Khan

Any time she would call Monica "Angel Girl" or "Miss Wings," that was like being kissed by baby Jesus, lol!

Believe me, I've got NO room to judge, lol. I just hope the reboot doesn't have the same, patronizing attitude toward whom we now call "special needs children" that I thought the original had. God bless Michael Landon, but something about those episodes in particular really make my teeth itch. It's like they had no real personalities. Their only function within the stories was so Landon could make a point about how the rest of society treats them (which was a valid point to make, but still).

I don't doubt any of that. I loved ODAAT, but I'm not blind to its' faults (of which, there were many, lol). Bonnie Franklin always acted as if she was playing to the back of the house. Valerie Bertinelli, who has been my fantasy sister-in-law since forever, could be too cute by half. Pat Harrington, Jr.'s Schneider was just plain not funny. About the only actor on the show you could take in normal doses was Mackenzie Phillips, and we all know about her issues, lol!

Don't worry, I'll provide plenty of sarcasm if and when this thing goes to series, lol. I will say again that if I had to choose between "Highway to Heaven" and "Touched by the Angel," I'd choose the latter. It isn't nearly as sappy or simplistic as "Highway" was; and I hope everyone involved in this reboot understands, too, that even if there's a need once more for feel-good, family-oriented entertainment, it isn't 1984 anymore. Audiences are way more sophisticated today; they deserve shows that don't provide pat answers.

LOL!! I rediscovered the show recently on Pluto TV and - believe it or not - I actually enjoyed it. Was it cheesy? Yes. Does it jibe with traditional, Judeo-Christian beliefs? Not really. (For one thing, angels don't intervene to the degree that Jonathan Smith does. Otherwise, what's the point of having free will? Furthermore, human beings don't become angels. We have dominion over them. Otherwise, how are we supposed to judge them in Heaven?). But, you know, there's just so much darkness and despair in the world these days. It'd be nice to have a show or shows that reaffirm what you might call the triumph of the human spirit. But, for God's sake, Jason Katims, no episodes where Jonathan turns into a werewolf. At first glance, there doesn't appear to be any differences. But, look closely enough....! On the surface, "Touched by an Angel" is better written than "Highway to Heaven." Any time you come across an episode written by Ken LaZebnik, take my advice and sit down and watch. He has a way with monologues that reminds me of the best of Patrick Mulcahey's work. As I've mentioned already, Jonathan Smith (in "Highway") intervenes in his assignments' lives to a degree that's unheard of (at least, according to the Scriptures). If someone's being a real PITA, for example, he'll cause them to trip and fall down or some such. Or, if the Stuck Up Rich Guy Who Hates Handicapped People of the Week just ain't gettin' it through his thick skull, Mark Gordon (Victor French) will tell Jonathan to "use the Stuff" so that he'll see the error of his ways. Well, angels don't really HAVE "the Stuff." Angels are God's messengers. They come to individuals who are at a crossroads and deliver words of comfort and encouragement; telling them that, yes, God loves them and that whichever road they are afraid to take or door they are afraid to open, God will be with them every step of the way. (Think about what the angel told the Virgin Mary when she learned she was with child, or when Joseph realized it wasn't his). That's always the message that Monica, Tess, Andrew, Gloria and all the other angels in "Touched" deliver to THEIR assignments: that, as Christ once implored His disciples, the power of life and death is in their hands, so choose wisely. Does "Touched" have its' cheesy moments, too? Absolutely. There's bound to be SOME cheese in any show that aims to entertain the entire family. But "Touched" earns those moments more than "Highway" does, if that makes any sense. And in the meantime, Martha Williamson and her team (including frequent director Tim Van Patten, whose skills always impress me) do a pretty masterful job of getting you emotionally involved in the characters' lives, often presenting dilemmas that aren't easily resolved at the end of the hour.

I agree with you and with @EricMontreal22 : first season KL aspires to be a spiritual cousin to "Family" and to the domestic dramas of Ingmar Bergman as well. It just doesn't have the same level of writing or casting.

ICAM!!

I definitely agree that we all need more "feel-good programming" in light of everything that's been going on in our country and throughout the world. I'll be looking forward to seeing how pans out.

Well, he has one foot out the door. Now, let's see how long it takes to get the other foot out, too, lol.

IA! If streaming has any future at all, I think, it'll be in FAST channels.

I've always looked upon "Cruise of Deception" as being the last gasp of classic, '80's DAYS, even though it happened in '90. I loved it, but the show was never the same.

IA. KL's first season was strictly self-contained episodes, featuring stories with a clear beginning, middle and end that did not carry over to the next episode. As was typical of most one-hour shows from that period, some episodes were better than others, but all give you a good and proper introduction to the main characters, two of whom will remain until the series' end in '93. S2, which introduced Donna Mills as resident schemer Abby, dipped its' toes in serialized waters, but the results were...not great, lol? So, in the back half of the year, there does appear to be a bit of course-correcting going on, as KL returns to its' original format of self-contained stories. (There is a cliffhanger at the end of S2, one that will bring about the first changes to the show, but I personally don't think the story that led up to it was all that great). S3, on the other hand, is a sort of hybrid of self-contained episodes and ongoing storylines, especially in the first half of the season. By then-executive story editor Ann Marcus' admission, that was a conscious choice on the part of EP's David Jacobs and Michael Filerman, likely because they still weren't sure about turning KL into a full-fledged soap. However, the season ends with KL's first MEMORABLE cliffhanger, and the first real sign that the KL that Jacobs had originally intended is about to evolve into a completely different kind of show - a transformation that won't be complete, IMO, until the final moments in a pivotal episode in the next season that, for my money, is truly THE moment when Jacobs' KL "dies" and the KL audiences will come to love is born. (I'll leave it up to you to discover what that moment was, lol). Not really. I liked much of KL's final season, because it was a reminder of when KL wasn't playing Stump the Audience every week. But I will concede that S14 seemed good, because the previous season was just so bad. (So bad, in fact, that it forced Jacobs to shut down production, can the Co-EP/show runner and bring back Ann Marcus, who hadn't been with the show since the end of S3). As @ReddFoxx points out, David Paulsen, who had worked on DALLAS and KL, tried to bring DYNASTY back down to earth in its' last season. IIRC, he wanted DYNASTY to be more aligned with what it was during its' first season, before it became a victim of its' own success (and excess). However, I think he faced the same problems that all the primetime soaps faced: dwindling budgets, and apathetic viewers. DYNASTY's last season isn't BAD, per se. It's just tired - exhibited, among other things, by a greater number of indoor, studio-bound scenes over lush, exterior ones. Same goes for DALLAS: a once-mighty show that was running on fumes when it ended, hampered by several key losses, and probably ran for two or three years longer than it should've. (As @kalbir has said, you knew the end was nigh when Urkel started beating DALLAS in the ratings, lol). If I had to vote for a WORST final season, therefore, I'd vote for FC's. A dark, violent, unrecognizable mess, one that bore absolutely nothing in common with the eight seasons that had preceded it.

ICAM with these descriptions, @Soaplovers ! To answer one of @vote4llama 's other questions: I think the four major shows - DALLAS, DYNASTY, FC and KL - all had good-to-great first seasons, with DALLAS and KL having the edge over the other two on account of David Jacobs, who created both shows, and his ability to create strong characters and establish tone right away. FC's first season was good, I think, because it played to creator/EP Earl Hamner's strengths as a storyteller who specialized in family dramas, something subsequent seasons don't do, or do as well. DYNASTY's first season was good, too, and held a lot of potential as an "us vs. them" kind of soap. However, some questionable casting decisions, the Shapiros' own limitations as writers and - as @kalbir has pointed out - Aaron Spelling's impatience with the show and desire to outmatch DALLAS forced a course correction at the end of that season (yes, the one that ushered in Alexis, lol).

With all the DAYS and GH stars that are moving or have moved to Nashville and Atlanta, it's a wonder no one's thought to relocate production of those shows as well.

It was a nightmare, lol!

I loved hearing ED talk about how she watched RH with her sister when she was a teenager.

I feel for their daughter as well. Their number-one priority should be her safety and well-being. Instead, they're just proving why some people shouldn't procreate.

I'll echo everyone else in this thread and say KL is the '80's primetime soap to watch. True, the show had its' rough patches, but it also was the most consistent, or most consistently entertaining. It also was the most willing to grow and change with the times, so that it didn't get caught in the same ruts that the other primetime soaps got caught in.

It's obvious nobody in Port Charles has ever heard of the rhythm method.

Well, as long as we're paying for it, we might as well see whether we could book it for next year's Super Bowl!

I think the only ones who are enjoying it are Frank and CVE. I wouldn't mind that happening, lol!

I can see the advertisements now: "He's back...and he's pissed." If Britt goes, then I pray she'll take Brad with her. It's 2026, and while not much has changed apparently, what HAS changed is that we are past the days of Wayland Flowers and Madame. (I'll leave it up to the audience to decide which one's which).

Oh, that was some of the clumsiest special effects I'd seen on SNL in a long, long time. Elements like those make me miss Dave Wilson all the more.

Even a storyline with Will developing one-sided obsession with Josh would've been interesting, if controversial, lol.

dp