Planet Soap

I wish the specials would do research and find impactful ---not just the predictable--- clips from characters or decades of the show. Even have some of the actors sit around and do analysis of their characters. Every GH special is Luke & Laura, social impact like AIDS and Heart Transplants, celebrities and the mob. Dig a little deeper. This is me being nitpicky, but it seems like they dodn't even try with the graphics. Look at the fonts that they used..

This is great! It just sucks that Britt is not around. That pairing was going somewhere until they added the poorly written Carly marriage story (which could have been done better). I dont want to see him with Sam though. Pull someone unexpected not Carly or Elizabeth again. Being that this was always a possibility, they should've just said Jason went somewhere on a mission or got kidnapped rather than died. Jason had actually taken lead status from Sonny in 2017, but they show rightfully has a more ensemble function now.

At the end if the special, they announced Steve Burton is coming back...

Yes. ABC typically aires reruns (which they haven't in a while) in their original standard definition. At least Y&R digitizes them in really great HD.

Thoughts on the special so far? It's alright. I feel these specials never quite measure up though. I wish they would let some of the scenes breathe rather than just playing a soudbite from them.

The writers sure shot themselves in the foot before turning those two into the premier couple of soaps.

Thanks!

My tv guide says a 2003 classic will be airing today. It gives the year, but not the episode date. According to the description it's about JT & Brad working together to save Colleen, Nick questioning Sharon's loyalty and Kevin keeping up appearances for Lilly. According to this random website Sportskeeds the exact date is Oct 17, 2003, hopefully that's accurate and it's in the vault.

The veiled woman gives me Vanessa Prentiss vibes. Dark stories: -Margo rape ATWT. The eyes of the rapist being shown through the mask as he's on top of her. Graphic, realistic, early SVU like quality. -not a storyline but a moment: Y&R Jennifer Brooks wakes up bawling after her mastectomy. Just unsettling and tragic. Y&R Sheila baby switch, especially the farmhouse scenes -OLTL Marty's rape, and Viki's 1995 alter story -Knots Landing Jill forces Val to swallow pills at gunpoint

EDIT: With an examination of his strenghts come an analysis of his shortcomings. I totally get you @titan1978. Hard to explain it, but something about characters on OLTL or AMC for example, seems a bit more relatable than those on Y&R. I'd rather hang out with the people in Llanview than Genoa City. I remember a scene on AMC of Liza explaing to Ryan what payola is. It's broad discussions like those, the organic nature of small talk and humor felt natural. With Y&R it feels like all dialogue is plot specific. Speaking of dialogue, almost every character spoke in proper diction and vocabulary. When he tried to write slang for Dru, it sounded corny. Moreover, attempts at comedy felt awkward on Bell's Y&R. OLTL and DAYS are better at being funny.

Thanks for this topic. Speaking for Y&R specifically: 1) Show structure: YnR was very easy to follow in the 90s because there was a select group of lead characters for which other characters orbited around (Victor, Lauren, Dru, Christine...) Because characters only existed in bubbles, and everyone didn't have connections with everyone, it was easy to keep track of who is connected to who. This unlike Douglas Marland's marvelous ATWT which boasted a large cast with connections all over the map. 2) Attention to Detail: look at the Sheila baby switch plot. Bell knew he had five days a week to fill so we got to see small but important details like Lauren setting up an insurance scheme in order to get Scott, Sheila and the baby's bloods to do a DNA test. We actually saw Sheila switch the babies and go through the process of switching birth tags, foot, and fingerprints. We saw doppleganger Marge go down to the bank to practice impersonating Katherine and forging her signature before taking her place. Meanwhlie, on the modern show, they said Cameron dug a tunnel to break into into the Newman ranch--- which was not shown. Bill Bell showed us Michael building a tunnel for days to break into Christine's apartment. Classic difference. 3) Story plotting: I like his ability to stretch stories out for years and let them have big payoffs. Jack & Jill's affair, her resulting divorce from John and fallout, spanned from 1983? to 1987. Bill didn't just write for the moment, his storylines had long-term implications. Stemming from the divorce in '86, Jill remains at Jabot today. Victor taking over Jabot lasted 10 years, and his reign finally ended in that dramatic Brad and Jack take over story! I also like that his storylines were consistent throughout a year. I can pick 1995 out of the lineup and know that I am automatically going to see Nick, Sharon and Matt Clark, or Nathan and Keesha be a constant thread.

Agreed but do we have any confidence in TPTB? Every writing regime since 2005 has been a failure, each one progressively worse.

Literally never heard of Tricia until now. To my understanding, Hunter Tylo asked to be written out of the series because she felt Taylor was played out. That would be comical if the show just got someone exactly like her character to fill that void, defeating the purpose of killing Taylor. Obvious exapme but Mariah is Y&R's mea culpa for killing Cassie. Her death was a short sighted stunt move to shock the viewers, but it did not serve the show in any way.

For example, Phyliss clearly appeared to be Y&R's new Sheila. Obsessed redhead, drugs and rapes popular man, uses his baby as a weapon to keep him and break up his existing marriage. Near mirror images. Morgan Dewitt on B&B also seemed to be another Sheila fill in with similar tropes. Some have argued that Sam was GH's new Brenda. Tamara Braun's Carly even said so in an elevator scene to Sam. I don't see it because Sam is a much calmer less expressive charachter.

I second that I don't mind seeing older women continue to be involved in romance. Case and point Erica Kane or Brooke Logan (as old as the slutty Brooke trope has become). But man or woman it becomes old seeing charachters bounce around from relationship to relationship repeatedly for years (Jack on Y&R). I also don't mind older women as a protaganist. I believe that Stephanie would still be at the center of B&B if she were around, and not the "wise talk to" charachter.

Classic today!!!! Who do you all think this lady Jordan is related to??

Childhood memory unlocked! Two women from OLTL wrestlin by a Christmas tree as it began wobbling! Alan & Monica's greatest storyline and one if the best in GH history. I like Luke & Laura but Alan and Monica are my go to. More realistic stories and a couple that STAYED together for 30 years despite utter and constant turmoil. Their drama became much more serious than comical in the mid 90s however. They're at their best with a little funny edge to everything.

The 2005 scene of Stephanie slapping Brooke was my first thought! Leslie slapping Monica was a good one (7:38)

Name someone who wasn't the best actor, but fit well in their role. Ron Moss-Ridge Forrester, B&B

OLTL Tess/Jessica/Nash (2005): I liked this stor but I can see why it was disliked though. It was damaging to Viki's character to suggest her Niki persona neglected Jess, during which time she was molested. It also added to the most overused story on that soap. Y&R- Kay is Jill's mother (2003): totally unnecessary, but I did love to see Katherine's wailing and moaning

oh yes! lol

I don't doubt there were casual attitudes about violence toward women back then, but the examples given were not the best. A man returning a slap from a woman is not casual violence. It's self defence, if not fair retaliation.

Whew that story was 'stoopid' but entertaining. I'll take that over brain tumor Thomas and the manequin any day. The shift from the core four players while Stephanie was alive era (2010-2012) was crap but miles ahead of today.

I always ramble about how I liked the panic room story, lol. Can you expand on what you didn't like about it?

What bad soap story was at the very least entertaining to watch. My answer: Marlena's possession (DAYS)