FrenchBug82

Interesting question for me is how much of this is due to bad or odd writing, how much is this due to the return being foisted by TPTB on a writing team that don't really feel inspired by Jason, or, more interestingly, how much is due to bridges SB may have burned during Covid and his departure. Fact the higher-ups decided to let bygones be bygones does not necessarily mean his costars did!

Not to get too topical, but, man, the Venn diagram between anti-vaxxers and "a-holes more broadly" seems to be just a plain circle at this point.

That's the storyline I first thought of too. The story was awful and the script writing unimpressive but I have also always liked Kim Zimmer's work in this. It was a lot harder than the usual dual roles as the clone was Reva but not quite, and that required subtle work - and talented as she is, subtle isn't usually what you got from her acting. By the end, I was genuinely feeling bad for the clone, something I rarely felt for Reva herself.

While I know you don't mind being spoiled, I'll leave the specific plot point I objected to to the day you will regale us with your thoughts on the finale. A long ways away but still

Which is why, as an aside, the final ever scene of the show never hit me like it did so many other fans. I get the full circle motif but Abby only briefly felt "of the cul-de-sac" so bringing her back there felt like contrived nostalgia for a specific short period of the show rather than a true bow that understood what made and tied those characters. But ending a long running show is hard and it was a cute warm scene. Just I recall my Abby fandom not feeling sold on what they were going for, specifically for what Vee mentions hère.

I am so happy you are well enough and hard-working enough to resume those and share them with us. They make me so happy so thank you,Vee.

I don't have a problem retiring words and expressions that offend people but to be clear, the origins of "gone south" have nothing to do with condescension towards the American South. Etymology is either, according to dictionaries, simply because south is downwards on a map/compass (hence go south meaning the same thing as going downhill) or because it is a euphemism for death in some Native American languages.

Jacobs pitch by the way IS why I somewhat defend Brad Bell as B&B show runner. His story telling is often awful and poorly paced but his story instincts are right: switching the parents personnality with the kids is exactly what he did with Steffy and Hope originally.

If it is a true spoiler, retracting it would give it more publicity in a counterproductive way... See Streisand effect

To be clear by not engage, I mean their opening response was to say no to everything she asked for, not that they didnt talk to her about staying. She says she didnt want to play a back and forth game. She had another tempting offer, which GL knew, and she wasnt into them playing hard to get. And it was already Ellen W

LOL I did mean PG. And I may have misinterpreted her praise for Nicole and RN because I too would be very surprised if she genuinely was OK with Josh/Cassie. But I do believe she would have stayed regardless if they had indulged some of her demands. Fact they didn't even engage even thought GH interest was public knowledge cannot but have felt they didn't care.

The way LW told the story on Locher: - GH has "earlier" offered her the role and she had turned them down. That would presumably be when TB left and she was still under contract anyway. - According to her, one clincher was that none of her contract renewal asks were even entertained, even as they knew another show was calling. Note that she says that she didn't ask for a pay raise and the only specific ask she mentions is that she wanted a contract with PGE rather than GL and that she be given a guarantee the rest of her contract would play out at ATWT if GL was cancelled. So clearly the low prospects for GL were at least an indirect factor - Then Guza insisted JFP try again despite her earlier no - presumably as JB wasn’t working and they knew she’d be negotiating, JFP called right after GL shut down her asks, she was tempted anyway so she said yes. I didn't rewatch the whole thing but I vaguely remember her saying something hinting she also didn't seem bothered by Josh/Cassie while she was talking about Nicole F but I could be wrong. Doesn’t seem to have been a major factor.

Of course the whole premise of the one-season-later Parezi story was that she had faked her death to hide from an abusive mob husband, which doesnt quite jibe with the fact her father and mother had both spent extended time with her in LA and openly so.

Scroll down this link and there is the description of the two scenes she submitted

I actually didn't mind him as Bobby Reno. Whatever else one can say about RKK he does the sexy charismatic blue collar thing well and his chemistry with JB was acceptable. They oversold it when they got Ryan to push them (funny in hindsight that Ghost Ryan sold him as her new soulmate but didnt know he was lying about his identity) but they actually didn't rush putting them together. They telegraphed it but then they took time to get audience there, which is rare. So they almost got me before it went to hell with the rewrites. I still would have much preferred Bobby Reno than the tedious retcon of Vicky and Jake as a supposed supercouple

I have long defended AH with the premise that the transformation of Victoria into a weepy heroine was down to the writing and that her Loving stint proved she could do more. I am changing my mind: a rare chance to see the tougher Victoria again and I am not liking her acting choices here at all, bad dialogue notwithstanding.

To my dying day: Thorne/Brooke is not given enough credit as something that unexpectedly really worked and provided great drama and this was the longest Brooke managed to keep out if Ridge's orbit and still be compelling. Sacrificing it carelessly to lazily trod the same Ridge ground again is in my Top Five of Bell mistakes.

As you rightfully said, I don't think there is anyone left over there that cares enough to force anything on them. They are fine with the mediocrity as long as the fumes of the glory of days past keeps the show with decent numbers and they'll have no compunction cutting it loose once reality bites.

I'd strongly entertain an argument that story-wise latter-days GL was more creatively interesting than YR right now but production-wise there are ways to go before we scrape that barrel. But I fully agree that the current state of YR feels like the product of indifference by people who are OK getting by on autopilot for as long as they can get away with it.

This is the Garbby beach housse and from the current photos, I am pretty sure you are right and they were filming on location.

It is hard enough to pull out for most soap nowadays but Days shooting six months in avance? Close to impossible

If ya’ll think the buildup for the red herring suspects is lacking wait until we find out the killer is somebody completely random and their motive is WTF. Like Tripp possessed by the Devil or something.

First fwiw let me say how much joy I am getting out of following your KL journey and thought. Considering what we later find out about Alec Baldwin’s character I’d assume the cannon now is that her obsession with Chip was proxy mothering but considering that backstory didn't exist at the time I always thought that the Thornbirds subtext was so incredibly daring and JH’s very subtile work there absolutely some of her best.

I do want to say that while FCs writing was all over the place I personally feel they did keep the characters' throughline usually consistent. Chase changed a bit after his divorce but Angela, Maggie, Richard, Melissa (before her last episode) were pretty recognizable as characters and why they did what they did all throughout, even when what they did was all over the place. Am I wrong? I have AW Frankie flashback...

I was skeptical when people first started saying that - it felt like a (stupid but) normal firing on a show with a lot of turnover - but the chatter is louder than usual so maybe... But we don't know obviously. Just a rumor.