Is the soap world asleep?

[Ann_SS]

Yes. I think that the format should be tried in daytime at least once to see how it goes. It can be based on already established characters from a soap, last about 2 to 3 months and be shown about 3 to 4 times a week. Telenovelas when well written and acted can be a hit. The audience can become invested in a short period of time if the stories are well told. Also, the characters become popular can launch another telenovela based on new stories.

[All My Shadows]

And the fact that they were on in the middle of primetime did much more harm than good, definitely.

If a channel like MTV had aired those shows in the afternoons, like between 2 and 4, they would have probably been modest hits.

[bellcurve]

As someone who was a very rabid fanatic for their programming, MyNetworkTV was great. A network, subchannel SOAPnet whose biggest weakness was never fully knowing its audience or understanding how to market itself. Is it a miniseries? Is it a soap opera? Is it Renegade or Silk Stalkings?

There were way too many recap episodes and filler episodes for my taste, but MyNetworkTV had decent production values and great headliners for it's campy, non-action/adventure shows. As much as I didn't enjoy Desire and Watch Over Me, I thought their action scenes and resolutions to the stories best anything I've seen in the last five years on GH. I recall there was a two hour block of Desire the Friday after Thanksgiving and the standoff between the mob daughter and the buffoons that stole her father's money and fortune was great. Desire and Watch Over Me really rewarded their viewers at the end of their run. Wicked Wicked Games did as well. Fashion House, not so much.

I also blame the general soap audience for not giving these serials a fair shake. As previously discussed, I don't think anyone should embrace mediocrity, but the general consensus within the industry and on the boards is that no one truly wanted to acknowledge these shows(or any other daily dramatic series that didn't air between 12-4PM) as soap.

What I'm sad about is the experiment was originally ordered for syndication. I thought this would have went over very well with the daytime audience(that may have been too busy watching Grey's Anatomy or something else in Primetime) and the expectations for the shows would have been alot less. They'd probably still be airing cycles and may have inspired networks or other syndication companies to make their own novellas or syndicated soaps.

[Ann_SS]

There is no guarantee of success, but I would like to see if the telenovela formula might work on say, NBC after Days. Our attention spans are so short these days that a knowing that there will be certain resolutions to stories might bring in significant portion of the soap audience. There may be a segment of the soap audience that wants a couple that they enjoy to have a happy ending instead of years of break up and make ups. I think that main characters do have to be familiar to the audience for it to be successful. For example, Steve and Kayla could be the couple whose children's adventures are told. It is an experiment that would be worth every penny if it can save the most endangered soaps.

[bellcurve]

I think telenovelas could be successful, but they have to aim high, but expect that this type of storytelling needs to grow on viewers. NBC would be the perfect outlet for this, because they are used to not being #1 anyway, per Jeff Zucker.

[Sylph]

That is true.

The whole project just felt rushed. They didn't plan enough, they just cooked up something together without much thinking about it and this is the result they got. It doesn't help that I believe people in charge showed absolute lack of conviction and interest in these shows. Had they, things would be different now.

They underestimated the audience and it came to bite them.

[Jane1978]

I don´t think any sane producer will ever go into a show knowing it has to end after 3-5 months no matter what. That´s maybe possible for non comercial financed production, but the last thing any producer want is a limited run. It costs money for a new show to promote, it costs money to do the casting, train the staff and put the show on track. Let´s assume the new show is succesfull. Does really anyone believe the producer would let it end just because the story ask for it? I mean, this is a world where even a show called Prison Brake got another two seasons AFTER the main goal from the title was fullfilled.

Look at Hollywood. They are scared s*it to do anything new. They rather remake some bad 80´s horror flick just because the name is still somewhat familiar. It doesn´t matter the new movie has different actors, different plot and diffrerent director, the investors still believes the box offices recoverability is better just because all those weird fans from 80´s who will for sure go to see the movie.

The reason why daytime soaps are longterm and so vague in its basic premise is exactly so they don´t have to end no matter what. Because it´s much cheaper to just change the creative force behind the show than start a new show. People gets tired of some couple or character, the couple or character goes away. People gets tired with a certain style the show has, the HW and the creative team behing it are let go and the show completely revamps.

With telenovelas you are asking the producer to pitch a new idea to network each 5 or so months. And in the case the show is succesfull you are asking them to voluntarily cut their fat cow just when audience is getting crazy and numbers are shooting up. Even if we assume the production staff behind stays pretty much the same and all these shows are taped in the same studio, you still have to build new sets, buy new costumes, hire new actors. Bet a lot of money on a completely different story and leading characters each 5 months. What is the success ratio of stories on soaps? 1:5, or even less? There is no reason to believe the telenovelas would fare better, probably worse, because a lot of the best soaps stories and couples was not planned.

[AMCHistory]

I think the soap world is in such a creative slump. Doug Davidson said it best at the Paley Center, that in the past Soaps were the trail blazers. There stories were unlike anything ever done on TV. Now, it is all about recycling past successful plots with little success. The faster storyline pace takes away from that dramatic climax that made soaps so addictive. I have not had a seen that made me cry, cringe, and finally breathe a sigh of relief since Bianca got her baby back in 2004.

So many soaps, AMC especially, have moved to this "tell and don't show" model that I think has diluted the impact of storylines and scenes.

[samantha]

I think that all soaps should get canceled.