Y&R: Old Articles

[FrenchBug82]

Fair.

Not that it would necessarily make much sense for MaryJo to be out and about AND to be around Keemo anyway since one of his last scenes is him telling Jack to stay away from her as she is bad news.
But Diane in the context of this story feels... random.

[Paul Raven]

Especially as she is supposed to be dead.

The explanation will be as stupid as the idea.

Isn't faking your death a crime?

Except Kyle isn't on the show anymore. So now he needs to come back. It's all quite convuluted and unnecessary.

Bringing on Allie was enough.

[FrenchBug82]

Right? Bringing back Kyle AFTER they resurrect Diane and including her revival inside another seemingly unrelated from-the-past-story all feels very trying to make it all fit after the fact rather than a well thought-out plan.

Bringing Allie on and reviving Diane were two fair enough options in isolation from each other. Combining them gives me too much of a whiff of improvisation to be entirely convinced there weren't BTS changes involved, even if titan's point makes sense.

[Soapsuds]

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[will81]

I believe Ed Scott left in Dec 2001 and I am also sure Bill Bell's health was very poor by that time. John Smith became a co-HW with Kay Alden and Trent Jones in Jun 2002. 

By 2003 Bill Bell was no longer an Executive Story Consultant and in 2004 he was no longer Senior Exec Producer. He was now a co-exec producer with John Smith.

I am sure there were power struggles over the show starting in 2002. Interestingly 2002 is generally considered the last really solid year of B&B as well. I'd say Y&R and B&B had smiliar trajectories. This makes me think Bill was more involved with B&B post 1993 when Brad officially took over. Both had a drop in quality around 94/95 both regained in 97/98 and both were done (for me anyway) by around 01/02

[Paul Raven]

That second cast photo really illustrates that the cast had grown way too much.

But chopping the likes of Lynne, Gina, Mary, Miguel etc was a bad move in my opinion. These characters represented stability in GC. They never really had stories so didn't have the crazy character histories of the main characters. 

But again looking at the photo it's difficult to decide who to drop. My first choice would be Brittany but I can see the reasoning for keeping her. She was a new character with no baggage in the right age group who like Nikki before could blossom into a lead.

They realized that you shouldn't rely solely on the same characters year after year. They get so entrenched that viewers expect to see them and new characters aren't warmly received if they backburner the longterm characters.

It's a tricky road to navigate.

[j swift]

The Bladeson brothers saga is best left in the past

[Planet Soap]

I will say constantly giving the same charachters the lead is why I find Y&R's history easier to manage than for example ATWT, with it's bloated cast back in the days. It has backfired in the long run because of the show has a poorly developed , boring newer generation and the veteran actors are quite nearly played out.

The separation of charachters and storylines occuring in spheres also made backstories and charachter connections easier to follow. The orbits, especially in the 90s: Victor/Jack, Kay/Jill, Drucilla, Christine, & Lauren, made following stories relatively easier than other big soaps. 

I agree that loosing side charachters like the secretaries and maids (Carol, Mamie, Miguel, Lynne, John Silva) was a bad move. I wonder why we haven't gotten to see Lynne or at least Mamie in years. I love how Y&R always brough back the same actors for small roles like Glen Richards the district attorney or Detective Selena Wylie.

Edited March 28, 2022 by ironlion

[titan1978]

Truthfully I don’t think back on any of that fondly.  A real strange period of Y&R.  That was not a successful story IMO.

[Khan]

Idea: Reboot Y&R as "The Innocent Years," using Bill Bell's original scripts with updated cultural references, BUT...have all the Brookses and Fosters (and Sally) played by African-American actors.  (The Chancellors, Brad Eliot and Pierre can remain Caucasian.)

Edited March 28, 2022 by Khan

[allmc2008]

I have the first 15 scripts. I would be fun seeing how that would work.

[kalbir]

Second half of 1994 through first half of 1997 was the off-track era. It overlapped w/ the aftermath of OJ and the huge rise of Reilly's Days. Y&R almost got beat by Reilly's Days in June 1997.

[FrenchBug82]

The very only thing that was a positive in that whole saga was that it gave Brenda Epperson some really really nice scenes once she found out.
But since that was basically the end of the story and actually if I remember correctly her own exit as well, even those were bittersweet.
Although I will say that considering the avalanche of absolutely horrible doppleganger stories Y&R inflicted on us in the subsequent twenty years (Sarah Carter as Lauren, Sheila as Phyllis, Patty as Emily, Marco as Jack...) this story seems quaintly mundane in its mediocrity in comparison.

 

[kalbir]

The aftermath of Blade's death and discovering Rick's deception was Brenda Epperson's exit story. It looked liked Ashley was going to have another emotional breakdown but instead she left Genoa City for three months.

[j swift]

It was in true Bell-style to name a character Blade Bladeson.

Humorously I wondered if his twin was so jealous because he took the only "cool" nickname in the family.  I mean Rick is hardly as unique.  And, Son Bladeson doesn't have the right ring to it.

Edited March 28, 2022 by j swift