Khan

Unfortunately, you are. Cabot Cove was very much real - and very much dangerous, lol.

I agree. Between the regulars at the hotel and the guests of the week, it was too many characters for the producers to service. And wasn't there a storyline about newlyweds Dave and Megan fighting about Dave's gambling problem? Between stuff like that, Peter and Christine's slow-burn romance and the takeover attempt, it might as well have morphed into "Hill Street Blues" or "St. Elsewhere," but in a hotel. Definitely "St. Elsewhere." I mean, my God, they even had an arc about a rapist stalking the women at St. Eligius! (And to this day, I still don't know if Dr. Peter White was the rapist, or if it was another guy, or if there were, in fact, two rapists terrorizing people simultaneously).

And I think I like "THAT LYIN' HEFFA GOT CAUGHT!" better.

IKR? And it's only March! God only knows what else is in store this year for us soap fans, lol.

"Hotel" was definitely soapier than TLB - and to me, that was part of the problem. TLB was smart to feature a variety of stories every week: one story could be lightly comedic or romantic, another story could be more serious or topical, and then you had the interludes with the Pacific Princess crew, which satiated the sitcom fans out there. (And then, of course, in the last years, you had the infamous Mermaids, which I guess you could classify as musical comedy, but the less we say about those broads....). On the other hand, every story on "Hotel" seemed to me to be a variation on some Douglas Sirk movie from the '50's, only not nearly as deliciously campy, lol. Anthology shows like "Hotel" and "The Love Boat" live and die on their regular and recurring cast members. TLB's crew was stocked with several great actors playing well-defined characters (although I could've done without Vicki and Ted McGinley's character, lol). Even "Fantasy Island" had two actors - Ricardo Montalban and Herve Villechaize - whose unique chemistry kept you tuning in every week regardless of the quality of the individual stories. But "Hotel"...? About half of their regular cast was okay to watch, and almost none of them played a character with any real substance, which was especially noticeable whenever the stories in a particular episode were dull (which was entirely too often, IMO).

I agree, and would add "Fantasy Island," too. (I'd also add a channel for "Charlie's Angels," "Hart to Hart," original "S.W.A.T.," "T.J. Hooker" and "Vega$," but that's off-topic.) "Hotel" was definitely designed to be watched once a week on primetime and once or twice a day on reruns.

In retrospect, Gloria Monty would have been better off bringing Geary back as Luke. If Genie Francis wasn't available or eager to return at that time, they could've simply said Laura was (presumed) dead and that Luke was back in Port Charles to find her killer(s).

Seriously, what is wrong with Bradley Bell and his choice to tell stories like the ones with Thomas/Hope and with Poppy/RJ/Zende? I'm starting to wonder if the man has issues.

So am I, lol. To me, "Hotel" is more like an anthology series, like "Fantasy Island" or "The Love Boat," with the hotel staff providing a sort of connective tissue to all the stories and from episode to episode. And like all anthology shows, some episodes or stories are great to watch, and others...aren't, lol.

It's sickening how Bradley Bell thinks telling this story in this current environment is okay. I mean, something is wrong when I'm siding with Brooke on anything.

Personally, I think CBSD would cancel "The Talk" or "Let's Make a Deal" before they'd cancel either B&B or Y&R.

He just doesn't want to admit it (on account of his being a Beatles fan).

And it's not going to be as long as they maintain the illusion that Brooke Logan is a desirable woman in her late 30's.

If I've asked this question once throughout the years, I've asked it a million times: how in the [!@#$%^&*] do you have a show about the fashion industry that DOESN'T include at least one, regular character who is gay, bisexual and/or trans?

If it's true that B&B is vulnerable and that CBSD does not see it as a strong brand, then Bradley Bell and his team have only themselves to blame. IMO, B&B has never really evolved as a show - and whenever it has been on the verge of evolving, like with the introduction of the Avant family, it's always retreated to the same old, tired stories and tropes. I mean, here we are, in the year of our Lord 2024, and we're supposed to GAF that Sheila is "dead" for like, what, the eighteenth time? Or that Brooke and Ridge maybe, possibly are getting back together (or breaking up again, IDK, I don't follow that show anymore)? Familiarity is one thing, but there does come a point when you have to accept that you've drained all the juice you can from your core characters or families and need to move on.

Exactly. A "new" GL of 2024/2025 doesn't have to keep revolving around the Bauers, Chamberlains, Lewises, Reardons and Spauldings anymore than it needed to continue revolve around the Ruthledges and Kranskys in order to survive and be successful. It just needs to be GL.

Well, it's sort of like what Erika Slezak said when Brian Frons/ABCD cancelled AMC and OLTL for two shows that were 30% less to produce and provided information over entertainment: people always need entertainment. They always need to hear, watch, read and share stories. That's what separates us from the apes (and I'm not even sure about that, lol!).

That's because GL had a theme - the so-called "brotherhood of man" and the belief in a "guiding light" that binds us all - that was timeless and ageless. You could pick up the show where it left off (but set in the present day), you could return it to its' roots as a faith-based program, or you could make it GL "in name only," with a new setting and a new cast of characters, but as long as you keep that clear, identifiable theme in mind, you'll have something that will speak to fans both new and old. And to those who are gonna complain that the thread has been derailed yet again, I say, build a bridge and get over it.

It'd actually be hilarious if someone did. I'm just saying.

I know what you mean. First, Patrick Mulcahey returns to GH as HW; and now, MVJ's developing a brand-new, African-American-focused soap opera in conjunction with CBS, P&G and the NAACP. It's sort of like witnessing "The Sun Also Sets" coming back from the dead, lol.

Yep. Make sure she remembers, though: 1) no bright lights, 2) no water and 3) no feeding after midnight.

Any soap that lasts more than a few years is bound to evolve, with new characters and families replacing or supplanting old. But, I believe that what makes a GOOD soap in that respect is that it still feels like itself even with all the changes. Yes, there was a period in Marland's second run when ATWT felt dark - although, nowhere NEAR as dark as Passanante and latter Sheffer - but it still felt like ATWT (at least, to me). And it didn't matter who was still on the show and on the front burner and who wasn't. It still felt like home, if you know what I mean. That's the difference we talk about when we talk about Sheffer in relation to everything else connected to the show. His stuff might have been exciting to watch (...for the most part...) and a tremendous boost of energy after a period when it was clear no one involved knew which direction to go after Marland's death, but did it still feel like we were watching ATWT? That's the question!

Recently, I watched one of those VICE docu-series ("Dark Side of the '90's," I think?) that expressed a similar sentiment: specifically, that African-Americans have always been staunch network TV viewers - as evidenced by the initial success of the FOX network; and later, The WB and UPN - due to habit/tradition and the fact that many African-Americans are from lower-income households who cannot afford cable TV, let alone internet service. In a way, I think we have Tyler Perry and his ilk to thank for this. God knows I have been down on that man and his godawful movies, plays and TV shows for YEARS, but as terrible as they are, they prove that there is an audience out there that is hungry for entertainment that speaks to and for them. At the same time, no one is more HONEST about quality or lack thereof than African-Americans are. If "The Gates" is crap, we'll let you KNOW it's crap and right away, regardless of track records. So, if this show actually makes it all the way to production, TPTB better "bring it" or else.

Thank you, @Vee! I didn't exactly think this thread would turn into that, but I'd be more stupid than usual if I didn't know about his reputation here.