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James Harmon Brown & Barbara Esensten: The Verdict


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I think Burke can be credited for the good sets and basically respecting the actors and all the good production values but she did not have a strong vision for storytelling. That is why, while she was AMC's executive producers, we didn't see many great stories (the only great ones that stick in my mind are Bianca coming out, Alexandra's appearance, Alex/Anna mystery, Leo/Greenlee/Trey/Vanessa/David, and the early months of McTavish's third stint which probably was all McTavish's doing since the EP at that time had little power on storytelling)

McTavish has been called by several AMC actors to be a great writer...she just has to work with the right person and one with a strong vision and that all comes from an executive producer and an ABC Daytime President that accepts the great storylines.

I never got why they promoted Passanante to fulltime head writer when Elizabeth Page has a long history with the show and wrote during some of its great years (e.g. late 1980s)....obviously the libidozone crap was all from Passanante and the only good part about that story was the yacht party

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^If that's the case, why didn't he send them to AMC when he sent JHC there? Instead he continued with McTavish round 3....

That's the mark of a VERY BAD writer, if you ask me. McTavish always starts off good and then fizzles in no time. It doesn't say much when you rely on a strong producer to spin your work into gold. I've heard FMB was a very hands-on producer at AMC during McTavish's first stint, that's why I give her more credit for how good the show was then rather than McTavish.

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Ahh interesting. McTavish has done some really great social issue stories before (Deconstruction/racism, Molly's leukemia, Ceara Connor's incest, Mona's lung cancer, Julia's rape, Bianca's rape, Zoe as transgender, Garrett/Danielle and pedophilia, domestic violence with Jonathan/Maggie) so I can see her dreaming up the idea for CRASH.

I figured that, all along, they would have Greenlee be innocent of him being deaf.

I can decide what makes for a good and bad writer. I am talking about how McTavish and a strong executive producer work as a team to make the show great and have a renaissance period.

I don't mind giving FMB more credit than McTavish at AMC...I give them both credit for making it some great years for the show (by far the best years I witnessed over my 17 plus years of being a viewer)

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See, IMO she doesn't work as apart of a team. She just regurgitates whatever she's told to write. It's all in her record, when came back for a second and third stint, AMC was under very weak management by the EP and ABC Daytime President and that reflected on her writing tenure.

Also, when worked with JFP on OLTL and GH, both shows were horribly focused and it once again reflected on her work, the same during her time at GL.

I know you've talked about an EP having a strong vision and that's what's key. FMB had a the strongest vision of any EP AMC's had since and that reflected on McTavish's first stint. Even though I know many didn't even like that stint.

Megan, to me, seems to do whatever she's told and most of her original ideas seem ridiculous.

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Megan's only weak stint at AMC, in my opinion, was her second. Overall, I liked what she did her third time around but it was time for her to go

<<<Even though I know many didn't even like that stint.>>>

There are some AMC fans that can never be satisfied if you ask me. They want it back to the 1980s but that kind of magic only comes around once. Just accept a great show when it comes and don't expect it to return to something that it won't ever get to at all.

I know some AMC fans griped in the 1990s when Erica's age was altered to introduce Kendall. Who freaking cares? Kendall's introduction was a great AMC story...some just bitch about a show for the sake of bitching.

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