1974mdp

I'm really hoping the gradual slide down of ratings for BTG stops and stabilizes. I can't emphasize how much I want this show to succeed... But... IMO, the show has really got to work on pacing though. Before this week, there were way too many episodes FOR WEEKS where basically nothing happened. I often found my mind drifting during episodes, and I'm a hardcore soap fan with a high tolerance level of questionable writing. Imagine the people who tuned in those first two weeks because they were curious to try out a brand-new soap for the first time. Most of them are not going to stick around if it feels like nothing is happening. It doesn't mean you need constant bombs, showdowns, murders, etc. But, you can have particular story beats within a story happening to make there feel like there's movement in the plot, and then the audience feels like they'll actually miss something if they don't tune in. For example: How does no one know that Dani is sleeping with Andre yet? If even one person found out, that deepens that story's plot and conflict. Why is Joey so interested in Doug versus some other addicted gambler? We still have zero clue. Who in the hell is Ashley besides a nurse? (Don't even get my started on Derek!). These plot points won't wrap up a story, but it will give them more depth and interest. I could have missed almost the entire month of April, and tuned in this past Monday, and be current on what was happening. I'm sure if a lot of those early viewers who dropped off were surveyed, they'd say that the show moved too slowly for them. Picking up the pace and the DRAMA is the only way they're going to grow an audience in today's TV landscape with 10 episode seasons on streaming and younger people's TikTok brains. The slooooow moving soaps on the 70s and 80s aren't going to work if you're going to attract younger (and that by I mean below 50 years old) demo viewers. That's the future if the genre is going to survive not all of us old-school viewers. I feel like it would have been a great idea that if MVJ needed a co-head writer they should have paired her with someone MUCH younger and fresher with a modern story-telling viewpoint versus Guza who is also in his 70s! How are two 70 year olds expected to give us a modern day take on the 5-day a week soap? The head writing team should be a mix of proven experience with some new talent and ideas! I think one of the reasons the genre has been dying off is that there has been no new head-writing blood in what feels like forever. Who is TODAY'S Agnes Nixon, for example?

I thought she really good and one of the better actors on the show, but they didn't seem to know what to do with her. I think one of the problems is how many times can an Abbott and a Newman hook up. They're basically the same family at this point. The show needs some new life and characters brought in. Some underdogs who are struggling. Right now, basically everyone is supposed to be "rich" and well-off. The class struggle is completely absent. Don't get me started on all the random companies the characters talk about in every episode.

I've wondered about this...or some other way that Eva is actually Ted and Nicole's. I think the emphasis they've made on that Nicole and Ted had trouble having Kat and there were babies lost before her is a clue. Otherwise, why even mention it? It's lay groundwork for something. I think it'd be a fun twist for Eva and Kat to find themselves full siblings...great way to have a fun rivalry!

Here's the thing about Ashely...I can tell the actress is actually quite good, but it's the material that's letting her down. As others mentioned, we still know next to nothing about her. She has a mom that she barely interacts with. She has a best friend, Naomi, whom she barely interacts with. She's in this relationship with Derek, who is still basically a blank slate besides being a firefighter and saving kittens. Who was she before she became a nurse? Why did she get with Derek, and how long have they been dating? How long has she known Naomi? As viewers, we know NOTHING. This is what makes her boring to watch. We can't get invested in the character this way. I don't know what makes this person tick or who she even is after two months of viewing. If I were writing, she would turn out to be Joey's daughter and her mom his ex-wife. That would immediately add dimension and conflict to her story. I'd also have Derek be revealed to be crazy. That's the only way to make him interesting at this point. For me, this has been a big problem. The shows tend to end on a random, quick "So what?" conclusion. No real cliffhanger endings or OMG moments. The ending with Bill's shaky hand could have been amped up a lot. Maybe Bill, alone, terror in his eyes as he begins to realize something is VERY wrong and calls his doctor, and Naomi getting a clue that there really is something BIG going on with his health. Something to max the drama of the situation. Instead, we get a shrug your shoulders ending as we do on most episodes which is extra bad on a Friday. At least, it finally looks like things will be HAPPENING next week after what feels like a very long time.

Does anyone know when Billy Flynn is supposed to debut?

I wonder if even before things started to air that they sensed that Ashley and Derek just weren't working and aren't integrated with the rest of the characters, like Vanessa and Smitty. We hear that Naomi and Ashley are BFF's, but we've never really seen that. Derek is just still a blank slate. I don't know who that character is supposed to be. If we could get less of the casino/gambling story, and focus more on Nicole and her family, Martin's secret, give Anita a viable story, and have Dani grow some as a character...or have her go full-on alcoholic raging for drama, and pick up the pace some, I'd be very happy.

Plus, you could create a whole new branch of the family. We don't really know much of what happened to Tommy after all these years. His grandchildren, for example, could pop up.

Leslie/Dana is still the best part of the show for me. Eva is also turning into one of my favorites. However, yesterday was the first episode that I didn't finish. I got busy with dinner, and later that night, realized I never finished the show that day. But, I didn't go back to it. I knew nothing really interesting would happen, and there would be no story movement at all. I just don't think that's good for a show that's trying to bring in new viewers, including ones new to a daily soap. It just feels like everything has been in a holding pattern for weeks.

I totally feel like Liam is played out a million times over, but I don't trust BB to really pull the plug on him. After him, my next wish would be for Ridge to die. He's grown to be such an insufferable a-hole.

ITA. The show is missing that star-crossed couple that meets and is kept apart. There is definitely a lack of new romance. Ashley/Derek could completely disappear off the canvas, and I wouldn't even wonder what happened to them. I'm still not sure why I should care about Doug and his gambling debts. We REALLLLLLLY need to know what Joey's plan is at this point which I think gets back to another point. We've seemed to be in a holding pattern with stories for weeks now with no real twists or "a-ha!" moments. We need more dramatic story beats to keep a new audience entertained. The show can't afford to be like Y&R which seems to AVOID conflict much of the time. I'm still watching every day, and I want this show to succeed so badly! But, I notice that my attention is drifting away more and more with each episode. It feels like nothing may happen until Ted and Nicole's party for May sweeps. I understand wanting to save that for then, but, again, we need entertaining story beats to keep us hanging in until that time. Chelsea could find Andre in Dani's bed, for instance. It wouldn't wrap up that story but give it a twist with some fallout. Bill should have had at least a mini heat attack OR a bigger scare with Naomi in his office. Dani could have rushed to his side and beefed up the feud between her and Hayley and give Naomi a bigger excuse to drop out of the case. Hayley should definitely have found out she was pregnant with that news spreading across the neighborhood.

He definitely seemed obsessed with the Dimeras. The amount of characters in that family exploded, and I was always of the belief that the Dimeras worked in small doses, Chad being an exception for me.

LOL...you do bring up a great point! All the new writers do tend to say that. Curious what others think...what keeps the writing teams from beefing up and maintaining the Horton clan? There seems to be an endless supply of Dimeras, for instance. I feel like the family was actually expanded again in 2010s (Sarah, Eli, Nathan, JJ, Abby, Allie, the MANY returns of Lucas, Will and Shawn, and even extended Horton family members such as Ciara and Claire). Out of ALL those characters only Sarah and JJ are currently around on any regular basis. We also lost Jennifer and Hope full-time. Now all that's currently left of Tom and Alice's descendants are Julie (finally back on contract), Shawn, Sarah (Mickey's legal daughter), JJ (currently recurring). Of course, we still have Maggie considered a part of the family.

I'm glad they want to put more focus on the Hortons. I feel like they we almost wiped out by RC towards the end of his run with all the focus on the Dimeras.

ITA, sometimes the credits start, and I'm like, "THAT was the end of the episode?!"

With the current casting, I always thought that having it turn out the Johnny was actually Lucas's son all along would be a great twist. Johnny WAAAAAY more physically looks as if he could be Lucas's child versus EJ. EJ could find out that Stefano manipulated the DNA testing so that EJ could be connected to Sami. Then, EJ, who doesn't want the truth to come out because he loves Johnny, tries to keep the secret.

I enjoyed much of the week, but Friday fell flat for me and felt a bit boring overall. It felt like a Tuesday show if that makes sense. Again, for me, there was no exciting Friday cliffhanger. Doug's gambling addiction has taken up soooo much time. At this point, I need some insight as to why I should care about Doug/Vanessa/Joey. I was kind of bummed to see that Bill and Naomi weren't going to fight it out in court. I think that could have been some great drama. This week, I enjoyed the Martin/Smitty family stuff. Eva/Dana continue to be the real highlight.

I've actually grown to like JPL as Phillip. His first go round fell flat, I thought. But, he's settled into the role this time. I'm hoping they keep him around.

And...where is Luna living and off of what money? Is Bill supporting her? None of it makes sense.

The obsession with Leo when he seems to irk the majority of the audience is such a head scratcher. Why can't we have Will (even with a recast), Paul, or Andrew full-time versus Leo?

Speaking of the new writing team, what do you HOPE to see a few months in once their work has really taken over? I'm hoping there's a renewed interest in the Horton family and that it's expanded again. There's hardly anyone left, and only Sarah bears the last name. I hope we FINALLY get a break from the constant Dimeras and any "sci-fi" type stories. Just a return to more relatable drama, romance, and twists and turns. I'm kind of over the constant bringing back of bad villains, like Vivian. The show needs to work on developing the NEXT generation of true troublemakers.

Sami was never my favorite character by a long shot, but it just "feels like" classic DAYS when she pops up. I know AS has other things going on, but I wish they could keep her full-time or for a much longer arc.

ITA. If you would have asked me a few weeks ago, I would have said no way. But, I'm finding the Martin/Smitty family scenes to be some of my favorites now.

Interestingly enough, this wouldn't be the craziest SORAS'ing we've seen. Arianna was born in 2013. At least they cast a Latina actress and not a blonde hair blue eyed actor like they did when the character before. They did that one WAAAAAY too fast. It's prevented them from bringing the characters back because it would just look ridiculous. I think they even mentioned Maddie being in GRAD SCHOOL!

You bring up a good point! There has been quite a lack of shirtless eye candy on BTG. I wonder why.

Imagine...B&B in the year 2028. How much you want to bet we'll hear this line of dialogue? "Ridge, you have to pick between me and Taylor."