B&B: Old/Classic Discussion & Articles

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May 26.

June 23

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September 15

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September 29.

October 13.

October 26.

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November 10.

November 24.

December 22.

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December 8.

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July 7, 1992 Digest.

[dsvd79]

The whole Sheila dreaming about Lauren telling Eric, is my all time favorite soap fight! They fought the entire episode, with a fire poker and all. Loved it!

[juniorz1]

Sigh. I'm sad that the writer missed the boat on Brooke/Thorne because they were the awesomeness. Yes, their sex scenes were lusty and hot, but their love scenes and in love scenes were pretty darn magical. What's funny is I wanted Brooke with Ridge from when I started B&B, which was around '92 (when Brooke was pregnant with Bridget so whenever that was). But Thorne made me forget all about Brooke/Ridge and finally, I actually wanted them apart. And ever since then, ESPECIALLY since Brooke woke up one day and decided she was still obsessed with Ridge after all (while married to and in love with Thorne), I just don't care for them any more. In fact, the only thing I like about them is that I hate Taylor and don't want her ever to be happy with Ridge.

But now Taylor is working Thorne and it's HIGH time Brooke wake up and go after the Forrester man who is RIGHT for her. That's Thorne. I can't believe it's been 10 years since they've been together and 10 years since B&B has been that good.

[DRW50]

Brad Bell so quickly dumping Brooke/Thorne in favor of the first of many "Brooke debases herself with ___ while pining for Ridge" storie s was when I truly knew B&B had run out of ideas and would just coast to it's death. That's exactly what happened, especially when they brought back Taylor. The show is devoid of any motivation or purpose and no amount of frozen-faced camp and bad social issues hides that.

[DRW50]

9/1/92 SOD review.

Why Is THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL So Fashionable?

By Carolyn Hinsey

What can we say about THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL? It certainly is beautiful, and the bulk of B&B's stories are riveting. It also boasts three of daytime's most powerful actresses: Darlene Conley, Susan Flannery and now Kimberlin Brown.

If there were no other reason to watch B&B (and there are many), Sally Spectra (DarleneConley) would be reason enough. Creators Bill and Lee Phillip Bell took a real chance by creating this larger than life, very unsoap-like character, and she has resulted in some of the best humor on daytime. Conley never disappoints, and her storyline with the reprobate Clarke (Daniel McVicar) has been both funny and compelling. (Sally trying to seduce Clark: "Have an oyster, Clarke. Have two. Have twelve.") Sally's love for her young, handsome husband made her vulnerable, and even though they know better, viewers rooted for Clarke to fall in love with Sally just to see her happy.

When Sally finally discovered Clarke in bed with Kristen ("We are going to storm the Bastille!"), the episode was both hilarious and heartbreaking. "I would have died for you," Sally told Clarke on her way out. And she would have.

Unfortunately, Susan Flannery (Stephanie) doesn't have quite the same material to work with. It seems the burden of romantic B&B relationships is on the women, when the male characters turn away from them, somehow the females blame themselves (witness Stephanie/Eric, Sally/Clarke, Macy/Thorne). Since she gave up on Eric, Stephanie Forrester has spent too much time apologizing. She regrets not being a better wife to Eric, not being a better mother to Ridge, not doing enough for the homeless, etc. The character appears to be strong, but then she wanders around meddling in her children's lives and apologizing to everybody, and the viewer doesn't know what to think. However, recent developments with Jack (Chris Robinson) are promising; this woman deserves a love life (and a storyline) of her own.

Speaking of love lives, can anyone explain why Ridge (Ronn Moss) is so popular? Whether he is breaking up with Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) or fighting with Eric (the formidable John McCook), his emotions are eerily identical. And notwithstanding the fact that Moss is one of the best-looking men on daytime, Ridge is in love with Taylor (Hunter Tylo), drawn to Karen (Joanna Johnson) and may have impregnated his father's wife, Brooke. Right before his wedding, Ridge kissed both Karen and Brooke, then vowed to love, honor and cherish Taylor. This is a hero? Perhaps the women in his life are prepared to forgive him, but why do the viewers?

Additionally, some B&B characters are not fully developed. Why does Eric love Brooke? Why would Karen fall for Ridge before she even met him? What does Blake love about Taylor, and why wouldn't he let her go? Characters like Macy, Clarke, Darla and Bill need stronger storylines f they are hanging around. And there must be a better way to show Macy and Thorne's supposed love for each other than to have them burst into spontaneous song.

The odd thing about this show is that while the stories are so interesting, the dialogue can be stilted. Often, the characters repeat each other: "Ridge called from the airplane." "THE AIRPLANE." RIdge to Eric: "I made this decision [to get married] while I was away." Eric: "WHILE YOU WERE AWAY." (Wouldn't a more sensible reply be, "Really?") And when RIdge told Felicia about his marriage, it's no wonder she was confused. Ridge: "The last week I've been with a person. A person I've grown very close to. A person I've taken for granted." Felicia: "Who is she?" RIdge: "Taylor Hayes." Felicia: "Taylor."

Perhaps the minimalist approach to dialogue is an attempt to compensate for a few of the cast's less experienced performers. But giving strong actors less to say cheats viewers out of the masterful dialogue the Bell team is more than capable of delivering. Rather than catering to the lesser players, perhaps B&B would be wise to invest in some dramatic coaching.

Among the many things this show does right, however, is taking chances. Jake's child abuse storyline was very strong, and B&B went out on a long limb with Sally's mid-life pregnancy tale. The developing gambling plot looks powerful, and most B&B characters are written not black and white, but gray.

Sheila, of course, is the exception. Can we talk stroke of genius here? Kimberlin Brown, formerly one of the best reasons to watch that other Bell family staple, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, has surfaced on B&B with a vengeance. Sheila's scenes with Eric are charged with sexual tension, and viewers know that if she wants him, she'll get him. (The recent scene in Eric's bathroom, where Eric walked in on a "surprised" Sheila bathing in his tub, was perfect.)

And it was a trip down memory lane when the evil Sheila set up Eric, Jr.'s nanny to take a fall (literally) and later grabbed the baby from Brooke's office - pleasant reminders of just how nasty Sheila is. But at the same time, we know she won't actually hurt the baby. So we can watch her wreak havoc on the pompous Forrester family guilt-free, knowing that eventually she'll get her comeuppance. But hopefully not for a long time.

The second-best new character is Zach, played by the amazing Michael Watson (ex-Decker, GENERAL HOSPITAL). The story has been written brilliantly, bringing Zach in as a love interest for fan favorite Felicia (Colleen Dion) and then slowly developing the fact that he is Taylor's brother and Jack's son. Daytime veteran Robinson (ex-Rick, GH) brings much-needed dimension to Stephanie and Sally, as well as to his TV children. To look at them, Robinson, Watson and Tylo could be a family, and the actors are more than up to the challenge.

With a little more attention to dialogue and some character development, THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL could go from being good theater to becoming great drama. The elements are all there for some enthralling stories, and with the addition of a minority character or two (maybe at Spectra?), we'll have a truly bold half hour of beautiful daytime television.

[Cheap21]

Remember when Ridge and his daughter sister , fincee's child Bridget were in love?

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/sn2uEIN47ro" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bhqjd4ZhQ1o&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBOkEiB10X0&feature=related

[DRW50]

Ridge seems to be wearing Gene Simmons hair. No thanks.

This must be one of the B&B stories most affected by fan backlash.

I wasn't watching much by this point - Jennifer Finnegan...I remember her being better earlier on.

[Cheap21]

This was the beginning of the Incest Era on B&B. They really kicked up the scandal tone with the Brooke/Deacon story and they sought to top themselves with going for Bridget/Ridge. It was awful and I couldnt beleive they actually went there. Thankfully they didnt have sex but the kisses and talks of being in love were bad enough.Unfortunately over the next ten years its been one scandalous shock value story after the other. Its probably why Im not bothered by Thomas and Hope bc it feels as if we've already been there before

[DRW50]

Bridget/Ridge was the worst because Ridge thought she was his daughter for about 4 or 5 years. At least the other people knew they'd never been blood relatives. I'm not sure what Brad Bell was doing at this time. I think this was also around the same time they were supposedly going to have Eric get involved with teenage Caitlin, and Amber was going to have sex with underage Thomas.

[Cheap21]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiHKWizghYs&feature=related

[Cat]

Bridget/Ridge was an aberration even by B&B standards. He practically raised the girl, thought she was his when she was for a long time, swore to Brooke that he would always consider her his "little Princess." Nasty. I'm gagging just like Eric is in that first clip.

This is a big part of why I still can't go for Brooke-Ridge.