te.

The issue is streaming and second-window opportunities. They usually get next to nothing on streaming, so everything needs to be earned back on first-run, which is becoming more and more unfeasible as linear ratings and thus licensing drops. They're also not great sellers internationally, so I'm not surprised they're done. I assume NBCUniversal might become more aggressive with selling their produced scripted shows to syndication.

Yeah, and while we obviously don't have any idea how it translated on screen since none of us have seen the pilot, it's not impossible that Zhao actually wasn't a good fit for the project. It happens and we see it frequently in both daytime, prime time and with movie franchises where technically talented people just aren't the right fit for a project. With that said, from reading the script (which was an early one) I do think the dialogue is a huge part of the issue here. Maybe some of it sounded better when delivered (plus some were changed) but I don't think it's a good idea for a tv show like Buffy to be too reliant on current day lingo and concepts.

I'm not sure what script you read, but the one I read was very "eeeh maybe it'll work better on tape". Which isn't the best thing I could say.

I love Felicia! I hope Europe will love her too.

Right so the show is trying to close out in the final three episodes or so. Badly. It makes me wonder how this show was produced? What were the notes? It's genuinely horrible.

Literal dialogue from the show: "Dr Engels... isn't he... isn't he the ANGEL OF DEATH?" "Yes, he's very misunderstood." "But surely, surely that wouldn't make for good PR?" I can't. What is this even.

IIRC, they were originally developed with Fox in mind, then they went with the MyNetWorkTv idea and that Fox was again going to eventually syndicate these shows. Considering the mid-to-late-90s experimentation of shows like Acapulco Bay and then the proposed late-night soap opera whose name escapes me, it's obvious there was some thought about Fox getting into the soap business somehow as late as the mid-00s. From memory, they also tried to vaguely tie these together - Desire was meant to be more of an overall brand name for one set of these telenovelas while Fashion House was meant to tie together more with the other set. So I guess it would've been their way to make it a bit more continuous soap for the US viewers.

Considering NBCUniversal have also announced the endings of Access Hollywood, Karamo and Steve Wilkos, it's obvious to me they're getting out of the syndicated talkie/reality business. I think it's just too unprofitable when these shows can't make up the difference on streaming with the declining linear viewers.

To be fair, is there a point to chemistry test people if you're not going to get audience feedback in eight to ten months? Add that people might not pick up from the first few scenes that they're chemistry testing them, so you'd have random scenes with two characters for no real reason airing almost a year before you can pull the trigger if it works with the audience. So you might as well just go there instead since it becomes pointless.

I really think that they had just given up at one point and were just thoughtlessly throwing things at the wall. At one point it just seems to become too soft-porny and the plots just seem really random. At least at one point it seems like there's a long-term plan to plots. A bit of an odd comparison, but it makes me think of Brad Garrett's post-"*Everybody Loves Raymond*" sitcom "*Til Death*". It was basically kept being renewed despite being a ratings bomb since Sony saw syndication potential. So everyone on that show got oddly meta with cast members appearing and disappearing, certain characters being inconsistently recast and basically just making fun of how they were time period fillers. I guess when you're writing a dead show walking there's a point you just give up and start doing weird [!@#$%^&*] for the sake of it.

The pilot script is out there and I'll say that I think they got the language all wrong. Buffy actually didn't use a lot of lingo kids actually used back then since Joss - for all his faults - knew it would age the show badly. I think whoever wrote the dialog needs to go, or they need to get someone who understands to balance it better so it doesn't become quite so buzzwordy and "aren't the kids just speakin' crazy these days, amirite???"

And it would've been an easy way to finally solve her parentage - hell, have her grow up as knowing that Paul Stoddard is her father which would've created an antagonistic dynamic between her and Elizabeth from the start. But ultimately, I think they got too stuck on having the characters go to these different time periods and stopped developing the present. It became a series of limited time stories as it often felt like the reason for travelling to these places got forgotten and they never fully expanded on how they'd change the current day Collinswood. If anything, I'd say that parallel time felt like it was completely detached to our Collinswood so you weren't sure why you should be engaged in what's happening. I think it needed to connect a better link to why Barnabus would even care to interfere in PT, and maybe Victoria could've been that link (I can save her etc).

Oh God. If anyone gave up on this show around episode like - I guess 90? I salute you (not in the way the show does). Because it basically becomes a soft porn show with a bit of tits, ass and a barely coherent plot about nazis, Egyptian sex Goddesses (don't ask) and now a blast from the past that makes Dark Shadows look high budget. Abandon ye ship. And yes, my post makes it sound more exciting than it is, but think of it as exciting in the way you'd describe a random porno plot. No one cares for the plot.

For what it's worth I like you.

Thanks @soapfan770 I know they wrote several endings to that storyline.

I don't think you can quite describe the absolute u-turn this show does around episode 70 - all of a sudden everyone's into satanism! It's the hip and happenin' thing to do. It's absolutely bizarre and hilarious.

So I've been putting this on in the background and I like how it's suddenly just like "hey, let's join a cult and start worshipping the devil". This is a very logical thing to do.

I'd watch a vertical drama where Bo Derek is a bad actress. Justice for Linda Evans!

Unfortunately, the actress has been in the soap press talking about it. So it's hard not to.

Ooh, I wonder if she's a lesbian.

I think this must be the best example of someone who is a soap pro and someone who is a bit slow on the uptake:

Sweden's entry:

I wouldn't say the reviews are "fake" - because while I liked it, if I had to review it there would be so many issues. At the same time - it's such a fan-pleaser of a movie that I like it. I'm happy to see how successful it's been - with that said, I hope this is a set up for Scream 8.

I realised that this year it's been 20 years since MyNetworkTv tried to launch with a schedule of American versions of telenovelas, the popular Latin American format of limited serialized shows that would have complete stories in approx 60-65 episodes each. It launched with little fanfare with a line up of Desire (a version of Colombian telenovela Mara Para Tres) and Fashion House (a version of Cuban telenovela Salir De Noche), the latter having the "star" castings of Bo Derek and Morgan Fairchild. Little to say, they didn't do too well but MyNetworkTV - already having shot several telenovelas, continued on with Wicked Wicked Games (a version of Venezuelan telenovela Aunque me Cuesta la Vida; starring Tatum O'Neal as the "star" casting) and Watch Over Me (version of Argentine telenovela Resistré). With all four telenovelas being rating bombs, they cut the orders of American Heiress (adaptation of Mexican telenovela La Heredera) and Saints & Sinners (version of Mexican telenovela Calle de las Novias), airing them in two hour blocks once a week before quietly pulling them off the schedule. All shows are now available on Tubi and with two decades (!!) gone since the experiment I thought it was time for a retrospective I guess. Was it before or its time and would've been more successful in the streaming era, or was it always destined to bomb as Americans can't successfully translate what makes telenovelas so alluring to their audience? What was your favourite if you watched them?

I think ABC would be the most likely to attempt another soap considering how badly GMA3 does, plus they have Hulu/Disney+ where GH performs well enough.