I dunno how Rayfield could have so blatantly stupid as to introduce SOOOOoOOOO many new characters with no ties to the canvas--soap opera writing 101.

They were clearly hired guns. It was the most blatant Frons makeover of any soap, and I suspect it's still the most blatant portrayal of what his tastes would have preferred for the ABC soaps. It did not feel like anything else I'd ever seen, it seemed to change overnight, and I still haven't seen anything like it since.

When I think about that era I always remember Laurie, bland JR's even blander girlfriend (made slightly tolerable by her attractive father). And that awful Fusion fantasy episode, with the bits like Bianca the superhero saving Maggie.

Some stuff was OK I guess, Joanie and Reggie had a lot of potential. So much of it was just so flat.

And then Boyd, or Boi-d, and the laughable attempts to make us think he was straight...

They did gun down Chris Stamp, didn't they? Good for them.

Don't forget the Chins who ownedthe Chinese restaurant Joe had been eating his lunches at for years.

I actually liked poor Henry and wish they'd kept him. But Jesus Christ, people. It's one of daytime's only Asian families - you name them the Chins and they run a Chinese restaurant??

Don't forget the Chins who ownedthe Chinese restaurant Joe had been eating his lunches at for years.

And then Henry used poor Maggie so he could cheat on a test, because he was under such pressure. The drama. And he reappeared, months later, for a brief bit where he said his band was touring around the world.

That was all so painfully earnest.

Edited November 23, 200916 yr by CarlD2

I wasn't overly bothered because at least she wasn't stuck being the somewhat dry heroine. Liza had been drifting as a character for years. She shouldn't have been stuck as a prop to Mia but I thought it had some interesting moments.

As for dropped stories like Timmy, I thought that was more due to Culliton being fired than due to his own plans.

I did think the Proteus story was a mess, although I thought Vanessa's split personality and Trey as her son was good, if very flawed (I hated that they dumped him with the writer change). Otherwise I enjoyed more of his tenure than I didn't, and he was the last writer to give Brooke a storyline, he wrote for Anna/David, etc.

I loved Liza's brain tumor story when it was revealed she had been siphoning money from Chandler Enterprises. It was the last time she felt like Adam's equal.

I never thought there was a doubt that Vanessa was Proteus. The only question was if she was faking the split personality or not. It also felt to me that Culliton was building up to the reveal of Leo's father being Eric Kane but that story ended with Leo & Vanessa's deaths.

I thought Culliton's tenure was largely excellent. I loved it, and Agnes was involved and wanted to keep Vanessa around; she was reportedly livid when Frons came to ABC and insisted Dusay had to go.

There were rough patches. Case in point the introduction of Simone, who unwisely debuted as a 'slinky femme fatale,' dark and mysterious. Who gave a [!@#$%^&*]? Then they made her comic relief, and she worked in that role, but they could've done more with her. I loved her in that whole thing with Roger Smythe, but then they kept shuffling her off on all the rejected male leads, including (and this indicates the problems at AMC, for him to be a 'reject') James Scott.

I despised Rayfield and Cascio. It was such a plastic, corporate program, not horribly offensive like Pratt, but incredibly soulless and boring. Dozens of new characters, it seems, and I didn't care about any of them. And despite the Lianca fans' boasts, that Cambias/Lena "corporate" storyline was just terrible, written by sixth graders. There was nothing "complex" or "intelligent" about that.

ITA. Rayfield's tenure was hands down the worst with all the new characters and simplistic storytelling. The show improved slightly when Cascio joined him, but still wasn't as good as it had been under Culliton.

I never thought there was a doubt that Vanessa was Proteus. The only question was if she was faking the split personality or not. It also felt to me that Culliton was building up to the reveal of Leo's father being Eric Kane but that story ended with Leo & Vanessa's deaths.

Vanessa as Proteus totally worked. I thought her splitting into all of those personalities was real, and it was her cracking under the pressure. She'd always walked a fine line, IMO, and this just set her over the edge. I loved Rosie Wells, because I think that was the Vanessa she wanted to be, and could never quite become. (Sorry, I absolutely adored Vanessa) I thought it was a massive cop out and a total rewrite of history to have Charles Hayward be the original Proteus, but in an odd way, it does work. (Did David ever find out that little tidbit? I can't remember?)

Something had to go on backstage that stopped them from making Leo Eric Kane's son, because the foundation for that had been laid for years. They seemed to cement it even more when they had Vanessa be a witness to Richard Fields raping Erica, at Eric Kane's house. Plus, Vanessa's need to be a star, Eric being a movie producer, etc. It was all there, but for some reason they pulled back. If we ever see Vanessa again, or even a Leo recast I'd love them to pick that storyline up. Erica liked Leo (he lived with her for a time), and I think it would a great story for her to have a brother, on the canvas, who she knew and loved and had in her life on a daily basis. Plus, I think Erica and David sharing a brother is a fun little twist as well. LOL! Would have made Erica Greenlee's sister-n-law.

Edited November 23, 200916 yr by Kylie

ITA. Rayfield's tenure was hands down the worst with all the new characters and simplistic storytelling. The show improved slightly when Cascio joined him, but still wasn't as good as it had been under Culliton.

Yeah when McTavish came in, for a few months anyway, the show looked like Shakespeare by comparison (we also initially got several of great, LONG scenes--something that was quickly dropped--one great one that I saved was David and Anna coming to terms with the loss of Leora)

That said I do think Passanante's solo tenure was maybe right up there with Rayfield though for slightly different reasons.

Culliton wrote the Trey stuff, correct? I enjoyed more than I probably should have and still eagerly await his return.

No deriding of Rayfield's whack tenure is complete without a mention of Carhlosss and Hjuan Pabhlo. Remember when Carlos took Greenlee to The Pit (or was it SOS?) late at night to show her "his world," and Maxi-pad Alexander Lipps Inc.'d to some bland boy band song?

And Jesus Christ, Andrew Ridings JR...good God. The boy had no upper lip. It simply vanished. As did he, because every now and then I Google him and come up with absolutely NOTHING. Wasn't he the one who posted some not-so-nice things about the fans who weren't fond of his acting "skills?"

I terribly miss the sets from that era though...the previous Chandler mansion with the matching staircase, the boathouse was nice, we saw Brooke and Myrtle's houses on a fairly regular basis, as well as Joe and Ruth's house. The Valley Inn was still the place to be, with the dining room, the bar, and the guest rooms being featured almost everyday. Do we still see the Pine Cone?

Edited November 23, 200916 yr by All My Shadows

we also initially got several of great, LONG scenes--something that was quickly dropped--one great one that I saved was David and Anna coming to terms with the loss of Leora

David destroying the crib was awesome.

I don't think they ever revealed who 'Proteus' really was. It was Vanessa, I guess, but then didn't they hint later on that it was someone else? It was either Vanessa only thinking she was 'Proteus' because of her insanity, or something like her faking the "Rosie Wells" persona to get off her crimes..??? UGH! Nevermind.... I'm getting a headache.

Don't forget Everyone's Related To Leo.

Don't forget Everyone's Related To Leo.

Ugh!

Culliton sucked.

Ugh!

Culliton sucked.

Ryan & Liza.

Ugh!

I want a countdown clock to when Pratt's crap is off the air.