It also is supposed to keep a character true to the character instead of creating a faux character to pull/push the plot....ugh sloppy.

um, he's fixing characters to what they were pre-JERk. I don't know why someone claiming to have watched since 1967 thinks Hope is supposed to be meak and stupid, thankfully Hogan doesn't think so.

Days fans are stupid. It's the only thing I can wrap my head around to explain this. The man has delivered a show that is actually watchable, and entertaining now on a day to day basis - yet the negativity remains. Where was the anger when JER was destroying the show? Sticking characters into horrible triangles with no plan - this is what makes these dumb fanbase viewers happy. Not quality storytelling, with a beginning, middle, and an end.

I'm afraid I agree with you. Even I, one of JER's biggest supporters, realize he was getting burned out in the end. He HAD to go. Seeing what we have now, I'm shocked by some of the comments I see.

John and Marlena fans are disappointed? Excuse me, that Smokey Robinson/cabin story included, bar none, perhaps the most romantic J&M scene (in my opinion) since The Possession's conclusion in the '90s.

And for me, Steve and Kayla's November story HAS been a great romantic story. Call me silly but I'll say it again -- I physically shook, got goosebumps AND nearly choked from crying when the Steve and Kayla flashbacks were played and Steve kissed Kayla back to life.

As for Billie, Steve isn't himself yet -- it's only natural, and in my opinion, GOOD writing, to show that he shouldn't yet be joined to Kayla's hip. He and Billie, clearly, are kindred spirits and WOULD go together, in a world without Kayla.

As for family interactions, um, what? We've had a TON of those since Hogan took over. And Kayla's hospital story alone was proof of that. The Bradys ALL rallied together and stood by her side. It should have taken your breath away to see a commitment like that!

As for Willow, Shawn has driven a motorcyle through a church window and has stayed a boozer since Jan got a hold of him. It's only NATURAL for him to go down this rough path, and I'm very entertained by the Willow story. Heck, the only thing I'd love more than what's currently on my screen is seeing Willow ride Shawn up and down on his couch -- both of them BUCK naked -- when Belle comes in, once again, unexpected, with the door unlocked. it's my DREAM story!! Oooh, the fireworks, we'd see!

Hope and Bo are reconnecting. Hope, as we saw on Friday's episode, is putting her pain behind her about Zach's death. Chelsea, IN CHARACTER, is probably going to send that cell phone shot of Bo and Billie in bed. Maybe Bope fans won't like that, but that's NATURAL for the character.

As for Mimi, well dear, I was fed up with her about three months ago. Now, after Hogan's reign -- not to mention Fath's MUCH more enjoyable hair color -- I would BEG her to stay on the show. She works so well in her current, supporting status. PLEASE stay on the show, Fath. And PLEASE keep her, "Days!!"

As for Lumi reconnecting and forgetting their bumpy past in the name of love, as for the greatness that is EJ and the DiMera action that will soon come? WHAT-IS-NOT-TO-LOVE?!!

I see nothing out of character for anyone here.

All I see is great writing and a DANG entertaining show.

I seriously am beginning to think that "some" DAYS viewers are just so overhwelmed by how good DAYS has become...that now that ONE negative thing has popped up (an actor's exit)...they're screamin' that something's GOT to be wrong with the headwriter. Kinda like when women see some men and think "Ooohh...he's hot!" but then turn around and think "He must be gay."

Get my drift?

I get it. And I agree. Sometimes people look for the negative, even if it isn't there, or if they don't realize that the little bad that is there, is not proportionate to the amount of bad they perceive.

What an irony... Supercouples, that helped DAYS become so popular back in the late 70's and even moreso in the 80's, are now what is killing the show... You can do ANYTHING with precious couples without fanbases being pissed off, threatening to stop watching or actually stop watching...

Like Drew said... people want their couples together and when they are together and get a bit boring, they would start complaining again... DAYS couple fans are never happy! It's getting ridiculous! (I'm not saying that a couple can't have a good story while they are happily married, but not ALL couples need that... some need to be in triangles, or broken up by something... only with DAYS no matter what couple you break up - even temorarily - it will cause massive outcry and ending of watching the show).

J/M fans need to seriously STFU! Their scenes were not long enough?! Are you kiddin me?!

Calling Hogan a liar is a bit too much. Maybe he did have plans for Lexie. Plans change! Eileen became available (something that no one could plan at the time of his interview about Lexie) and maybe now they think that Kristen/Susan is more important than Lexie and they decided to go that way instead (one DiMera daughter over the other)...

I think DAYS fans need to chill, cause some are acting like this is the worst DAYS has been (which is not even close).

Even if "plans change," Manny, I agree with others who say that Renee Jones' was the most shocking firing. Because there is so little diversity on the show and it seemed they kept the Carvers on for so long, even when they were slightly more than background scenery, due to that low quota of diversity, makes this the most shocking firing since the Salem Serial Killer storyline. Never in a million years could I have guessed that Lexie would be gone, and likely killed, on this show.

I didn't say that Renee's firing wasn't shocking! It IS shocking and I am STILL shocked a bit...

And I agree that maybe others had to leave before Renee (I adore her too, don't think I don't), but maybe Hogan has something HUGE in store for this story. I don't see Lexie just leaving town... she has no reason now. But I think we should wait and see what the story is with this. Once again, I am sorry that Lexie is leaving and right now I don't see ANY reason why Lexie would want to leave town, but let's trust Hogan and don't blame him just yet.

And if someone will say now that we shouldn't trust him, because he lied etc., I don't see what he lied about.

He said in an interview that Steve will fake getting his memory back in order to save Kayla's life. That's exactly what happened. If he said that Steve and Kayla will have some romance, well what they had was a bit too romantic for me (cause I do believe that Steve's emotions while begging Kayla to stay alive were REAL!) Do I want this whole Billie thing to end? Yes! Do I think Steve should have gotten his memory back by now? Oh, yes! But hey, Hogan never said that Steve gets his memory back in November (at least not that I have read about..)

And John and Marlena... Hogan said they would be featured in a big story. Well they have been! They were one of integral parts of the story in helping save Kayla's life. Yes, the story wasn't ABOUT J/M directly, but indirectly it was. It got them closer together and they kind of re-bonded at the cabin. PLUS they are back to adventure next week or whenever with the whole Italy thing! To me, that IS a big story.

So I don't see where Hogan lied... and I say we need to trust him on the whole Lexie thing...

Anyways, those were my 2,3... 10 cents...

I agree completely, Manny. J&M are getting their due.

As for Lexie, she is SO going to be killed. Like you said, there's no reason for her to leave town. After all, the Bradys have forgiven her, Abe has forgiven her and except for being fired from the hospital, her life is pretty sweet! She is SO getting killed.

I agree completely, Manny. J&M are getting their due.

As for Lexie, she is SO going to be killed. Like you said, there's no reason for her to leave town. After all, the Bradys have forgiven her, Abe has forgiven her and except for being fired from the hospital, her life is pretty sweet! She is SO getting killed.

That would be so horrible to watch Lexie die... I love Lexie! But Renee will do an amazing job if that happens!

I may be naive but no...I don't think Hogan has intentionally lied about any of his plans. I think he could have worded some of his previews a little more carefully. He made sweeping statements about the supercouples reuniting without specifying how long this would take or what the nuts and bolts of the stories would be. The S&K fans, for example, have been blindsided by the involvement of Billie in that story. I think if Hogan had been a little more reticent in discussing his plans, the expectation levels would not have been as high as they were.

Alot of this is not his fault. Many of his spoilers have been given misleading titles like "November Sweeps spoilers" or "Fall Previews" when they were actually more long-term. Moreover, alot of fans simply had unrealistic expectations for what he could achieve in a short period. I know Beth Milstein cleaned up alot of JER's mess but the sort of damage that he inflicted cannot be erased in a couple of months. The Bope story, for example, was still in a total mess even after Hogan took over.

I find it hard to believe that Hogan would claim to "love, love, love Abe and Lexie" and then choose to write Lexie out a couple of months later. If those were his plans all along, why make the statement in the first place? The fact is, Hogan has taken over a show that has had its budget slashed by 40 million dollars a year. Obviously, this will prevent him from pursuing many of his creative goals. He has already implied that some of the firings conflicted with his own plans: "NBC and Corday Productions had their ideas. I had mine".

Many of his promises he HAS followed up on. J&M have already been given one adventure and are about to depart on another. He has written LUMI pretty much exactly as he said he would. He has given Sami more maturity and self-respect. Kate has been given her "chops" back. There has been more of an emphasis on family and vets like Aniston, Rogers and McCay have all been utilised more frequently. I can see why S&K and B&H fans would be disappointed but I think both stories will improve significantly before the end of the year.

I think the discontent with Hogan has been exaggerated. The internet is primarily a forum for soap viewers to vent and complain. Those who are unhappy with the show will tend to make alot more noise than those who are pleased with its direction. And many of those bashing Hogan are simply looking for excuses to do so. Nevermind who was actually responsible for the Jones firing...it's another stick to beat Hogan with.

This does not mean there aren't a significant proportion who believe that the show has taken big positive strides under Hogan's tenure. Most reasonable posters acknowledge that the day-to-day appearance of the show (the pacing, dialogue, characterisation etc) has improved immensely, even if they haven't been that impressed by his stories (yet). Compare this to the latter years of JER's tenure, when nearly everyone hated his work.

I've been a Days fan from almost the very beginning. I stayed through thick and thin but left during the SS storyline. I just couldn't stomach seeing all the veterans killed, and killing Alice was the last straw for me. The only other show I watched was B&B. But you can't believe a word that comes out of Bell's mouth regarding anything. Then came Ridge and the raping of Brooke. That was the last straw for me. I decided to go back to Days when I heard HS was taking over. I never watched his work before, but I had heard so many good things about him. Is the show better? Yes, without a doubt. but it's certainly not great. I'm willing to give him a chance to see what he can do. I'm liking some of the things he's doing, but I'm not too impressed with Willow, Bonnie, and Chelsea. Al three could leave and it wouldn't bother me. HS writing on his worst day is 100 times better than BB and his constant incestuous writing and changing of history at the drop of a hat. I'm one of those who said Days would overtake B&B, and I'm still hoping that it happens.

I don't watch other soaps so my comparison of Days is to movies, primetime TV and good books. Truthfully, I'm not a daytime fan at all. DOOL has just been my home away from home for so many years and to see the characters that I loved destroyed and made into faux characters was almost more than I could bear. Hope would have never, not ever, turned her back on Bo. Even today, Bo is acting like a simpleton. I hate that. First we had faux-Hope and now we are getting faux-Bo. You can see the trouble Bo is being set up for which is thoroughly not original. Keeping some of the characters who really don't contribute and just take the place of other characters who could add to the mix is another problem, however, unlike most of you, I'm thoroughly enjoying Hogan's newest character, Willow. What is her purpose, who is she aligned with and what will her story be. Right now, Chelsea and Willow are all that keep me interested in Days, those two and looking forward to Philip.

I cannot believe this is even still being debated. YES, Hogan did write some bad material at ATWT. But what he did there has absolutely NOTHING to do with DAYS. It's a whole different ballgame. What I see when I watch DAYS now is a quality show worth watching, something I have not seen in YEARS. Is Hogan the savior of DAYS? Maybe not. But just because he hasn't "fixed" the show to certain fanbases's likings overnight does not make him the anti-Christ either. Honestly, would everyone who is complaining now about Hogan prefer we have Dena Higley back? Or should Corday just steal McTavish away from AMC? I'm sure AMC fans wouldn't mind a trade. Regardless of whether Hogan is the best daytime writer ever, he's certainly better than every other HW currently on daytime so give him a chance.

I cannot believe this is even still being debated. YES, Hogan did write some bad material at ATWT. But what he did there has absolutely NOTHING to do with DAYS. It's a whole different ballgame. What I see when I watch DAYS now is a quality show worth watching, something I have not seen in YEARS. Is Hogan the savior of DAYS? Maybe not. But just because he hasn't "fixed" the show to certain fanbases's likings overnight does not make him the anti-Christ either. Honestly, would everyone who is complaining now about Hogan prefer we have Dena Higley back? Or should Corday just steal McTavish away from AMC? I'm sure AMC fans wouldn't mind a trade. Regardless of whether Hogan is the best daytime writer ever, he's certainly better than every other HW currently on daytime so give him a chance.

Well put. really, Hogie's getting too much flak. He's doing a fine job, all things considered.

To get it out of the way, I have never been a ATWT watcher and I don't put RJ's firing on Hogan's doorstep.

When I first saw Hogan's big ol' interview with all the "promises" I think it was obvious right there and then that he was exaggerating. I'm not saying anyone was stupid to buy into it or anything, but every time you hear something like that you have to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. You never know until you see. So I'm not all that affronted, to be honest, I was prepared for it. Years of JER will do that to you.

I don't blame myself/Days fans for being excited about Hogan though, things were just that bad before he came.

I think Hogan deserves a chance but I say this having no first hand experience with his writing. I have been prepared from the first to be disappointed, not that I'd vilify the man if things didn't go exactly my way, because he does seem to have some strengths to speak of. A lot of Days fans are going into this blind, and I have been prepared to see a lot of negativity from them, too.

Definitely there's going to be a lot of bumps in this road, and fans are always going to be at the mercy of TPTB. It does no good to fault Hogan for what's out of his control but it does no good to fault fans for not being happy either. Give and take, I guess. In any case those who stick with it are the only ones who can enjoy the pay-off, but is a pay-off guaranteed? No. And honestly because they are so concerned about Days' ratings and even future existance, creative pay-offs aren't what I'm expecting either, just hoping for. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.