Right--to be fair Schemering was a big fan of AMC but I think he was making a point of one criticism it did get. And I do think this is why certainly some of the older soap press seemed to be slow to warm to the show (if it happened at all.) That switch of styles even in one episode didn't seem to be "pure soap" the way they liked (I know he was also part of the 1970s "new soap" trend, but Bill Bell's tonal consistency seems to really concentrate this style.)
And you're right about McTavish and how even her first most successful run, with Nixon claiming "executive head writer" status, not only does she rely more on the outrageous storylines reportedly FMB felt were happening too often, but her writing increasingly becomes just heavy and dark all around--even in these May episodes, when many of her storylines are still playing out, you can see Corley and others (and he vaguely referred to this when I got to talk to him) trying to add more humour, etc. Like the dumb Cecily/Charlie internet storyline which suddenly starts up isn't good, but in small doses does help re-balance the show to more what you'd expect from AMC (and granted in this last batch of episodes did lead to a genuinely funny scene where Cecily was sure her mystery man was Jackson.)
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EricMontreal22 ·
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