AMC: Show to go alot younger

[quartermainefan]

Greg and Jenny for me will always be the gold standard for young couples. They had literally everything going for them including the tragic ending. I just cannot think of any couple AMC did that surpassed them. Their supporting cast were winners up and down the line, and their story seems quaint now, she running away so he would never learn the horrible secret her father was a rapist <gasp>, then he pretending he didn't love her so she wouldn't be burdened with him in a wheelchair...it just all worked. Liza, Marian, the whole running away to NY thing...best couple ever.

[ghfan89]

I agree with this. I believe that teens are the only ones to have such a sense of self-absorbed and naivete' that makes them overemphasize every situation, that doesn't work for older characters. It makes for good story telling.

[DeeeDee]

The problem is the writing.

As long as it stays plot dependent Daytime teens will be useless.

[SFK]

Absolutely. And I'm of the mind that you don't go about adding characters (regardless of age) to shake things up without fixing who you've already got on board. Don't crowd the canvas, especially not yet. AMC is JUST, and I mean, what, two/three days JUST getting good again. What really concerns me is that this doesn't sound like two or three new teen characters but more like four or five.

BTW, I am at a loss for any teen s/l I have enjoyed on the show in the last twenty years, they have all seemed to get on my nerves. I am also not at all interested in a bunch of teens who have no family ties to characters already on the canvas, especially none of that, "Let's see who works out first and then we'll see about making them Ryan's long lost sibling" type crap.

[Jonathan]

What does the article actually say? This thread title is soooo misleading because it implies that characters under 18 are taking over the show. "Show to go a lot younger" is different than "Show to bring new teens on this summer."

[Khan]

Exactly. In a way, Kim Delaney's exit was beneficial, b/c the purity (for lack of a better word) of her and Greg's romance lingers. Otherwise, had she stayed w/ AMC, the show probably would've burned them out the way they did Cliff & Nina with constant infidelities, betrayals, breakups and reconciliations.

OTOH, though, Laurence Lau really suffered as a result - although, today, I don't think too many would have a problem with him returning to AMC and having his Greg find love again.

[DRW50]

They need to give people a reason to care. I remember when Becca and Scott came around and Agnes or someone else at AMC basically went to the press and said they were the new Greg/Jenny, and I thought, what does that mean? People didn't care about Greg and Jenny because of the character outlines, they cared because of what the actors and the writing brought to the roles.

There's often an undertone of "just because" when they bring in new teens. Like when they wrote out some longtime characters in 1995 and brought in a half-dozen teens and this was supposed to be the wave of the future. Aside from worthless Scott, where are those teens today? Most of them never even had any real story after 1997.

[LeClerc]

To be clear I am not against teen characters at all (well that's not true..I'm slightly against them). But this approach they appear to be taking is the problem. Adding several new teens all at once and treating who they are going to be as an afterthought like "Oh we'll figure that out when Kreizman and Swajeski get here. It doesn't matter who they are, we just want teens. We'll slap a Montgomery or Santos nametag on a couple just to shut people up" is not a formula for success.

[SFK]

Statements like that are so insulting to the fans and to the actors who created those beloved roles. And for real, we don't want to see the *new* ANYbody, we want original characters, new memories. And do I even need to go into how such statements just totally set themselves up for FAIL... I mean, Becca and Scott?? Laughable.

[quartermainefan]

Yeah, her dying is part of what made them great. (BTW I meant Enid, not Marian--Marian was great too, only in another story).

I like LL but don't see any reason why he has to return. No one wants to read about Robin Hood finding romance post-Maid Marian, and I don't see there is any reason why we need to see Greg love anyone other than Jenny. Greg should remain where he is, young and hopefully one day on youtube.

[DRW50]

I think they should bring LL back on a recurring basis. He's still friends with Angie and Jesse and Tad. The show is losing more and more history and there isn't a lot left to replace it. Scenes of those characters having fun together, or talking about the past, perhaps Greg returning to town to introduce one of his nieces or nephews or young cousins. They could be in the mould of Enid Nelson, and Greg would struggle with how to deal with that since he's never had any kids of his own.

I wouldn't mind seeing him in a few scenes with Liza. Even though he is obviously older than her, MEK is too and that isn't stopping them. Greg and Liza have a lot of history together and that can produce some story.

[SFK]

I agree about LL though I think Greg is in serious ZZZZZZZZZZ territory if not handled properly. If they pepped him up, made him a little more dynamic (his visits always seem sadly nostalgic), I'd even champion the idea of an Erica romance. What, too far? He'd be a welcome alternative to Jack imho.

[DRW50]

The main thing I want on this show is a good person who is not a self-righteous, moralistic, bullying piece of detritus. I think Greg could be this person, even if he is just in a recurring capacity. I think this is another of AMC's biggest failings for over ten years now, and it has gotten worse and worse -- the "good" people, the "heroes", are unwatchable. They are just awful, awful people. It hasn't always been this way, has it? I mean, did Tom Cudahy go around being nosy and browbeating and punching people out? I haven't seen most of his era.

He'd be boring with the wrong type of writing but I think with the proper writing he could be decent in some capacity.

I would say he'd be a good straight man to Opal but then there would be the whole Jenny thing.

[Vee]

I understood what Agnes was going for with Scott and Becca - I kind of liked Becca. But Forbes March was dreadful back then as Scott, and instantly Leo and Greenlee captured the audience.

[EricMontreal22]

I loved Brian and Hayley (and Ann Lee, Terrence, etc) when I first started with the show. I also (though I know I'm in the minority) largely liked the Broderick teen infusion in '96 (Bobby, Anita, Laura, Kevin etc). And I liked Greenlee,Bianca etcin '99 or whenever though I'mnot sure that counts. But I do understand your worry, for sure.

Totally. I think there were a few probs--casting being one (I never liekd Becca much though I loved the actress on Mad Men this year). But one is this was a story where Agnes was writing basically a Tara/Phil (with Greenlee as Erica) retread, and really those kind of goody heroines just don't work on soaps as well anymore--they need some sort of edge.