Y&R: My show is gone!

[DrewH]

How many times must it be said that ratings don't mean sh*t!!!

Y&R had high ratings when Jack Smith wrote the show, but some people called the show sh*t. DAYS is amazing right now, yet they can get over, what, a 2.7? You keep mentioning the ratings and I'll have to keep mentioning that people are watching out of habit, buddy.

[DrewH]

I seem to remember that happening one other time on another soap opera. God, what waas it? Oh! That's right, it was DAYS. JER wrote for a new audience and totally pissed on the old viewers. We see what came out of that...

The comparisons just continue...

[DruRocks]

BTW this long time fan has something to say. I've had to endure SO much moronic NONSENCE from Y&R in previous years, and seriously as bad as this may be to y'all, man oh man let's stroll down recent memory lane....

-Glow by Jabot teens sitting around doing nothing and being annoying

-Cameron Kirsten

-Victor in the FRUCKING desert

-SHEBRENJEN

-Give me Victor's sperm

The thing is that the show has endured travesities in the past but has managed to pull itself together. And I also thank the actors for giving us incredible performances even though their stories may be sh.t. The cast of Y&R is a heroic team, and that's why they always give their best even when they KNOW it sucks. What REALLY makes me upset with LML is the firing of veteran actors and behind the scene crew members. That has been her BIGGEST mistake to me. And a close second would be horrible storylines, but good execution.

[Y&RWorldTurner]

However, Y&R had the great luxury of being written by the great William J. Bell for over 25 years, how many soaps can say their creator guided them for that long? Kay Alden and Jack Smith were proteges of Bell, and for the most part kept the show in his vein. Eventually, things were going to have to change. Alden and Smith failed, and there's no one else on daytime familiar with Bill Bell's approach to tackling thing. Y&R was lucky to have Bell for as long as it did, but he's gone now. Who do we expect to fill his void - no one. Y&R is his vision, and I've yet to see any current soap writer who is familiar with his style.

[DrewH]

Well, then perhaps they should have given someone else that was on the Y&R writing staff for a while the helms before just bringing LML, who clearly has no idea about the history of GC.

[Y&RWorldTurner]

I agree, Latham shouldn't have been given this much power as fast as she was. It's clear she doesn't have much knowledge of Y&R history, she should've worked longer as a consulting producer or storyline consultant before being made HW/EP. Y&R is also a very hard show to write for, as are character-driven shows in general.

[juniorz1]

The post actually says 1988. Be back to comment later, but great post jibbs!

[DruRocks]

Thanks for pointing out my stupidity Juniorz! Sorry 'bout that Jibbs

[Soapsuds]

[crc]

I didn't realize one's opinion of the show should correlate with the ratings. Ooops, my bad! I can't think for myself, I better go check those ratings and modify my opinion in accordance.

[Marilyn_M]

Whoa, I think what he was saying was taken WAY out of context. He is simply pointing out while a few onliners (which only represent a small percentage of all viewers mind you ) are complaining about how bad the show is, the numbers show differently. They are not going to make changes based on what we say alone. Onliners tend to give out a more negative, hostile and volatile opinion, imo.

[Juliajms]

I've been watching Y&R for about 20 years, so it's not all long time viewers who think the show is in crisis right now. I agree there have been too many changes too fast, but I like a lot of what's being done. I like that some of the traditional pairings on the show have had a shakeup and I like the faster pace too.

I think Y&R is still doing a good job of weaving stories that take years to come together. Something this show has always been wonderful at. One of the things that seem to make a lot of people on this board unhappy is that Gloria never paid for being the "skin cream killer". I love that. I love that it takes a year or two for this type of story to play out. It's so much more realistic to have people get away with things for awhile and then get caught down the road instead of making every arc short term.

I also love that people on Y&R do get away with crimes some times. I like it that everything on Y&R isn't tied up with some neat little bow. The show has always done this. Nina's first child not being found, Phyllis running down Paul and Cricket ect. I find the lack of resolution in some instances much more satisfying than when the beginning of a story writes it's ending. I like that Y&R is unpredictable at times.

The show having good rating certainly doesn't mean everyone has to agree it's good. However, saying people are just watching out of habit doesn't ring true. Viewers sure broke the GL, OLTL and AMC habit soon enough when they lost interest.

[DruRocks]

I agree that ratings don't necessairly mean quality. I mean look at B&B...

But the actors have TOTALLY been doing overtime in 2006 and deserve some applause. For example:

Victor Newman's Epilepsy Eric Braeden did a great job from making his character not appear one note, and actually displayed some vulnerability into the story. While the story was turning into a joke, EB brought his A game and proved successful.

&

Jack the villain I was anti-Jack for some time in 2006, but Peter Bergman's flawless complex portrayal of Jack Abbott had the viewers conflicted. PB was able to stop his character from becoming a caricature.

Then again there was that stupid reliz..... where Don Diamont practically just winged it. But Amelia Henile, Adrianne Leon, actress who played Rebecca, and hell even Doug Davidson did a believeable job.

And now with the Pheila storyline, you can see that Michelle Stafford, Christian Leblanc, and Doug Davidson are doing everything in their power to make the storyline real. Ditto Jeanne Cooper and Jess Walton for providing us with some melodrama over a story which could be viewed as one big joke.

[jibbs]

To answer DruRocks question I first watched Y&R in 1988 and followed off and on until 1992. I remember: Victor and Nikki's divorce and Nikki's marriage to Jack, Jill and John married for the second time, Marge kidnapping Kay and resuming her life with Rex, Michael Baldwin terrorizing Cricket and the Sheila/Lauren feud. All these stories were slowly built and the drama came from how the character's reacted to their dilemma's, the choices they made and the actions they took. There wasn't any flashy hurricanes where the whole town was under seige and somebody would die to keep the audience around for another cheap thrill! I started again in the summer of '95 and watched religiously ever since. Some of my favorite storylines are Victor getting shot, the Nikki/Josh/Veronica saga, Nina trying to committ suicide and Tricia's downfall.

When I watch current episodes of Y&R, I find myself thinking about vintage Y&R and how it made you come back for more. Nowadays I could care less because I feel that the payout won't be worth my time. Why should I waste my time watching a bunch of character's that I don't recognize anymore. I want to see storylines that will have an impact. I think of some of my favorite storylines and scenes that are haunting because of how well-written and engrossing they were. From the directing, producing and writing, it can't be denied that Y&R has produced some of the most underrated stories in soap history. We're not talking about Luke and Laura's wedding here(sorry for picking on GH) or Cary being buried alive on DAYS which the masses remember, but what about when Nina tried to committ suicide because she had lost Ryan. That scene will forever be embedded in my mind because it was painful because it was so realistic. Or in 2003 when Ashley walks into the Arts Council Gala with her "baby" in her arms. These were phenominal performances by Tricia Cast and Eileen Davidson. I don't think we are seeing these performaces anymore because scenes are shot in half the time. Characters were not just bad or good. The show was about human nature and the choices people make and how it affects them and the people around them.

I apologize for rambling, but unfortuntely I've only skimmed the surface on how I really feel.

[DruRocks]

Tricia Cast was robbed that year for her gut-wrenching performance. Somebody needs to YouTube that because I lost the tape!!!!