DAYS: HUGE rumor...

[DrewH]

You've obviously never taken a psychology class. We're learing about rape right now. Males who are raped by other males feel that their manhood has been taken away. They feel less of a man and they truly start to question their sexuality. This would probably be the most psychological storyline DAYS ever wrote. It really takes you inside a character. I have no idea what you're talking about, it would take us back 30-50 years? I don't remember male rape being on television in the 50s-70s. Note, I wasn't alive, but it surely would be talked about nowadays. You don't know what you're talking about.

[Keith]

That would be great, Drew, but not at this time in the soap medium. The last Daytime character to have something similar happen to has become asexual. Midn you, we can't get everything we got with Bianca, baby switch, etc, but there are other, equally bad routes.

Rape needs to be steered clear of for a few years. It's overexposed on soaps to the point of exploitian. I agree, done right, this could be great. It's all about timing. This rings true of ANY soap story.

[Vee]

Yes, that's true, but that doesn't make them "turn gay." If Will or any character was to be gay or bisexual, period, it would not come about because of a violent rape. I have taken a number of psychology courses myself. Only in old pulp fiction and antiquated stories about the evils of homosexuality does a character simply being violated "turn" them gay. That kind of idea is an old, ignorant stereotype that has been around for many, many years and used by all the wrong people. And even if you or anybody else were to write that he was gay beforehand, I don't at all understand why a rape is the ideal device for a coming-out story for a young person, particularly in today's climate, with so many young people trying to figure out their identities without the "benefit" of a violent non-consensual sexual encounter to show them the way. I guarantee the headline in press both soap and mainstream would become "Will is raped, becomes gay," not "Will comes out."

[King]

I hate rape storylines. They're tired. They're old. They're awful. Soaps never do them right. A man on man rape is even weirder, and I don't want to see it happen.

I really don't give a flying f**k if it happens in real life. There's a lot of stuff that happens in real life that I don't want to see on my show. So, that argument for being a reason to do it is ridiculous.

Will is a character that has a bright future on the show. But if they have him brutually raped by a man, then I don't think I'll be able to look at the character the same way. It's an awful storyline, and I don't want to see it. And I don't think the audience DAYS is and should be trying to win back right now wants to see it either. The show needs to win back the thirty somethings, and the forty somethings and the baby boomers. They don't want to see a god damn twink teenboy getting brutally raped. SORRY.

[KBT]

Maybe Will could just get molested by Father Lonnigan(or whatever his name is) instead of a brutal rape. I wouldnt care for either story I am just throwing that out there.

[Bree]

Leave the male rape to Nip/Tuck and other cable shows who wouldn't get criticized as much for doing that type of story.

It would be great if DAYS did a coming out story. But it's not needed now. It would only be treated as a ratings gimmick for a new headwriter. DAYS is on a roll right now and is poised to be a great show. The last thing it needs is for more people to tune out in droves due to disgust of a story. And you know it will happen.

[EricaKane4life]

Hey Bree

I agree but for a different reason.

I just think it's been done to death! ATWT, Passions, AMC and OLTL have all done the gay storylines.

DAYS isn't a "social issue" type of show.

[King]

I kind of agree. DAYS has SOOOOOOO MUCH going on right now.

But I agree that Will should be gay, and they should do a coming out story, but not a rape story. Ugh. Not with Will anyway. Maybe for the summertime.

[KMan101]

Damn. I'd love for this to happen ... but after reading the November Sweeps preview ... DAYS has SOOOO many hot storylines going, I can't see them even fitting a story of this caliber in, at least not yet. That, for the character of Will, would probably be the best way to go.

I don't want a male rape, but frankly, it would tie in Will with Sami, who was raped at what, 15? Hogan does seem to be looking into the history ... so you never know. I hope they don't age Will too much, or at least get a shorter Will ... lol. Chris Gerse is way too tall. Freakishly tall. And was he in the audience of Dancing with the Stars last night? I swear to God the kid with the moppett in the front was him...

And Gabe ... you are right in that DAYS has never been a true social issues show ... but with Hogan aboard ... who knows?

[PhoenixRising05]

If this happens, it won't until next year. No way can they start this now, especially since they have to recast Will and all. I also have a hard time beleiving Corday would let a male rape happen. A gay story he would but the rape I am not sure since Corday had a hard time even killing off Zach and is opposed to anything graphic or highly bothersome.

I disagree that this does not have a place. I don't care if Days is not a social issue soap or not-this story has the ability to be huge and not just in ratings. It is not a desperate plea for buzz or ratings and, while it will be bothersome and some may tune out, I think more will tune in to see this portrayed and I am sure it would be portrayed well.

Again, let's all not get fired up over something that may not even happen.

[bellcurve]

I buy Lucas being a homophobe. Short, shrimpy men will ALWAYS have something to prove where their masculinity is concerned. Especially straight guys. I've heard more colloquially known around here as "Short Man Syndrome."

I think if a male/male rape were to happen, I hope it is in flashbacks and that the victim is Lucas. The rape doesn't(and never has) caused Lucas to question his sexuality, so much as it makes him extremely homophobic and untrustworthy of gays.

I would believe that way more than Will being raped and then being "turned gay." Thanks Vee, for illustrating what I was trying to say with such intelligence.

[King]

Male on Male rape won't be a ratings grabber. If it is, it'll be for like one episode to see how it's dealt with. It will have more a negative connotation than a positive one.

[DrewH]

Why is everyone so against it? I understand it's a touchy subject but so were interracial couples in the 60s. DAYS was the first soap to approach that topic. I say go for it Hogan and never look back!

[Vee]

But an interracial romance is romance. On soaps, I think at this point rape has stopped being about educating the public and has unfortunately become just a shock value ratings grabber, rape for the sake of it.

Both times that I can remember a male character being raped on soaps (by women) it was played for laughs and/or badly mishandled, treated like a shocker thing, and IIRC Hogan admitted he did it very badly with Jack and Julia Lindsay and shouldn't have. While there might be a place for a story of a straight man being raped by another someday, I don't see why a core gay teen needs to be introduced to his sexuality not through natural progression and maturation, but instead by rape and assault by another man. That's just a real stereotype about how abuse "makes" someone gay. I think it would be a disaster and I'd have a very difficult time watching a gay story play out in that fashion, from "male rape" to "gay." Especially after Bianca.

While your scenario you wrote is very similar to the rumored audition scene with Marlena, Will, and flashbacks, and that's commendable, I guess, I just don't care for it.

[DrewH]

I think we're clearly passed the Will becoming gay because of the rape point. You've made your point. I'm talking about male rape in general. The obvious candidate would be Will. And if they go this route, maybe they shouldn't make Will gay, just make him question his sexuality.