GLATWT88

Yes, I know what moment you are speaking about. I believe it was when Eva learned about a patient who wouldn't have money to pay for his surgery and she asked Leslie for the money. I am all for soaps being educational, but it needs to feel authentic. There have been a few times where characters will just talk like they are reading off a waiting room pamphlet. With Anita and the breast cancer stuff, it works because the character is actually dealing with it. Sometimes, however, it can feel forced and after school special.

He has come a long way, but ChatGPT speeches made me laugh.

Finally catching up on Christmas week's episodes. I found Kat's comment about fasting for 2 days so she can have some of Smitty's eggnog really out of place in 2025. It was a joke I'm sure, but it read like 90s/2000s toxic diet culture - like you didn't eat for two days so you can enjoy a treat around the holidays? It's also not common of Gen Z to support such outdated views. Don't get me wrong girls (and guys) still worry about weight, looks/appearance probably and ironically in a more harmful way than ever before. The way they speak about it though is completely positive and reframed. It's like they all spout body positivity and loving yourself, but then want to look like their favorite influencers and go under the knife or get beauty enchancing procedures on the other hand. Ted is an idiot. Like why in the hell would he go and tell Nicole about Vernon's "affair". Even if he believed it to be true, it wasn't his place. There was no winning for him. He didn't even frame it as I think Vernon might be cheating. He straight up said Vernon was without any concrete proof. Ted just needs to get away from Nicole. There is no redeeming qualities in that pairing at this point. The writing has completely annihilated this. Regina seemed to have no issue referring to Samantha and Tyrell by their new names even though she has hardly seen them since they came back into her life. I wonder if writers just want to completely forget how weird and offensive it would be that Martin and Smitty changed two grown children's names because they preferred other ones - especially when said children were old enough to know and understand their own names. TT did phenomenal work. I have faith she will do an amazing job with this story. I love that we are building some traditions. Like the Dupree women searching for their gifts before Christmas. Of course Naomi had to be nasty about her gift. I feel like this would work well otherwise and in years to come where someone finds a gift early and it causes anger, confusion, mystery, etc. But I am so dang tired of Naomi's hot and cold attitude with Jacob. Like get over it already. Another cute tradition is the competitiveness around who has the best tree. I can see Dani and Martin trying to outdo each other to the point it the trees and decor become ridiculous. These episodes were really nice balance of families, gathering, and drama. It was nice.

My family would always put up the tree the Friday after Thanksgiving and it would come down the weekend closest to Jan. 6. If Jan. 6 was on a Monday than it would come down that Sunday because it's easier than doing so on a weekday. I have never known anyone personally to put up a tree that late, but I have seen it referenced several times in movies and older TV shows.

Honestly, Tomas can just go at this point. He seems to serve little to no purpose at this point and Kat's story would be fine without him. As for the rest of the cast, they are fine. The weaker ones have improved and Andre doesn't annoy me as much with his acting. Now, the other issues, I hope they start sorting those out with the new season.

Yet, I can totally buy Bill not wanting Dani to be happy with someone else so suddenly he wants her attention on him again. He can totally be that guy. However, the way they are playing it, it's as if he suddenly remembered all this love he had for Dani inspite of decades of cheating and destroying his family for his daughter's friend. Yet as you mentioned, he was completely awful to Dani months leading up totally this, so it makes it hard to believe.

She looks 30 so they let it slide, while also ignoring the fact this probably violates some labor laws considering June is just an employee and not the owner and I don't think Samantha is actually employed by Orphey's herself. My thoughts exactly. Hayley must be the best con in the world that she sends suapicious texts, makes phone calls, and meets in public spaces with her accomplice while having incriminating open conversations with all these people around. I had to laugh when Hayley got annoyed at Lynette for saying "Val" at the outdoor Cafe, but had no issue with Lynette correcting herself to say Hayley and then proceeding to say how Hayley conned some old man. I was like what? In this case saying Val would have been preferable, because if anyone walking past heard they wouldn't know Lynette was speaking on Hayley. Didn't we see the outside of Leslie's apartment when Kat snuck in? They can make that an alley or something. I don't love how they played it. If this was the intention all along, it doesn't feel that way. Bill would talk about Dani with utter disgust in the early episodes and while feelings do evolve, it didn't feel like a natural we are going through a bitter divorce and I hate you right now. It came across like he couldn't stand that woman anymore. Also, he was the one that compeletely wronged her throughout their entire marriage. He cheated multiple times. Yet now we are supposed to believe he has woken up. I feel like there needed to be a bit more balance in this story.

Great eye. I wasn't following so closely today and completely missed that until I read your comment.

My only issue with yesterday's episode was that it felt like everyone was sitting the whole episode. It is something that I noticed happens quite a bit and I'm not sure if it's a matter of available sets that lend themselves to characters being sat (Orpheys and Uptown) or if having characters sitting facilitates filming. I was randomly watching an episode of Guiding Light from 2004 and Olivia and Bill were talking while doing the elliptical. Two other characters were at a punching bag and then moved while in the same scene. Michelle and Reva were talking at a dinner table and Michelle stood, then Reva moved around. It felt way more dynamic. Yesterday, I felt like a character would walk in and then everyone was sitting. While conversations over coffee work for a 15 or 30 minute soap episode, having an episode of pure exposition where every character is barely moving felt a little visually drab.

Probably in the same set Joey and Vanessa had their getaway and Dani and Andre's hotel room in LA, but I rather they didn't. They can do whatever story they have to without redressing some set to have them stuck there for several scenes. Doubt there is a budget for location shooting so just work with what you have...and honestly even if there was some money for that they seriously need to invest in a few more multipurpose sets because that outdoor café or whatever that is isn't working.

Very sad to hear about Tony Geary's passing. He and Luke are woven into soap opera history - whether you loved or hated them. I know TG had his own feelings about being a soap star, but the truth is that he was caught in a lightning in a bottle moment that drew the attention of millions and essentially a generation. Even if you didn't watch soaps you knew Luke and Laura. He wasn't my favorite character but I could recognize the talent and I enjoyed him on GH. I think the tribute from Genie was beautiful.

I'm still catching up, but watching post-Winterfest and I'm really loving some of the outfits (something I've always said BTG has done well overall), which further confuses me as to what the hell happened with wardrobe for WF and just what the whole point of WF was in general. We had Naomi in her casual, basic sweater she probably got on Amazon meanwhile Eva was dressed as sexy Bride of Frankenstein. I guess WF was there to remind us how charitable the Duprees are, but it didn't drive any story. Bill passing out would have been great at WF, preferably somewhere more private and Hayley freaking out trying to revive him. That aside, Hayley had me cackling! "I'm not a barista." I also feel the chemistry between NuTed and Shanice more than anything we got with Ted and Nicole. I actually wouldn't mind seeing that pairing go further. GV is doing a great job and Nicole and Kial work. Interested to see where writers take this. We honestly need Samantha to go away for Spring Break and come back as at least a 20-something college girly. This teen thing is a stretch for her and I am actually enjoying what they are pushing with the free clinic (as unrealistic as it is) but I feel like it would better if Samantha was older. Keep the actress just make her older. Dani and Kat was really nice to watch. I'm glad she heard Kat out about Eva and didn't push her any further. I thought that was real. Everyone else just seems to want Kat to pretend nothing happened. Tomas has got to be recast. After Kat and Dani's talk, I was thinking about all the story we have had with Kat/Tomas/Eva and how AA is so bad I really can't see past the acting. Tomas actually did have a bond/friendship with Eva first, so of course he would want Kat to stop bashing her, but AA is so bad that these details are lost to me I'm just like boo you suck, Kat leave his ass.

I would agree if we didn't just have a Thanksgiving episode that was drama lite and nothing of consequence happening on this soap for what feels like a long time. November Sweeps was spent talking about Winterfest. There was so much build and weaving of details leading up to this event that it seemed like something would culminate, but in the end, nothing happened. All those cast members together for what? To tell us how amazing this event is and how cool Santa's Workshop and the ice skating rink were that we don't get to see.

Doesn't make sense really to have a bunch of cast together, extra set pieces, and very little of consequence going on. What even was the point?

Just saw your comment after I posted mine. Also wonder if those changes played a role in how WF played out.