Deadline Hollywood Says AMC May Be A Goner

[marceline]

Agreed. Sorry, my comment wasn't directed at you specifically. It's just that if people want to hate on Ravenbeauty, they'll still be able to do it after AMC is off the air. No need to hijack this particular thread tonight.

[DRW50]

I think daytime drama would still work, with a big revamp. No one at the network cares now. I think there is still a hunger for unique scripted programs - which soaps used to be before they started trying to ape primetime. Reality and talk aren't close to the presence they once were, as most of the networks have pared down their reality lineup to a handful of shows, and NBC's attempt to go cheap by having Leno five nights a week instead of scripted material blew up in their face. But if people tune into soaps and just see a bad version of something they have already seen in primetime why bother?

Watching that tedious Castle episode last night reminded me of just how far out of the public consciousness today's soaps have gone. Everything they were joking about is something that soaps have not done in ten or more years. But it's not exactly great entertainment if the soap on Castle had scenes about raping in the name of love, or crazy women flagellating at the feet of the creep who barely notices them.

[All My Shadows]

Did they have organ music? That's the one thing that annoys the crap out of me, when current shows/commercials/cartoons/etc spoof soaps and use organ music of all things. There are millions of things to make fun of with soaps today, there is no need for them to reach back 40 years for jokes.

[DRW50]

There wasn't any organ music, thankfully. It was mostly just jokes about crazy plot twists and obsessed fans and "shipping." Which I saw a lot more ten years ago online than now, although I know it still happens. I think the networks getting involved in that type of thing helped kill it, like when Frons started hyping various couples like "Jam" or whatever Sam/Jax were called on GH.

[Adam]

Oh my, I had totally forgotten about that nonsense. I wonder what happens to Julie Hanan Carruthers? Maybe send her to OLTL then they can use the "can't seem to keep the show under budget" excuse once more.....

[Kylie]

Crap, I wanted to come back from eating dinner to have this all settled. LOL Guess Frons was to busy drooling over GH to get to it today. Or maybe not. What's to late for something like this on the West Coast?

[TeamEric]

That's cool. ITA, I'd prefer to discuss the content of the post over criticizing the poster. In this case, if ABC is canceling a soap in same year affiliates are losing Oprah, then you can bet the affiliates are heavily involved and that takes MONTHS not weeks to work out.

Could be ABC isn't announcing AMC cancelation because it's part of bigger changes such as syndicating The View so affiliates can pick it up as Oprah replacement. Then affiliates would get a timeslot back and may be bribed to take a chance on an new talk show for AMC.

[MontyB]

You were mocked which I thought was ridiculous. You had a point.

[SFK]

You all made my stomach do the roller coaster drop. I had to run out earlier and just used the "Restore Last Session" feauture to find four more pages and 54 users deep up in here, I was sure the guillotine had dropped. We were just flipping through channels and landed on a scene of Angie and Jesse talking about the baby followed by a nice Jake/Amanda interaction, and some Liza/David spice. In that bubble was good soap opera. If only it could always be like that.

[Saving ATWT]

I think there is a place for the 'soap' but right now is an odd transitional time in terms of generations, viewer fragmentation (tech), economics, gender equality in the workplace, and the whole 'culture war' thing that isn't quite over. Sitcoms have had so much trouble over the last decade for the same reason as soaps--neither can capture the current mood and be relatable as to what the current person, family or community is really like. I think shows like America Idol are doing well now because they can skirt any and all issues and just be fun.

[All My Shadows]

That's the saddest part for me (and I'm sure I've always referenced other "saddest parts," but yeah, that's gonna happen until this is all over). These shows CAN be good. Sometimes it lasts for a month or a week or just one episode or just one scene, but IMO, as long as there's still something left, they can do something with it. Soaps as we know them have to change, but damn...no one seems interested in figuring out how to do it successfully.

[Kylie]

That bold part, I think that's why it still bothers me so much. Last year at this time, I didn't see that. I didn't see a bubble or good soap. I didn't see shades of the old AMC in there. I do now. I guess it's to little, to late.

[Soapsuds]

That's how I felt about ATWT its last year. It seems it happens that way when a soap is cancelled or close to cancellation. GL had some moments during its final months.

[RalphOrtiz]

It's so difficult to go through this every year. Guiding Light. As The World Turns.

Now - All My Children.

Why don't they just take us out of our misery and cancel all of them at once? Why ask us to commit when all soaps are in jeopardy and when each year, one by one, they will all be gone.

It's just so sad.

[Kylie]

It's espeically hard for me, because I didn't watch for 5 years after Josh. And the bits and pieces I did see, were horrible. I was glad I wasn't watching. I kept up a little last year when I was overseas, but it still had the stench of [!@#$%^&*] all over it. And then something changed, about October/November of this year. There started to be moments. Scenes. Characters remembering they know each other. K&S going "oh yeah, these people have history". And since then, I've seen it more and more. It's sad cause, I think it could be saved.

Oh and then we have Rylee. And Zendall. Dude's dead and he's still a frigin airhog. Ugh.