Jump to content

August 30 - September 3, 2010


Toups

Recommended Posts

  • Members

What is this obsession with Deidre? She was no longer a star when she was let go. And even the big VM return to GH basically just copied what CC return did for DAYS. Modest surge in HH, but absolutely nothing in demos. And even this surge will die for sure when the returning people realize you really cannot turn the time back.

What DAYS needs to to is focus less on Sami and invest more into the hopefull newbies. Mel, Nathan, Stephanie, Chad, Will, Gabby, even Mia had a great potential but instead to really give them a chance to prove themselves they kept them on a neverending backburner so even people who got excited someone new is finally having a story got tired and eventually left. Youtube and internet is full of abandoned clip sites about Steph/Phillip, Nathan/Mel, Chad/Mia, etc. Those were created by new viewers getting interested in the show who could be turn into a new generation of passionate viewers, but the show wasn´t able to hold their attention, because they believed bringing back faded star from 20 years ago will be more rewarding. Well, they were wrong.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 74
  • Created
  • Last Reply
  • Members

I think the ratings went up for GH because of the Scrubs story cliffhanger. Yes, I know Brenda and Sonny were promo'd. Monday, Lisa got hit by the car. The Scrubs story is the only interesting thing written on GH right now, IMO. I think viewers tend to tune in for the cliffhangers and then tune back out because of the bad writing. 2.1 on Mon. and back down to the 1.8 by Friday. GH went thru that last summer/fall with the carnival and JJ's return, then people tuned back out due to the usual bad writing. People don't care if James Franco or Vanessa are on: they want good writing to make them tune in.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

The only one of those younger characters on Days you mentioned that doesn't get on my nerves is Will. Chandler is a pretty good actor. The rest, blah.

And I've been told a thousand times that fanbase website activity mean zip in the world of ratings, so I'm not sure why abandoned clip sites mean there was ratings potential for those characters.

It comes down to the writing. Good writing brings in viewers. The problem with Days is that the writing ain't so great. It hasn't been for ages. Certain characters have been getting the blame for the ratings' downturn, but it really boils down to people aren't buying what Dena/Ken/Gary are selling.

The ratings could change for the better in the coming weeks, who knows? I do wonder if they don't, what will Ken Corday blame this time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

It´s not just the story. Main problem of soaps nowadays is they are so scared they will lost even those few remaining viewers they aren´t able to give the potential new viewers the same kind of experience we´ve got when we first tuned in into the show. I started to watch in 1989 and I had no idea who all these people and couples from 80´s are, but I for sure got interested in Jack/jennifer and their soon to be on frontburner romance. And in 1993 when MA, CC and MS were all let go the show really didn´t hurt so much because they already had a lot of new viewers whou couldn´t care less about Bo/Carly and Jack/Jennifer, but they were totally in love with Bo/Bilie and Austin/Carrie. And the same happened yet again in 2000 with Shawn/Belle and Phillip/Chloe. This is the natural circle which keeps the show fresh and demos young. I´m sure Julie Horton was crazily popular character in 70´s, yet no writers in 80´s ever thought "let´s bring back her and Doug back and forget about Hope, Jennifer, Bo, Steve, Jack, Kayla, etc." You know, all these now ultrapopular 80´s characters who were once newbies too.

When Tomlin followed that formula last year, got rid of all the played out supercouples and focused the show on Phillip/stephanie, Daniel/Chloe, Brady/Nicol and Sami/Rafe the show finally started to gain some new followers again. And they would stay if the show were able to offer them the same kind sweeping romance I experienced with Jack/jennifer or someone else with Steve/Kayla or John/Marlena. But instead someone thought "things are great now, but maybe if we bring some few people from past and rewrite things so they fit in it will be even better." And they shot itself down in the process.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Im not sure what John and Marlena could add though. They really were beyond played out by the time they left. All I can see them offering these two is a return in a recurring capacity to react to whats going on in their children's lives. I think their time as a lead couple is over and they need to be kept in the back and grow old together like Tom and Alice

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I don't think they would hurt or help the show, that's just it. They will do nothing but cause more unnecessary budget problems. The show is fine now, they have alot of cheap vets and the show is balanced for the most part. John and Marlena aren't needed, though I wish they had been around for Alice's memorial and when Baby Grace died.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I thought last year's success was due to a strong story -- the babyswitch. It has twists and turns and the show invested in the character central to the story, Nicole. I didn't care for the story that much myself (I hate baby switch stories LOL), but it did have a "tune in tomorrow" factor that was key. And I think adding CC and LS gave the show a temporary boost in numbers. When fans of those actresses finally figured out that the stories for them were weak, I'm guessing that they tuned out and it hurt the show ratings' wise. JMHO. And I think the show hasn't a clue what draws younger viewers. Young couples might help but if the stories are stale and boring, younger viewers won't watch. And why should they when they can watch reality shows like "Jersey Shore" instead.

I get the impression that Days keeps changing its mind about what draws viewers. Last year's mantra was story, not couples. This year's mantra is couples, not story. Whatever works I guess. Let's hope for the show that something sticks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I agree with you! I'm not happy at all with this show. I think that is why the show is going in a different direction this fall. I'm personally hoping with the VETS back front and center the ratings will come! Its been way to long since Viki, Clint, Bo, Nora, Dorian and Charlie had something to do!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



  • Recent Posts

    • On the way to her own engagement party? I've read that the show had trouble getting the audience to sympathize with Rita, but...that seems bizarre. Maybe I can understand the issue with the censors, given that at the time, rape wasn't depicted the way it is now, and marital rape was even less acknowledged.  Wasn't Chris Brooks' rape one of the first honest stories on the subject?
    • Yes it was! My mom and I convinced my dad to get one. He was--how shall I put this?--on the thrifty side, but one day he came home with one as a surprise. To this day, I'm convinced it fell off a truck. (He knew people with "connections."

      Please register in order to view this content

      ) BUT, we had our VCR and we could watch our soaps. That thing lasted forever! It was built like a tank. Even when we got new ones with more features, we kept that one.
    • Please register in order to view this content

        Blasphemy!  (Haha, I get it.  But, you should try watching AMC! 80s-90s was so good.)
    • I thought about saying how I resented the fact that those two newbies were tripping up the Puppetmaster of all Puppetmasters, when the best others could do was a stalemate (or less...). But, well...*sigh*
    • I read years ago that both Zaslow and Lenore both complained that it came off as a seduction because of CBS censors, so Lenore asked if she could say, "you raped me" to leave no doubt with the audience, and that Zaslow insisted that Holly's rape played realistically 
    • Wow it’s official, Gatwa is out… https://www.avclub.com/ncuti-gatwa-addresses-doctor-who-finale-statement DW fandom on Reddit is in a furor over how things went down and apparent last minute scrapping of the original ending. Also…Billie Piper again really?
    • He comes pretty close, talkin' about how Reva is full of love and joy, blah blah....which is bilge considering he was the one responsible for throwing her out of Josh's life over working with Alan. 
    • Just watched the episode concerning Olivia's drug use and Abby's persistence, etc. Donna Mills did stellar work in this episode, as did Tonya Crowe and Brian Austin Green (Brian).
    • But by Dinah and Hart...Hart especially looked as if he could not tie his own shoes!  Ed, Holly, Alan, Alex Henry and Vanessa among others were not able to put Roger down....Dinah???
    • The preaching seems to end before the Barnes settle in late December, 1981. The stuff that felt overly religious (the Davidsons believing a miracle will save Lori rather than a surgeon, Jeff's miraculous recovery from a beam of light) was quickly nixed because it wasn't working. The closest thing that you get to that under the Barnes is when Dennis Fraser, the drunk driver who killed Nora and Scott, turns his life over to god. The born-again redemptions out of nowhere seem to stop fairly early into the Barnes' run. I do think Miriam's transformation was much more delicately done with her turning on her bestie Nancy because Nancy was seducing Charles, Miriam's wealthy father, so Miriam offers to testify for the Davidsons in the trial against Nancy over possession of Nora's house. In turn, Nancy repays the favor by pumping an emotionally distraught Miriam with barbituates while Miriam carries on her affair with low level thug turned political aide Norm Elliott. Miriam is used by everyone into her life and finally lands herself in the hospital becasue she has become so addicted to the pills. At the hospital, it is the friendship and kindness of the Davidsons that brings Miriam to a more peaceful place. The Davidsons ability to forgive is both appealing and, at times, dramatically limiting. In this case, the Davidsons lead Miriam to her new Mama, Ione Redlon. Now, under Vinley, Miriam is determined to reconnect with her son, Frederick, and her ex-husband, Paul.   My bigger issue with the Barnes' writing is that they write the storylines with twist endings that sorta come out of nowhere. I know the resolution to the Kate Carrouthers mystery sorta plays out like that so I am curious to see how I feel about that.  The biggest change throughout the writing teams has been the view of morality. Winsor had many characters who could be viewed purely through the lens of black and white, but others explored the shades of gray (often younger people). The brief head writerless period was much better at embracing an action doesn't make a person and there characters were much more gray or at least evil at a more local level (Nancy, in this period, only flirts with her brother-in-law where as later she is actively providing pills to Miriam to keep her addicted and away from her own father). The Barnes, for the most part, seem to embrace this level of political corruption that seems to permeate throughout the show making it clear that power (as well as money) is the root of evil. Even criminal Vince Cardello is presented as less evil than Charles Carpenter, though Carpenter's murder of a resident of his complex was rewritten to relieve Carpenter of any responsibility in the matter. Vinley's work seems more into exploring the why or delving deeper in general. Babs Farley, the hooker who is looking to reclaim her life, is such an intriguing character. She is given such meaningful monologues regretting her decisions and desperately trying to keep away from the hands of her former pimp, Ron Washington, who hasn't appeared yet. Monk and Fernandez seem to be wrongly accused of Lori's attack and there seems to be hints of racism that the show is looking to address. Marianne confronts Gil about his feelings towards God in relation to their mother's death years earlier.  There does seem to be a layer of misogyny to Vinley's work, but it's early so I'll be curious to see how this plays out. There are a lot of attacks on women (Lori is nearly raped, Babs was beaten, Nancy is on the verge of being blackmailed for sex by Tab, and the Russ / Marianne / Gil scenario has hints of toxic masculinity. It's very early so it'll be neat to see if that is maintained.  Jerry TImm lasts about a year I think (March, 1982 - March, 1983). One of the episodes on TouTube has a comment suggesting that Timm was fired by CBN because he had done something in his past that came to light. It didn't seem to be clear what that was.  I like what I've seen of Timm as Gil. He has such a presence that it covers up some of his weaker acting choices. It's unfortunate that he didn't get to play as much of the Gil - Stacey - Amber triangle as his replacement does.  
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy