DaytimeFan

I've watched a few episodes of Y&R this week after seeing some scenes from 1999... Good lord this show is dead. Nothing happens and there is no character motivation in anything. No intensity, no energy, 90% wide shots and few closeups, and most glaringly of all: no music. This show is so incredibly lifeless. Comparing episodes from 1998/99/00 to now are just shocking. The irony is that the episodes that are 20+ years old seem far more modern and like prime time television than what's airing now which resembles ATWT in the 60s. None of GH, B&B or DAYS are this dull - I've seen them all this week and Y&R stands out in how boring it is by a country mile.

RHOP The taglines have raised my expectations for a truly sensational season. The chemistry is so fine with RHOP that I would resist changing that cast too much. Ashley is a mess and she seems to be embracing it. And of course La Grande Dame is will NOT be intimidated. RHONY We're seeing with each episode that the producers had a narrative in mind with Eboni. As Wendy Williams said in that clip with Bershan, it's left Eboni being the producer's 'science experiment' about how to bring a woman of colour into an all white cast. It just comes across so heavy handed and I wonder how much is Eboni vs how much she was told to do by producers. That scene with Ramona was flat out nauseating as Eboni kept beating a dead horse when Ramona said she was not going to discuss politics. It seemed like producers wanted to bait Ramona and they were trying to use Eboni to do it. And Ramona is way too wily to get caught up in that. Otherwise, I remain loving Sonja this season. Luann's scene with Victoria was good because it acknowledged the elephant in the room about what Lu's drunken antics did to her kids. I liked Bershan's ballsiness and her discussion about her journey through cancer. Leah and her sister are flat out dull and unnecessary. All that said. Is this a good season? No. Do I blame Covid? Somewhat. Do I think they cut Dorinda loose way too quickly in hindsight? Absolutely. RHOBH GO FOR IT, Sutton! Keep your stilettos on Crystal's neck! Do not let up! Do not give in! You could visibly see the cast turn on Crystal at that table when Dorit totally contradicted Crystal's bold faced lie. Props to Dorit, she sat there and told the truth, and you could see Rinna, Kyle, and Erika all pivot to trying to make this 'issue' go away. Crystal's face even betrayed that she knew she was losing this argument about being 'violated' and was quickly losing most support. Garcelle has been consistently in Sutton's corner and she's proven to be an excellent judge of character time and again. Her disdain of Kyle, and Kyle's dead fish, just had me rolling. RIP Kyle Beauvais. Erika keeps going for that Oscar with this week's performance. All that "You think I felt loved?"...delivered chillingly, but it rings hollow. Why? She openly admits Tom "funded [her]." I hope the lawyers were paying attention to that line. Erika admits that Tom funded her...and we now know he did that with other people's money. It's interesting the producers keep going back to that clip of Erika, Tom, Ken and LVP at dinner. When Tom was dissecting LVP, it seems to me that he knew she'd seen his type before and was not intimidated. Kathy remains an absolute hoot. She has a glamorous weariness to her. The Friend Of role is perfect for her.

Great news - I was concerned about this length of time away from the show.

Okay haven't seen any episodes of her on RHONY (obviously) but LOVING Bershan!

To live into your 90s is a great life. He was a wonderful actor who portrayed a man as kind as he was himself. May his memory be a blessing.

I am so sad to hear this news. Stuart was a cut above and his Dr. Alan Quartermaine was a touchstone for me and all the doctors in my family - he played a doctor with more empathy than most and his portrayal rang true. I loved his Emmy acceptance speech: it showed an incredible sense of humour. For me, he and Leslie Charleson, Jackie Zeman, Brad Maule, Lynn Herring, and Jon Lindstrom were my GH. They were my era. I am so sorry he's gone.

I haven’t read any of the fabulous comments in this thread and am just posting the stream of consciousness notes I took while watching: That stage is incredibly small and the canned applause is obvious. Jackee and RSW looked great together. It’s so good to have clips back Marla! What a thrill for her and to see her win! Heather Tom looks awful. Her face and makeup is a mess and the dress looks insane against the backdrop on the stage. Deidre Hall’s hands look very old. Mario Lopez was probably very relieved for social distancing so Sheryl couldn’t jump him Glad Jeopardy won. Sean Kanan’s tie. He looks stuffed into the suit. Wrong image for Margeurite Ray - I didn’t know Veronica Redd died Thrilled for Cady McClain! Bring her back on contract! Anyone watched A House Divided? It looked good. How is Studio City? Y&R won for writing?! How?! Maurice. Again. Sigh. Happy for Jacqueline MacInness Wood. She went ‘ugly’ for her submission and it was all for the best and the win. GH won for best show? Is that accurate? Frank Valentini continues to age gracefully.

The heat is being turned up on Erika...lawyers are alleging that she is withholding records connected to her companies...the very same companies that apparently received $20 million from Tom Gerardi, and the lawyers are arguing that Erika is publicly dissipating assets that could form part of the monies owed to the widows and orphans. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-9723707/Erika-Jayne-accused-refusing-submit-bank-records-investigator.html I think it's occurred. All of her clothing is on steep discounts...

RHOBH Erika: she laid it on really thick. Her performance was Oscar worthy. Very well done. However, we know Tom 'loaned' her company $20 million dollars. And we know the lavish life she's lived on someone else's dime. The only thing that gave me pause was that clip they showed of Tom snapping at both LVP and Erika a few years ago - they'd never showed that clip uncut like that, and it certainly highlighted an ugly side of Tom's personality. Crystal: The Bravo editors are NOT letting her get away with this foul sh*t and are showing the truth. Crystal must be new at this, so when she said that she didn't want to talk about it, and the editors ROLLED THAT FOOTAGE of Crystal running her mouth and growing that story every single time she told it, I knew who those Bravo editors believe. Sutton kept herself in control and did not let off Crystal in front of all the women, which was smart of her. Sutton: She sees Crystal. She's called it: she's a mean girl. She's a highschool mean girl. I appreciated that she made damn sure to let Crystal know that comments about Sutton's mental health, when Crystal knows Sutton's father died by suicide, will not be tolerated and are unacceptable. I also like that she let it be known that Crystal's comments are defamatory. Kyle: It's interesting that she didn't jump on Crystal's story and instead backed up Sutton and squashed whatever Dorit thought she was going to do stirring that story up. Her impression of Kathy's 'shorthand' was hilarious. This is Kyle's best season. I still know she's Vile Richards, but Kathy being there really highlights her light, funny side. Kathy: Hilarious. Rinna: Did nothing but cackle. I wonder how Rinna Beauty is doing? Dorit: Did nothing. Garcelle: Calm, cool, and always collected. I so enjoy her.

Bingo - a fish rots from the head.

Below Deck: Sailing Yacht, was really excellent this year and the reunion was juicy as two of the cast members (apparently) are having a baby...and no longer together. The Below Deck franchise has brought Bravo some very strong ratings and it performs the best in the demos. Loving that Potomac trailer...Bravo knows this show is having its moment and are publicizing it appropriately. RHOMelbourne: I saw someone on Twitter said they read those posts in Janet's voice - and I did too before even reading that comment! She must be clashing with the newbies.

Your ratings report made the Daily Mail, @Toups! https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-9713459/The-Talk-hits-new-ratings-LOW-three-months-Sharon-Osbournes-dramatic-exit-amid-race-row.html

Perfect casting. Ted King is a great choice.

I think that would actually be a dynamite base, and then add 3 or 4 more ladies. I'd really like to see LeeAnne back simple to mix it up with D'Andra, even in a friend of role...she's certainly problematic on her own, but when you compare her to Kameron, LeeAnne isn't anywhere near as bad... Stephanie brought NOTHING this season aside from her feel good locker room charity work. Kary is an awful person who I don't ever want to see on TV again. Kameron is extremely problematic and I don't want to see her ignorance/spite/racism on TV again. Brandi is foul and nobody will miss her. Bravo made sure they edited Monique out of any flashback material. She made some enemies there. Glad to hear it - Tamra brought a lot to the show and her missing presence this year was acutely felt.

An art project? Good lord she is up herself. It's also interesting to hear her 'real voice' as compared to her EJ brittle bitch voice.

Not even a little bit.

It really is astounding how poorly Andy Cohen handles these kinds of issues. He softball'd Teresa in exactly the same way, and in fairness to Teresa, she probably didn't fully appreciate what was going on. As we know from watching RHONJ, she is a very stupid person. Meanwhile, allegedly, Erotica Lame is a sophisticated hustler. That Girardi was transferring money into a company owned by Erika speaks to how deeply involved she was in all of it. And now her lawyers are apparently back on - which means she finally paid her bill or got honest with them, or both.

And they all look incredibly young - Bravo is misfiring here. One of the best things about the RH franchise is being able to see mature women on television.

Yes! I am so glad Kelly, Brown Wind, and Elizabeth are out. Not one of them brought anything worthwhile to the show and their awkward, unlikeable presence won't be missed at all. The return of Heather is a very good move - they need to focus on the aspirational nature of this. It's sort of an open secret that Bravo is trying to retool the RH franchises to skew younger...which is a critical error a la ABC Daytime...so Gina and Emily surviving another season is explained. I do hope Tamra returns, at least as an FOH, they show will desperately need a shot in the arm.

Usually they're citing the phrasing in case law so that they can exit and the case law is the judgment of the Court, which is why it sounds as blunt as it does. This is a plain old bad sign for Erotica Lame. Her day of reckoning appears to be approaching.

As Danny Pellegrino would say: "WHHHEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWW" Lawyers withdrawing because the solicitor/client relationship has broken down is a very bad sign about a litigant. It's also a red flag for any future lawyers.

Interesting...so she was an Officer of the company. Yeah, how on earth can she excuse her involvement in this?

Any opinions on Erotica Lame? How does she fare?

@Cat @DRW50 @Gray Bunny @SFK @Bright Eyes @I Am A Swede @Taoboi In Joan adjacent news, on June 27 CNN is premiering its documentary Lady Boss: The Jackie Collins Story. Dame Joan appears:

+1 I totally agree. I don't like her at all. At her core she seems impatient and mean.