Planet Soap

On 7/14/2023 at 4:23 PM, Soaplovers said:

I think people, and studios, assume that Fran Drescher is Fran Fine... and that is a very bad thing to assume.  As she proved in this video, she isn't Fran Fine.   

Yup! First time I've ever seen her upset. 

Great self reflective scene from Tony reguarding his affair with Carly. He broke it down masterfully. RIP Bobbie.

It's a dig but I believe this channel has some early 70s bit definitely late 60s material.

On 7/11/2023 at 2:44 PM, ranger1rg said:

I like Deacon, but not with Sheila. I don't see ANY chemistry between them.

Their conversations? We're getting the same ones we always get between them. BOLD acts like it's some great moment every time Sheila returns, but those moments ended LONG ago. Sheila reeks of a character who should have been killed off.

Sheila's best material was up to about 1995 with decent stuff into 2002. Everything thereafter has been cartoonish minus a few good moments in her 2005 plot. Sheila should have been tamed to nefarious scheemer and not full blown psyco. It puts the writers in the corner. She can't be integrated into the main cast of the show and we always have to suspend disbelief that she isn't in prison.

Wow this is unexpected! Grew up with her on Passions. Much too young.

On 7/9/2023 at 7:23 PM, bboy875 said:

Josh really said that to Reva? Didn't the guy molest her when she was 6? At the 1990 emmys, they showed the clip of her confronting the guy when she won the emmy. Had I known he said that I would've never wanted her to get back together with him 

Guiding Light 1994, Alexandra sees Roger looking kind of lost, "Roger, you look like you've lost something. What are you looking for, your soul?" 

yes he did, when Reeva tried to break him and Annie up.

At 16:45 

My vote is OLTL during the Gary Tomlin era from 2001-2002. Funny moments from Todd, Asa, Nikki Smith and Alex especially during this period. It balanced the comedy drama aspect and the show won an emmy.

Erica, AMC:

"Saint Maria of Wildwind, tending to the sick in her push up bra"

"Tone deaf little girls with eye glasses like coke bottles and ankles the size of logs" 

"What's the matter Brooke, can't take it? well, I know it hurts being third rate, but aren't you a custom to it yet?"

"....who have contributed to my undoing" 

Others:

"trapped inside the shell of an aging whore". Viki OLTL.

"you'll go after anything in pants so long as it gets you what you want. Just like when you were a little girl, Reeva, remember, you like that man touch you?"~ Josh GL

"Since that fabric you haven't produced very much...except for procreating which you do so well. But as far as producing something other than an unwanted pregnancy..." ~ Stephanie (to Brooke) B&B.

5 hours ago, YRfan23 said:

 I can't believe some people are upset that they aired a true classic over the current crap....It's frustrating. 

Agreed. They can't give up one day out of 300+ to show actual quality soap? Lol.

2 hours ago, soapfan770 said:

Y&R’s PSA’s were always awkward and embarrassing compared to anything on ATWT, GL or the ABC soaps but Bell always liked telling them as he felt it was important. The last really distinctive one I remember was back in 2003 when a couple of Arab/Middle Eastern executives of Newman Enterprises who came to visit their boss Victor came to visit Genoa City on Fourth of July briefly discussed the possibility the post 9/11 resentment hysteria of anti-Muslim sentiment in the US with Victor, Jack, and Neil. Yet somehow all Neil could muster up and say was “Ya I feel ya man”. Major yikes. 

Yeah Y&R's attempts at social issues felt very after schhol special-ish, especially for a soap rooted in grounded storytelling. Ironically the show featuring rocks and weather machines was more adept at tackling matters like AIDS.

The sassy snarky girl (sometimes mean girl) Victoria Y&R, Fallon DYNASTY

3 hours ago, Cheap21 said:

bc American Horror Story isnt a great brand, especially in recent seasons. Tying this to that wouldnt have helped it and in fact would have hurt it. People also would have felt AHS fatigue especially since there is another spinoff going. There's also the fact that this isnt a horror show. AHS leans into the supernatural nad sci-fi and Monster is firmly rooted in reality without the fictionalization that AHS does when it loosely uses real life figures. Monster felt so different to the point that people didnt realize it was a Ryan Murphy show

I'm speaking about "American Crime Story" as in The People vs OJ Simpson and Impeachment, not "American Horror Story". 2 different shows.

I genuinely want to know if Brad Bell does not see the issue with the repetition in his writing? Is he not privy to the repeated frustration with the repeated triangle?

When Brook Ridge and Taylor were doing the merry go round, was it every single year like this?

When you mix and match relationships this frequently, it makes it meaningless and unimpactful to the audience. 

Somehow, this is one of the last soaps to survive the purge???

23 hours ago, Liberty City said:

 

Good for him! I wonder why Murphy didnt do this or Dahmer under the brand of American Crime Story on FX. I'm also surprised that they are revisiting the story when Law and Order True Crime did a pretty decent job of tackling the Menendez brothers trial.

I was hoping American crime story would cover one of (or both of) the Michael Jackson trials.

On 6/14/2023 at 2:01 PM, Faulkner said:

 I find a lot of HBO series insular, nihilistic, and fashionably bleak, but you’ve made me do some fresh thinking on this one.

I’m glad the writer of the article seems to genuinely value soaps and their performers, which puts it a cut above most of these pieces.

Exactly my thoughts on so many HBO shows. I like that soaps make you feel warm.

I have tried to get into succession, but a lot of the financial talk, feels esoteric. I have tried to get into succession, but a lot of the financial talk, feels esoteric. Maybe I haven't watched it enough, and perhaps it's like the Sopranos were the best parts of the show have to deal with Tony's personal and family drama.

It's very refreshing to read an article with beyond surface level knowledge of soaps like Luke & Laura and Erica Kane. I was amazed at the past and present knowledge and analysis the author provided. 

I love the comparison that shows like GH tried to copy primetime but fates reversed  in that a lot of streaming content takes serial and plot elements of soaps. 

1 hour ago, Liberty City said:

Except, they were not hired to save the soap. The plan was for General Hospital to go off the air sometime later in 2012, but the success of what led up to the 50th caused them to re-considering ending the soap.  Frank Valentini was able to tighten the budget, etc. and they got [some] veteran actors back, which brought some good press. But, their hiring was not to save the soap. It was to ride out the end of the soap.

Makes sense.

On 6/26/2023 at 1:53 PM, Franko said:

You need at least one self-identified outsider. They don't have to be from the wrong side of the tracks, but by design, intent or circumstance, they should feel out of sync if not isolated from others in their circle.

Early Carly on ATWT!

Types:

Benevolent Matriarch (Burt GL, Viki OLTL)

Femme Fatale (Claudia GH)

Grand dame (Alexandra GL, Kay Y&R)

Domineering patriarch (Asa OLTL, Palmer AMC, Victor Y&R)

Social climbing scheming Girl [often from the wrong side of the tracks] (Carly GH, Tina OLTL)

Psycottic villain (Cameron Y&R, Mitch OLTL)

Methodical/mental villain (Adam Y&R)

Supervillain (James Stenbeck, Stefano Dinera)

On 6/10/2023 at 3:40 AM, Chris B said:

The Bell soaps were great at this back in they day and it added so much to the show. With them being studio bound, having those characters enhanced the richness for some characters and made up for what they couldn't show.

I've been watching B&B and am currently in 1992 and the recurring characters add so much to the show. Maria isn't a major presence, but the Forresters would have to have help, so it makes sense having her there. Then at Spectra, you have Darla and Saul who are both incredible. I also feel like by having these characters, you can expand them and give them story as needed, like what happened to Darla.

Yes Y&R was the best with charachters like Lynn, Miguel, Carole, Phyllis's babysitter, John Silva, Esther and others.  Regularly seeing the same faces  as secretaries, lawyers or maids, adds another level of consistency to a show. 

On 6/9/2023 at 10:37 PM, P.J. said:

It has to be Doug Marland's ATWT. *Cries for the days when hospitals had consistent specialists, more than one nurse, millionaires had actual staff, corporate heads had trusty (or in some cases, not so trusty) assistants, out of town family kept in touch and occasionally visited, etc, etc, etc.*

I think that's why I find it so hard to follow old school ATWT, because there are so many characters that I know nothing about . The cast wasn't as segregated as Y&R, so everyone has some connection to everyone which gets hard to follow.

On 6/10/2023 at 12:18 AM, David_Vickers said:

GH has many today.  

Way too many, who serve no purpose. At least on Y&R all of the recurrings has a set function. Esther was support for Katherine, Lynn was Paul's right hand, Phyllis's babysitter Joni served as her talk to as well as low level accomplice.  GH has a whole bunch of faces who are there either as stunt casts or people that get a storyline for a week which picks up again a month later.

Given GH's emotional and humanist storytelling in the nineties, I wonder how Claire Labine and/or Bill Levinson under Wendy Riche would work on AMC.

On 6/25/2023 at 9:26 AM, Liberty City said:

Ron Carlivati would absolutely TANK The Young and the Restless into oblivion, but he'll never get the chance to touch the soap.  Sony/CBS don't want him there.

I've heard a lot of controversial stuff about how Frank Valentini and Ron Carlivati handle shows. Who do you think is more so the problem between them?

Furthermore considering that Frank and Ron's OLTL got canceled, why would ABC consider them to save GH? (Which they did a decent job of in 2012).

Interesting thread. I'm curious as to what a Frank Valentini/Ron Carlivati run on Y&R would look like in the post Bill Bell era. I'm sure that pairing would be able to capture Y&R's's old school, dark vibe, sort of what they brought to OLTL's in the 2000s.

William J Bell could write for AMC.  Grounded storylines with sort of a glamour/business aspect and middle aged characters.

I'd put put Aaron Spelling on B&B.

22 hours ago, yrfan1983 said:

2001 has some shocking moments but ones I found quite entertaining... I'll never forget the moment, I think either May or June, when

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Deacon takes Bridget's virginity while Eric, Brooke and Rick listen helplessly on the other end of the phone line.

 

Ironic that we're talking about the early 2000s as I finally took the time to watch some of Soap Fanatic's Deacon and Amber material from about 2000. This was the shows silver era, completely tabloid! If I have my facts straight, Rick basically brought Deacon to town only for Deacon to sleep with both his sister and mother!

On 6/15/2023 at 3:48 PM, Soapsuds said:

 

Great interview, but one thing that stood out is Linden liking the rushed storyline pace. He also enjoyed that Cameron came to town fully crazy not methodical or playing mind games.

There in lies the problem. As he acknowledged, for a medium that airs five episodes weekly, burning through material quickly isn't in their best interest. They're rushing through this storyline to return to a state of stasis. Very B&B of them.

I don't mind that Cameron returned ready for action, but the plot didn't have to get resolved so rapidly, especially because this is the most excitement they've had in years.

On 6/6/2023 at 2:04 AM, Darn said:

Because they are lazy unimaginative writer(s). Y&R's villains used to have underlings as their calling card. Now we have Cameron back for a month long story that will amount to nothing. I don't know why they bother.

The same with Mitch Lawrence and Alison Perkins on OLTL!

The writers pulled a Michael Baldwin and a JT by having Cameron dig a tunnel to get into the Newman house.  Back in the day however, we would have seen Cameron's methodical process in building the tunnel.  Example, the 90s we saw Michael chipping through the wall over days, we saw Sheila putting together the puzzle pieces,  we even saw Marge testing a forged signature at the bank before replacing Katherine.  Today, villains  say they did XYZ and we don't see any process that goes into their plot.

10 hours ago, fivethej said:

Sharon & Linden Ashby teased about Cameron having a twin who comes to Genoa City.

Please God no. It would be one thing to do a twin story if Cameron was killed off back in the day (like Matt Clark, or Cassie were ). It would be stupid to immediately bring his twin to town just after killing this relatively legacy character.

Overall, I like the story, but it was rushed. The Golden Era writers would've been able to stretch Cameron's return over a year or two and not have it be boring.

Amazing crying scene from Sharon Case. Given the right material she can work it.

I didn't expect to care about seeing Nick and Sharon together again but it feels good seeing them work together for Faith. It feels even better seeing Victor stand up for Sharon again. It's becoming evident that this Cameron plot may be a catalyst to bring the couple back together. If they do, it has to be endgame and neither of those two characters need any more children.

It's crazy that Sharon still lives on her ex-husband's ranch despite her complications with his family. I also love that her house has virtually maintained the same appearance for nearly the last thirty years.

10 hours ago, Broderick said:

There really wasn't much "eventually" to it.  Its rapid rise really began after the first year.  

I believe it finished the 1972/1973 season in dead last place (#17), as it had only aired for 6 months that season.  By the end of the 1973/1974 season, it was in 13th place, then 9th for the 1974/1975 season, and then a solid #3 for the 1975/1976 season, behind only As the World Turns and Another World, and it was in striking distance of both those shows.

As others have noted, it was written by a fairly young man who had 15-20 years of experience in the industry and who knew what people liked.  It was a polished, slick, stylized production, with attractive actresses and actors, it had "hip, modern" music, and it introduced topics that hadn't been explored before on daytime (mostly of a sexual nature).  But underneath all of that, it was as old-fashioned as you could get -- basically just a dusted-off version of a 1950s Irna Phillips show, with more contemporary storylines and dialogue,  moody lighting, and a leisurely, languid, laid-back California-style pacing that drew you in and made you listen to what they were saying.  Watching the show in its half-hour days was a fairly "hypnotic" experience that completely differentiated it from anything else on television at the time; yet it never strayed far from a formula that had worked for 20 years.  It was simply the right product for the right time.  

There's no question that it faltered for a couple of years after expanding to an hour, but once it regrouped, you'll see it rapidly rise right back to the top where it had been prior to expansion.   

    

I used the term "eventually" and hesitated to say "rapid" because I remember Bill Bell wanting to cancel the show as it didn't do well at first.

What factors do you all think lead ATWT to loose It's number one spot and not make it back into the top three for the 80s? From what I see with the yearly soap opera ratings on Wikipedia, AMC overtook them first in '78, 5hen GH solidified the number one spot by '79 (the obvious answer being Gloria Monty's changes). ATWT wasn't listed as reaching into the top three for the remainder of the decade.

With this whole Cameron thing, living on a ranch I'm surprised Sharon (or Nikki) doesn't own a gun. Victor has always been a more fist fighting and using his power kind of guy so that probably lines up.