioned from GH? Lol

This could and should have been so good, but Lucky was never given an adequate p.o.v.  Liz vs. Sam was very good at that time, as was Carly vs. Liz.  Carly vs. Sam was not as strong, but I remember a killer confrontation scene between them over Jake's paternity.

On OLTL, I loved Blair vs. Kelly, and all the Cramer women infighting lol.

2 hours ago, dragonflies said:

lol

 

 

 

OMFG I'm dying

11 hours ago, asafi said:

Scott and Melissa Reeves have two children, Emily born in 1992 and Larry born in 1997, who have blessed their parents with four grandsons in the last three years.

The couple resides in Nashville, Tennessee.

I'm sure missy will agree to participate in Doug Williams death story if asked. 

 

I expect to see her back for the Bill Hayes/Doug tribute.

I've been tuning in for Bobbie's memorial, but I honestly haven't meaningfully watched since AJ was killed off (again!), but I've always kept myself abreast through the boards and recaps.  But I really wanted to comment on LW/Carly--I fully endorse her.  I can't quite articulate how much I did (and will always) despise Sonny, Carly and Jason because of Guza (& Pratt) and JFP's psychotic obsession with them . . . and Tamara Braun, I think, gets an unfair rap for playing Carly too soft, too polished, even too nice.  That was not my interpretation of her Carly--she may not have been as "hard" as SJB (or LW, imo) but she has this electric quality that SJB and LW (and certainly JB) don't have . . . TB could spit her words like LW can but she added this totally unhinged quality to the way Carly would speak/yell that somehow equally communicated her superiority complex and her mania.  Because even though Carly didn't start on top, she wouldn't settle for anything less than top, and over the years, she did and continues to do whatever necessary to hold onto her power and position.  Then comes LW (I'll skip over poor JB) and fully embodies a bully Carly that we hadn't experienced (like that) since SJB and it was such an effective take on the character that I think jolted the audience into seriously reacting to her, esp. coming off JB.  It's like LW took SJB's hard meanness and TB's smug superiority (albeit she never fully could replicate) AND added her own very, very LOUD pushiness and we had this hybrid Carly that was a vision, esp. in her first few months opposite Robin and then later on in the Jake paternity saga.  And when Carly actually (only for five minutes) took responsibility for making Michael a mob prince when he was shot and comatose, LW played a complete self-awareness that I don't know SJB or TB would've.  Even when she found out about Jake--her confrontation with Jason was wrought with so much visceral hurt, while I imagine SJB would have played that quiet with the wheels feverishly turning and TB would have had Carly have a feral breakdown . . . they would have done great, but Carly's selfish rant about how she needed to be first in Jason's life made her come off as sympathetic as she was selfish.  She really excels with being terrible AND giving Carly a pov that the audience can invest in.  I think the show is lucky to have found LW since they're determined to keep Carly as the female lead.  Now I read some stuff about Carly and Liz going to the same girls' night AND that is such a profound bastardization of both characters and their relationship and if Carly has been doing that kind of s for the past 10 years, then the fault lies in the writing lolol.  But this very sympathetic writing Carly has been getting through Bobbie's eppys is nothing new--since I started watching in 2000, the writing has never held Carly accountable and she's always received a heavy-handed, lopsided slant.  Which has always made her infuriating for me.

edit: with all this said, Tamara Braun is my favorite Carly and I would welcome her back lol.  Though it's totally unnecessary.

I don't think they necessarily changed the way they wrote Jennifer for Cady.  As far as the initial Cady arc is concerned with Jack/Kate . . . ummm Lauren Koslow didn't even know what the hell to do with that and she sells almost everything.  That was beyond random and everyone struggled with that "reveal" . . . Missy would have, too.

So I am a massive Jenn/Missy fan, but to be honest, I think Cady played what was on paper--the writing, since 2000, has favored Jenn as a stuck up ice queen . . . it's Missy who has (sometimes, not always) played against that and infused all the spunk and warmth historically associated with her Jennifer.  But Cady's stiff upper lip WASPy stuff is totally what's on paper.

I will happily take Cady if it means we get see J&J on a semi-regular or, ideally, contract basis.  Sadly I think Missy only feels available for very rare appearances, like holidays, etc.

8 minutes ago, John said:

Michael Cambias raping Bianca on AMC

Yeah that was a brutal eppy, albeit very well produced.

I am LIVING for OGRHony.  However, while this has been A+ entertainment, this is a fairly safe cast . . . I know some of these picks are completely off the table, but if we had Jill or Alex or Carole, there'd be more muscle, less fat here . . . like so much potential to unpack so much meat.  This is lovely, but largely the "fun, flirty, drunk kookiness" that got stale as hell before the disastrous Eboni season.

It's a shame that Ramona is Ramona, because she's everything she needs to be here and so much more relaxed.

Sonja is the best, but this is honestly wash, rinse, repeat.

Dorinda does not understand that when she blows, she's not owning anyone; they're owning her because they got her to react with her ugliness that got her "put on pause."  I love her but she can't get out of her own way and that drunk, abusive sh!t she does worked for her for years, but that's been long over and she's the only one who hasn't gotten the memo.

As someone who grew to hate B, I've always hated what happened to Kelly/what Kelly did to herself.  I've always wanted her to get a chance to redeem herself, and this is going mostly ok so far.  Her interviews are the best part of her.  I do think she and LuAnn agreed to butt heads for the sake of the show which I don't love, but ok . . . she also feels very produced, which makes it hilarious that she's calling Kristen out for that.  Overall, she is performing very well but it feels like too much of a performance.  I'm just relieved she's not unravelling or becoming incoherent and/or delusional like she can on even Social Media.

I always thought Kristen and Heather were casualties of B in season 7 so I'm happy to see her back.  She is doing the most here and it's mostly working.  I'm so glad she's seriously excelling and probably proving everyone wrong that she'd be the lightweight here.  However, the way she handled her scandal was cringe . . . I know she doesn't want to talk about it and irl, she doesn't have to . . . but she shouldn't have thought she could come back for this check/5 minutes of Bravo fame and avoid this.  She doesn't owe us anything, but this has been the only (VERY) disappointing part of her return.  Her putting Josh on Facetime was some serious punishment for him lolol.

LuAnn is the star of this.  After giving RHoNY the MOST for 13 years, I'm so happy to see her naturally rule the roost.  I hate that she's drinking again--I know from firsthand experience how incredibly complicated her relationship with alcohol is but (chic) c'est la vie I guess lol.

I only wish we got more catchup time with their lives in NY in the beginning!!  But I am so happy this is on.

18 hours ago, carolineg said:

I can't recall why I thought Hapka was a problem.  I think he was fired and trashed his character or the show or something?  It may not have been anything serious, but I don't think either side walked away with happy feelings after his stint.

IIrc, he claimed he went to Higley requesting meatier material (which is why Nathan & Melanie got the virus storyline) but then they decided to part ways because she told him he'd be backburner for a while and then he left.  He came off super salty.  However, this alleged mutual split happened at exactly the same time Jay Johnson & Shelley Hennig very abruptly left . . . so the show likely decided to cut their losses, leaving Melanie left as the lone survivor from that rectangle because Higley and Tomlin were obsessed with Molly Burnett.

I thought Mark Hapka was great and this rectangle was the best story on the show at the time.  Losing these three within weeks of each other (when they were midway through huge story) was profoundly disappointing.  The show pivoted creatively quite a bit during the first quarter of 2011 into abysmal disaster, leading to Higley and Tomlin getting fired.

I think AK is a very natural and charismatic actress and I don't mind her as Stephanie at all . . . but recalling this story makes me miss SH's unexpectedly messy, manipulative, deeply insecure Steph SOOO much . . . this version is remarkably unremarkable and divorced of everything that made her a hit as a surprise schemer.

So when Marci Miller assumed the role of Abby on "Days," I always thought she was a good actress... but she didn't feel like Abby, for so many reasons, most of which I retrospectively realize had to do with Dena Higley's abysmal, lazy writing.  And she was written as just so insufferably pathetic.

But in one of (iirc) RC's first eppys, he had Chad & Abby having an EPIC fight in front of the Martin house (Abby was gonna leave town with Dario, who was blackmailing her) before throwing herself in front of car who was gunning for Chad thinking he was Dario.  Marci Miller nailed every second of it and I finally felt this insane, electric chemistry between her and Billy.  From that moment on, she was absolutely Abigail Deveraux.  When Kate Mansi came back, she more than reclaimed the role and felt like the definitive Abby... but when Marci returned again, I realized that both women owned this role.

5 hours ago, MichaelGL said:

I can't help but to think that if the show could've coughed up a few $$$ and scheduled around Alison Sweeny's schedule, this whole story of having Nicole's baby taken away from her with Sami involved would've packed a bigger punch IMO. It just seems like a rehash of the Sarah/Kristen baby switch storyline but with a different set of characters. 

I know.  This shouldn't have been done without Sami--it's too obvious to not include her.  But even if they were going to proceed with this without Sami, they should be having Brady, Rafe, and Chad all over this wherever possible to tie past to present.

23 hours ago, janea4old said:

Whether or not the storylines make sense or will be trite ... I thought the promo itself was well-made.

I agree—great promo.  This is def. the best story on the show but so much of this is outrageously plot-driven.  If they really want a Nicole baby switch, they should be involving Brady and Chad and play the parallels for all they’re worth… Sami missing is obvs. huge.  But I’ll never take this EJ & Nicole reunion seriously.

Oh no.  This is so truly devastating.

So for how throwaway they're written, I thought the Philip, Chloe, and Shawn exits were fine . . . but they were obviously rushed and didn't include all the characters they should've.

Using Philip as a tool to usher Chloe off was . . . idk.  I actually really appreciate Chloe--during Dena Higley Round II (when she was with Lucas, then Daniel), I thought she was hilarious . . . like a total sex bomb parody of a soap heroine/vixen(??).  But then it devolved into madness with the prostitution and Vivian/Quinn and she has been aimless for the last 12 years, with Nicole being her only consistent thread (their absolute best respective relationship lol).  Since she's been such a familiar presence, it is incredible that they have not been able to really tether the character firmly to the canvas.  I am so relieved that this iteration of Broe vs. Phloe is over, though; I've never wanted EM's Brady with her, as their messy divorce was an unexpectedly great moment in their through-lines.  But Chloe should have absolutely gotten goodbye scenes with Nicole (and Shawn & Belle).

JPL has been SOOO much better as Phil this time around, but this is another untethered character following JKJ's disastrous return (still can't believe he didn't return to memorialize John Aniston, though).  This was nice closure, though.  I wish they gave him more time with the Ks and a scene AK's Stephanie would've been fun.  I'm very relieved he got some time with MM's Belle.

Shawn's exit was solid.  However, this is a story we should be seeing ON SCREEN!  This is really compelling drama!  But it is criminal that he such an afterthought . . . he should be front-burner and after all these years, I think BB is absolutely Shawn and he's hot af.  It speaks volumes that they didn't get Susan Hayes for this eppy or like any vets.  But his scenes with Belle were so solid and I think BB & MM have a very nice, familiar chemistry and they're always at their best with this kind of hurt and angsty material.

But, ya, bye bye Last Blast kids . . .

21 hours ago, carolineg said:

It's a little strange Holly/Tate have no idea who one another are.  Weren't Brady/Nicole together at some point after both kids were born?  You would think the names would at the very least spark a memory even if they haven't seen one another in years.  Tate isn't a very common name either.

Yeah fr lol.  Brady & Nicole were very seriously together in 2017, then the Nicole/Kristen stuff in 2019, and they've been very close friends and business partners for forever.  I really don't like that on "Days," everyone acts incredibly familiar, even when there should be no reason they'd even know each other . . . but then you have people who should know (of) each other who don't.  Really looking at Alex and Stephanie here.

I think this is a strange time to age Holly seeing Nicole's WTD pregnancy is (one of) the show's A story . . . Nic is about to have a LOT going on lolol.

1 hour ago, carolineg said:

Very true about Ric/Skye.  They did have prominence, but there was a clear push and pull between JFP and the writing for both characters.  They would never win against the big four but were also shoehorned into primary families to be relevant, although they never exactly fit on canvas they were given lots of story.  I'll be honest and say I don't really get the Ric Hearst love either.   I thought Ric was an absolute awful character that I had to deal with far too long.  I did like him when he was first introduced and they seem to be hinting he was related to Lily and the early part of his pairing with Liz.  I just think Ric is a character that should have caused some havoc in Sonny's world and left.  I am not sure what stopped the Ric/Skye pairing, but I do think at some point JFP lost any power over Guza and that's when both characters faded away.  Like I said earlier, I wouldn't be opposed to a Skye visit and her bringing Lila Rae to town today.

I loved me some Jax/Brenda.  Even as a Sonny/Brenda diehard I adored the J&B pairing.  I always felt 2002 ruined them for me.  Between Jax dumping Skye and then him pressuring Brenda to marry him right away then leaving her at the actual altar it was just an awful look for Jax.  I actually think Jax came out the biggest loser in the entire return.

I totally agree about Ric.  I thought Rick Hearst was real talented, but he could do weaselie almost too good lol.  (A critique I’ve heard about Billy Warlock’s AJ, too.) His turn as a romantic lead with Alexis was so bad, imo.  For a min. when they had him as the slimey DA who was obsessed with Liz again and they brought on his dad who was connected to Kate, I thought he worked well in that capacity… iirc, the whole show was really working then.  But then after Skye left, I think I remember Garin Wolf giving him some really strange immigration love interest/triangle with his dad that was disastrous!  That was my only miss of the last writer’s strike.

I always felt like Guza was honestly hate writing for Jax lol.  Like he was begrudgingly forced to make him the dopey hero to Sonny’s supposedly much more interesting rogue.

37 minutes ago, carolineg said:

You make some valid points here.  I would argue that Skye was made to be a loser a lot though.   Even in the end she lost all of Alcazar's money and needed Jax's help to get it back.  She was a drunk and a screw up, complacent in her baby daddy's murder and un-Q'ed in the end and we still don't know who her father is lol.   I always considered Skye as a character who couldn't get out of her own way and couldn't find happiness across all the ABC soaps she was on.

Anyway, I am sure not all RC/Skye stans like her because of Brenda, but I think there was a lot of goodwill from the audience because she was done wrong by Jax/Brenda (mostly Jax) and RC did well with some strong material.  Plus, I think Skye was an easy character to root for because if you didn't like Brenda in 2002 and watched GH there wasn't a lot for you to like lol.  

I do think that Skye was a loser, esp. re.: Brenda and the mob four always got their digs, but it was probably Phelps who ensured she always got strong p.o.v. and she was the star of her own stories . . . like compare her to AJ, Zander, (GV's) Lucky, etc. lolol.  There is a huge difference.  Phelps also distinguished Rick Hearst's Ric from the other "losers" with lots of p.o.v. and and prominence, but Skye was like . . . sort of a main main character . . . esp. during the Luke/Heather Webber era.  But she was absolutely self-destructive and unlucky, but that's why I really loved her.  Her brief turn as a sorta heroine with Luke was when the character was at her worst, imo.  Btw, ita that their is a steely coldness to the character and RC's portrayal . . . but I thought that really worked and was who the character was.  I can't recall what was happening bts, but I think she and Ric could have settled into a nice pairing but I can also agree with the sentiment that she's more effective as an activator who comes in for a good few weeks a year to f s up.  I also think Megan Ward's Kate was really, really taking off around the time RC left in an on-contract capacity and she filled the rich ice queen quota on the canvas much better at the time.

I remember the Brenda year being must-see and when she left, the show crashed . . . but the show also stopped for Brenda, which is unwise imo and creatively problematic.  But I absolutely love Brenda when she's not up Sonny's ass.  Like, I am no Jax & Brenda fan, but if some fans shipped Jax & Skye to spite Brenda, I appreciate Jax because I hate Sonny and Jason lol.

When I started watching GH, Skye was on and sorta in the thick of everything.  I loved her--I loved that she was a counterpoint to the writers'/producers' (OBVIOUS) favorites, but she wasn't portrayed as a loathsome, pitiable loser (like anyone else anti-mob).  I also loved that she was an ally to my all-time fav. character, AJ.  But in hindsight, I clearly see how shamelessly shoehorned she was into the show, the Qs, and like all her pairings in JFP's quest to keep RC front and center.  But I will say I really did like her as a Q, probably because I never knew her as a Chandler and never knew the Qs without her . . . I imagine it's because their animosity was in direct conflict of Guza and Phelps' goals, but I thought there was a lot to mine with Jason/Skye, esp. after Alan and Emily's deaths.  And I also think Skye is a really effective activator--she really got everyone worked up.  And even though it wasn't explored, like, at all--she could have been a foil to Carly, insofar as they both had these opposite sex alliances that were in direct contrast to each other . . . but the show always highlighted that with Alexis instead--while Carly always had ride or die loyalty with Jason and Sonny, she had it with Jax and Ned (but so did Skye + with Luke).  Anyway, her pop ins were real jolts to the show and while I don't watch GH anymore, I think it's less without her.  But I don't find GH remotely recognizable to what I grew up watching.

But I certainly remember her having hella stans bitd and I don't think it was just because they may have been anti-Brenda lol.  I do remember the worst thing they did with her, imo, was un-retconning her being Alan's bio daughter to pair her with Ned (?!?) while Alexis was doing drag all in the pursuit of baby Kristina, who Sonny obvs. still thought was Ned's.  OMFG lol.

As far as DAYS' Rafe . . . I think he has been likable in the comedic himbo stuff (particularly during TomSell post-Sami and pre-Jordan), but I can't understand it, either.  Who are his fans?!?  Who were Daniel's?!?  I remember reading that at the time that "Days" was heavily relying on focus groups and that those two supposedly always scored very high.  "Days" has very desperately tried to make a lot of characters happen in the past 10-15 years and I think the randomness of it may be tied to the tape-air lag . . . the writers are really pushing their visions completely free of audience feedback-interference.

I'm assuming it's Xander and Theresa doctored the letter.  At first, I thought their antagonistic scene was fun history (like a lot of the stuff surrounding Victor's funeral), but I think it was a clue to give her motivation to play with the will.

2 hours ago, NothinButAttitude said:

I always felt he had romantic lead chemistry--at least with Ali, Nadia, and Ari. But again, Lucas was always second fiddle in all those pairings, so we never got to see him being the desired party. It was always Chloe, Nicole, or Sami yearning for another man. I wish that they would've brought on someone to pair Lucas with and allow him to have that one great love. Again, it just boggles my mind that any scion of Tom/Alice is not leading the show. At this stage, Lucas, Mike, Hope, and Jennifer should be the four pillars of the show with Sarah, Abigail (don't get me started on them stupidly killing her), JJ, Ciara, and Shawn D. driving story constantly. That's just me. The descendants of a legacy family should always be front and center. 

Oh I think he has successfully proven himself to be a romantic lead . . . I guess I should have clarified that I don't agree that he ever should have or should be portrayed as a romantic hero.  Because that's simply not who the character is.  And Lucas is better for it--he's a much more interesting gray character.

I think that for a long time, Hope and Jennifer were not only two of the most important characters on the show, but they had one of the most important relationships on the show, too.  I hated the deification of Daniel Jonas by TomSell, but it firmly kept Jenn as a lead during that period and they wisely positioned her, Abby and JJ as the heart of the show.  When Dena returned, they really shifted the focus from them to Hope/Ciara, which wasn't as successful.  And even Ron C. really, really tried to make Sarah happen from late 2018-2020 . . . but the Hortons have been pretty unfocused, except a couple times when Abby was the show's leading young heroine and the family came together for her drama.  Anyway, I completely agree with you about how Hope and Jenn should be the pillars of the show, and Lucas and Mike should be included for sure.  Abby is the only long-term young female lead the show has enjoyed success with since probably Belle and killing her remains one of the worst decisions RC has made across his three soaps.  And I don't know why they got rid of Casey Moss' JJ--another really successful character.  And I definitely think Shawn should be the A story rn.

9 minutes ago, NothinButAttitude said:

*With Days, it was Sami falling for her rapist (EJ). Then it propelled to Lucas being the third wheel to their pairing and being cast aside when he is a HORTON. Lucas should be driving story and be the actual lead on this show. I never understood how Days didn't see the value in Bryan Datillo. 

This was a travesty.  In his defense, I don't think this was ever Hogan Sheffer's plan . . . but Dena Higley (who was the writer to finally do Lumi in 2003!) eventually discarded him and his place on the show has never been properly respected since.  Until Austin Peck returned, Reilly (Round II) had him as a lead and so did Sheffer . . . and I'm not sure he should've ever been portrayed as that kind of romantic lead, but he and Sami should be endgame.  But speaking of, Sami should've never been portrayed as a romantic lead, either.

18 hours ago, detroitpiston said:

GH - I never missed an episode until shortly after Garrin Wolf took over. When Frank and Ron joined I stopped watching full episodes for a few years its only been recently that I’ve kind of gotten back into it.

I was sooo disappointed in Garin Wolf.  When he was the scab hw during the last writer's strike, I was sooo impressed.  I've never liked the desperate attempt at copying "The Sopranos," but GW took Bob Guza's material and really elevated it to the point where it remains one of my fav. periods of GH.  Sonny was actually shown to be the problem, Carly realized she literally put her sons' lives at risk every day in pursuit of her own selfishness and power with Sonny and Jason, Jason & Liz got brought back down to Earth because Jason IS a hitman and Jake would be in the same line of fire as Michael, etc., etc.  And there were fun new developments like Kate/Maxie and he wrapped up the Text Message Killer beautifully with kinda climaxing the Sam/Jason/Liz/Lucky rectangle.  Of course, there were huge misses like whatever was going on with Ric and his dad, Trevor.  But I was such a fan.  And all the little beats that played during Michael's shooting were mesmerizing.

So once he became hw, I was thrilled . . . and the first month or so was great, and then . . . omg he was sooo bad it was incredible.  Biggest letdown ever.

And I don't hate on RC like many on this board because his highs are usually pretty high and while I disliked many periods on OLTL and now on "Days," it's usually kinda inspired, so I'll give him credit for his attempts.  But I actually stopped watching his GH and I've never meaningfully returned.  Whatever he thought he was doing with the hybrid OLTL-mob-legacy show . . . omg none of it spoke to me.  While I hated most of Guza (& Pratt's) egregious attempts of dismantling anything that wasn't Sonny/Carly/Jason worship, I guess that was the GH I grew up with . . . a dark, sorta urban show.  The circus that RC's GH instantly became was so off-putting to me--the tone was all wrong for GH.  I came back for AJ's (my all-time fav. character) return, but the disjointed wackiness of the show drove me away.  I've watched the special episodes, which were special (RC usually does well with those) . . . but I never came back.  And now the show feels utterly unrecognizable in what I assume is FV's bid to well and truly remaking GH into HIS show.  I'll give him props for the visuals--while it usually never translates to anything character-driven and can appear random, none of the soaps' cameras move as much as GH's and he really uses a lot of different angles, too.  But that's all I got.