As The World Turns Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

Please register in order to view this content

[TimWil]

I stand corrected, Vee. Yes, Margo Husin worked continuity on OLTL but I believe it wasn't her only function on the show. I know on EastEnders the continuity consultant works primarily on continuity and also on product placement. I interviewed one of them once. Here's a fun example of what he/she has to do re: product placement-since the BBC is a public funded channel and not a commercial one then certain products can't be seen too much on the local shop's shelves. There has to be a balance of the same kind of products. For instance, if there are two cans of Coke which are easily spotted then there have to be two cans of Pepsi of equal prominence!

[Vee]

I doubt I could correct you about anything - I'm sure the function was a bit more complicated than just continuity. And by the end of OLTL on ABC they didn't seem to give a [!@#$%^&*].

[TimWil]

I'm sure you'll be correcting me from time to time, Vee!

I just don't understand why the likes of ATWT, AMC and GL didn't hire someone to folllow continuity. The British soaps seem to keep track of all of their characters' birthdays which they can use for storyline purposes.

[Khan]

Simple answer: no one gave a !@#$%^&*]. And they didn't think viewers gave a !@#$%^&*] either.

Plus, wherever they could save a buck, they thought, they did.

[Vee]

Doubtful.

[DRW50]

I think these shows once had those people but then dumped them for budget reasons as time passed.

[BetterForgotten]

They don't seem to make much of a difference on the UK soaps anymore anyway, the continuity has been quite dire on them in recent years.

[TimWil]

I agree, BetterForgotten. They are even pigging out from the retcon buffet on occasion.

[DramatistDreamer]

It's also too bad that ATWT didn't care enough to save all of their their Masters. Wiping them was a really stupid idea but if I've come to understand anything since reading these blogs and messageboards, it's that long term thinking is not considered a virtue in soapoperaland.

I've been squawking about the seeming lack of continuity on these American daytime shows over the last decade now. Over. And over.

ITA. I'm watching a lot of Classic AWTW from the '80s and you can tell that not only was continuity still valued but they actually did multiple takes of certain pivotal scenes like cliffhangers. Over the last decade or so of the show, it was just plow through material, and making it up as they went along. Just as long as they didn't have to stop and do any actual research. I guess Time really was Money, in that case.

[EastMA2]

Sorry Tim, but I don't believe one second of your story. #bullcrap

[TimWil]

Which one, EASTMA2? Everything I've written on here has been the truth. Using a hashtag doesn't exactly back up your claim, does it?

This thread is for discussing ATWT. I'm not interested in defending what I've shared here.

Edited May 27, 2014 by TimWil

[Soapsuds]

Ignore him...he is a troll who likes to cause trouble.

[TimWil]

Just watched a clip of Ming-Na when (heh) she played Lien. I remember being very disappointed with her being cast because Lien was Amerasian. Ming-Na's features were completely Asian (she's of Chinese descent) and I felt that blunted the impact of Lien's arrival in Oakdale. Her undoubtedly diffcuit childhood in Vietnam as an Amerasian could have been extremely poignant backstory and might have brought out a few prejudices in some of the residents in Oakdale, too. Lindsay Price would have been ideal physically but I'm not sure she was in the business when the role was first cast. Her first role was a few years later as An Li #2 on AMC, right?

Edited May 29, 2014 by TimWil

[Khan]

Right. Lindsay Price joined ALL MY CHILDREN in 1991, and Ming-Na Wen joined ATWT three years earlier.

I felt it was disappointing how we never saw Lien's mother (who was killed off, IIRC). Imagine if she, too, had come to Oakdale. Would there still be chemistry between her and Tom? And how would that have affected his relationship with Margo?