All: Why do most soaps suck monkeyba----?

[rhinohide]

That's such an odd manifestation of "ego" though. Seriously. You'd think it would be about succeeding instead of about setting a path that leads you directly over the edge of the cliff, and simply refusing to divert because you'd be forced to admit you were . . . wrong.

[brimike]

We all see that, rhinohide. But there seems to be a lot of it going around in daytime right now. Hire your friends, instead of what's good for the show. Deliver whatever your budget can handle, even if it's crap, just to stay on the air one day longer. And refuse to learn from the mistakes of others. All three seem to be the order of the day, which is a shame.

[Cat]

Regarding B&B, I read on another site somebody referring to the show as trying to be like Arrested Development. I thought that was very telling.

[brimike]

LMAO!!!!

If that were true, I'd watch B&B a lot more!

[Cat]

So would I -- though I thought AD lost its way at the end of Season 2/first half of Season 3 and stopped being funny. However, that's a topic for another thread. What I'm saying is, B&B seems to be trying to do a parody of a soap. A comedy show. Except Bradley Bell is no Mitchell Hurwitz. And these parody soaps do not work (Not just Passions -- Ugly Betty, Dirty Sexy Money? I'm looking at you). I like my camp served straight. And for it to be served straight, it needs some grounding. B&B seems to be written and produced on a day-by-day basis with every kind of dumbness thrown at it in a desparate bid to see what sticks.

[MarkH]

That's my opinion.

[MichaelGL]

It seems to me that soaps or the networks themselves are trying too hard to outdo each other. The competition these days seem to be who can do a baby switch better than the other. In 2003, the competition was whether or not a soap could do a serial killer SL better than the other. Maybe it wasn't the quality that counted, but garnering ratings were a strong factor. I suspect that by the end of the year, soaps might start competing in who can do a coming out story. [!@#$%^&*] the quality, it's all about shock value, and capturing ratings and revenue, they've completely forgotten about quality, and character, and the rest that made soaps great.

[brimike]

That's a great point, Michael. It started post-Possession, and it really hasn't let up since. And of course, soap writers hopping from one show to the next doesn't help that AT ALL.

[MarkH]

But can we date this to the possession?? Or did it start with the Left Handed Boy and the Ice Princess? Or when Roger Thorpe plunged to his death?

I mean, these things have been around for a long time, haven't they? I think the thing that has changed is their ubiquity and frequency. Now Guza blows something up EVERY sweeps. And apparently Y&R is going for heightened drama too right now.

[brimike]

I think it did begin back during Roger Thorpe/Ice Princess - but then I feel like the shows got back on track in the mid-80's and by the end of the 80's, they started to find their own identities again. Then the one-two punch of OJ/The Possession changed all the rules.

[JackPeyton]

No, i think in the late 80's it was just who can out action adventure whos supercouple.

[MTSRocks]

Because they do.

So DEAL with it chyca! LoL

[rhythmchyc]

LMAO.

Thanks for the eloquent input.

[YRBB]

Regarding B&B: It is indeed obvious that Brad Bell is just completely and severely burned out. He's done. He did everything that he could do, he made up every possible story he could make up and now he just does not have anymore in him. Cue the incessant love triangles, the musical beds... people wonder why he always breaks Brooke and Ridge up or destroys popular couples just like that. Well, because breaking them up will at least provide him with two more weeks of story, which he would otherwise not have. It's so sad....

[R Sinclair]

[HOMER SIMPSON]"Mmmmm... Monkeyballs.[/HOMER SIMPSON]