GLATWT88

I haven't watched the later seasons so I may have to take this back as I work my way through the series, but I am glad Season 9 is a dream. Although, not planned from the beginning, it just makes sense that it would be. There's just too many outlandish plots happening at once. - Mark actually being alive. Let's say he did plot his own death to spare others, but then there's too many other things happening this season that just are too much. - A whole convoluted story with Marinos Shipping involving Jack and Dimitri and Angelica Nero tied in with J.R. that just has too many random twists and asks viewers to take too many leaps. - Everyone thinking Jenna's mourning of Bobby to be extreme, yet it's only been a short time since Bobby's passing and none of her actions besides wanting to go see Bobby (his gravesite) in the middle of the night (which was in a stressful moment for her and I don't feel was too irrational) are abnormal. This ties in well with this being Pamela's dream imo - Pamela being kidnapped in a jungle- plausible. Pamela acting like nothing's happened and being okay with Mark's suggestion that they go visit the potential emerald site the very next day after being held hostage and in a very traumatic situation - insane. Again, ties in well with this being Pamela's dream.

I feel that Jamie and Jack were introduced at the right moment with show popularity still high and they came with ties to the Ewings. Jack even secured himself 10 percent of Ewing Oil. As you said, Jamie's introduction was quite strong building a connection with lonely Sue Ellen and having a rivalry with J.R. over the dispute of Ewing shares. Plus, her story with Cliff could have gone many ways. Jamie and Jack could have served as anchors as you said, considering we would see major exits in a few years from Victoria Principal and Linda Gray, they could have been a smoother transition for later seasons on the show. I hated Afton's sudden exit as well because I really grew to like the character. I feel the character was wasted toward the end and given little to do even though there was so much potential. Charlene's acting early on was rough, but I do feel she could have added some value to Knots. Season 8 and 9 feel different than previous seasons. There's a bit more humor or light moments infused into scenes. Sue Ellen's drunk on the streets of Dallas felt camp. I know with Dallas we were seeing the genre evolve through its seasons.

I would love to stream Knots Landing anywhere at any quality, but it's nowhere. I'm currently watching season 9 of Dallas and have some questions/comments: 1. Was it always intended to bring the character Mark Graison back for season 9, or did Patrick Duffy's exit push this storyline? Pam's search for Mark seemed to end a bit abruptly in season 8 IMO and then Bobby and Pam rekindle before he's killed. 2. Pam has a photo of Bobby at her desk when she returns to work after Bobby's death. I thought this was odd considering she had Mark's photo in her office last season and was searching for him. Bobby and Pam only got together briefly at the end of last season and she hadn't even into work since. I guess it can easily be explained away by saying it was all a dream and nothing necessarily needed to make sense. 3. How far into the season before it was realized that it would all be Pam's dream? 4. I'm really early into the season so this can be a poor assumption, but I'm not sure why Priscilla Presley is being kept around beyond a few episodes and in the opening credits as a lead because she has been quite secondary thus far. I feel like Jamie and Jack have more going on than Jenna and they're only listed after the opening credits. I love Priscilla Presley tho. She's done such a great job with the character.

Thank you! I was curious to see ratings for the soap premieres for the 1985/6 season considering their strong overall performance the previous season. Dallas, Dynasty, Hotel and Knots premiered week ending September 29 and Falcon Crest the following week. Wonder if Falcon Crest's later premiere hurt it. Not surprised that MacGyver's series premiere didn't do well up against the season premiere of Murder, She Wrote.

@Soapsuds Would you happen to have the ratings for the weeks ending September 29 and October 6, 1985? Thanks.

Yes! It looks so good.

I currently finished season 7 of Dallas and started season 8. Season 8 is when Dallas gets overtaken by Dynasty in the year end ratings due to its audience steadily growing with each season. I wonder how much this may have impacted the direction of Dallas. I noticed the fashion in season 7 of Dallas to have become a bit more dramatic for lack of a better word, and more so in season 8. Everyone is wearing a hat, shoulder pads on everything, turbans, etc. I wonder if this was just merely a reflection of the time or if Dallas was "inspired" by its competitor. Similarly, season 8 feels a bit different as far as pacing compared to previous seasons (at least so far) and season 7 did bring about this cattyness between Pam and Katharine and Pam and Jenna, that usually was written in a more subtle way. Giving Donna to step in for Bobby was a good way to give her this power woman feel, which she seemed to have at first but faded with more recent seasons.

Look at Knots getting those Live+7 day ratings before that was a thing 😄 Interestingly, I remember Melrose and BH getting quite of bit of play post run. I wonder what may have played into 90s soaps fairing better in syndication. I do feel that 90s soaps tend to have a faster pace and are a big more theatrical so can feel more exciting in isolation. You can get swept into the action without the context. Also, cable was notorious for marathons so being able to binge several episodes at once could have helped to engage viewers.

Makes a lot of sense. Thank you for the thorough response. Must be why 90s soaps like Melrose and 90210 also had large episode orders. I also recall reading that Desperate Housewives would have significant drops in audience figures on repeat episodes compared to other programs.

Thanks everyone. This was insightful. I also noticed that primetime soaps had more episodes per season than other programming on primetime at the time. I thought it was due to popularity, but The Cosby Show or Murder, She Wrote never had a 28+ episode season. Meanwhile, Dallas, Dynasty, Knots Landing, Falcon Crest, Hotel did...was this for storytelling purposes on primetime soaps?

I noticed that the 1984/5 season was the peak for primetime soaps in the 80s. All the soaps seem to experience a significant drop the next season. Do we have any theories or solid reasons for why this happened?

Yes, the red carpet was cringe, but it was mostly due to the awkward interactions and bad dialogue. Even if these interviews were on a local access channel, as mentioned before, are any of these people noteworthy in town. I feel like they could do with the red carpet since it's a big event and to show off the fashions (even though half the town was wearing a different variation of the same dress). Then, interview the mayor and a few notable townspeople, but randomly interviewing nurses was just weird. Unless it served some greater purpose, like wanting to interview and highlight important people at the hospital, but they were being asked questions as if they were celebs on a red carpet. The performances are fine. I see it as hospital staff putting on a talent show in an effort to raise money. I feel like they come across a little too serious sometimes. And maybe they don't have to highlight the performances as much...just one or two and have storyline evolve during the event. I mean has the nurses ball ever been used to do a large scale surprise engagement or for example for this 60th honor a GH vet and include flashbacks etc. Sometime that is positive especially surrounding such an important event.

Thanks, I was curious how old the episode was.

I don't really follow GH much these days and have picked up due to the anniversary. The affiliate in SF yesterday aired an episode with Mac in the hospital and Laura Wright's husband's character with a baby in the car (seems like he was on the run, could be wrong).

It would have been cute if they just used the ambulance opening to commemorate the anniversary and segue into the current opening if they had to. It wouldn't need to be edited much since there are no faces.

There were so many awkward and cringey moments and I'm not sure why. I tuned in hoping for something fun and it was a let down.

I see a lot of viewers calling for a double shantay in the Marcia 3x and Anetra lip sync. I agree that it could have easily been a double shantay as their performances were incredible making it a really close call. However, many people called Ru out for her reluctance to eliminate last season, so if there are no double shantays this season then Marcia going home was the right choice IMO. While both were phenomenal, I think Anetra had a slight edge.

I always hoped that GL and ATWT had a proper crossover storyline. The Springfield PD and Oakdale PD working together on some murder mystery. Starr Manning crossover to AMC as an intern at Fusion Cosmetics. Although, I don't know if Fusion was a thing in 2010 (around which time Starr would be college aged) as I was no longer watching then. It would be a great opportunity for writers to take the character in many directions.

Firstly, sorry if this has been posted about already. I know that GL had a novel produced around the character of Jonathan. I was a bit surprised since around 2007 GL was on its last legs. Are there any other instances of this with other soaps or characters?

Thank you @Soapsuds and @Paul Raven. I figured that it might have been a mix of timeslot competition and general viewer fatigue. 8 seasons is a great run for a comedy show. I also wondered if the height of the AIDS epidemic may have made an impact that final year, as more awareness was being drawn to this "gay illness" and maybe viewers didn't want to be reminded or see that representation even if it was a straight character playing pretend.

Does anyone know what impacted Three's Company final season ratings? It was a top ten show every other season with the exception of its six episode first season, but even so that first season finished in 11th place. It was a big drop from 6th place in season 7 to 33rd in season 8. Was it just viewer fatigue or was there more to this?

GL: small town-y, wealthy and working class families, a big focus was family and family dynamic. I started watching around 2003, so my perception may be different. I feel like a lot issues from 2003-2007 when I mostly watched centered around family.

That's horrible! I'm no Caroline fan, but this is just wrong on so many levels and absolutely unjustifiable. I was here a really thinking Brandi did the Lords work and called out Caroline on writing the court letter for her sister's abusive ex-husband, but of course not. She just needs to stoop to the lowest point.

Didn't know where else to post this, but I keep seeing this idea that BB will outlast the other soaps because of its appeal and reach in international markets. While I know this is true and definitely held weight in the 90s and early 2000s - how fair of an assessment and statement is that really. I feel like it is a comment that is regurgitated but no real data is there to back it up. I do think that international markets might help BB to be the last remaining soap, I just don't believe those markets are really doing as much nowadays to keep BB alive as we think. Streaming and social media apps are prevalent all over the world and people are seeking entertainment through these outlets. Traditional TV viewing has changed everywhere and young audiences aren't watching daily soaps be that in the US or internationally. So I can't imagine BB not experiencing dwindling audiences in its international markets as it has in the US. Im also sure several markets have dropped it in recent years...so how fair is it to say that international money will help keep it afloat. Is there real data to support this?

When I first started watching soaps regularly 20 years ago, I would have told you that soaps could be saved. Cable, the internet, and a dwindling demographic of stay-at-home moms ate away at the ratings, but numbers weren't all bad. Besides the reality was that ratings were on a decline for most network TV anyway. Things could have been done then to save soaps, but in today's viewing landscape of streaming and "fast tv" soaps in a traditional sense seem to be a thing of the past. An amazing and treasured thing we have all loved at one point, but definitely on life support with an end in sight.