yrfan1983

Thanks for posting, I've been wanting to see those scenes. But yea, sometimes the scenes sometime read better on the written recap than they play out on the screen. The scenes with the kids by Nikki's bedside were too long and boring, as well as Victor's courthouse visit. And wow, agreed, JM is bad - "Mom can't die!!" he sounds like a 5-year-old

John and Katherine went out on a date or two but it was maybe 3 eps...total non-event. Katherine's "big story" for 1997, other than nosing around Danny and Christine, was her "facial chemical peel", which everyone commented took years off her face! I assume JC had one done IRL too. Oh and Esther, forget about it... maybe mentioned twice the whole year. Wonder if they kept KL on contract... Yep Flo was sporadically around for the shooting, just supporting, and then she was there for Christmas, and I think that's it. I'm a few months into the '98 daily recaps and no Flo.

Hey everyone, I just did a deep dive on the amazing Soap Opera Central daily recap site, reading all the daily YR recaps for the year of 1997, and thought I would share my observations. I originally watched YR from 1983-94, then took a break, then started again late 2001 – 2011 (off and on). Now I’m fascinated by the ’97-01 period that I missed, where it initially seemed to really be in the doldrums but then rose up for another renaissance. I will divide my comments into 2 parts – first half and second half of ’97. The first half was ROUGH but steadily improved in the second half. Of course, my impressions are only based on the written recap, so something might have actually been better/worse on-screen. Full disclosure: I can’t stand Nick and Sharon so I skipped past all their story. First half of ‘97: - Phyllis dominated the show with her shenanigans, which I’m not a big fan of. Hard to believe that Michelle S leaves in February. She started in Oct ’94 so that’s not even 2 ½ years, but she sure made her mark on the character. Sandra Nelson starts in March and is thrown into the deep end of the Phyllis story. I haven’t seen enough of her to know if she was up to the task. - The show seems to be “all in” with the Kurt/Ashley/Hope triangle but it sounds like a non-starter. Hope, I guess, is living platonically with Victor but maybe wishes to reunite with him…? It’s unclear. Little Victor Jr aka Adam is there too but believes that Cliff is his father, and Hope wants to keep it that way so that Adam is not “drawn into Victor’s world”. - The Winters crew are very isolated in their own story and it all feels very dreary. Neil and Dru’s conflict over her career has potential, but everything is so drawn out for the entire year and going into ’98. Liv only half-heartedly marries Malcolm due to her lingering feelings for Neil. How does anyone half-heartedly marry Shemar Moore?? Dru and Liv are mostly at odds, which rubs me the wrong way because they worked so hard in the early 90s to be close sisters for the first time ever. - Nina is a hot depressed mess, pushing Ryan away, I guess because of feelings for Cole? (Apparently in spring ’97, it’s stated that Nina and Cole had sex once in fall ’96, but actually that never happened, and the writers just retroactively changed history.) It is hard for me to imagine that the Nina of ’92-’94 who was single-mindedly obsessed with Ryan would do such a 180. Flo appears sporadically the entire year until Nina’s crisis is over. - Jill is oddly given an instant family with the Dennisons. I say oddly because it’s Keith she’s moving in with, but sometimes weeks will go by where Keith is not even mentioned. The focus is more on Jill’s interactions with Tricia and Megan, where she serves as a unwanted mother figure. I guess Keith is just a plot device to get Jill near the girls. John seems to barely appear the whole year (was JerryD put on recurring?) - Nikki is in supporting mom mode, and Joshua is almost like a background player. Every couple months there is a random mention of Veronica in the institution. - Diane gets engaged to Jack, while Victor secretly flirts with her. It all sounds pretty boring but we know the good stuff is coming. - HeatherT leaves around February, with NuVicki starting in March and only lasting til around June. Victoria is then sent on an “extended international business trip” for months. - I’m not a Michael Baldwin fan but seems like the show did a good job of slowly bringing him back in the mix. Second half of ‘97: - Much of the show is still dominated by Phyllis, but she is exposed in July and then it’s much more enjoyable. Michael is pressured into working on her legal defense as a paralegal, so that’s a good conflict with Christine. - Hope and Kurt aren’t mentioned at all in July and then briefly re-appear in August to decide to move back to Kansas together. Ending that story clears the deck for much better ones. - Nina!! She is front-burner. I am a big Nina fan from the early days (pre-Ryan-obsession) and really enjoyed her arc here. Everything finally comes full circle for Nina. Her mental state reaches a crisis point after the incident where Nina accidentally shoots herself but Ryan is suspected of shooting her by the police (Salena Wiley!). She is able to get her head together while recovering in the hospital, and it all reaches a happy climax in November when Ryan offers to escort her home from the hospital and she replies “I don’t need anything from you. Go be with your lover. I truly don’t care” <Rock star cheer> Jill is used very effectively as a middle-man, trying to keep the peace between Nina and Ryan/Tricia, with grandson Phillip’s welfare foremost in mind. - Veronica!! I am all about psycho stories if they’re well done, and from the few clips I’ve seen, she seems like one of the better ones. The plot kicks into gear around September when “Sarah” gets a job as the ranch maid. People have commented that it is ludicrous Joshua wouldn’t recognize her, but she actually had major reconstructive facial surgery due to being hit by a car. - Victor and Diane get married in August, which I guess got a “worst wedding” comment by SOD because their courtship seemed too quick, like a business arrangement. But I think it sounds great because it sets up the Nikki/Diane rivalry and by the end of the year, the mood is quite deliciously heated between them. - Cole and Ashley get close while Victoria is gone the whole summer on her “extended business trip”. HeatherT returns in October but she is unable to stop the Cole/Ashley romance. I’m not a Shari Shattuck fan so this one seems like a misfire. By the end of the year, the stories are clicking overall – vast improvement from the year prior.

Sounds like you may be remembering 4/17/98 https://www.soapcentral.com/yr/recaps/1998/980413.php "Outside the office, Malcolm saw his reflection and began to imagine himself posing in front of the camera. Malcolm imagined several poses in different outfits, and he wore less for each subsequent picture. When he returned to reality, he saw Jill standing in her doorway, smiling at him."

Just realized this press release is wrong - Shemar's first day is actually the day before, May 5, when Dru first calls him. Here, at 32:00 https://youtu.be/b8C0V3_WBNM

Agreed that she had her very annoying moments in this time period, but her ballet lessons with Madame Chauvin gave us glimpses of the tender and vulnerable Dru underneath

I love how Brock sings at Katherine every time she's about to drink 🤣

Great article @will81 ! What a cushy set-up Jack Smith had in Hawaii. Yes, it seems like "head writer" can mean different things at different times. What I'm wondering is... when did Kay Alden start taking over "head duties" from Bill Bell? I've read various references (can't locate them now) that there was a gradual hand-off later in '97 and by some point in '98 Bill had officially stepped down. I just read all the daily recaps for 1997, and the first half of the year is soooo slow and boring. Things start to pick up in the second half, which I imagine is due to Kay's contributions.

Anyone know the date in ‘97 or ‘98 when Kay Alden started co-head-writing with Bill Bell?

Thank you so much - I'm sure we'd all love to see all of 1975! The YR ep where Katherine goes to AA is one offering at the Museum of TV and Radio aka Paley Center in NYC - I saw it there. Superb acting by JC.

Good find! Do you think that is a "greek restaurant"? The June 19, 1983 SOD recap says "After having spent a wonderful evening at a Greek restaurant, Nikki..."

Thank you so much @skebujebu ! Bitchy Brooke vs Drunken insecure Macy was so juicy. Bobbie Eakes did an amazing job – too bad she was written off soon after. Anyone know exactly when Macy “died” in the car crash? Winsor Harmon is sex-on-a-stick. Loved Sally being protective mama bear.

The tragedy of it all, is that a few months after TL left - Cricket's insta-family was no more: Jessica dead, Jim written off, Scott sequestered off w/Lauren. And the character of Jack was in a front-burner story with Nikki! Imagine if TL played that story instead of PB 😕

"On Tuesday, May 5, Nikki dreams of reuniting with Victor after Ashley (Eileen Davidson) is out of the picture, and Phillip (Thom Bierdz) makes plans for a future with Cricket (Lauralee Bell). The episode originally aired August 17, 1987." Anyone know what the actual airdate was? Phillip says in the episode that the current month is September.

I've struggled to understand how Victor comes off in this situation as anything other than a total selfish jerk with no moral compass. These events are only 1 year after his fairytale wedding to the love of his life, Nikki, the mother of his child. Nikki even reunited Victor with his mom. I get that Victor and Ashley were thrown together in some unusual circumstances, but he should have remembered the vows he had just made to Nikki.

Great question... I've tried to figure that out from reading the SOD '85 synopses but it's really hard to tell. Definitely Victor had an emotional affair with Ashley first - after he rescued her in spring '85 from her amnesiac- waitress- about- to- get- raped situation. But in terms of who physically slept together first - Victor/Ashley or Jack/Nikki - not sure.

Very impressive! Definitely interested, thanks

Wow, love all the detailed information you've gathered- thanks!

Melody Thomas Scott Waxes Nostalgic for 'Y&R's Victor-Nikki Episodes https://www.tvinsider.com/933199/young-and-the-restless-victor-nikki-episodes-melody-scott-thomas/

Does anyone know why Vanessa despises Lorie to this degree? I read that when Vanessa first came on the show, she wanted for Lance to never marry, so Vanessa would have Lance to herself. But in this 1981 ep, Vanessa's hatred seems to go beyond even that.

IIRC when Steven was shot and killed by some random guy in Nov '88, Leanna snuck into his office and stole his file of her, and that's what kept her secret.

They could have a stellar month of programming by replaying the entire month of June 2002, which took place on the show over the course of only one evening. Bridget overhears Brooke and Deacon talking about Deacon being the father of Brooke's baby. A reeling Bridget escapes to the Big Bear cabin, followed by Brooke, who proceeds to deliver baby Hope at the cabin, assisted by a very reluctant Bridget. Bridget then drives back to her place and tells Deacon to take a hike. Totally epic and showed the world Jennifer Finnegan's talent. And amidst all this drama, we also get to meet the mother of Erica... (dun dun dun)... Sheila Carter!

I remember Doug Davidson did a TV Guide interview at the time, trying to justify the storyline, but it was a trainwreck. I think LLB was leaving for maternity leave, so that was part of it...? But the show could have come up with another excuse for Christine leaving town besides rape! The one bright side was the show bringing Steven Ford's Andy to serve as Paul's moral compass.

Also you might be thinking of the first time Christine/Cricket was raped, which was the summer of '89 by this guy Derek. This was pre-Michael

No, it's Paul and Christine... they had an "encounter" in 2002 that the show refused to outright call rape. They would say things like "Christine didn't say yes"