Members soapydoc Posted July 22, 2009 Members Share Posted July 22, 2009 The pacing on the show is going to drive me to drink. Some stories are draaaaaging. Some are playing beats right and left within a an episode or two. If you skipped a day last week you would have had no idea that Chance came home, met his dad, and is now flirting up a storm with his uncle's wife (whom he knows is his wife so no unveiling of anything there.) Ashely/Adam is almost too draining to watch. I just don't know if I even care anymore. Wait. I do know. Yeah, I don't.Since Adam and Patty Jane hooked up, both characters have become dumb and dumber.How did that happen. And dude, bring Miss Kitty back...STAT! So, Summer is home (the little actress is doing a great job looking mentally damaged) and at the beginning of a 30 second scene, could not say Daddy (this left over from a week ago when she couldn't spit his name out) then by the end of that short scene, she is able to say it. Summer not being able to say her deadbeat, douche of a daddy's name should have gone on much longer than half a minute. From the spoilers, it's clear they are speeding this story towards something to coincide with one or two other plot points. I hate the speed of some of the stories. It makes the show very unsatisfying to watch. Is Ashley really this stupid now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkH Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 Proof positive that being spoiled is bad. I was expecting to be outraged at Nick-Nikki mocking Adam-in-drag. It wasn't that bad, really. It was kind of clever, not too offensive IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Y&RWorldTurner Posted July 23, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 There's much more that's offensive on this show right now than that particular scene, so it all works out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkH Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 Yes, I agree. This show is swimming in problems...that women's clothing scene was the least of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brimike Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 See? Just goes to show how subjective this stuff is. That scene bothered me (personally) a hundred times more than Kevin wanting to copyright his chipmunk crap. LOL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Y&RWorldTurner Posted July 23, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 The Kevin stuff is just crap storytelling that's very grating and annoying to watch, whereas I can see how one could take that Nikki/Nick scene personally as it somewhat inferred that cross-dressing and being gay go hand and hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DRW50 Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 I think this is almost all Y&R. There are a few other soaps which do rushed storytelling, but even most of them wouldn't have people kissing this early in their relationship. I think this is just the style of those currently at Y&R. Sheffer has had barely veiled contempt for soap opera traditions at all of his soaps, and poor, rushed storytelling for key stories (while other stories drag out forever). MAB is probably convinced that if she tries leisurely storytelling again, like she did last year, the ratings will fall. If it were just the network telling them to speed it up, then I think the chipmunk fiasco and the quad from hell would not be in stall motion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Y&RWorldTurner Posted July 23, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 ^^^^^^^I agree. It's definitely the style of these writers, I don't think it's any coincidence that many of these horrible themes that are apparent on this show were also apparent on Sheffer's other shows and on Hamner's PC and his Y&R with LML. Network mandates are one thing, how you chose to interpret them and the style you choose to tell your own storylines in are another thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brimike Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 Oh, please. I go to every soap message board for every soap, and it's the same. Why is every story plot-driven? What happened to character-driven soap opera? They can't even keep continuity for their own history from a few weeks ago! What happened to writers who respected the legacy left behind by (insert great head writer of yesteryear)? What happened to writers with a creative vision? This isn't my show anymore. Why are the hacks destroying my show? Why aren't there any strong females characters like there used to be? Why are they all weak-willed women who need a man or a baby to survive? What happened to stories about families? Or love? What happened to love in the afternoon? When are they going to learn that stunt-casting and big Sweeps events aren't a substitute for good writers?! Why are the men such pigs? Why are the heroes all criminals now - nobody pays for their crimes, and there's nobody to root for. Why don't they understand when you introduce new characters, you have to introduce them first before you play them five days a week, so we care? What's with the recasts? The newbies? They can't even write for the cast they have, why are they bringing on new people? They're a bunch of hacks, and they're ruining my show. And you know what? It's all right. Every word. But it's the same across the board (literally). I agree it's pretty bad right now at Y&R, but it's only because Y&R just caught up (or dropped down, as the case may be) to every other soap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkH Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 What a jaw-dropping recitation. And I understand why you all think Y&R finally "caught up" to every other soap. But this very same show had managed to avoid much of this cancer with this very same team until earlier this year. THAT is the mystery. What changed on THIS team? What was the motivation to change, since it was one of the few soaps trending UP.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DRW50 Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 That's a common complaint for many soap fans, but I do genuinely believe Y&R is worse at this than a number of other soaps at the moment. What you list are common complaints. Things like bringing a character back from the dead after 20 years and treating it as a nonevent, bringing his son on and having him barely react to the father he never knew, bringing in a woman who was last on the show 25 years ago and turning her into a generic psycho. It takes a special kind of skill to stumble that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Y&RWorldTurner Posted July 23, 2009 Author Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 The first few months of every writing regime is usually a good time. As they're wrapping up old plots and the creative juices are flowing well enough to tell their first group of stories. However, once that wears off, the writing regimes wiil either sink or swim. With Y&R, after the glow of the inital first few months of the MAB/Sheffer/Hamner tenure wore off, things began to stabilize and sink into the horrible state it's in now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brimike Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 Yeah, exactly. A new writing regime is wrapping up previous stories (payoffs!) and then introducing their own - that they worked on uninterrupted for months, fine-tuning every detail. A year or two later, they're enmeshed in pacing for something three months from now they can't see or keep track of, drowning in pressure from every fan-base, avoiding network craziness, and pissed off actors. They're burnt, fried and completely throwing darts at a wall blindfolded. There is no "sinking or swimming". It's always "sinking". There hasn't been anybody in over ten years who can keep it up longer than 2 years, 3 at the most, without failing in the eyes of the fans. I can't remember a head writer lasting past one three year cycle on a show who actually deserved to. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, but I can't think of one in the last 10 or 15 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bellcurve Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 Everyone complains about pacing and the style being "too slow" or "too fast." I think there are some soaps that can tell good plots that are in a slightly accelerated pace that don't miss important story beats, but at the same time, don't go a snail's pace. I don't think I need to point out my best example of that, because the show and its head-writer get mixed reviews here, but anyone who knows me will know exactly what/who I'm talking about. She wasn't perfect, made a few mistakes along the way, but damnit to hell if she didn't get it right 90% of the time. But Y&R post-Bill Bell(especially Lethal and Bell) has not understood how to do this. And with a show like Y&R, I don't think you can do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brimike Posted July 23, 2009 Members Share Posted July 23, 2009 Oo, I'm curious, bellcurve. I don't know who you're referring to. (I swear, no judgments here. I'm the "everything's subjective" guy.) I just had no idea you had a writer you were 90% pleased with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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