Primetime Soaps

[Chris B]

CPW continues to impress. The original series, even with Marial Hemingway is great. I'd say it's better than Melrose Place even. It has it's own identity, an interesting group of characters played by good actors and is well written. Each episode I watch the more obvious it is that the show is just on the wrong network. FOX would've ate this up. Right now I'm kinda dreading the revamp focused on Raquel Welch and Lauren Hutton. In the original series Hutton isn't doing much. Reading recaps I see her role increases over time, but it's going to be a huge shift seeing her as a main character. Her story is heating up since it's been revealed her husband is sleeping with Nikki, played by the underrated Michael Michele. I can't wait for all of that to explode!

Something else I don't look forward to is the exit of Kylie Travis. They brought her in in episode 3 and she's an absolute goddess! Her character will definitely be missed.

[SFK]

Wasn't Kylie's first scene a shot of her leopard pumps stepping out of a cab? I seem to remember that.

I don't remember much about her run in the original series, but it's definitely a matter of making room for Raquel in the revamp. I'll comment more on that stuff when you've finished.

I really liked Ron Leibman (Jessica Walter's husband!) in this, he was a good soap villain, and I think TV had really shied away from the idea of portraying a rich, dastardly New York Jew up until this point.

[Chris B]

Actually, I looked forward and it looks like the online episode guides are incorrect. Kylie Travis made the revamp and she remains until the end. And yes that was her fabulous first scene. Machen Amick is also amazing on this show. Looking at a CPW episode it looks like a dreadful show lol. And Racquel Welch is a hot mess. I can't wait to reach those episodes! So a bizarre departure. The original series is really very good.

[SFK]

I have a feeling you aren't going to like the revamp. Well, not as much as the original at least. The other characters kind of suffer, take some weird turns and as I was saying about Kylie, some backseats to the new blood.

[SFK]

Madchen, another one. I always thought Darren Starr had a thing for the name Carrie until duh I realized he didn't write the SATC books, but the off-beat looking leads with their cigarettes and quirkiness...

Raquel rocks some VERY Alexis-like threads, the hats in particular. My mom thought she looked like a witch, especially in this one outfit where she's looking like Grace Jones in Boomerang. I can't believe it was only 8 eps, and Raquel isn't even introduced until like 2 or 3 in. They could have squeezed 8 more out. Oh well... And Gerald Major Dad McCraney and Noelle Beck, it seems so bizarre and random the more I think of it.

[Chris B]

CPW is not as bad as I thought. It's more earnest, the fashions are very drab and the pace is slower, but it's not bad. The worst part is Raquel Welch. She's a terrible actress and is trying so hard to imitate Joan Collins that it's laughable. The outfits, the accent, the diva attitude is just cringe-worthy. I dread her scenes. Another thing that doesn't work are the characters from the old series. I enjoyed crazy Alex, but why keep Michael Michele if she never appears? And to keep Stephanie's husband for this psycho story seemed kinda pointless as well. I'm glad Rachel seems to be maintaining a foothold, as well as Carrie. They're the two stars of this show. Such a shame Kylie Travis and Machen Amick never got their due.

I'm almost done with this series and then it's onto Savannah, the last of the classic soaps I bougth.

[Sylph]

Voilà. Just like I said in the CPW thread.

[Chris B]

We have a CPW thread? I need to find that! It really is a shame watching this. Central Park West was such a good little gem! I wonder how things would've been had a better actress been cast as Diana.

[Sylph]

Here:

[Chris B]

Thank you! That was a great read. Nice to see other people enjoyed the show as well.

[SFK]

Happy belated Chris! Did you finish CPW?

I wonder what Dianna would have been like if she was played by Ron Leibman's real-life wife, Jessica Walter.

Shohreh Aghdashloo would make a great primetime soap bitch. That voice.

[Chris B]

It was hilarious! The roaches in the bed! Microwaved dog! Dianna's Grace Jones knock-off in the finale. The dreadful catfight lol. The biggest thing to get used to with CPW was the lack of Communique which through Rachel to the background (a mistake) and I still don't see the point in keeping Nikki to appear in only two or three scenes. Overall it was a very fun show, but the end left me wanting more. Dianna had become a complete parody at that point and I wanted to see more. I just can't get over how bad Raquel Welch is on a CBS primetime show. It's sick. She had nothing to offer.

BTW, Jessica Walter is an interesting choice. She appeared in one episode as Lauren Hutton's lawyer. Another choice would've been to pull from the pool of daytime soap actress (an Aaron Spelling move) or take someone from an 80s soap looking to return. Stephanie Beacham, Donna Mills, Michele Lee, etc.

[Soaplovers]

I recently saw all 13 episodes of Paper Dolls on a website and have mixed reactions to the show.

1: Too many Characters: On a daily soap opera, the amount of characters would have been wonderful and more time would have been alloted to develop all the characters. On a weekly prime-time show, that doesn't work because you don't have time to develop the characters before thrusting them into the main plotlines. No character development=no character investments

2. Two shows in one: What I noticed most was that it seemed like two shows combined into one with minimum character interaction to connect the two shows. On the one hand, you had a dysfunctional family fighting each other for control of a company (ala Dynasty and Dallas)... and the other show was about a modeling agency and the models career and homelife (ala.. an early version of Model's inc.).

3. The best part of the show was Morgan Fairchild. She had the best lines, the best wardrobe, and basically interacted with all the characters.

From what I'd read, they had killed off Lloyd Bridges wife and were planning to bring on his sister or sister-in-law to do battle for control of the company. I think the only thing that could have been done was to pick which show to focus on (the family business dramas or the modeling agency angle). Either would have worked on it's own but not together as viewership dwindled over time.

[SFK]

Argh! Good news and bad news. The same very kind fan who uploaded Emerald Point NAS has also uploaded Bare Essence the series. However, it's dubbed in German so if you don't speak it I hope you're good at reading lips. You can kind of follow along. I refuse to look such a gift horse in the mouth though, such a rare treat.

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Sarah Vaughan put her foot in that song. The opening shots of the mansion are so Dynasty. I swear Jessica Walter pulled that cigarette out of thin air. Everyone is so young and beautiful.

[John]

I Have The Falcon Crest Unaired Pilot "The Vintage Years" Saved To My Youtube Channel

Enjoy

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=B633D5F4E6373D6C