German soaps: GZSZ, UU & AWZ

[Huntress]

Yes, it is. Here's an overview on all the seasons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Brother_Germany

The first season of BB was a ratings magnet during its run in the first half of 2000. It was so successful that RTL2 ordered a second season that aired three months after BB1 had concluded. BB3 started only one month after BB2. During the 3rd season, public interest waned, and it took 2 years until BB4 was launched. While the first three seasons followed the classic formula (12 housemates living in one area), the 4th season was called "Big Brother – The Battle" with two teams living in different areas competing against each other in matches. BB5 lasted 365 days, featured 60 housemates and had the housemates living in three different areas (rich, normal and poor).

BB6 was "Big Brother – The Village" which was supposed to run for an unlimited time, but was discontinued after almost a year on the air (the concept was very similar to present-day "Newtopia"*). BB7 followed the classic formula, while BB8 was similar to BB4.

BB9 started as "Big Brother – Heaven & Hell" with the housemates living in two different areas. The "Hell" inhabitans were basically the servants of the "Heaven" inhabitans. Because of low ratings, the concept was completely overhauled after a month and the show was now called "Big Brother – Reloaded".

BB10 featured two houses: The regular BB house and the "Secret House". The housemates living in the Secret House did not know of the other house's existence. After a while, both houses were merged into one. The 10th season was the most successful season to date, so an 11th season was ordered which was called "Big Brother – The Secret". Every housemate had a secret that the others needed to uncover. Ratings of the 11th season were abyssal so RTL2 eventually gave up on the Big Brother franchise in 2011.

In 2013, the Pro7Sat.1 group bought the rights for Big Brother and launched "Celebrity Big Brother" which subsequently aired on Sat.1. So far, three editions have been shown: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promi_Big_Brother Because of the huge success of "Celebrity Big Brother", Pro7Sat.1 decided to give the classic Big Brother a new try and chose sixx as the broadcaster for the 12th season.

* "Newtopia Germany" ran on Sat.1 from February to July 2015 and was cancelled after 101 days.

[Huntress]

AWZ updated its opening sequence.

The old one can be found here: http://boards.soapoperanetwork.com/topic/27798-opening-sequences/?do=findComment&comment=1398255

This is the first opening to feature Christoph, Veit, Tobi and Marie. Katja, Can and Maximilian have been removed. Jenny and Iva received new footage.
Isabell Horn as Pia was again forgotten to be added. She is still featured on GZSZ's opening, though, even though she last appeared on that show in May.

Version 2015.2/A
Order: Tatjana Clasing as Simone Steinkamp (original cast member) & Silvan-Pierre Leirich as Richard Steinkamp (original cast member) – Julia Augustin as Vanessa Steinkamp (2006-2009; 2010-2012; 2013; 2014-present) / Lars Korten as Christoph Lukowski (2015-present) – Jörg Rohde as Ben Steinkamp #2 (2009-present) & Christina Klein as Iva Lukowski (2014-present) – Barbara Sotelsek as Sonja Brück (2015-present), Julia Albrecht as Flo Brück (2015-present) & Daniel Brockhaus as Thomas Brück (2015-present) – Carsten Clemens as Veit Hartmann (2015-present) & Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen as Jenny Steinkamp #4 (2011-present) – Sam Eisenstein as Marian Öztürk (original cast member) & Juliette Greco as Lena Bergmann von Altenburg Öztürk #1/#3 (2007-present) – Igor Dolgatschew as Deniz Öztürk / Alles was zählt

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Version 2015.2/B
Order: Julia Augustin as Vanessa Steinkamp (2006-2009; 2010-2012; 2013; 2014-present) & Tatjana Clasing as Simone Steinkamp (original cast member) – Caroline Frier as Bea Meyer Steinkamp (2013-present) & André Dietz as Ingo Zadek (original cast member) – Michael Jassin as Tobi Märtz (2015-present) & Judith Neumann as Marie Schmidt (2015-present) – Igor Dolgatschew as Deniz Öztürk (2007-present) & Lars Korten as Christoph Lukowski (2015-present) – Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen as Jenny Steinkamp #4 (2011-present) & Ania Niedieck as Isabelle Reichenbach Steinkamp (2011-present) – Silvan-Pierre Leirich as Richard Steinkamp (original cast member) & Jörg Rohde as Ben Steinkamp #2 (2009-present) – Jörg Rohde as Ben Steinkamp / Alles was zählt

[DRW50]

Maybe Pia is going back to GZSZ.

 

How old is that Deniz pool photo? Or is it new?

[Huntress]

Deniz's sequence was filmed in late 2014/early 2015. It's been on the opening since the second last version.

Some casting news:

• Maria Kempken has left Unter Uns. Her final airdate is October 26th, 2015. Kempken joined the cast in April 2014 as Leonie Weidenfeld, a role that had previously been played by Sarah Stork from May to December 2013. When Stork didn't return from her maternity leave as planned, the character had to be recast within a short span of time. Kempken previously subbed for Juliette Greco on AWZ for 7 months during Greco's maternity leave in 2013.
• GZSZ has added a new teenager to its cast: Rona Özkan debuts as Selma Özgül on November 9th, 2015. Selma is Ayla's (Nadine Menz) 15-year-old cousin and comes to Berlin to finish school there. She is supposed to become Jonas's (Felix van Deventer) new love interest. With Ayla, Tayfun, Mesut and Selma, the show will have 4 contract characters of Turkish origin.
• The Brück family on AWZ receives a new family member: Julian Bayer has joined the cast as Leo Brück. His first airdate is November 12th, 2015. Just as Isabelle (Ania Niedieck) has realized that she's in love with Thomas (Daniel Brockhaus), she has a one-night-stand with a 20-year-old guy who turns out to be Leo, Thomas's son.

[DRW50]

Will you miss Maria? 

[Huntress]

Not at all. While she's a capable actress, she was completely wrong for the role of Leonie. That woman was supposed to be a free spirit and a globetrotter (not to mention that she was very sexy in her first incarnation), but Maria played her like some farm girl from rural Bavaria.

Little update on Big Brother 12:

Week 1: During the first week, all 13 contestants were up for eviction.
Week 2: Sophia was eliminated.
Week 3: Hans-Christian and Tim were up for eviction. Tim left voluntarily during the week. Thus, Manuel, Àsa, Isabell and Atchi were also up for eviction.
Week 4: Isabell was eliminated. New contestants Mary and Guido entered the house.
Week 5: Hans-Christian and Guido were up for eviction.
Week 6: Hans-Christian was eliminated.
Week 7: Lusy, Àsa, Sharon and Guido were up for eviction.
Week 8: Àsa was eliminated. New contestants Beate and Natascha entered the house.

8 more weeks to go until the finale.

Preview Pictures for November/December 2015

 

Unter uns

01. Fiona (Olivia Burkhart, r.) cannot understand why everyone hates her father Rolf so much and quits her job at the bakery, leaving Irene (Petra Blossey) speechless 02.Easy (Lars Steinhöfel) is hurt when the old tailor shop collapses 03. The residents of Schillerallee have fun at the annual carnival party 04. Henning (Benjamin Kiss) cheats on Ute with Ricarda (Anna-Lena Class) 05. Bambi (Benjamin Heinrich) tells Rolf (Stefan Franz) to stay away from Sina and her baby 06. Will Bambi and Sina (Valea Scalabrino) mend their broken marriage? 07. When Irene and Robert (Luca Maric) confront Rolf, Fiona takes her father's side 08. Britta (Tabea Heynig) and Rufus (Kai Noll) try to build a family 09. Ricarda also sleeps with Henning's son Moritz (Marvin Linke) 10. After Ringo had an accident, Tobias (Patrick Müller), Elli (Nora Koppen), Caro (Ines Kurenbach) and Jule (Amrei Haardt) wait for news on condition 11. Rolf threatens Eva (Claudelle Deckert) 12. Due to heavy work load at the bakery, Irene severely hurts her back 13. Henning catches Ricarda with Moritz 14. Britta and Caro receive bad news regarding their business

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Alles was zählt

01. Ingo (André Dietz) and Caroline (Olivia Augustinski) help Marie (Judith Neumann) who had an training accident due to a manipulated prop 02. Ben (Jörg Rohde, r.) thinks that Tobi is Iva's stalker and threatens him 03. Vanessa (Julia Augustin) finds the golden dumbbell, which went missing earlier, in Christoph's belongings 04. Isabelle (Ania Niedieck) plans to marry Thomas in Las Vegas 05. Tobi tries to be there for Marie who can't feel her legs after the accident 06. Brigitte (Madlen Kaniuth) and Marian (Sam Eisenstein) gossip about Isabelle 07. Veit (Carsten Clemens) cannot bear having Jenny (Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen) around him 08. Veit tells a heart-broken Pia (Isabell Horn) that they won't have more than just an affair 09. Isabelle tells Sonja (Barbara Sotelsek) that her and Thomas are now living together 10. Tobi asks Ingo (André Dietz) and Bea (Caroline Frier) for advice on how he could impress Marie

Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten

01. Anni (Linda Marlen Runge) is surprised when her dad shows up and wants to get to know her girlfriend 02. Jonas (Felix van Deventer) desperately wants Lilly (Iris Mareike Steen) and Maren to make up 03. To help refugees, Chris (Eric Stehfest) and Motsi Mabuse (as herself) host a charity event 04. Elena (Elena Garcia Gerlach) and John (Felix von Jascheroff) still don't trust Philip (Jörn Schlönvoigt) 05. Anni confronts Frederic (Dieter Bach) about going behind Jasmin's back 06. Ayla (Nadine Menz, r.) welcomes her cousin Selma (new series regular Rona Özkan) to Berlin 07. Leon (Daniel Fehlow) is worried about Maren (Eva Mona Rodekirchen) 08. Elena and John just want to be happy 09. When Lilly realizes that Maren has done everything she can to find Amar, she forgives her mother 10. Gerner (Wolfgang Bahro, r.) tells David (Philipp Christopher) to play by his rules 11. After realizing that Philip was Elena's stalker, Tuner (Thomas Drechsel) gives Philip a grilling 12. Leon blames Emily (Anne Menden) for Sophie's accident 13. Chris and Anni are taken into police custody 14. During a press conference, Gerner and Sunny (Valentina Pahde) are shocked by Alex's announcement

Edited November 5, 2015 by Huntress

[DRW50]

Thanks.

 

A soap story on refugees would be interesting, although I guess this is not going to be an actual story.

 

Rare to see soap stories about bakeries.

[Huntress]

Actually, this has been quite a big story on GZSZ. In June, Thando Walbaum joined the cast in the recurring role of Amar Akram, a refugee from Mali. In Berlin, Amar met Chris Lehmann who is an enviromental activist. In order to help Amar, Anni (who's a lesbian) agreed to marry him. Lilly, who previously had a brief romance with Chris, fell in love with Amar, but then Chris became jealous and told the police that Amar's marriage to Anni was a scam. Amar had to flee the country and left a heart-broken Lilly behind. She was furious with Chris. Lilly then wanted to find Amar but Lilly's mother Maren intervened which led to a big fight between mother and daughter. Since Thando Walbaum is currently filming for GZSZ again, Amar will pop up again in late December.

The bakery has been an integral part of UU since the very beginning. It is owned by the Weigel family and a lot of characters have worked there over the past 21 years.

[DRW50]

Thanks. That's interesting.

 

I wish more soaps had stories about bakeries. Corrie had one for maybe a year, as a new female character worked there (her father ran it), but it was mostly about her father being a sexual harasser and pig. 

[Huntress]

The soap year 2015 is almost over and previews have arrived covering the first half of January 2016, so it's time for a little retrospective.

Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten (RTL)

Total episodes in 2015: 251 (#5653 to #5904)

Contract arrivals:
Valentina Pahde as Sunny Richter (January 2015-present)
Rona Özkan as Selma Özgül (November 2015-present)

Contract departures:
Isabell Horn as Pia Koch (March 2009-February 2014; February 2015-May 2015; permanently crossed over to AWZ)
Ramona Dempsey as Nele Lehmann (August 2013-August 2015)
Franziska van der Heide as Mieke "Mieze" Lutze (August 2013-August 2015)

Unter uns (RTL)

Total episodes in 2015: 251 (#5008 to #5259)

Contract arrivals:
Amrei Haardt as Jule Kasper (January 2015-present)
Luca Maric as Robert Küpper (January 2015-present)
Olivia Burkhart as Fiona Fischer aka Fiona Novak (April 2015-present)
Nora Koppen as Elli Schneider (September 2015-present)

Contract departures:
Svenja Jung as Lisa Brück (January 2014-January 2015)
Sarah Hannemann as Josephine "Joe" Johlke (December 2013-March 2015)
Maja Lehrer as Kimberley Pötter (June 2014-April 2015)
Joy Lee Juana Abiola-Müller as Micki Fink Lassner (January 2009-May 2015)
Alexander Sholti as Dr. Sascha Brenner (December 2013-July 2015)
Maria Kempken as Leonie Weidenfeld #2 (April 2014-October 2015)

Alles was zählt (RTL)

Total episodes in 2015: 250 (#2087 to #2337)
The 24/03/2015 episode was pre-empted due to coverage of the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525 in the French Alps.

Contract arrivals:
Barbara Sotelsek as Sonja Brück (January 2015-present)
Julia Albrecht as Flo Brück (January 2015-January 2016, exit already confirmed)
Daniel Brockhaus as Dr. Thomas Brück (January 2015-present)
Lars Korten as Christoph Lukowski (January 2015-present)
Isabell Horn as Pia Koch (crossed over from GZSZ, February 2015-January 2016, exit already confirmed)
Carsten Clemens as Veit Hartmann (June 2015-present)
Michael Jassin as Tobi Märtz (July 2015-present; recurring previously)
Judith Neumann as Marie Schmidt (October 2015-present)
Julian Bayer as Leo Brück (November 2015-present)

Contract departures:
Alexander Wüst as Erik Schulte (May 2014-January 2015)
Jenny Bach as Julia Meyer (February 2013-January 2015)
Yara Hassan as Raquel Santana (September 2013-January 2015)
Michéle Fichtner as Toni Fuchs (October 2014-January 2015)
Naima Fehrenbacher as Larissa Schuhmann (October 2014-February 2015)
Anna Katharina Samsel as Katja Bergmann (December 2009-July 2015)
Volkan Isbert as Can Öztürk (December 2012-July 2015)

Verbotene Liebe (ARD)

Total episodes in 2015: 32 (#4632 to #4664)
#4647 was the last daily episode airing on 29/01/2015.
#4648 and #4649 were edited together and aired as one single episode on 06/02/2015.
#4650 was the first weekly episode airing on 27/02/2015.
#4664 was the show's final episode airing on 26/06/2015.

Contract departures:
Clara Gerst as Lara Cornelius #2 (Daily: 2014-2015, last appearance in #4647)
Henrike Fehrs as Alexa Berg (Daily: 2013-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4652)
Janina Isabell Batoly as Bella Jacob (Daily: 2012-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4653)
Sascha Pederiva as Sascha Vukovic (Daily: 2013-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4655)
Marc Barthel as Tim Helmke (Daily: 2014-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4656)
Mickey Hardt as Dr. Jo Helmke (Daily: 2014-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4559)
Dominic Saleh-Zaki as Andi Fritzsche (Daily: 2001-2007; 2009-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4660)
Gabriele Metzger as Charlie Schneider (Daily: 1995-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4661)
Jens Hartwig as Tristan von Lahnstein (Daily: 2009-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4662)
Tatjana Kästel as Rebecca von Lahnstein #2 (Daily: 2012-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4662)
Martina Servatius as Elisabeth Ryan Brandner von Lahnstein (Daily: 1999-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4662)
Sebastian Schlemmer as Sebastian von Lahnstein #2 (Daily: 2009-2015; Weekly: last appearance in #4663)

Cast of the Final Episode:
Daniel Axt as Jannik Anders (Weekly: #4657-#4664)
Wolfram Grandezka as Ansgar von Lahnstein (Daily: 2004-2015; Weekly: full run)
Christoph Kottenkamp as Frank Helmke (Daily: 2011-2015; Weekly: full run)
Miriam Lahnstein as Tanja Wittkamp von Anstetten von Lahnstein (Daily: 1995-1998, 2001, 2004-2015; Weekly: full run)
Nicole Mieth as Kim Wolf von Lahnstein #2 (Daily: 2011-2015; Weekly: full run)
Nic Romm as Frederic Schwarz (Weekly: #4657-#4664)
Stefanie Rösner as Mila von Draskow (Weekly: #4555-#4664)
Bastian Semm as Martin Vogt (Weekly: #4653-#4664)
Florian Wünsche as Emilio Sanchez (Daily: 2011-2015; Weekly: full run)
Verena Zimmermann as Nico Brandner von Lahnstein (Daily: 2002-2007, 2010-2012; Weekly: #4655-#4664)

Mila (Sat.1/sixx/Sat.1 Emotions)

Total episodes: 75 (#1-#75)
#1 aired on 07/09/2015 on Sat.1.
After the airing of #10, Sat.1 removed the show from its schedule due to low ratings. The remaining episodes are shown on the pay-tv channel Sat.1 Emotions and repeated one week later on sixx.
The show concludes with #75 on 13/12/2015.

Rote Rosen (ARD)

Total episodes in 2015: 233 (#1878-#2111)

Sturm der Liebe (ARD)

Total episodes in 2015: 233 (#2139-#2372)



 

[DRW50]

Great work.

 

What was your favorite soap this year? 

[Huntress]

That's hard to say. GZSZ, AWZ and UU had some great storylines, for example the incest story on GZSZ, the Fiona reveal on UU, or the bus accident and Veit's revenge on the Steinkamp family on AWZ. All in all, they were basically the same as in the years before, neither better nor worse.

Yesterday "Lindenstraße" aired its live episode (#1559 – "Hinter der Tür") for its 30th anniversary. I don't know if ARD's on-demand service is country restricted, but here's the link to the episode: http://mediathek.daserste.de/Lindenstraße/Folge-1559-Hinter-der-Tür/Das-Erste/Video?documentId=32080056&topRessort&bcastId=5280

The episode had the regular length of 29 minutes with a "making off" on the show's set in Cologne before and after the airing (which are included in the video).

The episode included a tragic twist:

 

 

Edited December 7, 2015 by Huntress

[Huntress]

AWZ announced that Julia Albrecht, Isabell Horn and Caroline Maria Frier will exit the soap in early 2016.

Albrecht joined the cast in January 2015 as teenager Flo Brück, who had to deal with the divorce of her parents Sonja and Thomas. However, other than acting like a brat and having a crush on her mother's new boyfriend Deniz, Flo didn't have much to do, so her exit isn't that surprising. Too bad Flo doesn't take her boring parents and her brother with her. Albrecht's last airdate is January 25th, 2016.

Horn's last airdate is February 8th, 2016. In February 2015, she brought her character Pia Koch from GZSZ to AWZ which was the first major cross-over between two soaps. It's unclear if she will return to GZSZ at a later date. Pia still has many ties to the current cast (ex-husband, ex-lover, several close friends).

After 3 1/2 years, it's also time to say goodbye to Caroline Maria Frier and her character Beatrice "Bea" Meyer Steinkamp Zadek. Currently married to Ingo (André Dietz), Bea will soon have a one-night-stand with Marian (Sam Eisenstein) which is probably tied to her exit storyline. Caroline Maria Frier's final airdate is February 29th, 2016. The younger sister of popular comedian Annette Frier joined AWZ in August 2012.

--- 

The 12th season of Big Brother Germany ended on December 22th, 2015. Six contestants remained in the house until the finale and were voted out in this order:

6th place: Thomas
5th place: Christian
4th place: Bianca
3rd place: Guido
2th place: Sharon
1st place: Lusy

After the finale, sixx announced that they won't produce a 13th season in 2016. The 12th season had an average market share of 2%.

---

On December 17th, 2015, Jamie-Lee Kriewitz won the 5th season of The Voice of Germany. She will probably fade into obscurity soon like most casting show winners before her.

 

[DRW50]

Thanks. Merry Christmas to you!

 

Will you miss Big Brother?

 

Sounds like Deniz has another flop girlfriend.

[Huntress]

No, I can't say that. The 12th season was a farce.

Sonja and Deniz don't have any chemistry and Sonja as a character is dull as dishwater. Same goes for her ex-husband Thomas. With the upcoming departures of Pia, Bea and Flo, AWZ seems to be cleaning house again, so I hope that some more characters get the axe. The only ones I would keep are Richard, Simone, Jenny, Veit, Vanessa, Christoph, Marie, Tobi and Isabelle. Even though they are long-running characters, Ben, Lena, Marian, Deniz and Ingo need to go to make room for some fresh faces. Sonja, Thomas and their son Leo should be killed off immediately, and Iva... I just don't have any words for this stupid b*tch.

Meanwhile GZSZ has released a new season trailer for the first weeks of 2016: http://www.rtl.de/cms/gzsz-seasontrailer-fliehen-jasmin-und-frederic-aus-liebe-2613754.html
The incest story will take a shocking turn with Katrin, Maren and Anni doing something horrible in order to protect Jasmin; Sophie thinks that Leon is cheating on her with Maren, while Maren realizes she still loves Alex; John is torn between Elena and his loyalty to Philip; and Selma finally has a chance with Jonas.

This is what's happening in the video:
Katrin and Anni stand in front of a construction site at night / Maren looks terrified / Anni drives her car at night, crying / Emily sees something strange / Katrin cries / Selma and Jonas almost kiss / Sunny looks worried / Katrin to Frederic: "Here's the proof: Jasmin is your biological daughter. You have to break up with her! As soon as possible!" / Frederic to Jasmin: "It's over." / Jasmin cries: "He asked me if I wanted to be his wife! Why did he break up with me?" / Frederic: "She needs to know why I broke with up her! She has a right to hear the truth!" Katrin: "The truth would destroy her! And I won't let that happen, never in my life!" / Sophie sees Leon and Maren together. / Sophie to Emily: "Leon is cheating on me with Maren." /  Lilly: "Amar and I are moving to Norway." Jonas: "What? For good?" / Selma tries on a skimpy swimming suit. / Emily takes part in a fashion show and is seen on the catwalk. Tayfun cheers her on. / Announcer: "Here she is: Emily Badak, co-owner of 'Tussi Attack'." Emily looks satisfied. / Jasmin screams "No!" and has a meltdown on the street. Frederic can't say a word. / Jasmin visits Frederic and wants to seduce him. "I love you," she whispers. / Leon sends a text message to Maren: "Sophie knows about the double room." Maren replies: "Crap. Did you tell her everything?" / Flashback to Maren and Leon waking up naked in a hotel room together. / Philip and John on the subway. Philip: "She [Elena] doesn't know that you're meeting me, huh?" John: "You're my brother. We'll get through this. Somehow." Elena spots the two together. / Emily and Tayfun kiss. Mesut walks in on them: "I don't believe this!" / Maren to Leon: "Why can't I get Alex out of my system?" Alex stands behind them. He smiles and says "Hi". / John: "Philip is family, and if you can't accept that..." Elena: "Then what? Do you want to break up with me?" / Maren to Alex: "I love you and I don't want to lose you." / Maren stands in front of the construction site. / Frederic to Jasmin: "We don't have a chance here in Berlin. I can't tell you why, but you have to trust me. Come with me to Australia." He gives her two flight tickets. / Katrin to an unseen person: "Have you ever been to prison?" / Jasmin screams at Katrin: "Who? Who is he?" / Katrin: "You wouldn't want to go to prison, trust me." / Katrin, Maren and Anni stand in front of the construction site. / Maren to Alex, with tears in her eyes: "I did something really horrible..."