B&B: Old/Classic Discussion & Articles

[Pedro]

I think Blake can be added to that list. Although we had some good scenes with him at the very end his character was difficult to like. 

[kalbir]

Texas oil millionaire Blake Hayes was a 1980s holdover in 1991.

[edgeofnik]

Out of curiosity, I checked out B&B's YT channel since they've been uploading from the beginning. I decided to start with S4 because of Bric.

Felicia/Macy were the only ones with some sense when it came to their mothers. Stephanie being so desperate to hold on to Eric is cringe-worthy. OC, that desperation kicked the Stephanie/Brooke relationship into the Katherine/Jill stratosphere, but still.

Sally/Clarke: great dialogue played by solid actors, who had excellent timing, but the premise is vile. The writers should've established that Clarke had *some* feelings/attraction to Sally - they did have history. I'm skipping their scenes, unless I see Darla!

If B&B brought back Margo, Lauren Koslow could plausibly recreate 'new' flashback from 30+ years ago because she's barely aged!

From his first scenes, Jake doesn't work.

[Videnbas]

I am watching 1993 episodes and I had this vague feeling something is missing and I just realized it's Clarke. He was such an entertaining character to watch, the way he would constantly paint himself into corners because of his hubris and then try to smooth-talk his way out of them.

I actually thought Jake worked as a character. 

What doesn't work for me at all, though, is the Taylor/Ridge/Brooke triangle (and I totally understand if this is an unpopular opinion). Ever since Taylor married Ridge, that triangle has basically been stuck in a loop with Taylor the understanding wife, Brooke trying different schemes to convince Ridge to leave Taylor for her, and Ridge not actually encouraging Brooke but not conclusively shutting her down either.

Another possibly unpopular opinion - I actually like Sly as a character (in pretty much the same way I like Clarke - he's not exactly a good guy but he is entertaining and fairly well-developed). I think it was the way his introduction was written that really impressed me, because in a single episode we got a PERFECT snapshot of exactly what Sly was about.

Blake Hayes - no. This was not a good character. 

I have just watched Connor's introduction and I am unimpressed so far. Maybe he gets better. 

[Aback]

What episode was he introduced?

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BTW I love you guys' posts!

[Videnbas]

Sly was introduced in episode 1298. He was on screen for less than 5 minutes in that episode, he is not even the main character in those scenes, and during that time we learn that:

* He is a bartender
* He is on friendly terms with Taylor’s brother Zach
* He is a surfer
* He has an eye for the ladies
* He is outgoing and social
* He has no scruples about lying or misrepresenting himself in order to pick up women
* He goes by the name of Sly Donovan.
* His nickname is Sly because he looks like Sylvester Stallone.
* He doesn’t want to reveal his real name, presumably because he has a name that isn’t ”cool”. (It isn't until three years later that we do learn his real name - Irving.)

That is pretty impressive in terms of characterization. And it's all so effortless, being shown rather than told, so we don't really feel that the writers are dumping all this information on us, it's just there naturally. After those five minutes, we really feel like we know what he is about and the type of guy he is (to the point that we've probably met someone very like him at some party or in a bar in real life). Current writers really have something to learn from this.

[Maxim]

Sly was a complete fail. So was everything connected with Felicia. Guys... maybe we should write to @rsclassicfanforever and ask if out Angel is going to save us once again. I am desperate for new 1993 episodes. Please... angel... save us.

[Videnbas]

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on Sly. I found his unhealthy codependent relationship with alcoholic Macy interesting to watch because the dynamic between them felt very complex and convincing.

(Though I have to admit, I love everything and everyone connected to the Bikini Bar because I really like the atmosphere of that place - it's just so fun and summery.)

I really hope there will be new 1993 episodes soon somehow! I've nearly watched all of the uploaded ones too and I'm so very grateful for the ones we do have, but still wishing for more because I've been hoping for so many years for a chance to rewatch this period of B&B! Also, I think it's fun that there's a group of us here who are watching more or less the same episodes at the same time so we can talk about them!

What are your thoughts on Connor Davis?

Edited June 22, 2022 by Videnbas

[sheilaforever]

I totally agree with your assessment on Sly. And I had never made the connection, but you are totally right that he filled voids left by Clarke's departure. I never liked Sly as a person, but I thought he was a fun character - until Jessica's rape of course.

 

As for Connor: it's a nice touch that he is bonding pretty well with Bridget and seems genuinely interested. However, in the long-run he is such an ill-defined character and completely useless.

 

#1540: Delusional Brooke is in high form. My hatred for the character is back in the floring 90s spirit. What a pathetic woman she was back - the writing has shited soooo much since then. Hard to believe that it's almsot 20 years now that we have lady of the manor Brooke and no longer destiny chasing "sleep with Ridge"-Brooke. LOL

What caused my anger: Brooke - who is not living there and no longer family - shows up at the pool of the Forrester Mansion, explaing that she does so regularly. Say what!? Then, Brooke had one of about 500 of these wash-rinse-repeat conversations with Ridge of 1988-1994. Brooke keeps pushing a much married Ridge. Just as soon as he is avoiding a straight answer, Brooke exclaims "I can hear your words, but I feel what you really feel, Wiiiidge!" Yikes!

[Videnbas]

I agree that Jessica's rape ruined the Sly character. I feel that it was out of character for Sly to do such a violent thing - I would expect him to manipulate and sweet-talk in order to be intimate with a woman, and maybe even take advantage of a woman who was vulnerable and whose judgement was clouded (or who was too naive to have any judgement in the first place), but I don't think Sly as a character would have crossed that line and assaulted a woman who clearly did not consent. After all, he had plenty of opportunities to sleep with Macy while she was passed out drunk in his room and he never did, until she agreed to it (albeit for VERY messed up reasons).

Connor I really had a problem with from the start because of his backstory that really didn't fit with the history of the show. Connor and Ridge as high school rivals, with Brooke and Connor as high school friends, just doesn't add up. Ridge is at least five years older than Brooke (as established during the early years of the show) so there is no way all three characters would have been in high school at the same time. Besides, it kind of takes away from the narrative that Ridge and Brooke were from completely different worlds if their respective high schools regularly played football together. He also starts out with a fairly sketchy and one-dimensional characterization. I do like his connection to Brooke's children though.

And I had completely forgotten how persistent and delusional Brooke was during those years. I can't believe I was rooting for her the first time I watched these episodes. Now all I see is a woman plotting and scheming and insisting that a married man leave his wife for her, even though he is clearly happy in his marriage and has really given her very little active encouragement. And the way she keeps telling him how he feels is starting to get on my nerves. (This is not me taking sides in the ancient Brooke vs Taylor feud. I am not really into Taylor's character either, but objectively, she is the one in the right here, because she is Ridge's wife and he married her, and stayed married to her, out of his own free will. But watching these episodes now I don't really connect with any of the characters Brooke, Ridge, or Taylor. They just aren't as interesting to me as many other characters I would much rather watch.)

Karen is another strange case to me because on the one hand I find her interesting to watch because of JJ's acting and screen presence, and on the other hand the character itself is something of a dead end. She just has no viable options in terms of romantic interests (or storylines in general). Pairing her with Ridge would feel weird, although they have chemistry - and she just doesn't click that way with any other male character. Maybe her coming out story came some 30 years too late because it would have been fitting after her breakup with Thorne that she did some soul-searching and figured out what she really wanted in a relationship.

[Pedro]

@Jennybold1974 Hi. Will you upload the new episodes of 2022  ? I would really appreciate it whenever you have the time of course. They are of great quality, unheard of such around the web. Thank you

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Edited June 22, 2022 by Pedro

[boldau]

Videoland have now pushed everyone onto their new app “Videoland V2”. I can no longer stream as it geoblocks, even with VPN set to Netherlands.

Anyone know a solution?

Translation of error message: Unfortunately this video is not available at your location

 

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[Pedro]

Oh no! That is horrible news! I hope this does not mean the end of these high quality episodes for us

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I hope I won't have to resort to watching those horrible quality YouTube episodes

[I Am A Swede]

Maybe I'm remembering things wrong, but didn't Sly rape Jessica as some sort of twisted revenge for her messing with him? He had seen her as a ticket to wealth by getting her pregnant. She found out about his plan and set her own plan in motion to mess with him. The precise details are a bit blurry for me, since it's been ages since I watched this story. But Sly found out about Jessica's plan and as a revenge he put on a disguise and raped her. It all eventually led to Sly holding Jessica and Lark Voorhies character (Jasmine?) captive in the bar and then it caught on fire.

[Maxim]

Guys I dont know if it works but I 

Oh no... i feel like crying...