B&B: Old/Classic Discussion & Articles

[Soapysoap]

Are September 17-October 15 1998 missing?

[Maxim]

I think @rsclassicfanforever hasn't uploaded them yet. I noticed they are skipped, but it's probably just temporary thing. 

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[sheilaforever]

Oops, stupid me. Thanks Maxim...

[Maxim]

Not stupid. It can happen to anyone. I miss things like this all the time.

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[janea4old]

released April 23, 2025  
Annika Noelle gives a preview/promo of the upcoming
old episodes to be uploaded to B&B youtube channel
to be uploaded during May 2025
Season 18 at 5pm, 5:30pm, 6pm ET every day
Season 28 at 6:30am ET every day
Season 35 at 7am ET Fri, Sat, Sun
Also info on paying for the season 36 livestream

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Edited April 24 by janea4old

[Maxim]

I'm so glad they are continuing with the seasons. 

[bongobong]

Well into 1988 thoughts:

-The actress playing Donna is the the most improved actor by far, even if the character has to suffer through dumb storylines

-Conversely Katie & Rocco regress tremendously. I think the Katie actor suffers from lack of practice as her screen time is like 1/5 of the year before. Rocco seems to have laryngitis for months on end - though maybe the show told him to tone it down...but it doesn't work.

-Clark/Kristin/Margo is the absolute worst. It would be the worst plot on the current show too. Playing a victim is not Lauren Koslow's strong suit. Terri Ann Linn still sucks.

-Glad to see Caroline get complexity back after being so 1 note post-finding out about the letter. Her relationship with Stephanie is a highlight. Their scenes are always antagonistic, but there's a respect between them. A very different dynamic than Stephanie steamrolling over people she hates.

-Speaking of...KKL and Susan Flannery quickly developed a great rapport. So fun to see Stephanie slowly boiling over her hatred of her before the big bang happens.

-Finally, does young(er) Eric remind anyone else of

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[kalbir]

@bongobong Almost half of 1988 is writer's strike material, so that's why it feels off. 

Once Sally Spectra arrives, B&B hits its stride.

[bongobong]

Ah, thanks for the explanation. That accounts for the stop and start of a bunch of plots. I'll choose to believe that the scabs were responsible for Bill not recognizing Donna - one of the 10 or so guests at his daughter's wedding.

[Maxim]

It will just get better and better from this point on. Wait till you get to the hardcore Brooke-Stephanie stuff in 1990-1991. And then 1992-1993 - the strongest years in the show's history in my opinion. The golden era. 

[bongobong]

Nice. The FF button has helped me get closer to Sally as Kalbir mentioned. The only thing I'm not looking forward to is the Throne recast

[sheilaforever]

I enjoyed the early stories around Clarke tremendously. The only thing that just did NOT work was Kristen & Mick. Totally agree that Rocco and Katie are just plain superflous while Donna is a great character and Carrie Mitchum is very likeable. I really loved the plot with Nicholas and Bill. Another Logan blunder is Beth's cancer as well as the "romance" with Eric (blech!). Even Stephen Logan's return fell totally flat - this story might have been a victim of the writer's strike, though.

 

Overall, 1988 is quite watchable but it REALLY builds up quickly to something much better on Sally's arrival. The energy Darlene Conley brings to the canvas is mind-blowing. Be also prepared to witness the rather sudden shift and stunning change in Sally's character portrayal. The first 20 episodes is a very different Sally.

Edited April 25 by sheilaforever

[Maxim]

I agree. I enjoyed Kristen and Clarke tremendously. But as soon as Mick came on... it was unbearable. They really TRIED to make Mick Savage happen, but it was cringe-cringe-cringe. I couldn't stand the acting and the character. And of course my least favorite character from the Bill Bell era - Jake, Margo's brother... was making it so hard to watch at times. He is the lowest point of these years for me. I liked all the other stuff. 

[sheilaforever]

Interesting that you hated Jake. I thought Todd McKee (Jake) and Colleen Dion (Felicia) had great chemistry and the plot about sexual abuse was done quite well, IMO. However, as soon as Jake was thrown into Macy's direction it was a whole different character. It was somewhat believable that Jake wanted to hit the dating scene upon "his liberation" but the affair with Macy just felt off.

[bongobong]

Agree to disagree here. Outside of his scenes with Stephanie, I find Clarke to be nails on a chalkboard. Hoping this changes when he interacts with Sally.

I liked Katie & Rocco a lot at the start of the show. She was green but was a sweet, realistic character with some smarts, if not naive. Rocco was a ton of fun and very unique for this show. But once he went to FC, he became very low-energy and the (scab?) writers dropped the ball on what made him interesting: a good guy with big dreams willing to work for it. TBF, there are bits of that, like observing Eric & Ridge work but it just feels like scraps. Whereas is the first year I'd argue he was 1 of the 4 anchors of the show (Brooke, Stephanie & Caroline being the others).

100% agree on the Stephen story. Aside from some nice moments from Carrie Mitchum, it made the Logan girls seem borderline psychotic in how they treated their mother.

IMO, the Beth character seemed to falter when they recast the part. I don't blame the actress at all though, she was quite good. Rather, the show made here too aggressively into a blue collar caricature. I guess to differentiate her from Stephanie, but from that point it was obvious she was never a true contender for Eric. Even look at her opening credit shots - the clunky car smile, holding groceries, frumpier clothes, etc.