October is a whirlwind, as it adds Blair and then wraps with Max's big return which I actually really liked, OTT reintro and all. Early November lags a bit because they have the Eber domestic abuse saga that is fortunately wrapping up quick, but Blair's introduction is amazing for me too.

I think I know what they're doing with Cain's background and Asa's secret, and it's kind of crazy how many times the show did this both before and long after this (including the fact that it may be a xerox of Max's own past).

31 minutes ago, Vee said:

October is a whirlwind, as it adds Blair and then wraps with Max's big return which I actually really liked, OTT reintro and all. Early November lags a bit because they have the Eber domestic abuse saga that is fortunately wrapping up quick, but Blair's introduction is amazing for me too.

I think I know what they're doing with Cain's background and Asa's secret, and it's kind of crazy how many times the show did this both before and long after this (including the fact that it may be a xerox of Max's own past).

Do you think things just blew up in October due to their constant experimenting or was there another push?

I don’t think I know what’s coming up with Cain (I know he works for Asa and ends up with Tina) so that sounds interesting!

I saw Max at the brothel in the tub but not yet his face and yeah, I think it’s great actually, felt like 80s Max!

4 minutes ago, soapfave06 said:

Do you think things just blew up in October due to their constant experimenting or was there another push?

I think it was just a combination of 1) A lot of experimenting, first with chemistry tests or tone (the past lives romp) and with other less successful things (the sort of novella-esque Eber domestic violence story, which I think likely only runs about a month total). Gottlieb has said she would bring in new people early on and only then decide who they could be with or where they would go. I think that's evident with Jason Webb in particular, as well as possibly Luna (who has a few dates with Jon Russell) though they certainly jump right on introducing a Luna and Max angle quickly, as you'll see. But I think at one point Blair and Max were endgame, and that is a topic for down the road.

The other key factor I think was 2) The focus on a lot of new, ambitious objectives: Bedding in Luna, introducing Blair and Andrew, setting up the beginnings of Megan's fate or maybe chem-testing her with several men in case they could convince JT to stay - I don't know when it was finalized, but they had been hinting at Megan being ill as early as late August, at Hunter Guthrie and Andy Harrison's wedding as Gottlieb wrote those two out. Slowly unveiling Cain, which still isn't finished. Getting ready to write out Cord, as John Loprieno must've given his notice well before now yet they are still toying with him and Blair. And of course there was bringing back James DePaiva's Max to massive fanfare (and by most contemporary accounts around August of '91, they actually had not initially planned to bring Max back until someone hit on the idea of reaching out to JDP).

I just think they tried a lot very quickly, and a lot of it worked in October due to an excellent dialogue staff, actors and a fresh production team and style. Next comes Gottlieb burning down Llanfair to remodel it, which I said not long ago I felt was beautifully shot with unique, daring camerawork. The lovely scenes afterward, in the wrecked drawing room, got Erika an Emmy IIRC.

Edited 22 hours ago22 hr by Vee

Up to December 17th, 1992

🎅

"Tchaikovsky in Llanview."

🔷

Let the Christmas shopping from hell... begin! Ho! Ho! Ho!

🔷

As I anticipated... Sloan attempted to catch Viki off guard while she was out shopping. He eavesdropped on her plans the previous day and followed her there. A bit stalkerish, won't you say? She loved the attention, even if she pretended not to. Sloan is an incredibly persistent man. He understands that once the Bo situation is settled, the family's bond will eventually weaken... and he'll be waiting around the corner, ready to pounce at the first sign of trouble. He's always ten steps ahead, and it's not like Viki doesn't know it either. She's a smart girl. They're in a game with one another, making the whole affair situation more and more exciting. We are now in the 6th or 7th month since their attraction began... and we have yet to see them sleeping together. The writers are milking this as much as possible and I appreciate that there's no rush.

🔷

And then... like a phantom from a Christmas themed horror movie, Dorian Lord... emerged from the shadows... catching them red-handed at the scene of the crime. Oh my! What are you two lovebirds doing here? Dorian's gloat set Viki off so much... she resorted to her classic - "I'M SO ABOVE YOU" routine, trying to smother her with PITY. She attempted to change the focus from her own inappropriate relationship, a pure gaslight technique.. To me... at that moment, Viki was the villain. Because... Dorian merely observed the truth - she didn't imagine it... that somehow... Viki is still seeing Sloan. It doesn't matter if it's by chance or they are having secret rendezvous... they are still TOGETHER. Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker playing softly in the background was chef's kiss.

🔷

Moving on... we finally had THE showdown between Renee and Blair. This was one of the most catty scenes I've seen so far. Renee absolutely obliterated Blair with words, threatening to expose her lies to Asa. But that was nothing compared to what happened when Blair visited Dorian searching for her mother. The Wicked Witch of Llanview announced that Addie is GONE... off to a place where Blair will never find her! And that's not all - Dorian now allegedly has full custody of Agatha. And Blair has only one person to thank for this - good old Asa Buchanan. Incredible performance by Mia Korf.

🔷

Last, but not least... Bo went home with a tramp he picked up from the bar. But then when the tramp noticed Sarah's creepy picture watching them from the distance, he flipped out and threw the trash out. As the episode was ending, we saw him burning Sarah's things in the fire and saying disturbing things... that I don't even want to mention. Are they going there? Is Bo going to try and take his own life? It's heartbreaking to watch, but I still think if this was about someone else other than Sarah... it would have hit harder.

Overall -  10/10

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 

Clip of the day

Dorian clashes with Viki and Blair.

Edited 9 hours ago9 hr by Maxim

Thanks @Maxim . Feels quaint to see characters only starting Christmas shopping a week before Christmas instead of months earlier.

The scene with Viki and Dorian is terrific, from Dorian without missing a beat singing along to "do you see what I see" when glimpsing Viki and Sloan, to Viki rattling Dorian so much by preying on her fear of being unloved and alone.

The scene with Blair and Dorian is also good, although the whole part with the broken angel is overwriting to me.

Elaine Princi is at full powers in all this material. If I didn't know better, I would have no idea she was almost gone.

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by DRW50

14 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

Thanks @Maxim . Feels quaint to see characters only starting Christmas shopping a week before Christmas instead of months earlier.

The scene with Viki and Dorian is terrific, from Dorian without missing a beat singing along to "do you see what I see" when glimpsing Viki and Sloan, to Viki rattling Dorian so much by preying on her fear of being unloved and alone.

The scene with Blair and Dorian is also good, although the whole part with the broken angel is overwriting to me.

Elaine Princi is at full powers in all this material. If I didn't know better, I would have no idea she was almost gone

Are these some of her final moments? I understand Strasser is coming in a month and a half, but do you know if there is a time without Princi/Dorian before that, or does Strasser take over immediately without a break for the character?

Oh and I before I forget - Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours @DRW50 ! 🦃

40 minutes ago, Maxim said:

Are these some of her final moments? I understand Strasser is coming in a month and a half, but do you know if there is a time without Princi/Dorian before that, or does Strasser take over immediately without a break for the character?

Oh and I before I forget - Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours @DRW50 ! 🦃

I may be wrong, but I think Princi's last airdate is in mid-January. I think it may be at Andrew and Cassie's wedding. There is a break of about a month, I think with the line that Dorian went to a spa, before Dorian returns with the show trying for a cute reintro.

There's some big change around January/February, which makes sense I suppose, starting the year off with a jolt (it's nothing monumental so don't take this as overhype), as they were using November and December to wrap up stories and wrap up families, dynamics, etc. Much smarter than soaps now where stories just end at any random time, if they even have an ending.

Happy Thanksgiving to you too. I've appreciated all your work and passion for AMC and OLTL over the last year as it helps motivate me more to go back when I'm mostly too lazy to do so.