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The State of DOOL


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You know what? [!@#$%^&*] it. Honestly, if AMC was as okay as DOOL is right now I'd be happy too, I wouldn't praise it but I'd be happier. So I understand where you're coming from with DOOL but I was making a general statement about what I've observed from soap boards after a few years.

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I think the best way to state this is Days isn't perfect. No one is saying it is. However, it has improved drastically. It has become serious soap opera again and is slowly recovering from a long period of character destruction and inconsistency.

There was a long time where you knew what to expect from Days and that was not exactly quality on a daily basis. With the exception of B&C, the past ten years has been horribly inconsistent and hit or miss. Beloved actors were even phoning performances in because there were days where the material was so bad. Some fans stuck with it but many left in droves because they were appalled by what was happening. Some stayed and settled for what was happening, like I did, because they didn't believe the Days of old would ever return. It was hard to take the show seriously. Even I couldn't with some of things things happening.

Now, we have characters interacting with family and other characters that they normally wouldn't. The day to day writing has vastly improved. The pacing is great and beloved couples are back together. Now, I know that there has been much said about the big 4 (Bo/Hope/John/Marlena) but I think alot of that is unknown as to why they are off. Personally, I think alot of it is vacations due to Peter and Kristian having a big year and Drake having personal issues. That would result in some re-writes in J&M's story due to Drake needing time and that would saddle Dee for a bit. Those 4 have not been off completely so I don't see the big deal, yet. If it continues, fans have a bigger argument but it doesn't sound like it will for the most part. There are budget issues but, with the exception of one or two weeks of bad balance, the show has been ok with that.

Steve/Kayla are front-burner. The show is building up some great new couples who already have fanbases in Max/Abby, Chelsea/Nick, and Shawn/Belle. They brought back JKJ, who is a fan favorite, and Matt Ashford is even coming back for a bit. If you are looking for a better sweeps, Days hardly ever goes out for sweeps. It tends to do better late in sweeps and in non-sweeps months so people should expect that. They also don't do big events that often. I would like to see it but I am ok without it just as long as the quality is the same as it is now and the stories are solid, which they are.

Is it boring some days? Sure but it's not boring everyday. Usually ever scene has a meaning and purpose and stories do move much better then they used to. I think it depends on the person and also what they are tuning in for. If they are fans of the show and not a character/actor/couple, I think they will like the show alot. If it's the other way around, then it depends on what they like and that will determine their level of enjoyment. Alot depends on what a person likes to see in a soap. If you want plot-driven, Days isn't the show right now for that kind of thing. It's more character-driven now then it's been in a long while.

It's all personaly tastes but it is nowhere close to bad or horrible. It's not as great as December and the beginning of January, which were amazing, but it's still pretty good and only going to get better IMO.

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Days right now is good. that simple. its good. yes it has been better, way better, but it has aslo been worse. far far worse. Honestly, imo this is the best the show has been since around the time of austin & sami's vegas wedding.

Somedays its utterly borring, but id rather wiat it out and HS get all of Rileys [!@#$%^&*] resolved and over with. No i dont agree with soem things he has done, such as ridding lexie. However, i lvoe what he has done with characters like Ej & Chelsea. both were written verry one sidded and had no layers, now they do. He is fleshing them out the best he can, and im loving it.

He has also given Sami her layers back. Before she was always either i wanna be good or f*** it i dont care anymore. now shes trying her hardest to be the best person she can be, but still making the same ol mistakes that make her sami brady. As ive always loved sami, shes no longer some selfish [!@#$%^&*] who claimed to care about people.

Billie is another char he has done wonders on and i hope he keeps it up and gives her a big storyline.

He has gotten the couples back together. Bo/Hope, Patch/Kayla, Shawn/Belle, and he is giving JohnMar some of the ebst storylines they have had in years.

He is also doing an amaing job of putting life back into philip, shawn, and belle. plus max, abby, nick, and chelsea are actually fun to watch now.

i cant wait for more time to pass and see more of this stuff playout.

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Is this for me? I'll answer anyway. Yes, I have watched it, I'll tell you what I was telling a friend a second ago: I am not engrossed when I watch, I have no interest in where the stories are headed, I don't care for the couples outside of Lumi and they are stuck in a story I strongly dislike.

And I am not a couple person so trust me if Lumi was in a sucky story and the rest was great I'd still watch. Let me tell you what I do like, James Scott. I like him on AMC, he was hot and had charisma, but here he is awesome. A great villain. In a story I don't care for. But he's a prize and Hogan is making excellent use of his talents. From what I've seen he's carrying the show and more than capable of it.

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Personally I don't feel Days is at it's best, but it is not crap either.

Back at the first of January I was very very pleased with Days, and felt it was quickly approaching the best in daytime as far as stories, balance, and quality go.

I do think it has slipped a little but considering where it was for most of the last 10 years and especially in March and April of last year and esp. June under the ghost writer - the show is 100 times better.

As Phoenix said, it has it's problems and many days it is boring. My only real complaint is that it has lost some of the balance that Hogan had restored for me.

The only things that I can honestly say that JER did better so far than Hogan is featuring the main couples on the front burner most of the time. I never felt under JER that new characters were taking over even when he created Bonnie and Patrick. I do like Hogan's new characters better (ten times better) except for Willow who is worse than anything JER ever created IMO but I don't like seeing even the ones I like as much as they have been on lately.

I am not really impressed with HOgan's stories yet, but what I am impressed with is the day to day writing. The dialogue makes sense and gives the actors something to work with. I wish they would clear up or deal with the dropped stuff (like no reaction to Lexie's accident, the seemingly reverse in Sami's redemption, etc.). I feel that is more of a breakdown thing that should be dealt with.

I know that a lot of people will be surprised by hearing me say some of this. I still have my problems with Days, but I do highly recommend it to others. And I have hopes still for the show. And I definitely don't want to see it cancelled.

I hope that the problems or the lull we are seeing on the show is more of a budget thing, and this is not what Hogan wants to feature with the show, because it will be a let down after I forgave the show for reviving Stefano and got lured back in. I know that some characters need a break, and I don't like fanbases or those that watch for only certain characters. But when every character you care about is backburnered or stuck in an awful story or basically has nothing to do - it does hinder your enjoyment of the show. And right now that is the case for me. Bo & Hope are basically not around. John & Marlena are stuck in a story that sounded a whole lot better in spoilers than it is coming off. Victor has been backburnered again and he is my favorite villain on the show, and I enjoyed the Shawn/Belle/Philip story so much better when he was involved. The EJ I truly loved disappeared at the end of December/first of January. I don't like the completely evil EJ. And I don't like the Who's the Daddy story for Sami & Lucas but do enjoy seeing them. And so on. So I am just hoping that once again he will mix things back up, and help me to continue to enjoy the show.

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DAYS is just OK when I see it. It's better than JER's last year and a half, but I find it VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY boring. I can admit it is good, but it is not my cup of tea. So, I haven't watched a full episode since before I came back to school which was Jan 15th.

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I'll echo what other posters have said. It's like some people almost WANT Reilly to return. Count me out of that group. I (and other fans) sat through four years of drivel and dreck with no payoff, no reward, nothing. Hogan is only working with what he has in the budget, if that indeed is true. Compared with what this show was like under Reilly, I kiss the ground every day that the Days I loved and watched in the 1980s and 1990s is back.

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