Santa Barbara Discussion Thread

[Marissa Gallant]

 

I promise you these the rest of your life.

I mean, you just promised me milk, butter, ground beef, and I'm still here.

 

I rolled laughing through that.

[Liberty City]

 

In my viewpoint, A. Martinez and Wanda DeJesus, visually, had no chemistry as a couple.

[dc11786]

@j swift Hank Judson was Gina's boyfriend prior to Gina's marriage to Stockman. He was the boyfriend who had raped her sister Summer. 

 

Your points regarding Gina and Santana are interesting. The characterizations of both seem to fluctuate depending on who was playing which role and how the characters were functioning at that point in the story. Initially, Ava Lazar's Santana was suppose to be a very complex character who was driven by the pain in her past (her lover's death and losing her child) to achieve her goals no matter what scruples she had to abandon along the way. She was a strong woman who didn't need a man, but knew that men liked to take care of women and played on that. She was smart and wasn't against using sex as a weapon. As an interior designer, Santana had her own source of income and was not dependent on anyone. Gina, on the other hand, seemed the opposite. She was completely reliant on a man. While Santana was meticulous and calculated, Gina often acted on impulse and out of desperation. Even when she was thinking things out, like trying to convince Mason to get her pregnant, it was predicated on a series of lies she had already built. Those were two very different character types. 

 

Along the way, things definitely got lost. When Robin Matson assumed the role and Anne Howard Bailey became headwriter, the character of Gina became more low rent. There was a sleaziness to her that wasn't anywhere in Linda Gibboney's performance. I cannot see Keith and Gina being a popular couple with Linda Gibboney in the role. Gina became more calculated and more manipulative while Santana fell into addiction. I like Gina Gallego as an actress, but I'm not that big a fan of the writing for her as Gina. It just comes off as very one-note and plot driven. 

 

If Linda Gibboney had stayed, I think they should have shifted her into the Lockridge orbit to keep her in the loop. The show didn't seem to know what to do with Warren, and, while an affair between Warren and Gina might not have had much traction, playing on the connection between Gina and Warren regarding Summer and possibly poisitioning Warren as a potential love interest for Hayley might have given Gina some more breathing room. I think Gibboney would have been fine with Michael Durrell's Alex Nikolas. The show wasn't really that good at keeping any character, but the older ones seemed to turn over so often. It would have been good to keep someone like Alex Nikolas around. 

 

Regarding Santana / C.C., I like the pairing, but I think the criticism is valid. I think there is a level of disconnect in the writing and the production of the story. A lot of the scripting makes it sound like this is supposed to be an unhealthy relationship. Rosa flat out accuses Santana of being so obsessed with her love for the late Channing Jr. that she is trying to recreate that relationship with C.C. Kelly thinks that the whole thing is insanity, which it is. I really just like the potential of Santana finally coming into the money and power she wanted from day one. Do I think there were other ways to achieve that? Absolutely. I just think the Dobsons seemed to have bigger intentions for the story that never got to reach fruition, but I could be wrong. 

 

To me, the ideal plot would have been to have Santana to encourage C.C. to go for custody of Gina's baby with her intention of using C.C. to eliminate Gina. I would have Santana and C.C. marry and be given custody of the baby with Gina having visitation. Santana would then convince Gina that they should conspire together to convince the Capwells that C.C. has lost his mind because no one would believe they would work together. Of course, in the long run, Santana would be planning on setting up Gina to take the fall for everything after having C.C. institutionalized in the same facility where she had been locked up. I also would have had Santana take over ownership of the Oasis. 

 

In the end, I would have liked to see Santana with Brick Wallace (either Richard Eden or a recast). 

[Marissa Gallant]

I finally watched the Dinner from Hell. Wow! What a performance. Too bad JM and JA were never allowed to submit themselves. But it does feel a little out of the blue considering where the show was at that point.

 

In the end, I think that the fact that no one was ever allowed to be happy for more than a week was one of nails in the coffin. When you go super deep drama too often, there is no place left to go. And it winds up just being pathetic.

[Carlos Abad]

Maybe this is a little off topic, but anyone from here have watched episodes or scenes of The Bay?

I ask because this show has many Santa Barbara actors.

[Marissa Gallant]

I want to, but I can't find the first 2 seasons

[Liberty City]

 

Same. But I know, whoever runs their IG account, said they are working on a platform to put all episodes up by the end of 2021.

[Marissa Gallant]

As long as we have butter beef and eggs, we'll be fine, right?

[Liberty City]

I'm re-reading an interview, and it sounds like Lane Davies was not a fan of Tawny Kitaen's work as Lisa Dinapoli, and asked producers to keep Téa Leoni instead. Wow.

 

And I'm sad, but not shocked, that he did not return to the role when Terry Lester exited.

[FrenchBug82]

For those of us who werent following the gossip at the time, why did he exit in the first place? Was it one of those "I wanna do primetime" thing? Or was that around his real-life drama with NLG? Or something else?

[Liberty City]

 

Per his own words (July 2009): It was simply time to go. I was very tired, needed new challenges, and I felt the show had lost its heart.

 

I know Davies was very much #TeamDobsons.

[Marissa Gallant]

Okay, I've been giving this a lot of thought. Here are a few things that I would have done differently:

Done anything Louise Sorel asked for to keep her.  But kept her divorced. Probably brought in a powerful foe for CC and Lionel and had him after Augusta.

 

Kept Warren. Kept Brick. Not killed Joe right after the wedding. Had more Joe vs. Kelly's lifestyle conflict. Had Laken be the one to run off to Europe and meet the Hartley brothers. 

 

Kept Caroline because Caroline v Augusta would have been great. 

 

Find a different way for Gina to blackmail CC and still have CC and Sophia fight for ways to be together. Maybe have it be something Ted is accused of.

 

Contine the Sophia and Augusta friendship. Have Augusta venting about how Lionel and Caroline are a thing now and get to hear Augusta complain, "I would try to trick him, but dammit she's just too nice. I don't know what to do." Sophia, "Go after him. He's always loved you." And then Sophia would have had a friend to smack her head (probably literally- but playfully) when she was all worried about CC and Pamela. "Oh, CC will always choose you Darling, don't be an idiot." Never bring TJ onto the show at all.

 

Killed Joe to send Kelly off to film Princess Bride- hook her up with Jeffrey to bring on Pammie Darling.  

 

Perhaps even a weird Pamela/Augusta/ Sophia/CC/Lionel/ new guy arc where they're all fighting, forming untrustworthy alliances, and trying to be the ultimate business leader. Continue that for a loooonnng time with various ones winning and losing at different points. And get all the kids involved throughout

[DRW50]

 

[Marissa Gallant]

I have been reading a lot of interviews. Apparently, Lane Davies and Judith McConnell wanted to do a storyline where Sophia and Mason hooked up. Boy, I'm glad the show didn't go there. But with other characters on a different show, LD and JM might have been awesome.

Edited June 30, 2021 by Marissa Gallant
Dog bumped my arm before I was done

[Liberty City]

 

With the turmoil this soap went through, this would've been a cake walk in comparison to other stories.