Y&R: March Discussion Thread

[alphanguy74]

Well... I have to say I really DID enjoy today's IPO stoyline. Granted, I can also think of many ways to make it better. Kay's tirade was well written, I thought... and FINALLY a scene where she's not serving rice pudding. But what would have MADE THAT SCENE was Heather Tom as Victoria dressing the old woman down, saying something to the effect of "What has my father given me? a DEAD BABY! I know you can toss your baby away like a used kleenex, but not everyone in the world is like you!" And then you have Nikki screaming at Victoria to stop it, and her running out of the room in tears. That would give clear, concise motive for her actions, create an enormous amount of angst, pulling Nikki between Katherine and her own daughter, and THEN Nikki falls off the wagon, and Victoria blames herself, creating even more emotional strife... etc. THAT is what today's episode was missing, and an actress who could have pulled it off.

[Juliajms]

Yeah, but he's not the one spending 5 hours a week watching this show, so I don't give a damn what he wants.

[Cat]

Exactly. I'm not saying these actors cannot voice their concerns about the writing for their character. Civilly, courteously and with an open mind. But in this case, maybe JM needs to STFU, sit his a$$ down and count his blessings.

If TPTB were in any way COMPETENT management, they would have called him in to a meeting after his interview went to press. They would have reiterated that they value his contribution to Y&R -- and then pointed out that his pairings with 1. Sharon and 2. Phyllis are, for now, irredeemably ruined. Nobody wants to see him with them. It's not JM's fault as much as it is the writing, but his character needs something new to do and somebody new to play with. What better person than a gorgeous, infinitely talented, multiple Emmy-winning actress playing a character with many ties to the canvas? And who is actually winning over fans who were initially skeptical about having MW take over the role of Diane?

This is a SAVE -- not a HARDSHIP -- for Nick. It's a win-win for the actor, too. Three months ago, I couldn't even stomach seeing his face on my screen. Nick's interactions with Sharin' and Syphyllis literally stunk to high heaven. The mere presence of Diane bonding with their children and an actually sweet, tender, light-hearted flirtation building between the two has done wonders. Think what another three months could do.

[sheilaforever]

Y&R used to write great corporate stories. Simply because we knew the companies well, there was lots of shop-talk (because characters still WORKED!!!) and when they introduced new ad campaigns for Brash & Sassy et al this was HUGE stuff. Ever since LML the business angle ran very much down the sh*tter. And Maria & Co have made few bright steps mostly because there's lots of stuff dropped or fotgotten for months. I'm also still pissed that Jill is now hanging dresses at THE BOUTIQUE - if at all - instead of mixing the business scene.

[sheilaforever]

Not to mention that MW does not throw her acting ticks around like one other leading Spam-Emmy lady Morrow used to be paired with!?

[Juliajms]

All of this. Talk about a person TRYING to shoot themselves in the foot, while everyone else in the situation is trying to grab the gun out of his hand. That triangle was killing Nick. He looked like such a POS through most of it. Now, here is a chance to play an incredibly soapy story with a wonderful actress and JM balks! At this point, he's expressed himself. We all get it, he wants Phick. Their time will probably come again, but first give your character (and us) a break from the same old.

[Cat]

When MW makes it look so easy, you know there must be some real craft going on -- her ATWT co-star Benjamin Hendricksen was similarly talented in the sense that he never seemed like he was trying to be Hal Munson. He just was. MW keeps it super simple with her clear, unfussy diction and that really helps. No acting ticks, no "Ya, ya, definitely, definitely," no low-voiced, heavy-breathing attempts to be the only sex kitten of the cast (the fact that the character of Phyllis was "reinvented" into Sexy McWannabe-Bacall around the time MW joined the cast, to me, is telling).

I especially like the way Maura plays this woman who is looking for financial security and the good life and will reach out to grab an opportunity with both hands. On other shows, she'd be one-note and cartoonish, full of bitchy, "cool" quips (Kim on OLTL, heck, even Y&R's own Chloe). Here Diane has a real appreciation of what life has to offer. She has had to struggle to make money.

Even the way she snarks at Nikki is not over-the-top and "me-me-me," and that leaves me wanting more. I like how MW balances that out with genuine sympathy and kindness towards her son, Michael, Nick and even old Grambo.

[alphanguy74]

I agree with all this. The thing for me is this..... I just don't see Maura as DIANE. But don'r get me wrong, I love her performances, I love HER. And somehow... her presence on this show does not bother me one bit. This might sound strange, but I suppose I almost see her a completely different character, and one that just happens to be named Diane. If it wasn't for Kyle, she might as well be a new character. The only thing I don't like lately is this Abby flip-flop. But then again, I just want EVERYONE to hate Grambo no matter what. I see that Abby fels as though dear old dad has "Had enough", but something tells me that Victor will pull something underhanded that will again push her away. I still don't see Marcy Rylan as being too old for this part. If she's supposed to be 21,22 now... I think she works in it. I just didn't see her in GL, and don't any preconceived notions about her. She's just a good actress, and she's making the character multi-dimensional.

[Juliajms]

Totally agree. I like MR is one of the best recasts in recent Y&R history. If I didn't know anything about her, I know I would buy her as early 20 something.

[ranger1rg]

katherine should go to hell. her siding with victor is ridiculous, as is the fact that she can't see all that he's done to damage his family. i'll side with victoria and nick any time over victor and katherine. loved it last week when ashley tore katherine a new one, and when traci put jack in his place about using his father's name/legacy.

nikki needs a bottle of vodka poured on her head every time she kisses up to victor.

it was great when maura west slapped josh morrow, but josh morrow got his licks in pretty good. i constantly read here that josh morrow walks through his scenes, whatever that means. all i know is that his nick has been pretty strong lately. maura west is exceptional, and is great as diane.

don't get the amelia heinle hate, either, and i could go forever without hearing that heather tom should return as victoria. um... how many years has she been gone?

i do have to smile at posters who start naming characters who should be dumped -- and then proceed to mention 80% of the cast.

[BadZoe]

Really enjoyed Doris dumping her useless piece of trash daughter.

[Y&RWorldTurner]

It doesn't matter if Heather Tom is here or there. The fact remains that Victoria isn't written seriously as a character anymore and hasn't been since Tom was in the role. Not to mention, the character bares little, if any, resemblance to the character Tom developed for over a decade.

Heinle is not an impressive actress IMO, and she never rises to the occasion. I always feel the need to take a nap after watching her on-screen. However, Heinle's lackluster performance doesn't negate the fact that Victoria is no longer written as a force of nature or what the character was developed to be over the course of the 90's and onto the early 00's.

A more fierce actress could perhaps bring life in the role, but there needs to be a synergy between the actress and the writing, which I've yet to see with Heinle in the role or with the various writing teams that have written for the character with Heinle in the role.

I no longer watch, but I will never be convinced that Heinle is some perfect actress for this part. In an ideal world, Victoria would be written the way she used to be written and a more competent actress would be playing the part, but this is the Victoria the show currently wants, so the character's history and traditional characterization matters very little.

For example, I never thought Victoria would be such an awful mother to the miracle child (Reed) that she tried for years to have, and then and dumping him off on JT, so she could parade around town with her new manwhore Billy. And then only feeling sorry about it when JT dumped her ass and took Reed with him.

What I miss most is Victoria's intelligence. She seems pathetically dumbed down these days.

[Mr. Vixen]

Chills just thinking about it. That would have been great.

[soapfan770]

That's been a huge complaint I've had with Heinle and Victoria. Heinle isn't the strongest actress and eventually they started writing a weaker Victoria to suit Heinle. Gone are the days of Victoria slapping Grambo around and telling the man off when he finally came around to off her the CEO position.

[DRW50]

I think they write a weak Victoria to suit themselves. A weak Victoria does wonders to assert and reassert Victor's dominance of the canvas, and I'm sure Eric Braeden loves that.