All Soaps: One Last Overhaul

[DRW50]

With GH hitting new lows, I'm going to offer my ideas, because I am completely, totally sure that these ideas are flawless and they will immediately be put into use by those in charge of ABC Daytime.

Taggert returns to Port Charles with his new wife, Teresa. Taggert has decided to stay off the police force and instead works as a community leader. Teresa is a civil rights activist who very quickly clashes with Edward and Tracy over some of ELQ's policies. Teresa also has two teenage children. One of them, Paul, uncovers the secret Teresa has kept for years -- she's Edward Quartermaine's granddaughter.

Gia returns as a face for Deception. Lucy returns as head of the company, with Maxie as her assistant. Lucy helps Maxie slowly mend her relationship with Felicia.

Spinelli jumps in front of a bullet meant for Jason. He dies content, as all he cares about in life is Jason's safety. Maxie lashes out at Jason because Jason feels nothing when Spinelli dies. She tells him he is a sociopath and a user.

Jason's life is in increasing danger, and once Liz gives birth to Nikolas's child, Helena sees her as being dispensable. They decide to run away together, with the newborn, and with Jake and Cameron. Lucky is taking care of Cam, who is home with a cold, and Liz has no choice but to leave him behind. Lucky is devastated at the loss of his youngest son and he feels even worse when Luke tells him that in the long run it was no big loss, since Jake wasn't his biological child. Lucky begins to wonder if he had been Jake's "real" father, he might have been able to stop this from happening. Lucky goes on a downward spiral with drugs and alcohol, and passes out on the docks. Robin and Taggert find him and manage to save his life. Lucky decides to work to help kids who don't get to spend a lot of time with their parents, or who are from troubled backgrounds. He also struggles as a single father to Cameron, who doesn't understand where his mother and baby brother have gone.

Sonny commits suicide when he realizes he's about to go to prison. His children gather around him, along with his women, and say goodbye. The fallout of this story goes on for a long time.

Carly is too defeated to bother continuing revenge schemes, and she tells Lulu the truth about her plans to break up her relationship with Dante. Lulu angrily writes Carly off. Lulu tries to support Dante and throws herself headlong into his angst and mourning over Sonny. As she watches Dante grieve a father he had no real reason to care about, she begins to realize she does not actually care about her family at all and that her upbringing meant she had no real reason to. She tells Dante this and he tells her she doesn't need anything but him. At first Lulu is happy with this idea but when Dante convinces her to stop working, to buy what he likes, to have sex when he wants to have sex, to rewrite her life around his moods, she finally begins to question why she is with him and if she's ever been happy with anyone. She decides to on an extended vacation with Lesley and Laura, unlikely to return.

Port Charles is abuzz when a newcomer named Constantine Cassadine buys the hospital. Even Helena is uneasy, as Constantine is a black sheep of the family, written off long ago, with no allegiance to her. No one can guess his plans, and only viewers are slowly able to piece them together.

Luke tries to warn "Connie" to leave the Spencers alone, but Constantine tells him not to worry, that the Spencers destroyed themselves a long time ago. Luke takes his words to heart and goes on a long drinking binge. He has another heart attack, and when he wakes up, only Bobbie is there to greet him. Tracy and his kids gave up long ago. Luke is overcome with shame and tries his best to make things up to the people around him.

Johnny wants to get out of the mob, but is told he has to kill Lucas Jones, recently returned to Port Charles and working at the TV station with his Aunt Tiffany. Lucas is the son of a mobster and the mob forces are sure that he might try to take over the business someday, even though Lucas has no plans of doing so. Johnny gets a job at the station and tries to get Lucas to let down his guard enough for a kill. To his surprise, he begins to fall in love with Lucas...

Robin and Patrick divorce. Robin throws herself into her work but is swept off her feet by a charming, handsome, quirky man who seems to be her perfect match. Just as she is about to tell him that she loves him, he disappears without a trace. His apartment is empty. All Robin finds is a dossier, containing photos of her mother and father. Robin wonders what to do next...

[Cyberologist]

I know that a lot of similar threads have popped up, a lot of times for OLTL, but I thought I would make one for all US soaps in general.

How would you save them?. Stop benching the vets..eg Monica / Bobby etc... Focus on Women driving story as well as men since the audience is majority women. If I was Sweeney I'd immediately (if not sooner) be rid of Brian Frons' mindset his vision for soaps is not working and the rest would follow any head of daytime would a lick of sense would automatically fire Guza and Phelps. Write Tracey Quartermaine as the kick-ass diva she is destined to be! Get rid of (Jill and her) focus groups which have helped the bad storytelling air..they write for them instead of fans she can take them with her through the exit door.

What would your cast list be? GH is cast heavy with a large cast that they won't write for many eppys are snippets of plot points they need to stop the newbie parade get down to basic story telling for the genre. I can't understand hirinig all these people for a minute then stop writing for them a few months later (for the most part) characters like Olivia is not needed long term.

Definitely Robert Scorpio and Anna Devane in a strong capacity and some of the international spy stuff (WSB) bring back Sean/Tiffany in a storyline to help save Robin or Emma or something to reel them in (in some capacity). These vets don't have to have to stick around forever but show up from time to time for storylines these are great actors and GH rich history should be preserved, utilized instead of destroyed..

I'd get the vets to sit in on a panel, eg Denise (Lesly Webber) Jane Elliot, Tony Geary, Leslie Charlesen, John York, Tristan Rodgers, Fiona Hughes etc. I'd have meetings with old school, middle school and new school "actors" to help create a vision for the show...I'd have this panel include "actors" and "fans" to get their input..instead of focus groups. With video conferencing this is easy to do now-a-days this is the era of high technology it can be virtual.

Who would you add/bring back? Strengthen the core familes and integrate some new ones eg The Hardys, Webbers, Baldwins, Wards, Cassadines...etc...eg I'd bring back Tom/Simone their off spring. Lucy Coe / Scotty Baldwin and/or their offspring things like this...

Who would you fire? My first order of business before I sat down at my desk would be to fire Brian Frons by fax on Christmas eve after he read it first on the web. I loathe Sam McCall so she can go with her sugar daddy.

Who Would you recast? I'll have to come back (too many to mention) but basically stop with the newbie parade tighten up your game and get some writers who aren't burnt out, who loves the genre they are writing for, fresh ideas and unleash your imagination and stop with the favored writing and airtime for the pets...I wouldn't have any all my cast would be my pets...have some WTF moments twist and turns. Diversify the cast in top tier lead story and end the unholy trinity of Sonny/Jason/Carly which was the beginning of GH's downfall yes it was a good story line but I didn't expect to be seeing the same thing 15 years later. Ted King (Alcazar), Taggart, Jagger Cates, Kent Masters-King (Dr. Elaine Winters), Cynthia Preston (Faith Rosco), Minae Nojii (Dr. Kelly Lee) this is to build up the hospital side...its too many to name but my first order of business is to offer Genie Francis any contract she'd accept and get her back in any capacity I could. All she wanted was time off like the men eg Tony Geary, Ingo Rademacher and they give their pets time off for projects

What would your focus be on? (i.e, families, business, mob, drama, etc.) actually it can be all of them, "just balance it out" but my primary focus would be the hospital, multi generational storytelling....not just in the world of Sonny Corinthos, A love story between Alexis and Mac Frons says fans don't want to see middle age actors get it on...I disagree I think middle age people still have sex. I could be wrong though

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=130847#

As Go the Soaps, So Go the Daytime Emmys

by Ed Martin, Yesterday, 12:48 PM

PS CarlD2 A big thumbs up!!!