Cat

Actually, that mega e-mail (if it is true, it is a little scattered and all-over-the-place) confirms a lot of my initial feelings watching RHONJ this season. Despite the fact that Teresa is totally ridiculous and off her rocker, I cannot completely hate on her. Because, really, when you have barracudas in your family like Kathy (who is always trying to create division) and those two famewhores Joey and his deluded wife who thinks she's the Virgin Mary with the talent of Beyoncé ("Thank you Jee-SUS!"), you'd be watching your back, too. Teresa was totally wrong to attack Kathy over absolutely nothing in the last episode, but I think it has gotten to the point where Kathy only has to open her sanctimonious mouth for Teresa to want to slap her silly. It's so obvious that Kathy and Melissa play up to the cameras in a way that Dina Manzo, Jacqueline, Caroline and even Danielle Staub never did. I also thought Gay Greg was sketchy at best and always wondered why he was bitching about Teresa or Lauren Manzo or kissing up to Melissa ("I want to be you!") when he isn't even a member of the family. Sit your ass DOWN, girlfriend. Whether Albie is gay or not, I don't know, but if he has chosen not to announce it on TV, that's his business and nobody else's. All I know is that he's HOT to look at, and he and his brother are hilarious. I will always love the Manzo/Lauritas, especially Caroline, and still really miss the dynamic Dina brought to the show. LOL at that idiot Ashley unable to come to Punta Cana because she couldn't be bothered to get a passport. She really is a waste of skin and hair, that creature.

I disagree (and I hate when I have to with jp!). I am really enjoying RHOBH thus far. Lisa is my fave, her observations are hilarious, Camille is great, I love-to-hate Kayle and Kim is a hot tranny mess and having a ball while doing so. I thought I was the only one who figured she was high as a kite when she got to the airport... while her "cold" the next day was actually a hangover of some kind. I hope she can confront it this season. And next episode looks very interesting (if uncomfortable viewing).

Have been watching some of the episodes from the late 70s-early 80s that saynotosoaps posted on YouTube: LOVE. Alec Baldwin may have been high on Bolivian marching powder all throughout his Doctors run but he sure was convincing as that relatable !@#$%^&*] Billy Aldrich. The show is gripping and it only seems to use two sets per episode! I love it, especially Mona, Carolee, MJ and the glimpses I've seen of Kathleen Turner's Nola (forgive me but while Kim Zimmer's Nola looks the part, KZ plays her as SO smug that it is hard to warm to her).

It has been long and they should have cut a lot of episodes with repetitive stuff (Christmas/NYE party stuff seemed to run for, like, three consecutive episodes!) and brought Juicy Joe's drinking/weird behavior to the forefront earlier.

^^ It's so funny. Joey is a total meathead and looks more like a ball of raw beef with every passing week. And yet... there is something hot about him, even though he's like 4' 8". Also: Chris Laurita NJ is dragging -- it was my favourite RH franchise for a long time. Bottom line: this show misses Danielle and (to a lesser extent) Dina. Danielle's stage-mom/BFF dynamic with her daughters was fascinating, as was her rivalry with Dina. Danielle may be monstrous, sketchy, vengeful, deluded, but she was honest about her many faults and wasn't afraid to show them. I sometimes felt sorry for her at being ousted from the housewives circle -- she so badly wanted to be part of a familial group of female friends. If Bravo wants RHONJ to continue, they need to trot outthat drunken sociopath Kim G every once in a while. But I guess Joe Giudice is already ticking that "drunken sociopath" box, huh. BTW, if I hear Melissa pushing her "On Display" song one more time.... Are you kidding me with this? Only Britney Spears can get away with singing about the pressures of fame. This ho? Who?

No comment on RHONJ? I'm not surprised, after S2 which was so stellar, S3 is feeling a little... padded out. The JuicyJoe/Teresa/Joey/Melissa oedipal triangle is the only story in town now that hideous Ashley child has slunk away to irritate somebody else with her whining. Poor Caroline needs more to do, for a start. What happened with Kim G? I did love Milania's pizza birthday party, though, and Gia trying to bring her family together. Looking forward to Kathy/Teresa showdown in Punta Cana next week, too. Both women are in the wrong but I do think Kathy thrives on family dysfunction and enjoys driving the wedge in deeper, even though she tries to cover it up as "mediation."

IA with whoever said Lisa on RHOBH can withstand the "bitch" tag (unlike Camille who worked overtime to make out that she was edited that way). Lisa is smart and she can own the bitch with the best of them. I find her refreshingly honest and insightful. In hindsight, were she and Ken's comments tactless? Yes, absolutely -- but they were made months before Russell's suicide, and as Lisa pointed out, she barely knew Russell. Nobody did, the man was so tightly wound in S1, he couldn't even relax with "the guys." He obviously had problems socializing, including with his own wife and (sometimes) daughter. RHOBH wasn't why he commited suicide -- those issues ran way deeper than being some side act on a TV reality show. As for taylor, well, her passive-aggressive actions in S1 are cast in a new light now that we hear about the divorce and domestic violence against her. But she is manipulative (the girl has three aliases, for god's sake, including one called Shana) and... I think she is attracted to power (and what is domestic abuse if not one partner exerting his or her physical dominace over the other? Not saying she was attracted to being beaten up, but she was drawn to a man who had real issues with controling and dominating her). And it is therefore no wonder she is so drawn to Kyle, the loudest and bossiest of the housewives. Kyle is Queen Bee right now, she's got Lisa and Taylor fighting over #1 BFF place, she put Kim in her place (and in rehab, apparently) at the end of last season, plus she's got Camille minding her p's and q's with her, too. Kyle is a bully, period. And she looks like she smells of feet! Yes, I know that's a random statement to make but it's all the muumuus she wears and padding around barefoot and her smoker's voice. Speaking of smokers, is it wrong that I love Kim in the talking heads/voiceover segments? She is obviously sauced out of her head in most of them, and yet she sometimes is the Voice of Truth. Camille should be interesting this year. I like her -- but this woman is still incredibly self-absorbed. I like Adrienne but I'm sensing D-I-V-O-R-C-E in her interactions with Paul now. He must be Beverly Hills' most insecure plastic surgeon. BTW, did he do Taylor's horrendous juvederm lips? Because they look awful.

Holy [!@#$%^&*]. He was a hot piece! And Caroline, so pretty. I like how he comes across as very stand-up and dedicated to his wife and family, especially Ashley who is lucky to have two fathers who love her. Anyboy know where I can watch past seasons of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills?

Ashley -- wow. Can that girl be any more selfish and self-absorbed? The girl can't have more than one braincell to her name. I'm glad Jacqueline's ex was supporting her and could see just what a spoiled little brat Ashley is. The way she talked down to her mother like, "I'm better than you because I didn't fall pregnant at 19." Like, WTF? Jacqueline was right to point out that at least when she got pregnant, it taught her about responsability and making tough choices. The only tough choice Ashley makes is which annoying beanie hat to wear today. And is it wrong that I find Jacqueline's husband Chris kind of hot? Teresa... baby, what has happened to you? I used to really enjoy her and cannot bring myself to like Little Miss Perfect Melissa entirely. But she is so plainly jealous of her brother's wife and really views her as a threat. I can only imagine that losing all her money and see her husband do jail time has probably made Teresa distrust anybody outside of her immediate family. We don't see her interact with Caroline or Jacqueline much anymore.

LOL, yes, Melissa! Who the [!@#$%^&*] is Michelle?! Jesus Barbie, OMG, that is hilarious, Antoyne. Off to check out RHOBH from the beginning -- have never watched before. I am thinking of letting RHONY go for a bit -- they are all so vicious now. It's actually quite exhausting o watch.

OC ^^^ Oh, Gretchen and Alexis are awful but... I do think Alexis is the most attractive out of all the women, the rest of whom look like aging Barbies/Rachel Zoes.

New Jersey OK, so I am only 6 episodes into Season 3 but I am not getting the Kathy and Michelle love on the board. Yes, Teresa is a bragger but there is something warm beneath her shell and I have to say, I think Michelle is the one trying to play "poor little me" in order to keep Joey Gorga (gargoyle by name...) tied to her and her family and friends (including that witches coven she calls her sisters). I also find herspoiled and completely unsympathetic to Teresa and her family who have been bankrupted, forced to sell every tacky, leopard print ridiculousness from their home and start over from scratch. Also, trying to launch her "music career" on us -- she just happened to be singing Amazing Grace in the house and the cameras were there? Yeah, right. Hated it when Danielle Staub did it, hate the way LuAnn is trying to force her singing on us, too. Joey -- god. I always have a thing for Latin men, especially Italians but there is not much going on upstairs, is there? I can only imagine that he must be good in bed because that, and his money, must be the reason Michelle married him. He's such a divo, too. This Teresa/Joey/Michelle "triangle" is weird, not least because Joey ended up marrying somebody who has a lot of similar personality traits to his sister. He also dotes on Gia, who looks exactly like Teresa when she was a kid. As for Kathy, she is a hypocrite, playing both sides and bitching about Teresa all the time. She is almost as bad as Kim G (who I think should become a permanent cast member -- she'd be the Ramona of the group) and it comes off as petty jealousy. I do like her when she is shown with her immediate family, though. Her kids seem very solid and I think Rich is adorable as her loyal, gregarious husband. I will always love Caroline, she has been my fave in past seasons, but I'm not sure how this radio thing is going to pan out. I miss Dina sometimes. AND I sort of miss that crazy bitch mother from hell Dannielle, even though it was obvious there was nothing left for her to do on the show -- except manage her kids' careers. Poor children. I'm wondering if Albert doesn't like Lauren's bf Vito?

The Bernard Herrmann/Vertigo bit was the best part of the whole video. The repellant birthing stuff kind of worked when set to that amazing music. I can't even remember what the actual Gaga song sounds like. Like Y&RWorldTurner, I never got the love for Bad Romance. Telephone (as a song) was actually the catchiest for me, helped by the fact that Beyonce sang on it. And it's funny how hard Lady Gaga tries to be sexy and sexual, I get a very cold, unsexual vibe from her. Nothing sensuous or hot or even animal. She's just some kid playing dress up.

I sort of love that fans were vocal in their dislike of what is a staple and over-used plot device on US soaps. Of course, attacking the actress and her children because of reaction to a SL over which she has zero control is absolutely crazy. That's not the kind of "vocal" I am talking about. Can you guys access BBC i-player over in the States? On Radio 4's Today programme this morning, in the last 15 minutes of the show they had a discussion about this SL and Samantha Janus leaving the show. Theatre broad and ex-EE guest star Sheila Hancock weighed in on it and gave a nice defence of acting on soaps in general. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00x799l/Today_07_01_2011/

Actually -- deep breath -- Ireland's economy WAS doing well and its government were fiscally prudent. The issue is with Ireland's banks that put money in property. The government bailed them out rather than let them collapse. Basically, the Euro zone NEED to be seen to be doing something about supporting the euro currency. The entire euro project is under tremendous pressure to fail. They needed Ireland more than Ireland needed them and so that's why they insisted that Ireland take the bailout package. In terms of meeting their borrowing obligations, the Irish were/are not at the brink of default the way Greece was 6-8 months ago.

OMG, thanks, you guys! You truly are the best. I was sad about this last night but then I check into SON this morning and find this amazing news! It's already made my day.

Well, I've hit a wall. Or, rather, I am approaching the end of the consecutive episodes that have been posted on line. 7/1/1992 seems to be the last one. I am saving it for viewing tomorrow. Apart from that, I am sort of devastated, you guys! I want to know who is Jenna's father -- is it Carl? I want to see Lorna finally get accepted into Felicia and Lucas's family. I want to see Marley fall for Byron (of course, that'll never happen). I want to see Vicky and Ryan reunited, Justine show up (c'mon, Spencer keeps mentioning his "dead wife" so you know she's alive somewhere). Most of all, I want to see Jake & Paulina continue on their journey, although I don't know if I want to see them break up and Jake move onto Vicky. That, for me, sort of negates all the evolution of character and amazing build-up of 1991-1992. Oh, well, hopefully other AW clips on YT are still available for me to put the pieces together.

There is actually a *great* scene between Jake & JB's Marley from the final week of December 1991 where they talk about the rape. It is during Marley's wedding shower and is a very satisfying scene in the sense that it was long overdue. That is when I really started appreciating Buchanan's version of Marley.

And thusly soaps lost their relevance -- and their target audience. What on earth where the TV execs thinking?

Get out of my head! So much WORD to your post, I watched February 1992 not so long ago and I had the same exact reactions as you. Lorna! Especially Jensen Buchanan's Marley, which I find more balanced, nuanced and three dimensional than the one-note Vicky who reminds me just a little of Laura Wright's Carly on GH (though of course I can't stomach LW's version of Carly, whereas JB's Vicky does have redeeming features, including her relationship with Donna and, despite everything, her undying love for Ryan). And that Valentine Ball was THE AWESOME. Since watching AW regularly, I really miss these little things, like the fancy balls with crowds of extras, outrageous evening gowns, fights, revelations and (usually) a dance between a couple who have feelings for each other but haven't quite come out and admitted them yet. I also miss the use of (then) current musical hits which really showed that the soaps had more money to burn back then. And the fight between Paulina dn Vicky was choreographed so well. I loved that they showed up in the same dress, and Vicky told Paulina she looked like trash in hers, and Paulina eyed Vicky's smaller decollatage and said "Well, at least I fill it out properly." I'm not sure I like Dennis all that much. The actor comes across as a bit of a himbo and SO not Iris's son who was supposed to have been raised in Europe. I do think Marley needs somebody different from Jamie who was incredibly straight-laced -- though I do like the fact that Jamie is somebody who tries to live by his own high standards. He's a decent guy, if very judgmental. I miss Olivia already, and I'm sad that they never pursued a story between her and her physiotherapist. They were sparky together. They should have put her with Jamie -- if only to piss off Sam and Amanda in the heart of the Cory household. Carmen Duncan. What can I say? I never saw Beverlee McKinsey, and I'm sure I would be impressed by her command of the role. I love the divas! However, CD's Iris balances the bitch with the warm and vulnerable so beautifully that she has become one of my favorites. I've already bored everybody here with my overwelming love for Jake & Paulina under Donna Swajewski's tenure. Needless to say, I love the romance and yearning and how the show took its time to really establish the relationship. Evans and Eplin melt the screen with just a look. I am absolutely convinced by the show's implication that J&P are the loves of each other's lives. I'm sad to learn that fiesty Paulina was watered down in later news as her earthy warmth and newly found backbone are what I love about the character. I also like her big-sister relationship with Hannah. When did soaps decide that strong-willed, well-rounded women and three-dimensional characterization was no longer the way to go? When they decided that romance and sensuality was expendable? I rarely recognize myself as a thirty-something woman in the female soap characters of today, who seem to crave victimization in some weird way... and yet these early 90s AW women, with their big hair, huge earrings and shoulder pads, in the days before spray tans and thinification and breast implants, listening to Mariah Carey, Boyz 2 Men (dear lord!) etc., it's spooky how much more relatable they are to me. Perhaps I am behind the times!

Their chemistry really leaps off the screen, teplin. I know I sound silly talking about it, but after being starved of any pairing with even an iota of chemistry on soaps currently, I can't believe how much Tom Eplin and Judi Evans have together (although the rumor mill suggests that they hated each other. Not if the fact Eplin keeps slipping her tongue is any indication! Sorry to be crude, but it's obvious he was doing that to tease Evans). I had forgotten that this kind of chemistry is what soaps used to actively cultivate. I don't plan on checking out Jake & Vicky the Redux. Perhaps if Anne Heche had still been playing Vicky, I could imagine the chemistry between her and Tom Eplin... but after seeing J&P, what a pity TIIC caved into backstage agendas.

LOL, can anybody say Misery? I guess it was bound to happen, given that Felicia is a romance novelist/runs Brava/presents Breakfast with Felicia which apparently has "an audience of millions." Felicia = Oprah! I have been watching THE best episode of AW that I have ever seen -- 5/25/1992. Lorna goes to see her sick grandmother to confirm her parentage. I just have no words to describe how much Alicia Coppola impresses me. Whether she's covering her grandmother with kisses or sparring with Carl, this character was Fierce with a capital F. And then we have Jake & Paulina... finally. I am in love with this couple. This episode invested so much in their confrontation and eventual admiting that they loved each other. I honestly believe that the day the soaps decided to pare down/eradicate proper love scenes was the day the death knell sounded on Daytime's fate. Those scenes are not just swooningly swoonsome, sensual, romantic and tender, they established this couple's identity as a twosome. That love scene will always be referred to as that moment when they knew they couldn't live without each other, etc.

That is great to hear about PMV. I'm sorry he had such a tough time after he left the show, but I'm glad he's married with a family and, hopefully, doing something he truly loves. As a person, I certainly never heard/read a bad word said against him by his co-stars.

Wow. Glad I missed that! At least Carl Hutchins had a sense of humor. And poor Donna. I just adore Anna Stuart and her version of Donna as this ultra-feminine society diva. She could have played her as a complete Alexis-style bitch but there is something kind and innocent about her, too. She can be spoiled but never evil and vicious. I should check out Philece Sampler's Donna.

I don't know any of the history of the Love family. What happened? I assumed Donna's daddy didn't want her with the stable boy and sent him away then did something with one of the twins (Vicky) that Donna gave birth to. But that is supposition. OK, so I've skipped ahead a teeny bit -- I'm in April 1992. Though I would actively counsel Carl to watch all of autumn 1991 if he can as I found it good. It was just January and February I had a problem with as there was a lot of Vicky and Grant and, like I said, Mark Pinter's Grant skeeves me the f*ck out. Also I am not 100% enamoured of the Harrisons and they have tended to dominate the odd week here and there. However, there was a ball (on Feb 14th, I think -- a date burned on every soap writer's brain back in the day) and Paulina and Vicky have THE most awesome catfight. Sigh. So much soapy fun. Swajewski is playing the Jake-Paulina SL so damn well. The marriage, the romantic sparring, the fall-out. Every beat is played and she is taking her sweet time because she knows the audience (well, me) is hooked to this burgeoning love story. I have embedded the 4/14/1992 episode here, but I just want you guys to watch the first 1 minute 47 of the episode. Because it oozes longing and gives me goosebumps. At one point he brushes his nose against her ear and it's like, DAMN. Soaps just do not invest in details like that anymore. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An74nmHFS4I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An74nmHFS4I Oh, and they're shooting another music video, with Jenna (in TLC knee-pads) dancing in a barn. It has to be seen to be believed.