j swift

Putting aside that this is another double wedding, in a living room, and only the immediate family are invited (except Johnny), with dresses from the corner store, I like this group of characters enough to enjoy the episode.  I also always enjoy the soap fantasy that not only does Jada have a fabulous dress on hand to wear to a wedding at a moment's notice, but that she can pull herself together in her tiny room, after sex, and still look stunning.  Just like every guy in Salem who owns a tux, regardless of their income status.

To be fair, Johnny messed up a wedding at the mansion last year, and I don't know that he's ever shared a memorable scene with Stefan, so maybe they didn't want to take any chances.  Salem is sort of like The Sims, they can't have too many NPCs on one lot (iykyk).

The only egregious error for me was the dream fake-out.  To put Eric yelling at Sloan in the promo, and then have it revealed as a dream, is so annoying.  Meanwhile, her plan felt misguided because wouldn't Nicole immediately suspect Sloan stole the DNA results when she was told that someone else at the hospital had already picked them up?  Characters on DAYS become conveniently oblivious whenever the plot requires it.

And, on second thought, double weddings have been a tradition in Salem, including Maggie & Micky with Melissa & Pete, because I am feeling generous, I will even forgive that today. 

48 minutes ago, janea4old said:

Variety and The Hollywood Reporter and a whole bunch of others are all part of Penske Media Corp. 

Yes, they are, (as is Rolling Stone, Billboard, WWD, SHE Media, & Deadline), and their bias is quite clear.

Variety's homepage today does not have any news about the strikes and The Hollywood Reporter's strike page only contains stories about how the heat is affecting the strikers, the studio's loss of money due to the strike, and projects being cancelled.

I was listening to two actors on a podcast discuss how the trades like Variety and The Hollywood Reporter are siding with AMPAS because their ad revenues are dependent on the studios.  It really made think twice when I read headlines like this one.

Because they are crafting a narrative that creatives are willfully withholding their talent, in order to shift public support against the actors and writers.  To me this is a perfect example, because the strike has nothing to do with a comedy festival, but pairing the two ideas reinforces the narrative.  They want Joe Six-pack to focus on the idea that the strike robs him of the opportunity to have fun, rather than informing him of how issues in this strike will set a precedent for how many type of labor that will deal with AI.  Prior examples included the list of things that actors can't do during the strike, which has been widely shared on social media but includes many factual errors, like that actors can't podcast or sing.

@antmunoz Thank you for the recommendation.  I went to listen to her on YT and I adore her tone and her phrasing, so lovely.

2 hours ago, carolineg said:

I am wondering if we are watching a full day for people in certain stories (Abe, Li) and that same day over again for other (EJ/Nicole/Eric).  What I am trying to say is Monday's show on Days is Monday, but Tuesday's show is meanwhile elsewhere in Salem's full day on Monday.

I think that's an excellent theory.  Everybody knows that people in Salem have a fondness for repeating themselves, so it makes sense that we are seeing the same hour replay over several days.

I'm starting to think we're actually seeing EJ's twin, CJ, because I don't recall him being so amusing.  The whole Lamaze/Little League teasing of Eric was fun, and I enjoy a bit of banter rather than having grown men rage at each other all the time.  Having seen the actor in web interviews, it seems like the writers are finally adjusting the character to play on his charismatic strengths.

Eric is my current favorite guy in Salem.  His relationship with Brady and Sloan are highlights for me.  The only saving grace of Brady waiving a gun in front of his daughter, was the scene when he had to explain it to Eric.  Eric wasn't judgmental, but he also didn't support Brady's impulsive behavior. To paraphrase En Vogue & Salt N' Pepa, what a mighty mighty good man, and I can see why everyone wants to have his baby.

My only note for EJ's character is that I wish the writers would clarify his stakes in wanting to be a father as much as Eric.  EJ seems motivated by wanting to keep Nicole. But, why not emphasize the idea that EJ missed out on so much of Johnny's upbringing (due to being dead for a while) that he really wants to go to Little League and school meetings?

Wait a minute. 

What time are Eric and Nicole going to the hospital if Li is going on his date at the same time?

Also, this is Li's second date, and Abe was rescued the day of his first date, so did Paulina wait a day to see in Abe in hospital?

And are Dimitri, Gwen, Gabi, & Stefan just walking up to people to invite them to their respective weddings?  Whatever happened to invitations?  And honeymoons?

I think Charles Bateman was a great CC in contrast to Lane Davis's Mason.  They both had a familial pomposity.  Their rivalry made me understand Mason's motives.  And, I still enjoy watching Bateman's reaction to Mason outing Channing.  It is a well written script that is well played.  Because, we assume that CC will be dismissive and cruel to Channing's lover, but he visibly buries his rage and transfers all of his anger onto Mason.  I think of all the CC's, only Bateman was best for that episode because he was so good saying a line, while showing his inner conflict.

That being said, I don't think that he was well suited for the romantic triangle with Lionel and Sophia.  Jed Allen was sexy, charming, funny, with a little menacing anger at the same time.  If Bateman was still in the role, the audience would never have accepted that Sophia preferred him over Nic Coster's suave Lionel. 

In terms of Santana, I tend to think it was less about the actress, and more about Robin Mattson as the re-cast of Gina.  Prior to the recast, Gina was a nervous wreck.  Much like Blanche in Streetcar, it was easy to believe that Gina married Stockman Demott because she had always relied on the kindness of strangers, which is what attracted her to CC.  But, once Gina is recast, she gains more agency, stops being a drug addict, and becomes a more reliable antagonist for Eden.  In contrast, Santana goes from being a glamorous seductress whom men want to possess to a drug addicted nervous wreck. 

After a while, Eden didn't need two antagonists, and Santana's story was much less interesting.  Coupled with a biased soap press who at first praised SB for having a multicultural cast, and then blamed the poor ratings on the audience's rejection of the multicultural cast, Santana never stood a chance.  

Furthermore, I would argue that once Brandon was SORASed a bit, and his relationship with Gina became popular because of how it humanized Gina, (and Keith), Santana was always going to be the odd-woman out when it came to her desire to raise Brandon.  I liked Gina as Brandon's mother, and every time Santana would return, she always felt like an interloper.  To be fair, Santana's argument that she was Brandon's biological mother didn't hold much weight, considering Gina had raised him since birth.

4 hours ago, Carlos Abad said:

the fake polo field green screen with C.C., Kelly and Peter is just too much. It looks so fake and cheap

It's funny that you mention the polo field, which they return to later in the series, because I think the beach set is so much worse.  The sound of the waves and the lighting is all wrong for an outdoor scene.  The set is so small that all the action takes place within two square feet, but somehow they still play those scenes where two characters are talking, yet the third character doesn't hear what they are plotting.  And that whole hang gliding episode is confusing because everyone seems to be looking in a different direction.

26 minutes ago, Broderick said:

While we appreciate your progressive suggestion, but we respectfully decline your proposal.   A 90-minute serialized drama seems too far removed from practicality to be considered any further. 

LOL - well at least it was respectful, I'm off to CBS...

Also, let's not forget that four longtime cast members were quoted in the Deadline story, so they've done their part to make this story public.  I mean, someone leaked it from inside the production.

I think you risk veering into the territory of victim shaming when you emphasize that actors are responsible for voicing their displeasure in a public forum, which I am certain is not your motivation, but it should be a consideration.

Clutch catch @JAS0N47 - maybe it happened during Jan's pregnancy? Or the mystery continues...

28 minutes ago, chrisml said:

Didn't Kari Wuhrer sue her and the network?

from People Magazine, January 2006:

"[Kari] was told by a producer of the show that the writers had refused to accommodate her pregnancy and that she was dismissed because of it. " And Kari is not the only one who believes this to be true – another GH actress, Lesli Kay, says that she was fired for the same reason, and will be testifying against ABC. They believe that there is an "anti-pregnancy attitude on ABC soap operas and that actresses on the daytime programs are left with the choice to either terminate their pregnancies or lose their jobs….Even one whiff that an actress on an ABC daytime soap has conceived a child is enough to have her character killed off the show,"

Not to go too far afield, but Amniocentesis is a standard procedure in 90% of pregnancies of women making more $60,000 in the US.  It is done by DNA, not just blood type.  And Vicky was pregnant with Steven in 1989, prenatal care has progressed 34 years later, which is the point of this topic.

BTW, I read speculation that the "haircut" story is attributed to Brandon Beemer.  Which would make sense given that he's been on recurring and may have gotten a haircut outside of production between episodes without seeking approval.  His hair notably changed between Bo's shooting and Shawn's return to Salem.  Also, on his social media, he is currently vacationing on Cote De'Azure while the rest of the cast has returned from hiatus.  And, given the speculation about his co-star Martha wiping her socials of mentions of DAYS, it all fits.

28 minutes ago, Cat said:

Jessel came across less harsh also. It's clear her roommate-marriage is in serious trouble. Having to hide the pain and trauma of multiple failed IVFs from family and friends was an a-ha moment.

I found her a-ha moment to be fascinating.  The reason that I watch housewives is that I am thrilled when we see honest reactions in fly-on-the-wall situations, rather than the preformative games and other types of forced interactions.

But, it was an interesting editorial choice that Jesel is later shamed for feeling bad about her body in lingerie, which admittedly was poorly expressed, while the other women were not judged for continuing to harangue her about having sex when she just admitted such an intimate detail about her life.  I mean, the women seem much more sensitive to Ubah's cultural differences than Jesel's.  Even the reactions to Jesel's mother are only told through an outsider's gaze, and they never appreciate how Jesel feels about not being able to share her IVF struggles with her mom.

Also, they're never going to convince me that these women are close friends when they keep referring to her as "Jenna Lyons" rather than just using her first name.

At least four of the dozen sources in the Deadline article were said to be established or long term actors.  We can have fun trying to guess their identity.  But, one can safely assume that they remained anonymous due to concerns about the vindictive nature of their managers.  Validating the argument, that there is no moral objective for actors to make a statement either on social media or in the press.

@DRW50 Agreed, I feel like it is just as unfair to burden actors with making a statement about this case which may affect their workplace relationships as it to judge those who will continue to work under these conditions.

 @1974mdp Regardless of the history of women as writers and producers in the genre, there have always been men at the various networks, production houses, and promotional agencies who misused their authority to hinder the creative and managerial decisions of the soaps.

Also, @te. I know you're simply noting the traction that the story has received, but it is evidence of the disgraced nature of the soap press that most outlets have simply culled the original Deadline article, no other "journalist" has sought additional sources or done any original reporting on this story for almost 24 hours.

It is interesting that at the beginning of the Loving Murders, Clay, Steffi, and Jeremy were all out of town at the same time.  Looking back, I wonder if that was to absolve them as suspects, or if it was a production issue prior to firing certain actors (like making an employee take their PTO prior to a layoff)?

Also, amusing how Loving predicted future tech by having Clay use VR to imagine his past.

Thirty years later, I feel so dumb about being surprised by the identity of the murderer when the clues were so obvious all along.

Thought of another one.

The use of DNA for amniocentesis - GH still uses the old plot of a family figuring out paternity when a loved one has an accident and someone has to donate blood.  Meanwhile, amnio tests have been standard since 1982, and in California it is a free option for prenatal care. So, it is unlikely that parents wouldn't know the genetic origins of their early adult children.  And don't get me started on why soap couples visit their OB-GYN in the hospital rather than their office, especially given the number of soap infants born in cabins during poor weather conditions!

Dimitri is kind of like Paulina in that I keep asking myself, how do they fill their time?  They both seem like they were busy executives before moving to Salem, and now they have nowhere else to go during the day.  They managed large teams of people, and now they hardly make a phone call.

The EJ DNA story is being telegraphed a little too obviously.  But, it seems inconsistent that last week he was worried that he might not be the father, yet this week he seems oblivious, to the point of asking the doctor about the gender rather than the paternity of Nicole's baby.  Also, he's got three other kids, but doesn't he know that they'll need his DNA for amniocentesis?  Finally, it was funny that they didn't mention that EJ was unable to make the prior appointments because he had been kidnapped by his half-sister, and stuck in the cellar for two weeks with his aunt.

IRL, if they were having two weddings in your house (mid-week), would you schedule an appointment with your Ob-GYN for the same day?

Agreed, @AbcNbc247 actors should not be punished for the actions of the production, just as it is not the moral burden of the audience to make sure that the team at Sony makes the correct decisions in this case. 

Please note that my question was motivated because I enjoy reading your critiques each morning, so I was curious if you would continue.

32 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Re: Corday

This can't be kept under wraps now. Something needs to be done. And fast

Given that you record your daily reactions, will you continue watching knowing this information?  No judgements either way, just wondering, since you appear to be the most consistent viewer on this thread.

It is intriguing that since the investigation was confidential, someone must have leaked the information to Deadline.  Hopefully, it does not bode well for Mr Alarr's future ability to manage his team that the reporter was able to gather information from multiple sources; including Sony, which seems to have been forced to reply once the allegations were leaked.

1. We have the "DoOL veteran" who said that he took the ball and ran with it,
2. an additional "source" noted that he belittles people,
3. a "longtimer" who said that everything he says is inappropriate,
4. the other one who called it a frat house,
5. then two additional sources are referenced with regard to his disrespectful directing style,
6. the actor who was groped,
7. and the one who wasn't given a proper sheet from the prop department. 
8. additionally, two staffers brought up the missing HR issue
9. and the two who leaked that they went to Corday directly with their complaints.

By my count, that is a dozen people who were willing to comment to Deadline.  For comparison, I went back to check the recent story about improprieties at CNN, a much larger production, and that story only had five sources.

It just makes me sick and filled with shame to think that all of those recent scenes that seemed sexy and liberated were really just times when actors were being abused and disrespected.

It will be difficult to watch future episodes and not associate them with this article.  I purposely didn't watch today for that reason, and I don't know if I'll be able to watch it tomorrow without feeling terrible for the humiliation that these actors have been put through.

Allow me to go back in time to 1979 and make the fanfic pitch to expand Another World to 90 minutes, as I think it might have been proposed.

We've tried two spin-offs of Another World in order to engage our audience to stay on NBC throughout the day.  Somerset in 1970 and Lovers and Friends in 1977.  With Somerset, we tried a direct spin-off and initially called it Another World II, but multiple changes in the cast and writing staff meant that the tone began to differ too much from Another World, and they no longer seemed to exist in the same universe, or attract the same audience.  With, Lovers and Friends we established a tenuous connection between the Cushing and Cory families, and tried to maintain Harding Lemay as a head writer, but the work proved to be too much for him and the new writing staff could not maintain his quality.

So, what if rather than giving the time back to the affiliates, or try to make another new soap, we just expanded the current cast of Another World and make it into a 90-minute show?  We won't need to pay for another production staff, because we can use the camera men, editors, and post-production team that are already in place.  WGA-East has not yet formed, so we don't need to worry about labor costs for the writers.  Most households are loyal to one network because remote controls won't become standard with new TVs for two more years.  And we can entice the audience to stay by book ending their favorite performers at the beginning and the end of the episode.   

We'll start with some special episodes, expand the cast slowly, and be able to tell stories about a broader array of ages and economics. 

In my mind, that's always how I believed they pitched it.

I know Paulina was convinced not to bulldoze the square, but does she still own an interest in the property there.  If so, that new police commissioner was awfully dumb to talk crap about Paulina and Chanel.  I know she's in crisis, but Price Town seems to run itself.  I mean, Maggie works twice as hard as a business owner.