Another World

[AbcNbc247]

Yep.

Bobby the racecar driver with Ryan's eyes suddenly became Shane the doctor on the run for killing some woman. You would think being a fugitive and all, he wouldn't have taken a job that put him the public eye so much 

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[FrenchBug82]

Another detail that makes me so sure it wasn't the initial plan when they introduced Bobby.
I really wonder...

[AbcNbc247]

Margaret DePriest introduced Bobby, but when she was canned and Tom King and Craig Carlson were brought back, they were the ones who made Bobby Shane. Why they chose to do that, I have no idea lol but I'm sure if DePriest had stayed, Bobby would've remained as Bobby.

[j swift]

It does make one wonder if Shane's death in a car accident was karmic retribution or just new writers forgetting that he was once a race car driver.

Although, given that Shane took on Bobby's persona after meeting in prison, maybe Shane never actually raced cars?

[amybrickwallace]

That would make too much sense.

[Kane]

I remember reading at the time that Bobby was originally meant to have gotten Ryan's heart (which would have made him having Ryan's memories easier to buy than him having the memories because he got Ryan's corneas) but that they changed their minds when they realized that every time they wanted him to be shirtless, they'd have to show a scar on his chest.

[amybrickwallace]

That's right; I had forgotten that. Looking back, it probably would have worked better to have this new character have no ties to Ryan at all. 

[FrenchBug82]

Oh yeah I hated the ghost story on its own merits but on top of it it aged very poorly the minute they switched the story to "Shane".
They had Ryan vouch for Bobby from the beyond except that he wasn't Bobby, he was married and he certainly wasn't the new Love of Vicky's life. I guess ghosts don't know f**ks**t either.
 

That on the other hand amuses me a lot. Thanks for sharing that tidbit I had never heard.

[Soaplovers]

Not sure about Anne being Frankie.

I do know that Matt/Josie was going to happen.  Nadine S's Josie and Matt had chemistry while gary wasn't meant to return.

Amanda vs David/Cindy in a business story.

Those were the two stories I recall being the next focus before being canceled 

[BetterForgotten]

Hard to believe Leah Laiman had anything outlined given the general quality of her work…

[Soaplovers]

Oh given her Days work in the mid to late 80s..I can believe it.

[watson71]

I think the intention originally was to proceed with the Bobby Reno story.  When Michael Malone took over as headwriter in April, 1997, that is when things went haywire.  I think Malone borrowed heavily from his bible for the unaired 13 Bourbon Street and just transferred the ideas to the characters on Another World.  Bobby Reno become Shane, Lila his-ex southern belle appears, Cindy and the glowing tiki idol, Lucas lookalike Alexander Nikos, Amanda posing as Hadley Prescott, Rachel being locked in a casket in a church about to be demolished, etc.

Edited September 13, 2021 by watson71

[Vee]

That Hadley Prescott deal (where she, like, got DID?) was some weird [!@#$%^&*]. I watched some of Malone's AW on YT and it bears a striking resemblance to his 2003-2004 OLTL - embarrassingly campy, fantastical, and all over the map tonally with poor writing to back up the broad flights of fancy. It did seem like they were testing Jake and that doomed Amanda at the time.

[DRW50]

Yes, I think Jake/Amanda was more the interim writers before Malone came on. Under Malone, Jake/Vicky became more of a couple, with Shane as the tortured guy she  couldn't be with but couldn't get over. I don't know what Malone was going to do with Amanda beyond the DID story. Poor Laura Moss. I wish she'd had more of a chance. Sandra Ferguson was fine, but she  didn't even really want to come back.

[amybrickwallace]

What??? I don't even remember that.