pdm1974

I did watch the revival online after being a fan of the original and while it couldn't replace the original, I did think it had some potential. The David/Angie connection was one that would have been interesting to see play out. I also loved Miranda and AJ. The Cassandra story was beyond depressing.

For those of you who watched it, what do you think were the pros and cons?

I feel that if the show had focused on it's successful young demographic and not gone off the deep end (don't let me start talking about Vincent/Valerie), but the show could have had more staying power. It was attracting the viewers soaps needed to ultimately survive.

1 hour ago, Chris B said:

@Efulton From the book he made it clear they made several attempts to work things out with her from Paul Rauch talking to her and he even went to lunch with her and she was adamant she wasn’t willing to make any adjustments. Granted we only have his perspective but it seemed like they had a few divas in the cast and seemed to give them chance after chance before doing anything to them. Even the guy he said was his friend was given several reprieves before Rauch fired him. I do think it’s a shame the show lost a matriarch but it does seem like it was her doing. 

 

In general did Lemay feature much of the Matthews family or did he phase them out?

I believe Lemay slowly phased out the Matthews family and replaced them with the Corys/Frames.  The Matthews family was sort of brought back in the late 80s with Aunt Liz/Russ/Olivia/Josie. I always enjoyed the antics of Aunt Lize and Irene Dailey.

I watched Passions on and off from the beginning. I just remember the "days" would drag on and on...sometimes weeks worth of episodes and constant fake outs of reveals. Still, it has it's fun moments. I think it should have stayed on the supernatural track to stand out from the other shows.

8 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

I guess the high cast turnover didn't help. It seemed like since nothing outside of the Capwells clicked early on with viewers, the show gave up. 

That could very well be one of the reasons. The Capwells proved to be the more popular characters, so they threw the majority of the focus on them. Still, they needed other people to interact with which proved to be a challenge.

The last year it felt like five new families were added and none of those took off.

I watched AW from about early 80s as a kid until the end. One of my favorite romances was actually between Carl and Rachel because it had so much history and conflict behind it. Plus, the performers were top notch. I know others felt that it should have been a no-go in terms of story between these two characters. It was great to see Rachel driving story again.

I read Agnes Nixon's memoir, and while very interesting in some points, I felt let down that not once did she mention Loving. Sure, it wasn't the success that AMC or OLTL was, but it did run for 13 years. Hardly a complete failure! Plus, it would have been interesting to get her viewpoint on WHY it never developed into a huge hit.

I started watching SB from the very first episode when I was in middle school until the last when I was in college. I was obsessed with the show and so sad when it went off the air.

I'm wondering what opinions others may have on why the show struggled to maintain a strong second core family beyond the Capwells. Families came and went over the years. The Lockridges were the ones that had a bit of staying power on and off, and I never understood why the writers had trouble creating story for them. I thought the Lockridges were a hoot to watch with the zany members of the family and their humor. I often PREFERRED them over the darker Capwell family.

I think the singular focus on the Capwells made it hard for the show to branch out in terms of story.

Also, my top missed opportunity character that should have been a mainstay the whole time was Santana. She had the rich history with the Capwells and the desire to desperately improve her social status.

Anyone else have thoughts on this?