Khan

Yep, lol. "A Very Good Year for Murder" and "Crimson Harvest" definitely were homages to FALCON CREST, while "Northern Explosion" was more than a little inspired by "Northern Exposure." There's also "The Wearing of the Green" (S1, E6), which features two female detectives (played by Patty McCormick and Lucie Arnaz) who were spoofs of "Cagney & Lacey," which had ended its' run on the network only months before. I love that, lol! Jessica Fletcher seemed to have travelled everywhere and met everyone. Yet, they never had her travel to Africa and go on a safari as research for one of her novels.

I don't think there was any reason to shade them since MSW outperformed them all in the ratings and none of them were up against MSW on Sunday nights either. On the other hand, it's pretty clear MSW was taking a few jabs at "Hunter" in "Murder, According to Maggie," even though "Hunter" aired on a different night, but it was done in such a way that you wouldn't have known unless you watched "Hunter" regularly.

I agree. By S12, MSW was at the point where the clunker episodes were becoming more noticeable. Not only did you have the back-to-back music industry episodes that I've been mentioned above, but you also had the back-to-back western-themed episodes early in the season, with "A Quaking in Aspen," followed by "The Secret of Gila Junction"; a two-parter ("Nan's Ghost") that was filled with a negligible amount of filler (and was pretty much like every other Ireland-themed episode, right down to the use of several of the same guest stars); the show's one Japan-themed episode ("Kendo Killing") that suffered from the fact that it was clearly taped (like all episodes were) on the Universal Studios lot; an episode ("Something Foul in Flappieville") where the milieu was too vague (sometimes, it seems like it's taking place BTS at a live-action children's TV show; sometimes, it seems like it's really taking place at a cartoon show or puppet theatre; and sometimes, it feels like we're at a toy factory!); an episode ("Southern Double-Cross") that finally sent Jessica "down under" for the first time in 12 years, but throws every stereotype about Australians at us in the process; a Cabot Cove episode ("Evidence of Malice") that revolves around Deputy Andy Broom and reveals just how thin and serviceable the character has always been; an episode about teenagers ("What You Don't Know Can Kill You") that was written by someone who hadn't been a teenager since the 1940's; and a next-to-last episode ("Mrs. Parker's Revenge") that was so un-MSW-like in its' plot about biological warfare that I still suspect it was an unused "Matlock" or "Wonder Woman" script that was refashioned for this show. Frankly, whenever I get to "Death by Demographics" on my PlutoTV rewatches, I am READY to start the whole series over again, lol. I get it, too, lol. TBH, I go back and forth on "Murder Among Friends." Sometimes, I appreciate the episode for its' satire on MSW's main competitor (and ultimate show-killer) that season; other times, I feel like most of the characters in that episode are REALLY unpleasant to watch. If "Friends" had been produced while Peter S. Fischer was still showrunner, I think he would've softened the blows with more humor, just as he had done with the "Hunter" spoof on "Murder, According to Maggie."

Between this random casting news and the news that B&B will introduce a new Forrester who was named after a comic book character, it's been a red-letter day for the Bell soaps, lol.

If B&B is adding a new character named "Electra" to the show, then I insist they also cast her sibling, and that their name be Dyna, Medea or Asylum.

That's what I thought! So glad I'm not the only one who remembered that, lol! I agree. What's next? Harrison Ford joins the show as Jed Andrews? (IYKYK, lol).

TBH, @DRW50, I don't think I've ever read any of the MSW tie-in novels, and I think that's because they don't have any bearing on the TV show. S's 1-5 certainly were MSW's most inventive seasons. The plots were formulaic, but Peter S. Fischer knew how to keep the show from becoming stale. S's 6 and 7 had their moments, too, but as a whole, they're bogged down by the "bookend episodes," which are polarizing, to say the least, lol. S8 sees new showrunner David Moessinger attempting to "shake up" the show - shorter scenes, quicker pacing, less reliance on humor/comedy, edgier music, fresher guest stars, NYC as a permanent locale - but, as I've said in the past, there is a feeling that the show is being "dumbed down" in order to boost the ratings. (For one, the concept of J.B. Fletcher teaching criminology at a university, despite having a background as an English teacher and mystery novelist only, is one of those only-on-TV conceits which, thankfully, gets downplayed and then eliminated entirely as the season wears on). If you ever wondered how Dean Hargrove would've produced a cerebral, non-violent show like MSW, then S8 provides you with the best answer. The last four seasons - S's 9 through 12 - are probably when MSW begins to go on auto-pilot, so to speak. J.B. remains as endearing as always, but other shows that Bruce Lansbury had produced in the past - "The Wild Wild West," "Mission: Impossible," "Wonder Woman" - tended to become generic after awhile, and his sister's show was no exception. No offense to him or to the rest of the Lansbury clan, but Bruce always struck me as a production executive-turned-creative who thought more about budgets than about creativity. By S12, there *is* this feeling that either MSW probably needed to end or that Lansbury and Co. are so miserable over how Les Moonves has treated them that episodes become more by-the-numbers than ever. I've always said that having back-to-back episodes ("Death Goes Double Platinum" and "Murder in Tempo") centered around the music industry was a sure sign that somebody at the show or the network just plain didn't care anymore, lol.

Am I wrong, or didn't Stephanie E. Williams take over HER role on OLTL?

I wish "Dick and Liz" had stayed together forever. To me, they were such a beautiful couple.

I literally laughed out loud when I heard he'd been cast as Dillon, because I had just seen him on an episode of Lifetime's awful "My Crazy Ex."

No doubt, that cat was just hiding out from their idiot of an owner. It's always galling to me how people expect public figures like Kamala Harris to be so damn erudite when the average man today can't put together a simple sentence to save his own neck. You don't elect leaders who are well-spoken; you elect leaders who can keep us all from ending up on the streets!

My thoughts pretty much echo @soapfan770's: it's always a treat to see Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury together, given their history. After his first couple of appearances, however, Michael Haggerty does start to wear out his welcome a bit. Also, in his last appearance on the show, "Sugar & Spice, Malice & Vice" (S9, episode 7), they pretty much acknowledge that, with the real-life Cold War coming to a close, a character like Haggerty isn't as relevant anymore - and indeed, that is the last time we see or hear from him (books notwithstanding). Of course, I'd take another appearance from Haggerty over one from Grady any day, lol! My favorite recurring character - hands down - is Seth Hazlitt, followed by Harry McGraw and Lt. Artie Gelber. To me, Harry is one of the best TV gumshoes I've come across - a modern-day Sam Spade, if you will, with a dash of Jim Rockford's propensity for getting himself into the most comically absurd messes; and IMO, they couldn't have found a better actor to portray him than Jerry Orbach. EP/Showrunner Tom Sawyer tried to replicate Harry in the later seasons (after Orbach's "Law & Order" gig ruled out further appearances) with the more Mike Hammer-like Charlie Garrett, played by Wayne Rogers, but Charlie was such a pale imitation. Overall, I loved Dennis Stanton, too, but his last appearance (in "Ship of Thieves," S9, episode 20) was a total letdown. Not only was he not featured as much - I could've used more of him and less of Mary Wickes' klepto and her wimpy son - but a lot of his panache was gone as well. It's clear that Peter S. Fischer was the only one who could write for that particular character.

Apparently, Lisa Brown worked HARD with that girl BTS as her (and GL's) acting coach, pushing her to improve.

Yet, I have friends on FB who say that everything that Kamala Harris says is a "word salad." Personally, I don't have trouble parsing through her statements. I just think most people today are too country-ass dumb to understand anything above a "Dick and Jane" level.

She ain't the only one.

In a way, it works perfectly for where Jessica is supposed to be at that point in her life. Being a well-regarded mystery writer was still relatively new to her, so she hadn't developed a sense of sophistication about it all. If she had remained that way after S1, there's a good chance that her "eccentric New Englander" persona would've worn thin with the audience.

It's a lot of both, lol.

Let's say the fans' efforts pay off and TPTB reverse their decision to let KeMo go. Does anyone believe this will light a proverbial fire under her ass and get her to actually act for once, instead of just sleepwalking her way through scenes? Will TPTB try to give her better material, or any material at all? WHAT WOULD BE DIFFERENT IF KELLY MONACO ACTUALLY STAYED? (Spoiler alert: Nothing would be different).

The last time Maze featuring Frankie Beverly put out a new album, Bill Clinton had been president for only eight months. Yet, to the African-American community, they were relevant right up to the very end. That's the ultimate testament to their musicianship. RIP.

I can't believe some shut-ins out there actually took the time to dream up and post online fake SOD previews. Like, seriously, dudes, get another hobby, lol.

I'd love to know which other P&G show offered him a part. Something tells me it could've been for Lloyd Kendall on SFT, but maybe not, lol.

I still hope they keep in mind that it's not 1994 anymore and that having those characters behave as they did 30+ years ago will look foolish and sad and actually ruin viewers' memories of the original show.

"Diagnosis: Murder" did get better after Scott Baio left. However, even by Dean Hargrove and Fred Silverman's already low standards, I thought DM was an embarrassment to everyone involved, including Dick Van Dyke. One factor that probably helped was all those endless cast reunions that they did in order to attract more viewers. I remember one episode reunited cast members from "Happy Days," "Laverne & Shirley" and other Garry Marshall-produced sitcoms, while another reunited members from the film and TV versions of "M*A*S*H." And then there was the time GH's Leslie Charleson and Stuart Damon made a cameo in an episode that, I think, centered around famous TV doctors like Quincy, Joe Gannon from "Medical Center" and the like. Ugh, lol. I just remember hating the whole exercise and thinking, "If y'all would put more time into developing better scripts, and instructing your actors not to act as if they're guest-starring on 'Batman,' and less time on THIS [!@#$%^&*], imagine how decent y'all actually would be!"

Actually, @Paul Raven, I think Tom O'Rourke was fired or let go. I remember reading an interview with Grant Aleksander where he said he was livid about the news but that O'Rourke calmed him down and said, in effect, "That's just the way the business works."

Believe me, I know exactly how you feel, lol.