B&B: God help us all...

[Cat]

Newsflash. Bradley Bell is a hack.

Actually, that's an insult to hacks. Bell makes Guza look like Doug Marland.

He's no writer. He is a "conceptualizer." And he has conceptualized this entire show into a corner. How do I know? Because Bradley has been regurgitating the same exact SL since the 90s. And because he can no longer excite the imagination of his viewers.

A few months ago, we -- the above-mentioned lowly viewer -- would prob have been able to lay out where B&B was going wrong, where it could go right, what assets it needed to play up, what fat needed to be cut off the bone, if Bradley cared to ask. One might even have suggested that B&B stop planning the show as 5 half-hours a week but rather a one-hour show spread over two days, allowing not just one SL to play out at a time but two, maybe three. Utilizing the entire cast and allowing the writers to stretch themselves a little without really adding to anybody's workload or production schedule.

Today? Personally, I don't even care. The characters are merely empty ciphers who move to the wind of Bell's latest half-baked plot-point. And I say this as a die-hard fan of Susan Flannery and Katherine Kelly Lang, of Ashley Jones and Lesli Kay. I love them but I am no longer in any way invested in Stephanie, Brooke, Bridget or MIA Felicia.

They say B&B is a show about romance. I don't see any when I watch the show. No romance, no feeling, no intimacy, no sensuality, no heart-thumping desire, no raw sex! Ergo, no investment. The whole package is shoddily put together on all levels -- production, costume-design (which should be a whole other character on B&B!), acting, writing. Perhaps Bell is gearing the show to be featured nightly on Talk Soup? Whatever. I am just surprised that Bradley is treating his future nest-egg, his main source of revenue, this way.

As for the incestuousness... we've talked about it before. I'm tired of repeating the same thing. It's incest. We'd be sickened if it ocurred next door to us, within our own family. So why should we watch it on TV? (although the last time B&B had any momentum, unfortunately, was when Bridget and Ridge began their ill-begotten affair. You can sort of understand Ridge's POV, tired of that endless Taylor-Brooke psychodrama).

[MarkH]

I have often wondered about that. I do think that is part of the story.

Before he left, DaytimeFan implied things would look up. He was wrong.

The irony is that things WERE on the build. Rejuvenated Jackie M...a fashion war. "Sick" didn't do it for me...but the Ridge-Rick battle COULD be epic. I loved that little snot saying "I own her ass". That's a muscle-twirling villain...and that's not a totally bad thing on B&B.

But instead of following through with that, Bradley dialed back on Rick's villainy...and is apparently trying to rescue this despicable scum as a romantic lead. All rooting value for Steffy is gone -- a bizarre marriage of horrendous writing and HANDS DOWN the WORST ACTING in ALL OF DAYTIME. WORSE than Charity Rahmer. Yes! You CANNOT build your next generation on that kind of casting.

Every promising seed...every one...is extinguished.

Some people liked Marcus-Steffy. (Not me...I thought they were an insta-couple with no basis). Killed.

Some people thought Marcus' backstory could humanize Donna and make her interesting...maybe even tie in the Baker clan as a viable new African American family. Killed. (Why did they sign Mykel Shannon Jenkins to a contract?????).

Some people thought the Spectra-Forrester war could turn into something. Killed.

Some people thought Owen between the cougar and the sexually challenged Bridget could turn into something. Killed. Why? The cougar turned into a rapist, and Bridget seems headed back to Owen's orbit. Sigh. There is an OBVIOUS cougar-battle for Owen that could have been interesting (paging Felicia) but that never got developed.

Lesli Kay's whole tremendous potential on this show. Killed.

Brooke and Ridge were finally going to setting into romantic stability...and leave the drama to the next generation. Killed. Now we have chicken-dance-silicon-lips back in that damn triangle and I want to shoot myself (sorry, Storm, I know it's not funny) EVERY time I see those three. Aren't they SIXTY YEARS OLD???

Stephanie was going all independent. Hell, I guess I thought they might finally acknowledge her latent lesbianism. Alas....now it's clear she's gonna be defending Forrester against the cancer she brought to town (Bill). Rivalry...killed.

Heather Tom. TOTALLY sparked with Flannery. That story had the makings of something...a friendship of respect across warring families. Alas, Katie became a husband-stealing Logan slut (while simultaneously dying), cried for four months, UTTERED THE WORST DRECK EVER PENNED BY PATRICK MULCAHEY....killed.

Don Diamont. It is hard to imagine that walking-sex with that amazing beard to be anything but appealing. They were gonna make him rakish, plain-talking. Okay. Then, in his first scenes with Gareis, he's telling her to "get on her knees" and to f*ck him. Now he's a rapist slimebag, IMO. Killed.

Thorne? Huh? I thought they put him on recurring or fired him or something. That wouldn't bother me. But off-the-stove for YEARS...why bother? Killed.

Don't even get me started on Pam. Here you have an engaging actress. How many roles has she played? Long-suffering daughter of Betty White. Loopy off-meds sister, trying to protect Stephanie's interests. Deranged bear-siccer. That's a brain tumor. Instant redemption! Cool! But what do we get after the tumor? A return to campy off-meds Pamela. She's crocheting bikinis. She's mistyping social security numbers. What fun. Killed.

Killed killed killed killed killed.

I have never seen so many good ideas killed. So many promising leads aborted in mid-sentence. It is MIND BOGGLING. I tape this sh!t every single day. Every day I say a little prayer that THIS will be the good episode. ('cause they DO sneak in good episodes).

They say slot machines are so powerful because of 'variable reinforcement'. Once in a while, you win some coin. That turns out to be THE best formula for addiction. You keep playing because maybe the next time will be your lucky break.

B&B. Variable reinforcement with a very low reward schedule. I am filled with self-loathing that I still keep rooting for this crap. (Now I'll be called harsh, negative, unfair).

[Ann_SS]

The funny thing is that B&B has had worse stories so I didn't think that this one was that horrifically bad. Goes to show how your standards of soap entertainment gradually lowers to the point where you don't even realize that you are been shoveled crap.

[Darn]

Jackie raped Owen? Whut?

And who is raising Jack now?

[MarkH]

Not really rape. But last week (in a famous B&B flip flop) Owen wanted to be free to pursue Bridget. Jackie refused to let him go, telling him he would be required to continue performing services for her. No choice, if he wanted a job.

This week, that's over. Owen has gone back to wanting Jackie more than Bridget. So, never mind.

Jack is being raised by Nick and his woman-du-jour.

[Sylph]

So much word... When you put it like that, all I can do is:

[BadZoe]

I tried to watch a few episodes but it is the same [!@#$%^&*] it was 10 years ago, it is such repetitive drivel.

[MarkH]

Absolutely right...except it depends on the episode. Once a month, they surprise us. And THAT is why some of us come back. Dammit!

[Sylph]

I had to dig up this thread to remind myself of how horrible this show has been in the past few years. Absolutely wretched. Yet, somehow, I think it's quite salvagable, much more than any other on air. And if what people are writing in the spoiler subforum is true, then that must surely be a point of absolute no return and will make this whole show more of a joke than it already is. It's such an atrocious hack job that there are no words.