1 hour ago, victoria foxton said:

This is way better than most of the stories from that era.

 

Many fans, over the years, have proposed great plots that were significantly better than what the show actually gave us.

25 minutes ago, Mitch said:

You call that bashing??? Rauch was paint by the numbers soap..though sometimes it was entertaining..but he was basic..and he was unfortunately grafting his OLTL on GL with Reva being Vicki. And if I never see another pastel suit on a woman again...

 

Stretching the limits of the genre would be..a lot of things....Shayne is gay and its Josh who is supportive but Reva who is freaked.... or Marah is gay and Reva just doesnt get that...Shayne goes to Iraq and Reva becomes a anit-war protester while Josh supports the war..she goes through menopause and questions her attractiveness and sexuality....Reva struggles with her weight and they explore a middle aged woman who has had her worth based on her looks struggling to be recognized as a worthwhile being in a culture that worships youth...or Reva and Josh discover that they love each other but are toxic for each other and split up..for good...but stay friends (or I would have them having occassional sex behind their partners backs with no repercussions. ) That would have stretched the limits not jumping through paintings...(which has been done before on DS..at least going through time..and ATWT in the 80s with reincarnated characters effecting their current selves...)

 

Not bashing you either, just disagreeing...: )

 

You're not factoring in entertainment value. A woman gaining weight on camera and questioning her attractiveness might not seem as fantastic or entertaining as the same woman stepping through a painting. Plus all producers and head writers feel the need to do stories that make people talk. We're still talking about the clone and the paintings all these years later.

 

Personally the story I disliked most was the Maryanne Carruthers mystery. It felt like a replay of the Susan Piper tale from the mid-80s (with the same actress Carrie Nye which also gave it a "we've been here done that before" feel). But despite Weston's dreadful writing, the story was still watchable thanks to Zimmer. Psychic Reva was completely absurd. And her conveniently losing her psychic abilities when Carruthers was brought down and the plot ended, was just as far-fetched. But Zimmer gave a great performance in that big climactic episode where Reva has those visions of how Maryanne's niece Carolyn died.

 

I honestly thought Zimmer was having a nervous breakdown on camera, she went all the way in that episode. She totally took Reva to the brink. It was riveting. I don't know how she did it. She had to have been emotionally and mentally drained when it was over and the director yelled "cut." So even in a hokey storyline that stretched the limits of credibility we'd still get these great on-camera moments.

 

Is this episode on YouTube? I'd love to see that scene where psychic Reva has her huge breakthrough again, just to check whether it was as good as I remember.

This is the most anyone's talked about Reva and the time traveling paintings in over a decade, including possibly when the story aired, judging by GL's viewing figures at the time.

1 hour ago, JarrodMFiresofLove said:

 

I don't see the value in bashing Rauch.

 

There's is always value in offering honest critiques of how a producer's failures forever altered (and in this case, damaged) a once-fine show.

 

35 minutes ago, Mitch said:

You call that bashing??? Rauch was paint by the numbers soap..though sometimes it was entertaining..but he was basic..and he was unfortunately grafting his OLTL on GL with Reva being Vicki. And if I never see another pastel suit on a woman again...

 

Stretching the limits of the genre would be..a lot of things....Shayne is gay and its Josh who is supportive but Reva who is freaked.... or Marah is gay and Reva just doesnt get that...Shayne goes to Iraq and Reva becomes a anit-war protester while Josh supports the war..she goes through menopause and questions her attractiveness and sexuality....Reva struggles with her weight and they explore a middle aged woman who has had her worth based on her looks struggling to be recognized as a worthwhile being in a culture that worships youth...or Reva and Josh discover that they love each other but are toxic for each other and split up..for good...but stay friends (or I would have them having occassional sex behind their partners backs with no repercussions. ) That would have stretched the limits not jumping through paintings...(which has been done before on DS..at least going through time..and ATWT in the 80s with reincarnated characters effecting their current selves...)

 

Not bashing you either, just disagreeing...: )

 

Well said.

 

5 minutes ago, Vee said:

 

Paul Rauch had a long, storied and at times celebrated career. We criticize the lowlights of his resume because they were very bad. It's not about you. We did it long before you came along.

 

As for Reva, I fail to see how her '80s storylines translated into an obvious impulse to push her into ludicrous sci-fi storylines that were off-brand for the show - to say nothing of the relentless need to push her as an irresistible love object, which I never bought and thought was off-putting for the more earthy character. I love Kim Zimmer now, but I did not grow up with Reva the sex goddess of the 1980s and I didn't feel it remotely worked in the '90s or early 2000s.

 

Kim Zimmer was quite the sex-bomb when she first joined TGL, but to be brutally honest, as the decades went on, she aged just as we all do. During the Peapack years, with her added girth, often tacky wardrobe, and poor make-up  (there were times when her hair looked plastered to her head), the idea that she was still this irresistible love goddess was as dumb as some of her worst sci-fi plots.

42 minutes ago, Mitch said:

And if I never see another pastel suit on a woman again...

 

Oh God! I was just thinking it was those awful pantsuits that were ruinous to Zimmer. The lighting and hair coupled with that??

 

I think the later years, oddly enough, handled Reva better in that respect. They knew she was an aging good time girl and let her just be that, flaws and all - possibly because the budget and production had fallen apart but still. It was the Rauch era trying to pretend she was the queen of desire that embarrassed me.

And for the record, I grew up watching Dark Shadows on Sci-Fi - I know that show backwards and forwards. Doesn't mean it wasn't laughable on GL.

Edited September 5, 20187 yr by Vee

Just now, Vee said:

This is the most anyone's talked about Reva and the time traveling paintings in over a decade, including possibly when the story aired, judging by GL's viewing figures at the time.

 

Maybe on this site. But people talked about it on SoapNet's message boards. Reva's fantastic adventures were legendary and many people do not forget them. Also it's easy to recall details from these episodes, and I haven't seen them since they were first broadcast...probably because they were so outlandish/memorable. But if the goal here is to trash producers and trash head writers instead of celebrate a show, then I should stop and let you get to it.

Just now, JarrodMFiresofLove said:

Maybe on this site. But people talked about it on SoapNet's message boards. Reva's fantastic adventures were legendary and many people do not forget them.

 

SoapNet had message boards? Okay.

 

Reva is unforgettable as is her heyday. Her bad OTT stories sprinkled through her last ten years? Not so much.

 

But if the goal here is to trash producers and trash head writers instead of celebrate a show

 

Are you really that new to this forum? No one and nothing is sacred. We don't pretend stuff we've thought was shít is spun gold.

4 minutes ago, Vee said:

 

SoapNet had message boards? Okay.

 

Reva is unforgettable as is her heyday. Her bad OTT stories sprinkled through her last ten years? Not so much.

 

 

 

 

Are you really that new to this forum? No one and nothing is sacred. We don't pretend stuff we've thought was shít is spun gold.

 

I'm not pretending anything. But I don't consider it a constructive conversation when Person X says "I liked this story" and then three people immediately jump on and say "oh god that was awful, the show was in decline, that producer and those head writers deserved to be fired." Even in things I don't like, such as the Carruthers mystery, I try to point to some value in it. Otherwise I'm just here to bitch, when I'd rather be positive on what was good (to me) about the show. I can waste time being negative elsewhere. I'm not going to do that here. Anyway your posts are starting to annoy me because I can see we approach an appreciation of the show differently so I'm going to have to refrain from directly posting with you unless by some miracle we can find a positive common ground on something we both like about that show. Regards.

Edited September 5, 20187 yr by JarrodMFiresofLove

8 minutes ago, JarrodMFiresofLove said:

 

You're not factoring in entertainment value. A woman gaining weight on camera and questioning her attractiveness might not seem as fantastic or entertaining as the same woman stepping through a painting. Plus all producers and head writers feel the need to do stories that make people talk. We're still talking about the clone and the paintings all these years later.

 

Personally the story I disliked most was the Maryanne Carruthers mystery. It felt like a replay of the Susan Piper tale from the mid-80s (with the same actress Carrie Nye which also gave it a "we've been here done that before" feel). But despite Weston's dreadful writing, the story was still watchable thanks to Zimmer. Psychic Reva was completely absurd. And her conveniently losing her psychic abilities when Carruthers was brought down and the plot ended, was just as far-fetched. But Zimmer gave a great performance in that big climactic episode where Reva has those visions of how Maryanne's niece Carolyn died.

 

I honestly thought Zimmer was having a nervous breakdown on camera, she went all the way in that episode. She totally took Reva to the brink. It was riveting. I don't know how she did it. She had to have been emotionally and mentally drained when it was over and the director yelled "cut." So even in a hokey storyline that stretched the limits of credibility we'd still get these great on-camera moments.

 

Is this episode on YouTube? I'd love to see that scene where psychic Reva has her huge breakthrough again, just to check whether it was as good as I remember.

 

True, there are viewers who find entertainment value in low-brow material, but in appropriate venues. Tuning into Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo or Hey Vern, It's Ernst!, viewers know what they are in for. Those who tune into Downtown Abbey do not expect to see the Great Gazoo. Sure, soap fans are still talking about TGL's sci-fi plots today, the same way fans of other genres continue to refer to Manimal, Cop Rock, Plan 9 from Outer Space, etc. Decades-long derision is not necessarily a good thing, or what any producer or writer hopes for.

9 minutes ago, JarrodMFiresofLove said:

Anyway your posts are starting to annoy me because I can see we approach an appreciation of the show differently so I'm going to have to refrain from directly posting with you unless by some miracle we can find a positive common ground on something we both like about that show. Regards.

 

If this is your criteria for posting and speaking to literally anyone on this forum I wish you the best of luck at your table for one. This is not going to work out for you.

3 minutes ago, Vee said:

 

If this is your criteria for posting and speaking to literally anyone on this forum I wish you the best of luck at your table for one. This is not going to work out for you.

 

You're right, it probably won't. I am here to talk positively about soaps I love. So I guess it's unfortunate. I did like the history related to soaps I find on this site. But I don't like the negativity, it's a deal breaker for me. Regards.

Edited September 5, 20187 yr by JarrodMFiresofLove

12 minutes ago, Vee said:

 

Reva is unforgettable as is her heyday. Her bad OTT stories sprinkled through her last ten years? Not so much.

 

Are you really that new to this forum? No one and nothing is sacred. We don't pretend stuff we've thought was shít is spun gold.

 

I've often received comments from irked viewers along the lines of, "If you were a REAL fan, you would remain loyal to a show and not criticize its failures!" 

 

I don't see the point in pretending that the Emperor is dressed to the nines in fine clothes, when he's actually parading around buck naked. To me, real fans respect their favorite shows enough to expect the best from them. Real fans praise the successes and acknowledge the failures. Reading through this thread, one can find praise for the many fine years of acting, writing, and entertainment the show gave us, as well as criticism for the terrible years. That's the way it goes.

3 hours ago, Mitch said:

Actually, Reva pre resurrection was not expected to have high concept storylines..the big drama came out of the way Reva dealt with it, and yes, she was a diva but it was because Reva was so emotional and had heart and yes sexual...(Zimmer was sex on a stick when she first came to town...) under those big hair and shoulder pads was a woman who was part vixen, heroine, and yes, a big mess!  After resurrection they stuck Reva into high concept crap that could have starred anyone...Vanessa as a clone and Matt as Josh...Holly jumping through paintings...amnesiac Harley was a princess...before Reva's stories were only able to be told a certain way as Reva was in them.

 

ICAM.

 

58 minutes ago, JarrodMFiresofLove said:

But I don't consider it a constructive conversation when Person X says "I liked this story" and then three people immediately jump on and say "oh god that was awful, the show was in decline, that producer and those head writers deserved to be fired."

 

IOW, you want everyone to agree with you.

Edited September 5, 20187 yr by Khan

2 hours ago, Khan said:

 

ICAM.

 

 

IOW, you want everyone to agree with you.

 

No. What I am saying is I'm not here to bitch, bash and bellyache. Before this degenerates, I am just going to look for another site where I can talk about GL with others in more positive terms. I am not interested in reading mean words about producers, and writers, then follow-up comments where someone tries to excuse being mean by saying that's what a fan does. No, not for me. It feels like bad manners.

 

I said I didn't care for Ellen Parker but I didn't really go into why I strongly dislike her acting. Like I could have been very, very cruel about her and said ugly things about her, because I dislike her so much, it would have been easy to do. But it wouldn't have been constructive. Instead I focused my comments on the way her character (Maureen) didn't resonate for me. I tried not to make it personal and not to use the website to spew venom. I feel I was successful in mostly sticking to the high road, not the low road. So it does distress me when I see comments where it appears others are using this great website to trash people when they could also exercise caution and try to focus on more positive aspects of the show. Anyway I don't want to go round and round about this. I had about 250 posts on this site and that's enough. I want to be done with this. Take care everyone.

Edited September 6, 20187 yr by JarrodMFiresofLove

Why do you dislike a woman you've never met so much? We're talking about fictional storylines on a fictional TV show.