Marlena's absence was both remarkable and understandable.  On the one hand, the scene where Maggie was murdered during Marlena's serial killer era was iconic.  On the other hand, Marlena did not share a lot of memorable stories with Victor, and the episode focused on him, so it made sense that she wasn't there.  I mean, Julie and Victor actually had much more of a history than Marlena and him.

Hidden for those trying to avoid spoilers

To clarify what I meant about movement, it is not just about the size of the set but the static placement of the camera. 

Look at Shawn's scene with the mayor.  First, when the mayor sits, he pops into the shot, the camera can't pan down to follow him sitting.  Then, (I assume because they don't do takes for coverage), the entire conversation is a back and forth between close up, with no wide shot to establish their place in the room or their reactions to each other while they talk.  So, they wind up looking like puppets because they can only use their upper body and their hands to express themselves. 

I'm not asking them to walk and talk like they're in an episode of the West Wing, but it would be nice to see some camera movement within an entire episode.

That being said, I am glad that at least it is brighter in Salem than it used to be.  We still never know what time of day it is, but 2020 looked like every episode took place at dusk.  And the sound mixing is much clearer.

Just in case anyone was wondering, their interview style has not improved over the course of five years.

It is still a banal career retrospective with the typical questions about how an actor got their role (spoiler alert: they auditioned).  There's no preparation.  Steve clearly had not even bothered to look at Brandon's IMDB to know the chronology of his roles in daytime.  There's no insight into any interesting takes on acting, like what it is like to age as a man in daytime, or suddenly play the father to a twentysomething child.  They haven't even developed a consistent set of questions to ask every interview so that there is something unique about the experience.  The sound quality is awful.  There is zero production value or editing.  And neither host can just rely on their looks (or questionable charm) any longer.

They only prove that practice doesn't make perfect, if you weren't that talented in the first place...

Something I noticed that now I cannot get out of mind is how little the actors are allowed to move in a scene.  I was watching a scene from the 1980s when Megan met with Stefano.  He greets her at the door, and then they walk through the sitting room into his office, with the camera following them the whole time.  Today, they barely walk around the room.  I assume it is because they no longer use human camera operators, and it is expensive to reset the camera position.  But, it makes me have empathic claustrophobia, that these characters are so immobile within an episode. 

I mean, I celebrated that Belle showed up in more than one set because Kate seems chained to the bar of the Brady Pub.

Is she still married to John Viscardi (Father Tony)? 

One imagines that he is even more charismatic off-screen.  It was interesting to note on his IMDB that he has a writing credit for Guiding Light.

2 hours ago, Xanthe said:

Could there also have been an assumption that the audience was mostly female and would be interested in the love lives of the male stars in a way that they would not be for the female stars?  

Totally, it is just remarkable how the sexuality of women gets less speculation

Every time we come back to this discussion, there's always a lot more speculation about men than women.  Sure, the usual actresses are mentioned, but it is a small percentage compared to the men that are discussed.  Obviously, some of that is because this topic is dominated by male posters. 

However, practically, I wonder if it was "easier" for women in the 1970s and 1980s to stay closeted?  I would hypothesize that unmarried women were considered more common because it was easy to imagine that a lead actress wouldn't have the time for a husband and children.  I mean, one never reads a profile of Joanna Johnson or Maureen Garrett where they asked about dating. 

Just food for thought...

Victoria Newman McNeil Howard Carlton Hellstron Abbott Abbott Locke

I don't know how Leon Russom identifies his sexuality, but he was married to Karen Grassle (Ma on Little House on the Prairie) for many years, and there are easily google-able stories about him marrying a second time to a woman who is the "love of his life."

Kudos to DAYS for walking the fine line between being sentimental about the passing of an actor, while still showing what a monster Victor had been.  I was worried that just like that terrible uncle that we've all known, who was suddenly canonized after their death, they'd try to make Victor into a saint after his passing.

In recent years, John Aniston had filled his portrayal of Victor with humor and wit.  Recently on TikTok, someone uploaded the very funny scene where Carly passed out at the front door of the mansion, and Victor stepped over her to grab the newspaper. 

Meanwhile, Victor was a vile man who abused women.  His relationship with Kim and Carly was gross, and difficult to watch.  He was cruel to Kate.  And, unlike Stefano, he usually escaped any mortal consequences for his actions.

So, it is good to see in these flashbacks that they've found a balance between demonstrating the skill of the actor, with the barbarism of the character.  I'm equally hooked into the mystery of where Victor was going at the time of his death and how we'll resolve those questions.  As well as, what his will reveals about the future of Maggie as CEO of Titan.

Foremost, I completely appreciate that you've begun to post these regularly.  I feel like ever since I changed grocers to one with walk out technology, I never get to see the content of print magazines, and I miss those headlines.

However, if SOD is equating workplace harassment at DAYS with "backstage drama" then they are seriously out of touch with the cultural conversation on this topic.  To my ear, treating the humiliation of actors as gossip or "tea" is neither respectful nor informative.

I found this to be very interesting reading

For the first time, cable and broadcast makes up less than half of TV viewing

In July, linear TV made up less than half of all TV viewing, according to Nielsen. Both broadcast and cable “each represented record low shares” of total viewership, the firm’s report said, making up just 49.6% combined. Meanwhile streaming services, such as Netflix and YouTube, grew last month to a record high of 38.7% of all total TV watching.

Broadcast viewership dropped 3.6% in July, making up just 20% of all TV viewership, and cable viewing dropped 2.9%, making up 29.6%. Year-over-year, broadcast viewership slid 5.4% and cable TV dropped 12.5%.

So, let me get this straight.  At this point, Ned not only believes that he is Eddie, but he has begun dressing like Eddie.  Did he use Ned Quartermaine's credit card to buy the clothes?  Did he use Ned's driver's license to drive to the store?  Like, wouldn't that cause some question about his identity?  And does Wyndham's Department store have an aging rocker section?

Meanwhile, Curtis, a nightclub owner, and Portia, a doctor, don't seem to have sufficient disability insurance to pay for adaptive home renovations.  And Anna's homeowners insurance has yet to find her decent housing.  Maybe the scab writers are doing a meta-commentary on the WGA benefits?

4 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

watch the real Days. Victor’s storyline makes it worth watching today 

I just watched today's show, that ending really got to me.  That is the power of watching a show for years.  Very well done and respectful.

BTW case in point about not using current events for an episode filmed months ago, the Madonna on tour dialogue. G-forbid if anything unfortunate had happened to Madonna, they'd have egg on their faces.

Usually, I'm neither bothered nor concerned that DAYS tapes so far in advance.  It doesn't affect the entertainment value for me that some scene was filmed last week versus last year. 

But, lately it is distracting that they are clearly responding to cultural events from a few months ago, that are no longer news.  For example, Abe's mayoral press conference had obvious inspiration from the John Fetterman campaign.  And, while I would generally object to the trivialization of Senator Fetterman's medical issues by comparing them to a soap opera brain injury that will be magically healed by Christmas, it also feels like irrelevant at this point.

DAYS is generally too silly to try to take on social issues.  And I feel like they risk taking an issue that may have been resolved or reinterpreted since a story was pitched if they use it in the world of Salem's current events.  For example, the recent debate over the main character in the Blindside, or that little girl from TikTok who got hacked, those stories changed within moments of their original reporting, and DAYS risks being on the wrong side of history.  So, before we see a story in six months when Rachel's death is falsely spread by Leo's gossip column, I think it would be wise for DAYS to find other sources for inspiration.

Now that was both a juicy and classy exit interview!  Obviously, her foray into HR (Is recruitment HR-related?) has paid off in terms of knowing how to balance those objectives.

My overall take-away is that once again, acting is a humiliating profession.  Can imagine any other job where they tell you that you're fired, but then don't allow you to say goodbye?  It's like if Marty the cashier at Target was let go, but his manager just told his co-workers that he went on a long bathroom break...

There are people who've had entire threads frozen because they created a hostile environment with their gatekeeping and gutter sniping.  And somehow their wishes should be catered to, while the excitement of a rabid fan who feels that she's found a community is supposed to be offensive?

They seem to have derived all the humor from today's show based on the old adage that Greenland is cold and Iceland is warm.  I get that Leo is too dumb to know this, but Gwen was also conveniently unaware.

The malls in Los Angeles are being subjected to daily flash mobs stealing designer goods.  Everyone is shopping online. And, Gen Z won't know their shoe size if they never shop at a department store with those old school Brannock foot devices?

So, can't we do away with this out dated system of sizing and just buy shoes based on the actual length and width of our feet? 

@Toups Between the Top 10 songs and films, the right is certainly spending a lot of money and time this summer to be at the top of the charts.  My only wish is that waste so much money buying out cinema screenings that they don't have anything left to donate to presidential candidates. 

It's almost as if they can't rig an election, so they'll just try to rig the charts...

I wonder if the character of Morgan lasted longer, whether we would've seen more interesting generational stories?  My main problem with Sonny in 2023 is that he is still cast as a romantic lead.  Currently, he is the father to a toddler, he is planning a big fancy wedding, and he is struggling to find his one true love.  However, the optics seem weird that this old man is still motivated by the allure of courtship.

I would think that thirty years later, Sonny would be focused on managing the succession of his empire.  He should be coming to terms with who will be suitable to maintain his company.  Given that Sonny has always escaped justice, I'm not looking for someone to finally send him to jail for importing coffee.  But, it would be much more interesting to see how Gen Z gets groomed to run the business.

There was a perfect setup of Michael, the business minded one, Dante, the moral compass, and Morgan, the impulsive ne'er-do-well who all represented parts of Sonny's personality.  But, now with just Michael and Dante, there's nobody interested in continuing the mob in Port Charles.  The Godfather and Goodfellas taught us that organized crime depends on a strong family.  But, Sonny has nobody who wants to back him up. 

I guess this is now my morning routine:

1. play wordle, (send it to my group chat)
2. check in to see if @AbcNbc247 liked the DAYS episode, (avoid the trolls and gatekeepers)
3. drink a cup of iced coffee, (try to get the correct foamy top consistency)

13 minutes ago, Neil Johnson said:

It doesn't mean I do not respect Beverlee.  

Of course, I would never infer your comments as disrespectful, and I know how much you value valid historical documentation of soap history.

It was just remarkable timing that the exact issue being discussed was commented upon by the actress herself in an unrelated posting on Instagram. 

I confess that I am a sucker for any actor's performative dynamism of simultaneous benevolence and braggadocio.  Such as her spin that she didn't want star billing for only herself, but to set a precedent for every actor in daytime.  But, did anyone else feel like she was making a subtle dig at Victoria Wyndham?

The sublime Beverlee McKinsey on fighting to get soap opera actors credited billing in the openings, which she secured for herself on the… | Instagram

The brilliant Adam T. Ghani posted this today. So, perhaps Beverlee herself was the source, right or wrong, and we should respect her fight for proper credit

18 minutes ago, danfling said:

In it was in between those two times, then Erica could have been in inspiration for Rachel and both Ada and Rachel were based on Erica and Mona.

It could also be that too much is made of the comparison between Erica/Mona and Rachel/Ada.  We know Agnes Nixon was often influenced by classic movies.  So, it is equally possible that they were inspired by Mildred Pierce (1945) a classic tale of a hardworking mother and her spoiled daughter.