Tell me about it, lazy way out seems to be the big thing with this writing regime. Again, they don't use history for depth and character study, they use it to beat the audience over the head with it and for the audience to forgive absurd re-writes, and it all comes off hallow and flat.

The show is an absolute dreck of horrible couples (Cane & Lily), a platoon of useless characters, unbelievably terrible, Passions deluxe stories told with zero humour (chipmunk), lurid, lugubrious & twisted awfulness (Adam), inexistent, offensive "romance" and unabashed phallus-worshipping women (Sharon, Phyllis, Jack, Nick) complete with overused, hollow soap clichés & historigasms everywhere, every possible tale beaten to death (false identity, DNA tests, arrests, wackos going around town in plain daylight, their victims prize idiots, triangles, quadrangles...) and told as many times as possible...

Edited June 21, 200916 yr by Sylph

Sylph, do you have anyone in particular that you'd like to see replace MAB and company?

Sylph, do you have anyone in particular that you'd like to see replace MAB and company?

Who are you offering? These people?

1. Nancy Curlee — close to never-gonna-happen
2. Trent Jones — never gonna happen
3. Janice Ferri Esser & Natalie Minardi — at this point... Hm... Um...

Who are you offering? These people?

1. Nancy Curlee — close to never-gonna-happen
2. Trent Jones — never gonna happen
3. Janice Ferri Esser & Natalie Minardi — at this point... Hm... Um...

None of those people....

But the question wasn't directed to myself, it was directed to you.

Edited June 21, 200916 yr by Y&RWorldTurner

What is Peggy Sloane doing now? She wrote for AW when they had very strong, complex family dynamics (the Corys, headed by Rachel when she was still complex), surprising romance (Carl/Rachel, Donna/Matt), business intrigue.

I know he probably wouldn't be suited for Y&R, and he works at DAYS now, but I've always thought Richard Culliton was an underrated writer.

Peggy Sloane left daytime or retired in 1999. As for Culliton, I've always found him to be a mixed bag as a HW, he works much better as a Script Writer.

What about stealing Guza's wife Meg Bennett from GH? Bennett has history with Y&R, having acted on the show and writing scripts for the show in the 80's. Perhaps pairing her with a more contemporary Y&R writer like Slater would be a good fit. She also has experience on various different soaps.

Meg Bennett & Michele Val Jean, perhaps?

I didn't know that about Peggy...

What about Millee Taggart?

Meg Bennett & Michele Val Jean, perhaps?

I read something in Meg's IMDB bio that said she often tweaked her scripts on set and it impressed Bill Bell so much so that he encouraged her to purpose a career in writing for soap operas. He clearly liked her a lot, as for a time, she acted AND wrote scripts for Y&R.

And yes, that would be a great combination. Too bad that Guza holds on to his writers with everything he's got and yeah, Meg is his wife.

But I don't think anyone in the Bell family, Sony, or CBS is smart enough to take our advice.

Totally agree on the FACT that Sheffer cannot write strong women. His grubby paws are all over this show. In terms looking outside the box and forgetting character integrity and what have you, I find the stories are completely understanding. For instance, if the Mary Jane or Adam storyline was a made into a film, I'm sure I would love it, but this is a SOAP OPERA, not some 90 minute suspense film, from which Sheffer hails (i.e What Lies Beneath).

The you have major storylines or plot points dropping off the face of the earth. Colleen's story, barring whatever you feel for Tammin Sursok, if written correctly, could have been the best story this show has had in years. Finally Jack would have an family ally against Victor and and it screamed of Bill Bell's greatness at corporate drama. Watching it just finish with mere reminders every 3-4 months is a travesty in itself. And for what? Characters like Chloe and Phyllis who are constantly acknowledging their flaws but NEVER end up doing anything at all about it. What fun it is to watch circle's going round and round and round.

Then you got the hot mess story of Phillip III being alive, which was completely unnecessary. Undoing Cane as the real Phillip - I'm all for that. Bringing back a character from the dead that is probably the most notable death in the show's history? Ridiculous. Did they not have enough story from figuring out where the hell Jill came from and finding out the identity of Kay's real daughter.

And, so help me God, if a baby switch happens, I will flip. How horribly unoriginal and EXTREMELY played out.

Great post.

That would have been an interesting storyline (Colleen) but with the current casting being what it is, IMO, it would have fallen flat and unbelievable.

Food for thought: Is Maria looking to the past to save this show, e.g. all the blasts-from-the-past when she has a fully bloated cast as it is?

Who is Mac? Why is she there? What does she want out of life?

For almost her entire time on the show, no matter the actress, she has been a cipher. Ashley Bashioum brought some edge to the role and warmth to her scenes with Katherine, but even she started to fade early on. There's nothing there. We never saw Mac and Brock get close. Her mother was only on the show for a relatively brief amount of time. The entire idea from close to the beginning of this character is that she is there for Billy to pine over. It's always been the conceit of the show that Billy is just so sympathetic, so long-suffering, the poor little rich boy who just needs to be loved. Mac is always viewed in this prism. To be honest I wasn't overly enthralled with this couple even when they were played by good actors who had chemistry, and I'm definitely not now. The last thing Billy needed as a character was for Mac to return. I don't care about Billy pursuing his true love. I also don't care about Billy being torn between his responsibilities and his fantasies. I don't care about Billy and the wants, hopes, and dreams of his penis. I think this character needs a lengthy stint on the backburner and some time with the Abbotts.

CF is just so emotionless and delivers in such a dismal manner. Everything that the girls says falls flat. Add that to not looking her age and looking like she belongs in the older age set and not w/ the "so-called 20-somethings" and the total lack of chemistry with Miller (poor boy is trying!) IS a problem. II don't know why TPTB are forcing this "love story" down our throats when they have TWO RECASTS who have no chem whatsoever? It's done and so not there--give it up!

MarkH, I see you sneaking peeks at this thread, feel free to contribute to the discussion.

Mostly just feel like lurking. Still thinking whether I can find plausible psychological motivation for Adam, but so far I can't.

And, so help me God, if a baby switch happens, I will flip. How horribly unoriginal and EXTREMELY played out.

I want that so badly. Mary Jane takes Sharon's baby and gives it to Adam to pass off as Ashley and Victor's. If it is Nick's, then Victor will be a genetic match... If it is Jack's, Ashley will be a genetic match. But the most interesting is if it is Billy's...then neither will match. And no, I don't trust the results of any prenatal DNA tests that might soon be revealed.

The problem with Mac is that she needs to be in other people faces. We don't even see her with her grandma anymore. It seems like Chloe spend more time with Katherine then Mac.

I wish these writers wasn't so deseparate for a Billy & Mac reunion.

Maybe if Mac paid JT ransom. We all know JT is being held hostage at the Newman Ranch. Maybe he'll come out to play with her.

JT should have played--A LOT--with Raul. He should be playing with Mac and a competent Colleen. Mac used to give advice to Colleen. She should be playing with Colleen and JT and Kevin. So much missed opportunity there. Mac doesn't even have enough scenes with Kay or Murphy.

I know why all this is happening. It is cost containment. If they play smaller groups of folks in islands (something, to be fair, Bill Bell did all the time), they can shoot multiple eps in one day--saving $$. But this is a clear place where the license fee cuts are HURTING storytelling. Or, maybe not storytelling--character building.

That's one of the many reasons I could go with a small cast. A small group that plays 5 days a week, but everyone interacts all the time. Though I am not a GH fan, I believe they do this very well.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Everything you posted welcome to the board indeed

Thanks classicmoment--looking forward to posting w/ you more!

You know what else I've been thinking... And to just regarding Y&R, but soaps in general... Would a sitcom writer work out as HW? Weird, silly idea: two words completely apart, yet so many sitcoms have soapy elements.

People like Jeff Greenstein, for example, or Joe Keenan, whose DH episode Bang was many things, but so different from what the rest DH episodes were like...

Or Alexa Junge...

Never mind me, just thinking aloud.

I will only note that when LML added bona fide sitcom writers to Y&R, it was not well received. And parody soaps (Mary Hartman, Passions) did not have long lives.