ALL: Soap Trends

[px780]

Word to those tired of love triangles. I can't stand trueloveforever supercouple stuff anymore, either.

Puppet Master stuff, as I said in another thread, is something I'm truly done with. Freakin' Dimeras with their hazy motives- I'm over it.

Kidnapping. I can't even tell you how many kidnappings I've seen in the decade or so I've been watching soaps. Characters need to at least learn, carry protection or implant a chip like they do for lost pets, if they're going to keep getting stolen by someone.

Murder mysteries- they need to be retired until a writer can actually come up with satisfying resolution. In fact, mysteries in general need to get off my screen until writers are capable of thinking it through before it launches. Spoilers make it more difficult to do, but the writers should find a way to play with that by this point. Also, spoilers don't excuse things like Elvis Jr. as the Gloved Hand or the outcome of the stupid internet games/storylines on Passions.

And it's more of a structural thing, but I cannot stand super-short scenes. I think the length of scenes on some of these shows might be responsible for how poorly the episodes come out, because they try to make every exit to commercial break something shocking and it wears thin.

[DeeeDee]

Gratuitous Character Propping.

[P.J.]

My pet peeve...the inexplicably "dropped for lack of evidence" charges, when someone's nailed to the wall, but the affected party just drops them out of coercion, guilt or nobility. It happens all the time on ATWT, and it drives me frackin' insane. I think it goes hand in hand with the "over the top, borderline psycho violent acts" that are my other pet peeve. If the writers are gonna have someone do the crime, someone needs to do the time.

[juniorz1]

How about storylines that are written as they go along, rather than planned & mapped out in advance? Or ENTIRE SHOWS that are written this way?

Also, Re-Writes have got to go.

[Pine Charles]

That seems to be McT's writing style.

[SteveFrame]

Another along the lines of P.J.'s is the contrived sudden turn of evidence or deal making to keep a character on the show. Example: last year when R.J. finally got caught on something and suddenly they worked out as usual a chance for him to turn witness on something else and he got off again; or when they wrote in the Asa dealing with Carlo just when it seemed like he was finally going to pay. And so many other examples on shows.

And no more character redemptions by saying they were temporarily crazy or had a brain tumor. It gets so old

[juniorz1]

Well, I wasn't going to name names JPiss has fallen back into this category as well. Sucks, b/c her first year on ATWT wasn't like that at all IMO.

[jinx_avery]

The worst trend of recent years is having the stories told from the perspective of some really morose and dreary leading men. Soaps need to get back to having strong, competent females driving the story. Most women are now portrayed as mindless doormats whose only function is to reflect the dubious glory of their hero.

I can forgive the overused WTD, long lost children and triangles, because they've been daytimes bread and butter since the fifties and aren't likely to be going anywhere, if they're not just an excuse to prop up some lunkhead who isn't worth fighting over in the first place.

[Bree]

Ruining many characters to pimp a certain favorite or favorites

Messing with paternity/maternity

More than one WTD story on the same soap

The same villian being responsible for every big plot

Contrived love triangles/quadrangles

Contrived redemption stories

Having sex either during or after a big disaster (Kelly and Duke's tornado tryst on OLTL, Phyllis and Nick doing it after Cassie's death on Y&R)

Using rape for shock

Cheesy, OTT SFX (this is DAYS specific. A simple fade to black makes more of an impact than having twinkling stars, fire, etc. circling over a characters' head)

[psychofan]

I know I'm going to get blasted for this, but NONE.

I love everything about soaps and these things that people have named make UP them. I don't want ANYTHING changed.

[Josh]

I learned in my creative writing class that there are really only seven original plots to telling a story. You know...there is really only so much writers can do with plots. It is about how the story is written and told that makes it unique!

[billyjill]

IA, I wouldn't ban much just on its own, it all depends on how it's executed. There are some things that shouldn't be tried at a given time because of (chronologically local) oversaturation, but I'd never say never.

This thread seems to be more about certain plot devices and not general plot archetypes, but I'd still never say never. Just don't overdo any one of them and don't let it come off as an "easy way out" for the underlying emotional plot going on.

[Actor87]

Buried alive! (on ATWT...Once was enough, twice is pushing it, third is "I'll slap ya momma")

[Brandeis]

big humungous AMEN! to that