Primetime Soaps

[Khan]

I'm not familiar with it, but the fact that the cast included Domini Blythe (ex-Estelle Kendall, SEARCH FOR TOMORROW) and Jonathan Crombie (aka "Gilbert Blythe" in Anne of Green Gables) piques my interest just a tad.

[DRW50]

Domini Blythe <3

[SFK]

Did you know she passed?

[DaytimeFan]

Ahh Mount Royal! Wikipedia says it was Canada's answer to Dynasty and I'd say that's about right...except for one thing: Alexis. Mount Royal simply didn't have an Alexis or JR, no antagonist, the closest thing was the character Stefanie who was a daddy's girl model in Paris.

Like most Canadian television programs, Mount Royal tried but it just didn't have the punch of its international counterparts (a Canadian answer to Coronation Street, Riverdale, was another example of this).

The one thing I'll give Mount Royal was that it looked beautiful, it was shot on location in Montreal and Paris and it LOOKED rich, just gorgeous.

[dc11786]

I received an early Christmas present the other day – all twelve scripts of NBC’s “Bare Essence.” I’ve finished the first three episodes. It is nice to see what the characters are talking about / doing in those German dubs.

I’m surprised by a multitude of things. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as I am. The first couple episodes are penned by Robert Hamilton and set the groundwork. After their crazy romance in the miniseries, Chase and Tyger marry in the premier only for Chase to end up dead in the opening moments of the second episode. It all happens rather quickly and, while this was suppose to be Genie Francis’ big post-GH series, I’m a bit surprised by Tyger’s sudden marriage and widowhood. In the early installments, Tyger is left to grieve for Chase while Ava Marshall schemes to run Tyger out of Manhattan.

Ava is a master manipulator who’s main purpose in life is to position her son Marcus as the heir to the Marshall throne. In order to do so, she has maneuvered a relationship between Marcus and his wife, Muffin. Candidly, Ava informs Muffin that she (Ava) was the mastermind behind Marcus and Muffin’s marriage and proceeds to groom Muffin so Muffin can guide Marcus’ future in the direction Ava has always planned for him. In order to achieve this goal, Ava must eliminate Tyger, who she views as a threat to the fortune. Not only does Hadden have a fondness for his late son’s widow, but Aunt Margaret has informed Ava of her plans to leave Tyger Margaret’s shares of the family business.

Ava’s relationship with Muffin is interesting. There is a certain servant-master nature to it, but the script notes Ava admires Muffin when she starts to catch on. There is a really intriguing scene set in a salon where Muffin picks up a tube of lipstick and asks Ava if it’s her shade. There is an implication that Muffin is ready to assume Ava’s role in guiding Marcus’ life. Considering later developments, I find this all really neat, while also a bit jarring given certain revelations.

Always on her A-game, Ava is aware there is more to Niko Theophilus’ presence than meets the eye when she learns he has visited Hadden on Chase and Tyger’s wedding day. While Niko is immediately smitten with Lady Bobbi Rowan (Tyger’s mother), Ava sets out to snare Niko or herself if only to learn what he is planning with Kellerco, the Marshall family company. While never stated directly, it’s safe to assume Ava wants to align herself with Niko in order to assure Marcus’ birthright.

Niko’s relationship with Bobbi is also rather complicated. It is love at first sight on Niko’s end, which initially a bit cheesy considering his relationship with Ava. Not only has he bedded manipulative Ava, but there is a rather interesting scene with his former paramour Natasha, a ballerina. Natasha arrives at Niko’s room in Monte Carlo looking to reconcile and Niko dismisses her. Considering Natasha’s insignificance, the scene seems extraneous until Natasha talks about how Niko seduced her and how he reeled her in. Natasha ends saying Niko will bore with Bobbi eventually and drop her too. The scene does call into question Niko’s concern for Bobbi since by the end of episode three he has also shared a kiss with a vulnerable, and drunk, Tyger.

At times, I find things move to fast. In three episodes, Chase and Tyger marry, Chase dies, Tyger meets up with Armand (who has carried a torch for her), and shared a kiss with Niko. Margaret Marshall has a sudden heart attack in the same episode her nephew dies and the episode ends with Sean Benedict revealing he is Margaret’s son.

Overall, I find ‘Bare Essence’ a fun read with more depth than I expected. I will continue to comment as I make my way through the scripts.

Edited December 26, 2011 by dc11786

[DRW50]

Thanks so much for sharing this with us. This is a real treasure. It sounds a little scattered - I wonder if that's one of the reasons the ratings weren't great.

Which character did Jaime Lyn Bauer play in these scripts?

[Paul Raven]

Edited December 26, 2011 by Paul Raven

[DRW50]

Thanks for this. Surprised Life took a photo of them.

Two of the photos didn't work for me.

Love those print ads!

Did SOD ever recap this?

[Paul Raven]

Edited December 26, 2011 by Paul Raven

[SFK]

Thanks so much for sharing that dc11, I was very excited when I saw the episodes posted on YouTube and tried my best to keep up as I don't speak German. That's so neat that you were able to obtain the scripts.

I was also very surprised that Tyger was widowed so soon, I think I had forgotten that from reading the TV Encyclopedia entry for the show years ago. I can't say that it was exactly "borrowed" from David Jacobs, but that was of course the original plan for Pam on Dallas, as Bobby would be killed and she'd have to fend for herself against Ava-like J.R. Bare Essence predates The Colbys, but reading what you shared about Ava reminds me an awful lot of Sable... Tyger as Jeff, Marcus as Miles, Margaret as Constance.

I'd love to see at least one episode in English just to hear Jessica Walter do a southern drawl. I'm also interested in hearing how she got cast for this role. I can't help but think that her representation really pushed the fact that Esther Shapiro wanted her for Alexis through the casting grapevine. That would have been quite a feather in her cap at the time.

[dc11786]

The first few episodes were rather scattered. It took a while to figure out who the A characters were and who the B characters were. The last two episodes I read (hours 4 and 5) were rather solid other than parts of the ‘Who Murdered Chase?’ plotline. They’ve eliminated the sexual situations for Tyger and had her focused on ‘Ma Femme,’ the fragrance she is desperately trying to launch in supermarkets across America. Unfortunately, the fragrance’s sales are poor and a survey shows the market distrusts the fragrance because it isn’t attached to a cosmetics line. Now, Tyger is trying to launch an entire cosmetics line while her in-law Ava Marshall plots her demise.

Ava’s business plot involved aligning Tyger with another cosmetics company, one who was producing organic products. The problem was the organic products had a short shell life and would spoil in the stores. Ava figured Tyger wouldn’t learn about this until it was too late and the company would be ruined. Barbara Fisher, Jamie Lynn Bauer’s character, knew of the shell life problem and is an ally of Tyger’s, but is also sleeping with Marcus, Ava’s son. When Barbara confronted Ava, Ava informed Barbara of Ava’s ability to ruin Barbara and Marcus’ affair. Barbara remained to keep mum. Eventually, the truth about the products came to light before any damage could be done.

In Ava’s more sinister plot, she has been paying a Frenchman to torment Tyger claiming Chase had been murdered. Whether or not Chase has been murdered hasn’t been revealed. In a minor plot, Ava arranged for Tim Lemming, the football player lover of Robert Spencer, to be sent to California. Tim and Robert, along with Barbara, are among Tyger’s few friends in the city. In Hour Five, Tim and Robert leave for California with the plans to return in the spring, but who knows if that actually happens. They are replaced by Kathy, a young Californian who was in classes with Tyger and had a yen for Marcus Marshall. How this places out has yet to be revealed.

Ava truly is the most fascinating character. In episode four, she learns she is pregnant with Niko’s child and plots to use the child to get Niko to marry her and control the Marshall empire. When Niko dismisses her, Ava tricks Hadden into thinking they have slept together and is now playing the waiting game to drop the bomb that she is ‘pregnant’ with his child. This little detail would seem cliché, but I suspect it will be used to exploit the animosity between Niko / Hadden as well as play into Hadden’s past. Chase, Hadden’s son, was actually raised the son of Hugh Marshall, Hadden’s elder son, and his first wife, the woman who came before Ava. The quasi-incest of the Marshall clan has been mentioned before and I’m sure this will cause further heartache for Hadden.

One of the few plot points I don’t care for is the revelation matronly Margaret Marshall had an illegitimate child, Sean Benedict. Sean’s purpose is clear; he’s a threat to Marcus’ position and a potential love for Tyger. I feel the backstory is rather weak and could use some development. No one seems to have asked any questions surrounding the circumstances, which I find a bit irritating.

The Niko / Lady Bobbi story is still rather strong. Ava’s pregnancy is a looming threat to their happiness as is Alan, Niko’s assistant who is carrying a torch for Bobbi. Niko has arranged for a yachting trip where he has proposed to Bobbi, but Bobbi turns him down. Bobbi isn’t pleased that Niko has plotted to ruin Sean Benedict.

On happier fronts, mother-daughter Bobbi and Tyger seem to be on the road to reconciliation. This strand is one of the ones I’m most surprised by as it isn’t directly related to the cosmetics story, but is given a fair amount of air time. I want Bobbi and Tyger to bond, but I know they have a rocky road ahead of them.

[DRW50]

Did the gay characters exist in the aired episodes?

Here's a Digest column at the party for the TV-movie.

[dc11786]

The party article was a neat read. I was surprised they glanced over Lee Grant's stint on 'Search for Tomorrow.'

Robert and Tim were seen on the show. They both appear at Tyger and Chase's wedding. Ava introduces the couple to Niko at the wedding reception as friends. Robert quickly corrected her; they were lovers. Robert quipped Ava couldn't believe a gay could play football. Niko commented that in Greece a man may have a wife, a mistress, and a lover. I thought that was a rather shocking statement to make in 1983, but maybe it was considerd okay because Niko was European. The comment also helped to set up Niko's sexual philosophy since he had no trouble sleeping with Ava and Bobbi interchangeably.

[Paul Raven]

Sam Elliott, Cybill Shepherd, David Soul, Susan Anspach, Edward Albert, Noah Beery, Ken Curtis. Also with Chuck Connors and Will Sampson.





Edited March 31, 2012 by Paul Raven

[DRW50]

Emerald Point NAS ad around 3:25

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivw4WA3W_aw&feature=plcp