Yeah, and if Hogan just suddenly rewrote Steve's amnesia in a couple of episodes, I suppose no one would have claimed he was being lazy or using a copout, or anything like that. Frankly, I would rather he phase out JER's crap storylines logically than just drop them altogether or give us a payoff without even building up to it, but no one seems to be patient like that anymore.

Wow, I never would have guessed that Lexie could cause all this! I'm sad to see RJ lose her job and agree that she's a remarkable actress when given good material, but usually she bores me and her scenes are when I go to the kitchen for a Diet Coke.

I just want to reiterate that the perceived lack of credibility of HS by some fans was not caused by RJ's firing. Renee Jones' firing just confirmed to Hogan Sheffer's detractors that they couldn't believe what he said. They were already complaining that

1.) HS wasn't writing Shawn in character;

2.) that he hadn't given J&M a REAL storyline as he promised but just a bunch of scenes thrown together or they've acted as props for other characters;

3.) that he was destroying Bo/Hope;

4.) was giving too much airtime to Willow/should have never brought Willow on as a character;

5.) didn't understand Kayla--made her too whiny when her true character was that she's spunky;

6.) shouldn't have had Billie as the interloper in the Steve/Kayla relationship;

7.) thought that the setup for the Smoky Robinson scenes where Marlena jumped out of the plane was juvenile/amateurish;

8.) thought that the "Sleeping Beauty" scenes with Steve/Kayla were corny at best, hackneyed sappy drivel at worst

9.) hasn't written enough romance/"love in the afternoon" scenes for couples....

I think that covers the majority of the complaints. Anyone else have anything to add? I'm sure if I went on other boards, many of the posters could keep it coming. I wish that the ONLY complaint was Renee Jones' firing. I really do, but unfortunately, the comparisons b/w JER and Sheffer continue and the dissatisfaction is coming from several quarters. It's not just from fanbases but general fans too. Have you read some posts from Dustin's Thoughts on Days board lately? I think the majority of those posters are regular general fans and they're now questioning what Hogie said in those interviews. The majority of the people on that board were willing to give HS a chance--just a few weeks ago. Not so much now. It's becoming a serious problem. As some posters from SON have stated, they're getting bored with the show....

It's not a good sign b/c I can only imagine the hate mail that the show is getting. It's not good. It's not good at all....

I never thought I would see the day when there is seemingly more dissatisfaction with Hogan Sheffer, than there was for James E. Reilly (a proven hack)...would someone please explain to me where the logic is in that?!

I never thought I would see the day when there is seemingly more dissatisfaction with Hogan Sheffer, than there was for James E. Reilly (a proven hack)...would someone please explain to me where the logic is in that?!

I don't know. I don't get it either. But I would suggest that you go to the following sites so that you know what I'm talking about:

1.) Dustin's Thoughts on Days' message board

2.) Coffeerooms' Days Today's board

3.) Sony's Days' message board

4.) Soapcentral Days' message board

5.) NBC Days' message board

Trust me. It's quite enlightening. That's just a start. If you can't handle the HS hatred at those sites, don't even try going to the some of the fanbase sites. I think the only fanbase that is pretty much happy right now is the Lumi fanbase (I'm proud to say). But then they tend to be a patient, laidback, easygoing bunch. I'm biased of course!!

I think the majority of people whining all goes right back to the "couples fanbase" viewers. They watch the show only for one or two characters/couples, and all the rest mean nothing. And until the show becomes ENTIRELY about said characters/couple, and they're happy, doing nothing more than making out and whispering "I love you" day in and day out... they won't be happy.

I, like many here, cannot fatham how there are more complaints now than there were then JER was writing, it is insane. The people who say those things must not be long time watchers of Days, and alot of those message boards ademption listed they are not!!!! I mean, who in their right mind can watch Days for twenty, thirty, forty, ten, whatever years before the second JER era and be upset? It shocks me to no end.

I, like many here, cannot fatham how there are more complaints now than there were then JER was writing, it is insane. The people who say those things must not be long time watchers of Days, and alot of those message boards ademption listed they are not!!!! I mean, who in their right mind can watch Days for twenty, thirty, forty, ten, whatever years before the second JER era and be upset? It shocks me to no end.

Same here, daysfan, same here.

"HS wasn't writing Shawn in character;"

Good. Cook's Shawn was as about as dull as a ham sandwich. If Hogan can improve Shawn and turn him into Bo and Hope's real son, I'm all for it.

It still would have behoved Hogan to have written something that would make the fans sigh and feel good like a huge payoff instead of playing with our minds with the absolutely unoriginal amnesia story of Steve. Sure it started out as JER's plot, but Hogan could have averted that as someone around here mentioned. He has alienated many if not most fans and the disgruntlement is rising with fans everywhere.

That's a great point. How long has it been since we've had decent payoff for anything, excluding (arguably) a Sami wedding disaster?

I never thought I would see the day when there is seemingly more dissatisfaction with Hogan Sheffer, than there was for James E. Reilly (a proven hack)...would someone please explain to me where the logic is in that?!

Long waits for no payoff tries patience. Send in a man with a fairly-positive reputation and a whole lot of hype about salvation, giving hope to tired fans. And then...no insta-fixes. More Dimeras vs. Brady, still unexplained (entering, what, decade 3?). A couple of new characters when we people had been waiting a long time for the old ones...I can see where the disatisfaction would come from, even if I'm enjoying the show.

Also, Reilly brought memories of good endings, at least for some of us, which stalled a lot of anti-Reilly stuff through most of the stupid neverending kidnapping nonsense. Sheffer is still unproven, and it doesn't help that there's no huge storyline shifts.

Ademption, I really don't think the show should be allowing message boards to dictate storyline. There are numerous problems with that. One is that internet fanbases represent only a small proporition of DAYS viewership as a whole and are not necessarily representative of the average viewer. The fact that a story is well-liked by internet forumites is no guarantee that it will please the average viewer or raise the ratings.

Yes, there are some fans who aren't happy unless their couple face NO conflict and appear in every episode.

But I don't believe they constitute more than a small minority of couple fans. Most couple fans just want character-driven stories that are respectful of history and stay true to the characters. Hogan should be aiming to please the vast majority, not pander to obnoxious internet posters.

I totally agree with Ponz.

I'm a "lapsed viewer", someone who regularly watched the show throughout the 80s and early 90s, and who is from a family who watched the show since the 60s. I quit watching the show on a regular basis due to numerous factors, the main ones being that 1) I had a full-time job, was in my 20s and too busy having fun to faithfully record/watch Days in my off hours, and 2) Ken Corday took over the show and started trying to change the foundation that the show was built on (family/romance and adventure/supercouples/etc.) I was and am a huge fan of Marlena and John, Bo and Hope, Steve and Kayla, and Jack/Jennifer (not to mention Julie and Doug, Mick and Maggie, Shane and Kim, Calliope and Eugene, Frankie and Eve, and many others...hell, I even liked Emilio and Melissa). I didn't leave because of any specific thing done to any of those couples, meaning I didn't leave because couples had obstacles or weren't on five days a week or or found new love interests when their other supercouple half wasn't on the show. I left because I thought plot was driving character, the show's history was being ignored, and gimmicks were taking over and family and romance were forgotten. I tuned in every once in a while to see if things improved, but they never did.

I am soooooooooo glad the Internet wasn't the force it is today back when I was watching in the 80s and early 90s, and that supercouple mega fans didn't have the influence they seem to have now. I can imagine legions of fans complaining about "The Pawn" SL with a recast Roman, or having Bo stay on the show when Hope "died" and daring to fall in love with someone else, or having Bo recast, or Jack staying on the show when he was an obstacle to Steve and Kayla, or Jennifer marrying Lawrence when she was posing as someone else, etc. As big of a fan that I am of the couples I mentioned above, I was more concerned heart-felt stories that respected history and stayed true to the characters than having said couples stay happy,happy, happy 24 hours a day. I understood the fact that it was necessary for couples to have obstacles and conflict. And some of my favorite SLs during the years when I was a regular viewer included SLs that weren't wrapped up in one month and had lots of obstacles and angst for the couples involved.

I know most supercouple mega fans aren't this way, but there do seem to be a certain contingent that want their favorite couples together NOW and happy (and on-screen) ALL THE TIME. But I, for one, will not watch if Days becomes driven by what a handfull of online fans want for their couples.

That said, I do think there are some lines the writers shouldn't cross when it comes to the current couples on Days. For example, Billie needs to stay out of and Bo/Hope SL and needs to get out of the Steve/Kayla SL pronto, and the Steve and Kayla SL needs some movement. But I also find the impatience displayed by some fans to be annoying and potentially destructive to the show.

Anyway, I don't think Hogan is a liar. I don't think the show will lose the number of fans some fear it will if it doesn't let fanbases dictate SLs so long as the SLs are well-written, respect the show's history, and include conflict that is character-driven. From my viewpoint, the show is better than it has been in years. It's not quite as good as it was back in the day. But IMO it's 100 times better than it has been in several years and has the potential to be as good as it was in the late 80s/early 90s...I'm liking what I see, am taping again after YEARS, watching everyday, looking forward to seeing what happens next, and am more than willing to give Hogan time to get all of the kinks worked out and the SLs moving.

FANTASTIC POST ROSIEBEAN!!

You summed off everything a logical, rational fan would say. Seriously, it's gotten to the point where I am not only rooting for Days' ratings to go up for it to do well but also so I can go shove it in some of these rabid fanbases faces. I hate to be bitter but some of the reactions on the net are incredibly annoying. Everyone knows I always defend Days no matter what but this is all really making my blood boil.

A few months for now when other sites are praising Hogan if and when Days has some big increases I will be loving some of these sites eating crow. I was angry about the fanbase issue before but these past few weeks...argh

The pairings I see safe and crucial to the stature of Days are Bo and Hope, John and Marlena, Patch and Kayla. In addition to those stature couples, new couples can be formed.

I never thought I would see the day when there is seemingly more dissatisfaction with Hogan Sheffer, than there was for James E. Reilly (a proven hack)...would someone please explain to me where the logic is in that?!

What ademption says above is absolutely right on. There is however one saving grace for Hogan and that is he is at the beginning of his term instead of dragging his heels at the end of it. Most of us who are disappointed are still holding hope that the big umbrella story which is just beginning will be worth going through the wreching change in Shawn, the boring amnesiac Steve story (he is not boring), the whiny Kayla, and all that other mentioned above (except I like Willow). My purpose for adding my desenting remarks is just in case someone is keeping score. I'm looking for better things, while neither enjoying the status quo nor satisfied to keep this level. It's got to be more realistic than gimmicky, keep the character in character or show why the change in a believable manner, etc. I think most everyone knows how sick Jason Cook fans are of Brandon Beemer as Shawn and it's not the actor's fault, he is doing an excellent job imho, but for a die-hard Jason fan, he is not getting good reviews. So not only is there discouraging news around that could harm Days, but also some of the actors. Shawn is Bo and Hope's son. His place in Days is not expendable (in most views) so I hope Hogan has a rainbow at the end of this tempest for him and his fans.

A few months for now when other sites are praising Hogan if and when Days has some big increases I will be loving some of these sites eating crow. I was angry about the fanbase issue before but these past few weeks...argh

PR, you cannot do that. The ratings for now reflect the show now, not whatever happens in the future. All of us who haven't been wearing rose colored glasses are saying what we see, not what we think will happen in the future. So, I think maybe you need to rethink what you wrote there.

The pairings I see safe and crucial to the stature of Days are Bo and Hope, John and Marlena, Patch and Kayla. In addition to those stature couples, new couples can be formed.

I agree about the main couples, but Lucas and Sami are also important to the fan bases. They have been a favorite for many, many years and LUMI fans are ready for a payoff. It's still looking pretty messy for them now even though Hogan said he loves them and wants to make them a Mr/Mrs North dectective team. I'm still waiting for that.

Yeah, and if Hogan just suddenly rewrote Steve's amnesia in a couple of episodes, I suppose no one would have claimed he was being lazy or using a copout, or anything like that. Frankly, I would rather he phase out JER's crap storylines logically than just drop them altogether or give us a payoff without even building up to it, but no one seems to be patient like that anymore.

Actually, I think it was lazy to carry it onward instead of doing the bump on the head and memory returns. That is no more gimmicky than other things he has done that didn't bring a squeak of joy or sigh of relief. If he could have brought his story one month forward, it may have helped. The big problem is that he really needed to have a big "bag of chocolates" to pass out in November and it just wasn't there.

(Note: I'm a Philip Kiriakis fan and I got a payoff just by being assured that Philip would be returning although I'm a bit leary of how he will be written. This is what I'm most looking forward to seeing.)

I cannot believe this is actually still being discussed.