j swift

Also, Kate telling Alex and Stefanie that they can't date is the exact same story as Paulina telling Rafe and Jada that they couldn't date. And, not for nothing, but both stories are a complete misrepresentation of workplace sexual harassment policies (which is no surprise given the production). A job site can recommend that people not date, or that they should inform HR, but it would be illegal to have a written policy that two consenting adults can't have a romance. I mean, it doesn't take a psychoanalytic scholar to call out the projection onto female power sources who misuse their power to tamper down the libidinal urges of their underlings.

You have to hand to Roman, because he pulled the guess that “go to hell” was a code word straight from his tush. I know he worked for the ISA, but that was an interesting, and rather sudden, solution. However, if Roman is getting a little smarter as the result of the loss of John, that is a good thing to come out of this grief. I am in the minority, but Kristen tears as she pled with Brady felt real. She seems to know how alone she is in the world after visiting Marlena and being ignored. And I felt for her that she is longing for a family after loosing her brother and her mother. People (including the board of DI) underestimate Kristen, and I think that is an intriguing part of her character. I mean, Brady's not exactly a catch (dumb, unemployed, bad dye job on his beard), so she must be motivated by more than an obsession with him specifically. I wonder if Xander buying the streaming service will be the eventual end of the B&S story? The payoff of Xander shooting the gun was silly, and could've been better used Also, did we not get a promo for this week?

It is a shame that the Winter Television Critics Association meeting was cancelled, because a panel would've provided some great insights.

Also, between Edge Jerome on GH, Anton Lang on AMC and Mark Kasanoff on ATWT, One Life to Live had to fulfill their early 90s men-with-ponytail quota. 😉

My favorite character residence of all time is the Penthouse on Edge of Night. It had a private elevator (so chic), a spiral staircase (so impractical), a large terrace (so windy), and a signature sculptural fireplace (so textural). First Margo lived there, then her daughter April moved in when her husband Draper was falsely accused of Margo's murder, and finally April gave it to her brother Miles when she moved to London. It was so good that it was featured in the final scene of the soap. The character residence that confused me the most was the Chandler Mansion on All My Children. When it was first introduced it had this signature slopping staircase in the living room that was integral to the origin story of Adam and Stuart. But in later years, the staircase was moved for a totally unknown reason, and everyone began gathering in the library. Yet, Courtland Manor was always consistent.

I think one of the oddest circumstances was Y&R's Brad Carlton, who kept moving into his wives' homes. First he lived at the Abbot Mansion with Traci, later he moved to the Newman Ranch with Nikki, and then moved to the Rawlins home after he was with Cassandra. Julie Williams on DAYS has some of the nicest homes. Not in the correct order but, she lived at the Horton House, then she was in her home with the stove that blew up. Then Bob Anderson's gorgeous mid-century place, and eventually she was first in the penthouse that Marlena moved into later. It is truly a shame that she's spending her golden years running a day care center for Chad's kids back at her grandmother's home, after years of cruise ships.

We share the same complaint, and to me, it demonstrates a lack of adaptation to the streaming medium. On Peacock (or even on Roku's DVR), you can't channel surf while you watch an episode. So, there's no need for these short scenes where it takes three cutaways before anyone finishes a thought. They still write episodes as if I might switch over to an episode of Divorce Court at any moment, so they have to keep my attention. If they don't want to use more adult language, or sexuality to conform to the perceived standards of their audience, I get it. But they need to adapt to the streaming genre and take advantage of the fact that most people are going to consume the whole episode, by writing longer, more intricate scenes.

yeah, I hit publish too soon before re-reading the original post, and then edited mine, we've all been there

At least he didn't say Alex, Rafe, and Stefan.

One of the best gifts that DEI has given the culture is the grace of unconscious bias. There is no need for people to defend their apologies by stating their intentions, because their bias was not assumed to be deliberately motivated. When a person with minority status notes that they were offended, it is an opportunity to learn more about ourselves. It is not the worst thing in the world to be called a racist, after being raised within the culture of the prior generations. After all, when is the last time you went to a museum and saw a painting about the beauty of gay love. Or turned on the radio to hear a pop song about lasting same-sex relationships. It is terrible to believe that anyone is incapable of racism, and not be willing to change.

My problem with Clyde is that there is no depth to the character. With Ben and Jordan gone, he has no family and no consequences. There is zero explanation of his motives. His source of power, wealth, and influence is completely unexplained. And, after trying to humanize him during his minor romance with Nancy, his entire persona has reverted without any cause. Besides the fact, that his victims never seem to learn from his mistakes. He constantly threatens people not to tell anyone about his plans. But, that is exactly how he's gotten away with stuff for so long. There is no reason not to share information. We don't think that he has listening devices around town, he doesn't seem to have a large force of henchmen working on his behalf. And there is power in numbers. Chad owns the newspaper. He also knows the mayor, the chief of police, the former chief of police, the richest family in town, and several CEOs of major corporations. The fact that he is repeating the mistakes of Mark and Cat is just dumb.

I felt like the interview was more purposefully obtuse. While there are obvious positive connotations to saying that the stories have become more person centered. I didn't get the sense that she was criticizing Ron. My interpretation was that Ron's vision of a campy, silly, OTT storylines no longer fit with the vision of the producer, and so he left. Neither actor was saying that they didn't like his writing, they just noted a preference for more family-driven drama. In the end, I think there is a difference between not preferring a certain style of writing, relative to how it fits with a character that one has been playing for five decades, versus saying that they felt the writer was untalented or inarticulate.

BTW, while I don't think Doc needs anyone else moving in, I'd like to see Johnny embracing more of Sami's side of the family.

The test, as always, will be the midterm elections.

I just find it ironic that they've had some good PR for the past few years by winning the WGA award a couple of years in a row, and now that won't be possible.

What a lovely and touching episode. You have to credit RonC with one thing, he writes romance for gay characters that is different from most soaps, and he created a full array of gay characters, not just a single prototype. I did laugh a little when they mentioned that it was both Marlena and Maggie's anniversary (as well as the birthday of some charaters, and the day that a lot of special events have occured over the past 59 years). Because it was as if the characters have no awareness of how special November 8th is in the rest of the television universe. I also feel like there's a lot of unnecessary inconsistencies in what everyone knows about the paralysis serum. Like, Sarah and Brady met after he was released from prison, so why didn't she tell him the whole story. And random people seem to know that Philip halted the Titan sale, but few people seem aware of the consequence. Finally, bringing up that Konstantin tried to get revenge on John for a reason that was untrue is simply too convoluted. I need to know why Konstantin didn't know that Caterina (Katerina?) wasn't dead. She was supposed to be a young woman, and they buried her. So, who did he think died and was buried. And, isn't Victor still kind of a dick for not telling Konstantin that his daughter was alive and well, and had four kids (as well as apparently never checking in on Fiona)? Anyway, I'm glad they still engrave bracelets in Salem, because in our universe Tiffany & Co. has stopped providing the service, and it is so romantic to me.

I woke up feeling hopeless, so I wrote a list of things to look forward to in 2025, and the upcoming changes at DOOL was definitely a part of that list.

Count me in as a Gwen-stan, I went to Gwen-con, and read Gwen-epedia. 😉 Except for killing Laura (which I admit is a big deal), I think she is an interesting character, and I find the actress very appealing. While I assumed that Cat will be gone by July, she's really an inherently missing variable in the F-Abby story. I imagined her to be skeptical/jealous from the start. She would be angry that F-Abby was accepted so easily, while she's struggled to find her place as Jack's daughter. And Cat would use that to her advantage to get close to Chad and triangulate him against Gwen. But, Gwen and Chad could work together at the Spectator and learn to respect each other. So, when the truth about Cat was revealed, Chad and Gwen could fall in love. Similar to how Jack and Jennifer found love.

OK, this one is admittedly a stretch, but since it was in the news, I thought that I would commemorate it here. Kate Harrison (aka Andrea Gates - GH, Molly's first surrogate), the daughter of Gregory Harrison (aka Gregory Chase - GH, Michael Sharpe - FC) is engaged/dating Chloë Grace Moretz, who just came out as a gay woman while endorsing VP Harris's campaign.

It was very similar to the plot of Sheri Anderson's first novel, “A Secret in Salem”. But, it would've taken a huge budget to pull off that plot, and it would've meant another John Black retcon, in terms of who was setting him up. Both A Secret in Salem and A Stirring in Salem were fun in terms of opening up the story in ways that were unfeasible for daytime. It is a shame both that the third part was never published, and that Beyond Salem never had the same sort of intricate plotting.

BTW, ten bucks says that Kristen bought Brady a Cybertruck. He noted that there was a long waiting list online. You know Brady is dumb enough to think it is cool. And Marlena's place probably has a charging station in the garage. 😎😉

I know they're not exactly the same but, isn't it an odd coincidence that Jessica Blake's birth name was Angelique, and her father's name was Alex; while Alex Kiriakis's mother was named Angelica?!?

Rolf? (they share so much history, and he seems to like her) Ivan? (they're both obsessive) Sarah? (I think we've all felt that vibe…)

She dropped Alex like a hot potato, and given that he's the only guy who she's never been obsessed with, it doesn't bode well for their future. Has anyone told Ava that Clyde escaped from prison? Given that she almost shot him the last time that they saw each other, it seems like she might be in danger.