AMC: Show to go alot younger

[DRW50]

I liked Kevin, they built him up decently, he always had his place on the canvas. I liked Kelsey too, I thought generally she was a very strong character. I think Anita and 30 year old looking Bobby were dead weight, and Scott seemed to drift even when they recast with hunkier but pointless Daniel Cosgrove (I don't think he ever had a major role in his entire 2 years on the show). I was most disappointed with Laura, who could have had a story about a young woman who opened up her heart and blossomed, but instead became this sour-faced scold who stomped around the boarding house in the world's least flattering overalls.

I think lack of chemistry and not really making us care about Becca and Scott was the reason they didn't work. They sort of threw the pair at viewers as the next big thing and then when they flopped, there was nothing left. I mean Scott ended up running a betting site on when she was going to lose her virginity. Please. That and Forbes March being dull, and Becca seeming, as Eric mentioned, like a bit of a throwback. I have never liked Greenlee, so she wasn't the reason I didn't care about them. But certainly Greenlee was the standout for fans at the time.

I think various regimes have brought in one or two OK teen characters but they aren't developed long term. The few who stay around tend to be ruined or just seem to have no real purpose. I can't tell you one memorable thing Colby has done in three recasts.

[Vee]

I could not [!@#$%^&*] believe when Brian Gaskill left Models Inc., where he'd played a twentysomething fashion industry professional, and showed up on AMC as Bobby Warner, high school student, Zack Morris-ing it up by the lockers. It was one of my first experiences with grossly age-disproportionate actors/characters.

And Lauren Roman as Laura Kirk always freaked me out.

[EricMontreal22]

They may have gone overboard but at the time I loved the new dynamic the teens brought, loved the classroom scenes (even if the Nazi/Gay thing feels a bit Afterschool Special nowadays, re watching it on Youtube there's a lot of great stuff there). As a regular watcher I found it more of a success, than not (and they allhad interesting ties--Bobby coming on when Daisy was making one of her return visits and how non proud her and Palmer were of him, Laura from the Pierce/Janet/Brooke story, Stuart with Scott, etc--even Kevin Sheffield, we had already methis brother whowas in love with Dixie at the tv station). I wish they could have kept and grown Kevin shefield--and notjust cuz we wouldhave a gay character on the canvas (Bianca aside) but I really liked the character and how he was slowly expanded into a major role--andhis relationship with Opal.

On the other hand the way they integrated these characters was GOLD compared to the last two major teen scene infusions on the show (Dre and Corrina and that random band guy under B/E barely count IMHO). I'm talking about the random teens (with no character ties) who all did E in the woods and giggled and were mean to Bianca and DogBoy--Mindy, Marcus and crew. And then of course the ones under Rayfield--again with no ties, Joanie and Laurie etc (OK I liked Joanie because Amanda S madeher interesting, and liked her with Reggie, but...)

[Vee]

I tuned out all those "Pine Valley High" teens at the time. Until Leo and Greenlee, I didn't care about any of the youth scene except for Kelsey. It felt so artificial and fake, like old people trying to write young (like Brian Gaskill's old ass), whereas OLTL's young people all seemed very real, even ones who were growing up like Todd and Marty. AMC's entire approach seemed predicated on a thin aesthetic - "lockers, bleachers, letter jackets, people talking about tests, lots of bright light, go."

[EricMontreal22]

I liked both LOL though Brian's early scenes were a bit much (he was 25 which is younger than the actress whoplayed Dani was, isn't it?) I went back and forth with Lauren and Laura--I liked her at first--with Pierce and their sad little family of misfits with Janet, much more than later.

[Vee]

This goes to my love/hate issues with ol' Brooke - I simply didn't believe men that hot would be interested in her. By that point in the 90s she seemed so constantly henpecked, sour, and neurotic, with a touch of sanctimonious. I was like, okay, Brooke, sit down and face menopause. I kind of have a grudging love for her now, but I was simply never able to take her seriously. It felt like some of JFP's stories on her shows, a middle-aged woman's fantasy of meeting a handsome drifter "living in the woods." And sure, soaps are fantasies for women, but it seemed so textbook.

[EricMontreal22]

Kevin was built up well from basically an extra in the classroom scenes, to us realizing he was Jason's brother, to realizing it was him and not Scott (as was being hinted) who was gay, then his coming out to his mom, friendship with Kelsey who loved him, etc, it was all really well done actually (and his coming out stuff was miles better than the Billy Douglas on OLTL, though of course that paved the way).

Agreed with Laura--she started off as the tough girl who stood up forwhat she believed, and became a disaproving middle aged shrew almost.

I loved Greenlee back then (though really, since she did kinda play the Erica character in that relationship--though she was a poor little rich girl unlike Erica, I dunno why it was any surprise that audiences would prefer her). Becca was Dixie's cousin or something right? I know they have introduced in the past interesting characters with loser ties to the canvas, but that in itself seemed to be all we needed to know we didn't need to care about Becca...

[DRW50]

The problem I had with them was that they were all brought in around the same time and they had too many scenes together. I liked Laura early on, I liked Scott, but I loathed Bobby and Anita, who got most of the attention. I felt my life force draining from me during most of their scenes, especially her scenes. And any romance storyline which involves a father dragging his daughter to the hospital to check out her hymen is a big, big mistake.

Then later on, when Bobby became "good," he was such a self-righteous ass to Kelsey, it turned my stomach. It's too bad because I thought he and Kelsey had good chemistry.

I think it was just too much at one time and some casting issues for major roles. I remember reading a letter to SPW around the summer of 1995 which basically said, "Who are these teens? There are so many of them. Brooke and Adam are reading old scripts. Janet is painting stars in a cabin. It's so boring!"

If they'd been brought in more slowly, at a time when the show wasn't in such transition, then it might have been better.

I do agree that they were better than most of the future teen scenes.

[EricMontreal22]

I was 15 at the time, so might not like it as much now, but I kinda liked how she was the villain, and yet wasn't--breaking up what Natalie had. Plus even then Brooke was maybe my fave female character (which seems odd to say as a teenaged boy lol). You're right though--even Agnes gave her that story with the hot priest, Eliot (who turned out to be the drunk driver who ruined her life LOL which was one of Agnes Nixon's most loathed stories, yet one I loved in all tis soapiness). But I can understand where you're coming from.

[DRW50]

She was someone Dixie knew the family of in Pigeon Hollow. I remember her first scene, wearing some sort of Russian headgear and singing to herself in the woods, and Scott perving as she let her hair down. I cannot remember one good "woman in the woods" intro sequence ever. Apparently the roaring success of Cameron/Olivia on OLTL a few years prior must have inspired AMC.

That and Abigail Spencer saying she got her job because of Kathie Lee are what I most remember.

[EricMontreal22]

HAHA yeah and I guess part of that was they wanted to set up early on the gay storyline, which needed thefoundation of an actual class of students. But your points are valid. (One reason I liked it as a teen back then was just cuz thelast year of McTavish had been so over the top--though I largely enjoyed it--that to see the show shift to somethign we hadn't seen in a couple of years at least--the high school, etc--was interesting)

[Vee]

I just found myself laughing over and over at all Brooke's misfortunes - the trifurcated Pierce, Jim the pedophile terrorist, and then falling for the man who killed her daughter. She greeted each of these disasters with the same "oh God, I just drank a carton of month-old milk" expression. I'm fond of her now because of all this silly business and how she just constantly deflated in the face of unspeakable ridiculous horrors. She was daytime's answer to Mr. Bill. It came as no surprise to me when, years later, she mawkishly begged Leo to marry her daughter, who she clearly knew he did not love. Brooke has learned to take what she can get.

[DRW50]

The reason I disliked the story was because I felt like Brooke stole Janet's family. Pierce was an interesting, edgy guy. Laura was at least somewhat interesting early on, with a warm heart as well as a chip on her shoulder. Janet helped them and they helped Janet. Then when they became "normal", which basically meant they became self-righteous and judgmental, Janet was no longer good enough. This was true for Pierce especially. And they put Brooke in these silly scenes which probably would have defeated most actresses -- I remember a sex scene with Pierce in Stuart's gallery and they had this weird strobe light editing like something out of Flashdance. Do you want to see Brooke at a rave?

It did not help that at this time Janet had become more and more sympathetic and was in what was one of her best moments, the Laurel murder trial where she singlehandedly got herself acquitted. I was so thrilled for her. And then I read that Robin Mattson was being fired. So all this was going to lead to the ultimate humiliation for Janet. Becoming a Brooke doppleganger. Pheila 1.0, basically.

Thank goodness that story was aborted.

[EricMontreal22]

HAH and then she found happiness with Edmund and his true love returned from the dead:D

I admit, I think I like that about her--she remained a fairly strong, self possessed woman despite ridiculous bad luck. One of the first stories I remember with her, when I was 11 or 12 was either the triangle with Edmund and Maria, or Tad and Dixie and I kinda ate it up how tragic she was always being left by these men. (Maybe it was Tad when he returned--and she had an ectopic pregnancy)

[Vee]

If Brooke was so strong she wouldn't have given it up for all those ex-cons and crazy fuckers. Poor old Brooke. Didn't Pierce even leave her for his dead wife as well? Honestly, I mock her but I've grown fond of her. She's like a shelter puppy. And I would never have treated Julia Barr the way they did - however we feel about Brooke's trials, she was and is an institution on AMC, part of the firmament.