B&B: Old/Classic Discussion & Articles

[yr9190]

The Bold and the Beautiful- Report Card (From the August 31, 1993 SOD)

ACTING-B-

STORIES-A+

ROMANCE-A

HUMOR-B+

LOOK-A+

By Carolyn Hinsey

The Bold and the Beautiful is the most entertaining show on daytime. This show goes from bittersweet to boffo without missing a beat, and is always terrific drama.

B&B is not exactly reality-based, which is ironic, because it is the only soap opera set in a real place- Los Angeles. For example, Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) lives in the heart of L.A. Her doorbell rings. "Come in-the door's open!" chirps Ms. Logan. Is it a serial killer? No. it's the terminally preppie Connor (Scott Thompson Baker). He's there to confess his undying love to his former high school crush, who has been very busy since her cheerleading days. (Brooke has borne two-count em, two-illegitimate children since then, by father/son tag team Eric and Ridge Forrester.) With the door still unlocked, Brooke and Connor embrace.

But so what? People don't tune into soap operas to watch their favorite characters pick up their dry cleaning. B&B is never better than when its powerhouse women are going over the top- any combination of Stephanie, Brooke, Sheila and Sally, and my day is made. It's been especially fascinating lately to watch sworn enemies Stephanie (the formidable Susan Flannery) and Sheila (talented Kimberlin Brown) team up against Brooke; patent formulas do indeed make strange bedfellows. Here's Steph during one of the BeLief (Brooke Logan Forrester- Get It?) battles: "You tramp!" Brooke: "You thief!" Stephanie: Slap. Brooke: slap. There's the stoic Eric jumping in to stop them from killing each other. Just another day in Forrester Creations....

I used to think that Brooke was a whiny spoilsport, but lately her story has been the best on the show. (She refers to her enemies now as "the frigging Forresters.") Brooke's battle with the F clan is fraught with peril- and only a Bell show could turn someone that annoying into a sympathetic character. It;s bad enough that Brooke is continually up against that old batlle-ax Steph; add Sheila to Brooke's battle and viewers feel downright sorry for the girl. Who'd have thunk it?

It's particularly refreshing to watch the evolution of Brooke's feelings toward Ridge. I have always found Ridge to be a little stiff. He doesn't have much of a sense of humor, and in the battle for Brooke's affections, it always seemed more logical for Brooke to pick sexy Eric, or now the caring Connor, over the incredible hunk. Of course, there's a lot we don't know about Connor, but knowing talented Head Writer Bradley Bell, we'll find out soon enough.

Ridge (Ronn Moss) and Taylor (Hunter Tylo) seem much better suited for each other, and their recent attempts to make a baby, have steamed up the screen. Taylor's run-ins with Sheila have been tantalizing, and i hope the good doctor gets to treat the bad nurse very soon. Doctor/Patient confidentiality will be the least of Taylor's worries.

Of course, it's not realistic to think that an attempted murderess like Sheila could have actually pulled off her marriage to high-powered Eric (The excellent John McCook). But if ace detective Paul on YOUNG AND RESTLESS had spotted her wedding photo in the Genoa City Chronicle, we wouldn't be watching her delicious antics today. And what fun would that be? Nobody arches an eyebrow better than Kimberlin Brown; I wonder if her evil eye is scripted. But where have Sheila and Eric's love scene been lately? Aren't they newlyweds? Their wedding was strangely perfect, and it was nice to see old do-the-right-thing Eric stand up to his snooty family for the love of a bad woman.

Sally Spectra (Darlene Conley) would be in danger of becoming a caricature if it weren't for her touching relationship with sad sack daughter Macy. Macy and Thorne's (Jeff Trachta) tenuous reconciliation has been an interesting twist, and Bobbie Eakes has given the formerly one-dimensional Macy previously untapped layers. Keith's (Ken LaRon) crush on Macy is intriguing, as race has not been the issue keeping them apart- her alcoholism and her feelings for Thorne are the obstacles. It's tough on a half hour show to properly integrate minority characters but bar owner Keith and his mentally challenged brother Kevin (Keith Jones) are a fresh approach to this dilemma. Maybe Macy's inevitable AA sponser will turn out to be a beautiful Naomi Campbell-ish model.

It's hard to understand Karen's (Joanna Johnson) role in the action as of late. She seems like a poor man's Brooke, rather than the cherished Caroline's reincarnation. Her presence doesn't seem to bother Ridge at all, and she has been shut out in the romance department by both Thorne and Connor. Where is Karen's father, Bill? What does she think of Bill and Darla? How does she feel about Macy and Thorne's rekindled romance? It's hard to get a handle on that character these days and Johnson deserves better.

But all of the other women on B&B more than make up for that by handling - or should we say manhandling- each other. "You Bitch", Sheila snipes as she wheels around to face Stephanie, "Nobody controls Sheila Carter". "Not even Sheila Carter", Steph shoots back.

And here's Brooke promising Sheila that she is going to "give it to Stephanie Forrester in spades". There goes Sheila's eyebrow! We Can't wait.

May the Forresters be with you.

[DRW50]

Thanks for sharing this. It's overwritten, as typical of Hinsey, but I agree with most of what she said. They did use Karen very badly, and Sheila was a fun character in these years.

They dropped Keith and Kevin very quickly. It's a shame. But a good example of why I don't think B&B has ever been what it could have been. They always take the easy road.

[yr9190]

Your Welcome!

Reading this again made me a little sad as to what the show could have been. It is nothing without all these interesting characters.

I laughed at the part where she said she found Ridge and Ronn "stiff" and had no sense of humor (sooo true) If only this article came out a couple months later when Ridge nearly killed Brooke by pushing her in the pool and cracking her head open, I can picture her writing something like " I find him stiff and not having a sense of humor (Of course that is probably a good thing since when he tried using his so-called humor by pushing the "focused" Brooke into the Forrester Pool , he nearly put her in a coma"!) LOL

As entertaining as it was, it's sad that Sheila and Eric pretty much were terrible as a married couple. So their wasn't any love scenes. They were much better before they got married IMO.

You know, i have never scene any clips involving Macy's early stories that much, so i have no idea what Keith/Kevin and even that Sly guy are like.

Sheila never actually teamed up with Stephanie right? I know what she was talking about but i thought Stephanie just laughed Sheila off when she wanted to team up with her to take down Brooke.

Edited October 4, 2011 by yr9190

[DRW50]

John McCook is a handsome guy but I can't say I ever found him sexy, or his pairings on the show to be sexy. He just doesn't have that spark, for me. The only guy I ever thought was hot on B&B was Scott Thompson Baker. I remember an episode where he and Karen were going to have sex and Sally and the gang walked in just as his shorts were flying across the room.

Keith and Kevin weren't much at all. I don't even remember it played as any type of attraction. Keith looked out for Macy and clearly cared for her, but I don't think it was reciprocated. Kevin was just there to make some appearances for PSA reasons. He was also fond of Macy.

Sly was just kind of a fun guy, a bit oily, but charming, sometimes. He was more of a rascal. It wasn't until the end that he became, inexplicably, a monster. 1996 was the beginning of the end for B&B.

[yr9190]

B&B Synopses Section (March 5, 1991 SOD)

Covering the weeks of February 4-8/11-15 1991.

Felicia arrives at Brooke and Eric's condo, desperate to explain things to her father. She tells Brooke that she'd never have accepted the job offer with Sally if she'd known Eric was going to make a similar offer. Brooke understands, but when Ridge drops by, he angrily informs his younger sister that she's merely being used by Sally in her war against Stephanie and forbids her to work with Spectra.

NO ESCAPE:

Felicia asks Storm for his legal expertise regarding her dilemma. If Sally leaked their deal to the press, Felicia asks, would that make the contract invalid? Yes, says Storm, be he's under the impression that it wasn't Spectra who leaked it, so the contract is airtight. The Young designer will be forced to honor her commitment.

Meanwhile, Eric makes a personal appeal to Sally to release Felicia. She adamantly refuses. Eric is livid and vows that Felicia will never work for her.

JULIE HATCHES A PLAN:

Julie makes an appointment with Sally. When Clarke hears of it, his heart sinks. Ms. Delorean arrives and requests that her meeting with Sally be private. Despite his fear that Julie will betray him to Sally, a panicky Clarke has no alternative but to leave them alone in the office. Julie lies, telling Sally that she has a husband and that the two of them feel the real story is about Sally Spectra Garrison and want to write a book about her. Sally is relieved to hear Julie is married and thrilled to be the subject of a book.

STREET RULES:

Stranded on the streets after her mild stroke, a confused Stephanie Forrester is learning about survival from her new friend, Ruthanne. She's aghast at the living conditions in the condemned hotel. Ruthanne's offer of dinner (canned baked beans) and accommodations ( a filthy mattress on the floor) reduces Stephanie to tears, but her alternative is a park bench, so Mrs. Forrester. grits her teeth and settles down for the night.

Next morning after little sleep, Stephanie tells Ruthanne she could never learn to live like this. Why doesn't she look for a job? the wealthy woman inquires of her protector. What would she wear to a job interview? Ruthanne laughs bitterly, attempting to explain to Stephanie how life on the streets is about survival: finding your next meal, keeping warm. Ruthanne suggests they go to the police, but Stephanie doesn't understand why. Ruthanne's getting tired of Stephanie's confusion and lack of gratitude and begins to leave. Mrs. Forrester panics and begs Ruthanne not to leave her alone.

TINKLE,TINKLE:

Jake is again beginning to question himself: Did he just imagine his childhood sexual abuse at the hands of his father? He confides his doubts to Margo, who finds it difficult to believe that Jake isn't sure about what happened. She invites him and Felicia to a nice dinner with her and Bill, and Jake thinks it's a great idea, until the tinkling sound that periodically torments him returns. It's starting to drive him crazy. He rushes from the room, telling Margo that he must go see someone.

Jake barges into Dr. Hayes office and insists on speaking to her, He tells Taylor that he's afraid he's losing his mind and describes the tinkling sounds he hears. She suspects his auditory hallucinations are related to sexual abuse. She assures him he didn't simply imagine the abuse, and Jake decides to go home and resolve this issue once and for all.

WEIRD SCIENCE:

Eric discovers Brooke conducting an experiment at home in a quest to make cloth diapers waterproof. Her husband is impressed and when Brooke says she misses working at the hospital, Eric suggests they build a lab for her at Forrester. She's thrilled.

BACK AT SPECTRA:

Felicia's feeling gloomy about working at Spectra, but Sally warns her that she'd better put her heart into her designs because Felicia's reputation is on the line. Later, Felicia tries again to avoid the inevitable, asking Macy to help her get out of the contract with Sally.

Later, Ridge tries to involve Thorne in Felicia's problem. Can't he speak to Sally? As her son-in-law, Ridge notes, he must have some influence over her decisions.

DON'T LEAVE ME:

Stephanie and Ruthanne got to the police, but they're too busy to be of much help to the two homeless women and suggest the unlikely duo contact Social Services. Stephanie's upset but Ruthanne promises not to abandon her.

JUST FRIENDS?:

Clarke's upset with Julie for planning a book on Sally. Julie says she knows it's over between them but she hopes they can still be friends. Then she embraces the ambitious designer, kissing him passionately. Clarke finds that he can't help but respond with the same fervor.

[DRW50]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIC03AAq9P4

[soapfan770]

Thanks for yr9190 for those synopses and review of B&B. I agree with you its a shame we don't have many early Macy clips. Macy was one of my favorite characters throughout the 90s, although I wouldn't have necessarily called her a sad sack like Hinsey did.

Here's a review from 2000 by soap columnist Tom Smith :

[DRW50]

All Brad Bell ever did was ignore natural story opportunities. That's why he can only write about bad attempts at social issues, and relatives nailing each other.

I thought the Becky story was good, and not campy, but they shouldn't have killed her off. That was also the last story Amber had which didn't suck.

[juniorz1]

GIVE ME THE BROOKE/THORNE/MACY ARTICLE!

[Marley]

So much Amber hate in that article...I love it & agree 100%.

I also loved the Becky storyline and would've preferred if she stayed. I had forgotten how everyone knew Becky was dying except for Becky that is.

[DRW50]

Becky found out when she got a phone call right before the wedding.

It was a waste to kill her off and then an even bigger waste to get rid of Mick Cain.

[DRW50]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wuf6iUvfYzQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcK3ASry1DY&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

[soapfan770]

Here ya go

[DRW50]

Thanks for sharing this. I thought Brooke and Thorne were a strong couple, in spite of the bad writing. I did hate what they did to Macy.

[DRW50]

For now I'm only including the B&B recaps from 1992 after Sheila arrived. If anyone wants to see more I will include those. I have a few other 1992 issues elsewhere, can't get to them at the moment.

August 4 issue.

September 19 issue.