Vee

There's always going to be media nitpicking of any media hit he does. And there's always going to be Dem bedwetters in Congress. What will matter to me is if it breaks or lasts beyond a few outliers and malcontents once Biden begins to put in the work. All that remains to be seen.

It's been a very long week but it's way too soon to know what the party is going to do overall about the presidency and those efforts. A lot has to happen and coalesce. Biden has been counted out so many times and I believe he can punch back. But it is going to require a lot of media work. I think the majority of the general public, flawed though it is, is more than willing to give him another win if he can meet a minimum standard of proof that he is not embalmed and undead, which I think should be easy for him. He just has to get out there and do it, with more urgency than what exists in the WH press shop right now.

I think this is a wonderful discussion with a ton of valid points, but I also think it's complicated. When Lemay came in AW had been on the air less than a decade. The Matthews were not any more deeply baked in than some of the early families or couples on other soaps in formative periods, like how Bell did a sea change at Y&R or like how certain key couples and characters got sunsetted out at ATWT, GL, etc. early on on television. Even AW had managed to turn over stars like Bill and Missy, Lee, etc. all before the Rauch regime. So I'm not sure we can say that the singular moment in time when the show was simply about the Matthewses, etc. was its purest and best form vs. the next 20+ years. And I say that as someone with very little affinity for AW, so I may just be talking out of my ass which I am known for. What I think is obvious and true is that Lemay and Rauch did not value certain key stars and connective family tissue as much as they should've. It was a massive mistake letting Jacquie Courtney walk who could've shored up so many new arrivals or storylines if they'd had any respect for her, and there were other interesting Matthews family characters that could've been bolstered or brought back, and found better recasts for. (I'm not convinced the twins in their adult forms were the most fascinating options, but I do like Lionel Johnston.) The other key problematic issue is Lemay loved to invest in Broadway/NYC theater talent for roles on his show who would inevitably leave quickly when they got a more exciting gig elsewhere, so you had a revolving door of mostly cosmopolitan characters and some hardscrabble ones, all played by high-end urban actors who would all dip when the next muse surfaced. That's turning over a ton of the canvas often throughout the '70s with little time put into recasts, or putting down stronger roots with some more lasting characters. By the '80s Iris is gone, most of Lemay's fairhaired stars are gone, and what do they do but flounder for much of the next several years and onward? You could've forestalled some of that by investing more in some of the Matthews characters, or marrying them to some of those chic newcomers. What happens if you get a better Willis recast or actually (gasp) recast the enigmatic Carol Lamonte, or others?

I like Gio. But as I said before, what is 'there' of the character? He's a nice boy who plays pretty music. Unless you're gonna go into a hot and heavy summer story with Trina rediscovering her passion with this innocent young man (good luck with the social media outcry watching a Black woman seduce a sweet white kid), there's not many layers yet. He seems to have little flaw. I wouldn't dump him or anything, but there needs to be a hook found. Maybe perfect musician Gio has a drug or self-harm habit related to his obsessive skills, or his imposter syndrome, etc. As for Ava, if this show wanted to get really real they'd finally reveal what I've suspected since before Avery was born: That she is Morgan's, and that Carly has known for her entire life. She kept it from everyone because she knew Morgan was not ready to raise a child and wanted him kept away from Ava Jerome's influence. Then I'd kill the kid, and then the truth would come out.

I'd forgotten about Tracy-Ann Oberman's unfortunate social media hijinks. Great actress but I can't see how she's needed on the show today. Was Cindy's return actually a flop? I wasn't aware one way or the other. I definitely think it was a stunt and part of the same tiresome Americanized trend others have mentioned in this thread above me, sure, but I didn't know that it (or bringing on her ex, family, etc) hasn't had some success. It seemed as though people had taken to Colin Salmon's character at least.

My concern is about the alleged private polling out of some blue wall states (MI, PA, etc.) that is apparently newly bad, where Trump supposedly has opened up like a considerable multi-point lead since the debate. I don't usually go in for this kind of stuff and I think most people know that about me, but if it's real I don't think it can be ignored. I agree Trump hasn't increased his base and has continued to bleed loyalists since 2016. He will always turn the independent off and lose more. That is his major weakness. My concern now is getting Biden in front of the cameras as much as possible to prove who he still is, and pushing back on the Times, A.G. Sulzberger and much of the Beltway media's concerted campaign to take revenge on him for their boredom and loss of access and book deals over the last four years, so he can regain momentum and strength. Then there's the big donor revolt he needs to stop. There is a lot of 2016 in this summer in that the press were bored, put their thumb on the scale against the Democrat they deeply resented and were tired of and are ignoring Trump bc they think he is baked in (and also fun for them). The difference is Hillary never gave them the kind of opening Joe did last week. We're lucky it's early.

I feel this thread is a fairly accurate take. I also feel the media are absolutely overplaying their hands in glee. I do think it's hurt him in some quarters, and I do think (since I first posted that, as we've seen some numbers since) it's getting bad. But I also still think it may yet be too early and too much from the media (which loves to count him out) if the WH is prepared to play this out and get him out in front of enough people and unfortunately, enough craven Beltway talking heads strongly and forcefully. It's going to be work. But fortunately, it's also still July. In the end, if he can push back hard with a full court media blitz and play this out, I think it can burn itself out by the end of the month (if not earlier) and leave them nowhere to go. But we'll see.

It is peanuts. As I said it does nothing to damage Sonny's bottom line or make a move on him. If Ava wanted to get away clean she should've met Natalia in public, plied her with drinks and then been able to blame it on someone like DeWitt targeting Blaze's mother. But still, what does this get her tactically? Nothing. It's just the show meandering.

This I don't remember, but Ron's insanely bitchy anniversary post 'congratulating' GH a couple years ago on IG was nuts.

A small thread:

I like Kamala, but the media has always liked to pick at her and drill down into her and her team as supposedly inept, and as a woman of color I think she faces an uphill battle in such a hyper-polarized, racist country atm which has had all its bigotry and misogyny given expanded license since Trump first came down the escalator. Still, the Beltway media circuit may now hate and resent Bidenworld even more. They would have to totally refresh overnight if Harris became the nominee, and they're not ready for that. I think Kamala Harris could serve and lead well if needed. But I hope it does not come to her having to go head to head against Trump this year (and I really don't think it will). I think that would be very tough. (I also think Buttigieg is a very skilled politician but is in no way ready.)

Towne was a complicated man but a screenwriting legend. Shampoo, The Last Detail and the imperfect but often brilliant lesbian sports drama Personal Best (a clear precursor to Challengers) stay with me especially. I do wonder if his Chinatown prequel series with David Fincher for Netflix will now happen.

That's not that unusual for the party bedwetters, though. Eventually most of them will fall in line. And again, this is all too early, too soon, the media has shot their wad too early gleeful at the thought of finally getting revenge on Boring Biden, and Trump is too stupid to not screw up more. I think the interview is just part of that. I agree he will need to do much more. And I agree they need to let Joe be Joe. But I also don't think voter concern is as strong as that of the media. Despite some polls.

Honestly: Who cares? The center sucks and is a discussion point, it has never existed onscreen. It bogs down Kristina in nothing work that only resonates offscreen vs. being active on the show. I'm ready to see the back of it.

Sure, but she should've started with that IMO. And also advanced her position in his life more before this in order to gather more ammo. But Korte wanted Hero Sonny away from Ava, so.

Two things can be true: Natalia deserves what she gets, and Ava is a villain who is doing good scheming. But this is very light work frankly. What does this do to damage Sonny or harm his bottom line? Nothing. It fúcks with his romantic life. Ava needs bigger guns.

I have reached the 'media is overplaying its hand too early' stage yet again with our Current Miseries re: Diamond Joe. It's too early, there is a lot of road left this election and they absolutely cannot shut up. They're burning the Old Joe topic out. Meanwhile Biden just booked a sit down interview with George Stephanopoulos and will surely be doing a lot more to prove he is not a dribbling invalid ready for Shady Pines. So I think in a month or two this will be burnt. Or at least I hope so. YMMV.

I will say I loved Ava telling Sonny flat-out: Don't forget who I am and what I am capable of. That is something too many in the audience have forgotten. They whine about the writing for Ava in recent months and say it's unfair but this is who Ava is, period. My issue is with how they moved her out of her cunning schemer position to one where is now weaker atm and more obviously able to be potentially picked off. There are better ways to do this, but I don't think Korte cares. I cannot believe the surrogacy is still going. Just kill the damn baby. Mansi is meant for much better than this, she's carried a lot of the show in recent months. I honestly don't care about the center and clearly the writers do not either. It has always been an invisible offscreen concept. Give her an active role in an up and coming, existing physical space on the canvas. Not working at some social work facility or tending bar.

I would still bring Justus back and blame Witness Protection. If Joe Phillips isn't too crazy online these days I'd be tempted to bring him back as another Q elder, but I can see an argument for aging Justus down a bit and making a recast a viable option for Portia. And I would recast Keesha, though my ideas there end in 'fúck with the fangurls by giving her lots of scenes with Steve'. I still wonder what the hell they had planned for Zoe that never got off the ground in the late 2000s. I think maybe she was supposed to be for teen Michael?

Eh, I'm not prepared to dump Drew now until the writing really craters for him again. But we'll see! There's plenty of Qs and Wards to add though.

I have commented many times on how idiotic it is that they brought on a Black youth named "T.J." who was not Tommy Hardy. And wasted Tequan Richmond, who I loved. But oh well. I have little time for T.J., but I would add more Black doctors among other characters. And probably bring back Maya Ward and her phantom sister.

Oh, big time. Starting with Thomas Hardy Jr.

I get the issue, but I think they did okay with that by letting Stella and co. take the reins after a certain point in the scenes. I think it does well to have a beloved character like Kevin dispense the info up front. It's a balancing act.

I think a lot of stuff really worked. But it's impossible to know what most of his stories were going to be, beyond the early stuff with Citizen Drew Q which I've really liked a lot. I suspect a lot of what we got was also watered down even before the screen - the network simply does not have the stones it used to content-wise. I've been rewatching OLTL's rape trial story from '93 in its entirety lately and it seriously holds up, but what struck me today was the subplot and backstory where Luna Moody reveals she was raped by the Klan, who burned down her New Age store in the South and killed her Black employee - the store being destroyed had been a minor backstory point for several years, I think, before this was elaborated. Would ABC/Disney let them be that explicit about who did it today? I'm not sure. Those Kevin scenes re: Marshall and systemic Black medical misdiagnosis was daring and transgressive enough. I would like to hold out hope ABC won't be satisfied with status quo when Jonathan returns and we'll see another change. Who knows. I certainly never thought Frank would be forced to let ME go after toppling Mulcahey. This is why I've always fúcking hated this cheap-ass opening. Get three Dantes and it's jackpot!