j swift

I know two attacks don't necessarily make a serial killer, but with inflation it seemed like the best title. And given that Abigail's killer is going to be revealed next week (9/19-9/23) and Brando seems to be waking up on GH, it seems like a good time to make some predictions. DAYS - My unpopular prediction is that Chad killed Abby and stabbed Sonny while under the influence of alcohol. I think Craig is another red herring, as he's never had homicidal tendencies, nor has he been that evil. I think Chad is going to think it was Craig, get drunk, pass out, hallucinate a vision of Abby who will tell him that he mistakenly thought there was prowler that night and stabbed Abby, then has been getting blackout drunk ever since and he stabbed Sonny in a stupor ( which is why Anna commented on the cup on the table the other day). But, the twist will be that someone has been drugging the alcohol to induce Chad's state of mind, which is why he will be found innocent with the help of Stephanie. GH - I think the hooker is Dex. He wants to make himself invaluable to Sonny, so he has been attacking people to make it seem like a threat is inevitable. I would bet that the next victim will be Selena, so suspicion will turn to Cody, but the real threat is Dex (especially after Dante commented that Dex seems to be everywhere theses days). I would even go a bit further to suppose that Dex has a connection to Esme, and through this case we'll learn about Esme's background.

It's interesting because in recent years the New Years episode was a big deal in terms of story. IIRC Stefan was introduced at New Years, and Eve's return occurred on New Years.

Totally agree with this sentiment. However, I think he indirectly provides an interesting peek behind the scenes. Many Bravo fans and podcasters portray the production team as evil geniuses manipulating these guileless women into vicious battles. But, what we experience from Carlos is that they are more like fan girls who are easily impressed by the trappings of wealth, and want to either be accepted by the crowd of cool girls, or find a fantasy mother figure. The creatives in terms of crafting stories are the story editors who need to take months of filming and distill it into a narrative to last over 20 episodes. I think King betrays his own grandiosity when it becomes clear that the on site producers have very little say in the final product that goes to air, in terms of what stories will be emphasized, and how the women will be portrayed. In fact, given the line producers primary roles are maintaining the women's daily schedule, arraigning the cast trips, and getting clearance for shooting in restaurants and public spaces, they're really just glorified travel agents or concierges. Finally, I enjoy Danny, but if you're not listening to the Watch What Crappens boys, you're missing some brilliantly funny analysis.

I recently saw a scene from Knots during the Lotus Point story and that set was beautiful. It was so cinematic that they could see into each other's offices from reception. You could feel the presence of the southern California sun lighting the space, even though it was obviously shot on a sound stage. It all felt real and luxurious. At the time, a resort was in the news, as it was developed where Marineland once was in the wealthy enclave of Palos Verdes (funded by Lowes Resorts and developed by a man named York Long Point - Lowes/Point = Lotus Point). Much like the Sumner Group replicated the new office buildings being built during the revitalization of downtown LA in the early 90s, I think Knots doesn't get enough credit for looking like it was specifically set in Los Angeles. On the other hand, the clothes are bizarre by today's standards. Abby and Karen were wearing peak shoulders with layers upon layers of padding. The scene I watched of Abby telling Karen that Gary had found Val, had Karen wearing a sweater with pads, under a jacket with pads, under a cape with pads, and her shoulders were propped up to her ears, while Abby was wearing the most intricate layering of eye shadows that one wondered how she made to the office on time.

I guess what is unfathomable to me (besides the totally inhumane treatment that these people endured) is - Were they on a commercial airlines? Did a government official fly with them? How long was this plan in place? The particulars of this story seem to be missing in most press reports that I've read today

To be fair, and not in defense of the writing, but how I understood it was that there is a custody agreement in place, they are just deciding where Rachel should live. So, Kristen's legal history is not relevant because nobody is questioning her fitness as a mother.

Do we know who sent for/paid for the plane to aid this disgusting political move on behalf of DeSantis?

Also, Xander was willing to stick by Sarah when she was recently accused of murder and when she thought she was Renee Dimera - maybe he's just a masochist?

While I will admit that I read a spoiler on Twitter that the Port Charles Hooker would strike again (I hope that's the title they go with for this story), there was a ton of rather heavy handed foreshadowing before the event. Every loved one just happened to be in the same room and expressed what a good guy he was. His mother and his mentor basically eulogized him for no reason whatsoever. There's a sudden thunderstorm, but nobody decided to cancel their plans and stay at home. And, a red herring of a victim whose death would actually be shocking. All that was missing was him saying the most cursed phrase in all of soaps, "I'll be by your side forever..." Also, I'm no physics expert, but it seems harder to kill someone with a fish hook than a knife, or a gun. Like you'd really have to dig in deep and drag it, which would create a lot of noise and mess.

It is the age old casualty dilemma - Do they tell fewer teen stories because less than 10% of their 3.5 million viewers are teens? (or) Is less than 10% of the audience between 18-25 because they tell fewer teen stories? Personally, I don't care for teen angst, but I would enjoy more early career stories rather than all of these nepo-babies and gold diggers where there is no conflict whether or not their businesses succeed because they'll just build a new one when inspiration strikes. I want economic diversity and striving in soaps, rather than just more young rich kids (not that those are the only options, although it seems to be in Genoa City). Currently most characters are either millionaires, married to millionaires, or have kids by millionaires.

Oy vey, is this his next career move? From ATWT Rick Decker to right wing propaganda movies? Was Jon Voight busy?

That's it - thanks @Vee

Is my memory correct that Sarah Joy Brown was messed up twice in her career because she her character on GH and DAYS were created under writers who were then fired soon after she began appearing on screen?

I was left wondering if Rolf will develop the antidote for the ladies? He's committed a lot of crimes (if not legally, then morally), and it would allow him some repentance. Has anyone else noticed that this Dr Rolf has a remarkably small head?

@danfling From reading the wiki it looks like Nina #3 is introduced when Nina goes to the asylum after almost shooting Donna, she sticks around for less than a year, then she and Daisy take off on a cruise and Nina #1 returns. But, was there any transition between Nina #1 and Nina#2 or did she just appear one day with the traditional voice over to announce her recast?

I thought Nina #2 was too frenetic in her portrayal of the character during the Zach Greyson murder case, until I watched Nina #3. By 1985 they needed to use establishing shots of the actress's 8X10 to remind the audience that this is supposed to be Nina because not only is she not blonde, but she's no longer smart, and she's lost her mind. She's in one of the weird sanitariums that only exist in soaps where the staff is mildly malevolent, but everyone wears their normal clothes, and they continue to get their hair and makeup done. RWFPTYSm.mp4 The introduction of the Chandlers is the only good part of this era.

In what has now become an annual tradition of "outrage" over people left out of award show In Memoriam segments this has got to be the most ridiculous. First of all, one doubts that the Queen was a member of the television academy. Second, as if the Queens's death has been trivialized because she wasn't included in a montage on a failing award show designed to promote network TV in America?

For whatever reason I was reading the wiki about the cultural impact of 9/11 on the media (remember when the Emmys were cancelled twice?), and it is an interesting contrast that almost all of the soaps either referred to 9/11 directly within weeks, or they changed planned stories that including bombs, yet there has been such little reference to Covid19 in modern soaps. I wonder if it is because 9/11 still happened during the height of mass media so we all experienced it in a common way. Or, if the fact that it happened in New York had more of a personal impact on productions in the city. Or, if soaps writers think it would be callous to have a character die of Corona virus? I recall the immediate increase of images related to patriotism, an unquestioned reverence for military and police service, and a negative reaction to any criticism of the government. It is interesting to see that major news events within the past decade have received a more diverse response as they have been filtered through a broader variety of sources in social and mass media. I don't love that every catastrophe becomes a political debate, but I can appreciate the idea that one cultural lesson learned after 2001 is that we shouldn't silence the opposition.

I was left wondering if all of the family's calamities were related, or if they just needed to get through a lot of story before the finale. Jeff's hard drive, Dex's crash in Blake's plane, and Fallon's energy company failure seemed suspiciously timed.

After a week of heatwaves, fires, and a tropical storm in LA, the penultimate episode of Dynasty was exactly what I needed. I thought it might be hard to jump back in, but they always reset, and the exposition gets you up to speed really quickly. I was a little surprised that they've paired Kirby and Amanda. I continue to like the manic energy that the actor playing Adam brings to the role. And I am always visually entertained by Fallon's capes and Jeff's full Gucci ensembles. I have no clue how Cristal has a friend at the FAA that she could call when a plane goes missing, yet, I could see that the new major d'omo was trouble from the moment he came on screen. @soapfan770 or @SFK I'd appreciate it if you could fill in the gaps about the guy who is blackmailing Liam, and how Fallon hired another assistant who is trying to undermine her at FU (still my favorite named company in all of soaps). Going into the finale, it's sad how little Alexis has to do, and I wish they'd found some new conflict for Dominique that didn't always involve Jeff. I still feel as if the episodic nature of crisis/insight about family loyalty/and resolution each week was bad call and was too repetitive to sustain itself. Longer term story arcs, and more character development were missing. But, five seasons is remarkable for a reboot.

It is also would throw off the balance of the Devon and Nate story to have Tucker be so youthful

Is Gina's closed, or did she never rebuild after the fire, or did everyone just get tired of all the singing?

I don't claim to be either a legal scholar or an Erika apologist, but I wonder if Erika can't give up the earrings before a court order because it would be an admission of guilt that would open the door to the court to give away her other assets before there is an official finding? That being said every defense that she gave on screen while drunk was neither tasteful nor in her best interest.

It just finished here in Los Angeles. Can we talk about how gross it is to have a mausoleum on the grounds of your house? It was amusing to see that there are Dimeras that we've never seen in there like Valeria and Giuseppe Dimera. But, it raises a a few questions: (1) Did Stefano and Tony move their dead relatives to Salem from Dimera Island to fill the mausoleum? (2) Is there room to grow for future generations? (3) What's with the flimsy door and why does it lock? Are they afraid of people getting in or out? (4) I saw Andre is in there, are Demos and Jake? (5) If Stefan's body is not in mausoleum, what is?

Now here's a topic upon which we can agree. I signed up for Peacock earlier in the week and have yet to open the app again, because I forget it is an option. And, I tend to either browse the web or watch YouTube, because i want a more passive experience when I am watching TV