Santa Barbara Discussion Thread

[Khan]

IIRC, wasn't that storyline written out of necessity, due to Marcy Walker's being unavailable for some reason?

[Soaplovers]

 

Maternity leave..I think

[Khan]

Thanks, @Soaplovers!

[amybrickwallace]

@Khan and @Soaplovers, it was indeed due to Marcy Walker's maternity leave. The kidnapping aired in January 1989 and MW gave birth to her son at the beginning of February.

[DRW50]

 

[amybrickwallace]

SB had some really fun Christmas episodes. My personal favorites were Mason's dream that cast him as Scrooge in an homage to A Christmas Carol, and a pregnant Eden and Cruz filling in for an ailing Santa Claus and delivering gifts on his sleigh. It was nice to deviate from all the drama for the day and just enjoy the proceedings.

[chrisml]

Am I wrong in thinking they submitted their Christmas episodes for Emmy consideration? 

[amybrickwallace]

 

If they were, it wouldn't surprise me. The Christmas episodes really gave the SB staff a chance to really be creative and fun.

[j swift]

I was just watching the first SB Xmas episode.  Lionel Lockridge was in jail after being arrested as a suspect in Channing's murder because a note from Channing was found in the pocket of his tuxedo.  The note popped out at the party for the jewels that Lionel and Warren discovered in their dive to the sunken ship the Amanda Lockridge.  Later, it was revealed that Warren had actually worn Lionel's tux to Channing's party.  I liked this detail because Warren was just out of high school at the time and logically he would still borrow clothes from his father to a formal event, especially because he was a party-crasher and hadn't planned on attending until Channing threatened to (a) call the police on Warren for stealing the gold coins from the Amanda Lockridge from the Capwell estate and (b) reveal Lionel's involvement in Sophia's disappearance.  Warren was an interesting red herring in Channing's murder because even Augusta questioned his innocence, and when Channing's bisexuality was revealed, Augusta hinted that she suspected Channing and Warren had done some exploring.  

 

Any way, on Xmas day, Minx and the whole clan stormed the jail to see to Lionel and spend the holiday as a family.  They even brought a tree, dinner, and gifts to the jail cell.

 

After an awkward first couple of months, SB really starts to find its narrative footing at this time.  The earthquake, Amy Perkins's baby-napping. doppelganger lawyers, and multiple CC, Santana, and Gina recasts mired the start of the story.  The pacing was so odd because there were many mini-stories that were told during this period (Augusta's blindness, the tunnel collapse, Peter's brain tumor), but the mystery of Channing's murder dragged on for 18 months (a little Sophia/Dominic pun) with little clues dropped along the way.  The reason Lionel, Warren, (and the oft-forgotten Elizabeth), dove to the sunken ship was related to the coins that Warren had stolen/recovered from CC's library before the murder.  Warren, Lionel and Summer planned the dive in August, then Summer was murdered, then the dive happened in November, with the opening of the treasures at the museum party in December.  The story was disjointed because the focus would shift back to the Capwells without having Lockridge scenes for weeks at a time.  At one point in October, just as Brick was starting to be revealed as Sophia and Lionel's son, Warren explains that his parents have left for a European vacation.  So, focusing on the Lockridges and their unique family dynamic was a great choice for school-aged fans (like myself at the time), who may have watched over the summer and were now returning during the school winter break.  It is filled with humor and charm, Warren looks hot, and even Laken is bearable.  

 

The later year's special episodes are probably more memorable, but the first one is worth a re-watch just to admire how the show began to find its voice.  

 

BTW it was total missed opportunity that when Bunny the cross-dressing mobster was introduced, nobody reference Sophia's drag king period in Santa Barbara.  

[amybrickwallace]

One of Lionel's cellmates in the 1984 Christmas episode was played by none other than Jack Riley - best known to classic TV fans as Mr. Carlin on The Bob Newhart Show.

[Chris B]

I got distracted with some other shows and also bored so my Santa Barbara viewing slowed down. I'm around episode 50 now and I've noticed the couple weeks the pace has been picked up tremendously. The boring teen set with Melissa Reeves is finally on the backburner post summer so they're focusing more on the characters that work. Santana continues to be a delight. It still shocks me this actress didn't last. She has such a presence and good chemistry with Mason and this block of wood CC. Loving Gina and Brandon's arrival and the reveal that Dominic is a woman.  You can see them focusing in on what is working and as they do the show is becoming more interesting. I'm also loving Lionel and Eden who both popped up late. For a new soap I will say casting has mostly been on point. I have very few complaints. I will also say that Marcy Walker is fantastic. I get no shades of Liza and considering Kelly is a heroine I was expecting Eden to come in as a bad girl. At least so far I don't see that happening. She's refreshing and feels like a piece of the Capwell puzzle that was missing.

 

Right now the biggest thing I'm waiting for is Sophia to be revealed! I'm ready to see how her family reacts to her return.

[Chris B]

So we're onto our third CC (technically fourth if you include the unaired one) and we're only 60 episodes in. This is just insane to me. For such a central role it's weird they couldn't figure it out. The first on screen CC was great and I wish he had stayed. The second one was *terrible* and stiff and came off very old. Seeing him with Santana just didn't work. I'm only one episode into the third CC so I can't really make a judgement, but I was taken aback. I was expecting the previous guy to remain until Jed Allen arrives. I will say I'm glad to see Paul Burke go. 

 

In terms of the story I continue to be impressed with the changes they're making. After being in the background they finally have given Warren something to do by making him the prime suspect to Channing's murder. It also has helped deepen the character of Augusta by showing her maternal side as she tries to help her son. I also like how they explained the situation with her and Joe Perkins, which makes sense given what we now know. There is also a new character named Brick who seems interesting. I enjoy Minx so having him tied to her has helped me warm to him. 

 

Another thing that shocked me was Amy Perkins popping up during Joe's fake funeral. I had heard this family fizzled out so I wasn't expecting another sister. I don't mind her so far. In general most of the new characters seem to fit in really well. The only issue is that they can't seem to cast a proper CC lol. Gina,  Brick, Amy and Eden all feel like they belong and they're enhancing the story for the characters we already know which is how new characters should be. Right now I'm just waiting with baited breath for this earthquake. From the screen caps that accompany the episodes I know I'm maybe two weeks away from that. I can't wait to see the production values of that. I've heard about this earthquake for years and can't wait to finally see it!

[Contessa Donatella]

The 4 different CCs drove me bonkers. Surely they could have worked that out better! I loved Cruz & Eden, loved Robin, loved the Dobsons, loved Gina, loved Santana, Eden's rape was horrific, loved Lane Davies, ... I thought it was wildly out of proportion that NBC made Robin give up both time & money so she could be "The Princess Bride". If you ever have the chance to read, Cary Elwes book about the movie, do so. Back then I lived in Rocky Face, GA, which at the time was "The Carpet Capital of the World". It is no  longer. Lane Davies was from Dalton, GA. Every summer he took time off to go & do Shakespeare. Such a talented man! Now he has two sons & they do Shakespeare with him. I loved Mason & Julia. I am currently surprised that she's going to get married. The You Tube clip of SB winning their first Emmy is so fine! That whole cast just goes wild! One of the few people I never got into on SB was Zimmer; she just didn't seem to fit.

[Contessa Donatella]

I cannot imagine the Dash storyline being more offensive than Eden's rape! Eden's rape surely was worse than anything else put on at that time.

[j swift]

I would rank the CC's in reverse order of their appearance:

 

1. Jed Allen, mature, sexy, a little hot headed.  He played the paternal relationship well with Eden and Mason.  When called he Kelly his "princess", you immediately understood their dynamic and how it varied from his other kids.  His passionate conflict with Sophia was one of the only plotlines that lasted for the entire run of the show.  Even when CC strayed, or become more of a villian, Jed maintained recognizable CC characteristics.

 

2.  Charles Bateman, not the strongest actor but he had the maturity of CC.  If anything he seemed a little old to be a romantic rival for Lionel Lockridge.  However, his performance in the story when he learned that Channing had a gay lover was really good.  He seemed genuinely betrayed by Mason trying throw Channing's sexuality in his face, and hurt that Channing was unable to be honest with him.  It was such a surprising twist to have Mason try to shame Channing, but just further alienating himself from CC, that it was a joy to watch.

 

3. Paul Burke, a little too hysteric to be CC.  He always seemed to be on the edge of blowing up and screaming.  He lacked the charm and the gravatas to play CC the adventurous entrepreneur who broke away from his family to start a new company in California

 

4.  Peter Mark Richman, there is a scene within the first weeks when CC is working out with Santana in a tank top tucked into his gym shorts that was not at all sexy.  He was creepy rather than intimidating.  He seemed to have a predatory desire toward both Gina and Santana that grossed me out to the max (to use the vernacular of the times).

 

Next I want to rank all of the loves of the first Warren. 

Edited January 6, 2020 by j swift