November 30 - December 4, 2009

[Sylph]

Not only the no. 1 soap, but the most watched TV show. There was a report about it somewhere.

[JaneAusten]

Well then I doubt cancellation or low numbers here mean a darn thing.

[Sylph]

I need to find that article (or articles) which stated it, but I think they included the data from 5 continents, even the methodology is kind of unclear.

[JaneAusten]

Eh GH's demos in the first quarter of this new season were averaging 1.5 and are now down to 1.3 range and have been in the 1.3 range for most of sweeps. With Franco the BIG young draw and JJ back, if that's good and their happy that they dropped with the younger viewers I'd be shocked. I have to think they were hoping for 1.5's to continue. I'm not saying it's bad but I had a friend to went to Steve Burton's recent event where he was asked about the ratings and he acknowledged the show's reliance on demos (we knew that)but also that they are not where they want them to be. So yeah I don't think they're happy especially since this Franco guest run has been a huge disaster and JJ's return has done zip and while I never expected either to do a darn thing, I'm sure ABC did. And I'll just bet with as dull as YR has been if they mismanaged the addition of a supposed hip young star and got NOTHING out of it in their demos, I'm sure they'd be lambasted. Now do I think this translates to anything happening at ABC like Guza being fired or changes, not a chance. This is a show that lost tons in 2005 and 2007 and did absolutely nothing. Plus with the end of soaps in sight anyway maybe 5 years from now who knows, they probably are content to some extent to ride things out.

As far as the Franco story IA. We already know how it will end. Jason will win and it's over. They could actually skip the story and focus on Franco's performance art and be done with it. I think the story is actually pretty bad. All we see are Jason and Sam having the same repeated convos each day and barely any Franco. I still don't think Franco is the BIG draw some do. But ABC did and I believe felt he was going to be their key to gaining some new young viewers. Nothing happened in fact their ratings including demos have even fallen so, so much for Franco.

And I don't think OLTL or AMC is getting cancelled anytime soon. But there's no way OLTL is not next regardless of when it happens 2 years, 3 years when ever.

[JaneAusten]

Bottom line is it sounds like if B&B get dropped from CBS it won't matter. ANd with those numbers I'm sure someone here would pick them up. Not likely a network but some cable outlet.

[Sylph]

True. I believe that will happen. CBS will dump it and it will appear on a cable outlet retooled.

[SOAPSFOREVER]

There is a definite disconnect between a lot of the posters on this board who swoon over One Life, and the general public. This show has turned a lot of viewers off, and rightly so. It's a soap for people with ADHD. Most scenes are so short the viewer has no time to connect or emotionally invest. I find it totally unwatchable, and apparently so do a lot of other people, given it's anemic ratings.

[Sylph]

[JaneAusten]

Well I don't watch it, just taking the word of posters here, but if it's like the other 2 ABC soaps, it's a vapid piece of crap. But OLTL is the only ABC show I never watched much or got invested in but as the other 2 shows are trainwrecks, I would totally believe OLTL is also. They just always have seemed to be the outsider on ABC which these days is probably a good thing.

[rhinohide]

I've grown resigned to the conclusion that all soaps are heading toward cancellation eventually. It doesn't really matter to me which falls next or which survives to the pitiful end. I just want to enjoy my show to the final episode. If I'm the only person watching on the last day it airs, that's fine by me as long as I was entertained on that day, and every day leading to the end.

[UKBoi]

It would be awesome if NBC changed their stance on soap operas, picked up ATWT and gave it a DAYS style makeover. I would be a very happy man.

[AS THE WORLD TURNS]

I would be too.