I'll go first:

B&B

- While not perfect, the show is currently in the best shape it's been in since 2003.

Y&R

- Genie Francis is terrific as Genevieve Atkinson. I know she wasn't well liked in her first few months on her show, but I'm currently watching June 2011 episodes and I LOVE her campy take on the character, despite the overall wretchedness of the storyline. Although I never saw Francis on GH, so I don't have that to compare it to. I'd love to see her on B&B in a Sally Spectra/Jackie Marone type role.

- Phyllis is one of very few characters to actually flourish under MAB (save for the Lucy custody madness). And of course, I still consider La Stafford to be the best actress in daytime.

- Maura West was AT LEAST as miscast as Diane as Shari Shattuck was as Ashley.

Waste of space Brenda is mostly a legacy of GH's decline.

So was returning "nostalgia" Lucky who some forget left of his own choice some 10 years before his return.

Making lucky and robin leads had very little to do with fixing any problems this show has had.it's a lot deeper than that. From my perspective based on airtime and focus, Lucky was a lead with the same crappy writing the other leads got.

Edited April 17, 201213 yr by JaneAusten

As much as I never got JJ or cared about the L&L "legacy," I could understand it. Brenda was essentially a very popular character for a few years, burnt out, with no real ties to GH's past. It would be like calling Jax a "legacy character."

As much as I never got JJ or cared about the L&L "legacy," I could understand it. Brenda was essentially a very popular character for a few years, burnt out, with no real ties to GH's past. It would be like calling Jax a "legacy character."

I would agree with that I just don't think making Brenda or Robin or Lucky or whoever leads is some auto fix with the same crappy writing.

I actually don't think the writing is necessarily the problem on GH. The problem is the over reliance on the mob trio - that is what has killed this show. Had the show focused on other areas with the same interest like the hospital, the police department or even on corporate storylines with the likes of ELQ, Crimson and the like the shows quality would improve immensely. GH sucks because of the over indulgence in the mob stories which stems from the same three characters. Anything would be better then seeing Carson with Jason every single day in every single storyline in someway.

Edited April 17, 201213 yr by Skin

As much as I never got JJ or cared about the L&L "legacy," I could understand it. Brenda was essentially a very popular character for a few years, burnt out, with no real ties to GH's past. It would be like calling Jax a "legacy character."

THIS! It would be like calling Sonny's children legacies. Also like to add that I don't consider the Cassadine's and everyone related to them legacy characters.

It would be like calling Sonny's children legacies.

Waste of space Brenda is mostly a legacy of GH's decline.

Can I get an AMEN! She still believes in her own hype. VMG has no idea that her daytime star power is nonexistent! Idiot!

ANDREA

Hope's return was the worst thing to happen to Bo on Days.

Agreed, if only because I think RKK would have lasted much longer had she not returned. I wanted her back too, but maybe they could have waited another 6 months to a year to really solidify Bo & Billie as a couple. I remember when Hope returned, Billie was devastated because she was just then finally getting her chance at a real relationship with Bo. Not an easy point to do a balanced triangle from.

He did come back as Rinna was leaving, but i believe the deal was made before Rinna quit as she was one of the more vocal people against RKK. Im not sure though. I do think he would have survived, and I think Billie would have been insta Recasted instead of the break or Carly would have been brought back or they would have had him in something new as the character and actor had proved it could work away from Hope.

I thought Kristian Alfonso and Sweeney were the most vocal and Rinna sort of hopped on at the end, as she saw how it was going? I always got the impression that Rinna and RKK got along IRL. And Rinna's no fool- her chemistry with RKK was RED HOT and certainly eclipsed Alfonso's (who I actually thought had a lot of chemistry with him as well, just different than with Reckell).

Are you positive? If so, would you mind elaborating a little?

Believe it or not, I think that particular story had "on paper" potential. If nothing else, it would have given us more Maggie and a different side to Mickey's personality. Unfortunately, the whole idea was sunk once Mickey was recast with John Ingle.

I respectfully disagree. No way could John Clarke have sold that material believably, nor would he have been the least bit entertaining in the storyline. I mean, can you even imagine Clarke in that cowboy getup they had Mickey in on the episode where he did the two step with Bonnie? It just wouldn't have worked, plus Clarke didn't want a lot of airtime anymore. Not only as this more airtime, but it was a front burner storyline! Hell, he had offered to be the one killed off instead of SR's Maggie because he was ready to GO! Imagine how pissed he'd have been when he found out that he'd have to return in a later part of the storyline!

I agree that Ingle never captured the essence of Mickey and was a total miscast for the role BUT he was a good choice to play out this particular storyline.

I actually don't think the writing is necessarily the problem on GH. The problem is the over reliance on the mob trio - that is what has killed this show. Had the show focused on other areas with the same interest like the hospital, the police department or even on corporate storylines with the likes of ELQ, Crimson and the like the shows quality would improve immensely. GH sucks because of the over indulgence in the mob stories which stems from the same three characters. Anything would be better then seeing Carson with Jason every single day in every single storyline in someway.

They did more of it up until the mid 2000s. The Q's were not the center of the show but they had more presence. Characters like Skye, Emily, Dillon were all written for. Nikolas and Alexis had more story.I don't think any of that made the show any better.

They did more of it up until the mid 2000s. The Q's were not the center of the show but they had more presence. Characters like Skye, Emily, Dillon were all written for. Nikolas and Alexis had more story.I don't think any of that made the show any better.

I agree. Watching NEM and there campiness made me tune out and neither were fit to be leads which they basically were for a few years, The Cassadine crap was tiring and pointless,Skye was much better on AMC than GH.

Okay, here's some of my unpopular opinions:

DAYS- I preferred Judi Evans as Bonnie over Adrienne and wished they had left it that way.

I'm truly enjoying Patrick Muldoon this time around and will miss him if he leaves.

I have never liked Christie Clark as Carrie, ESPECIALLY in the 90s. She sucked the life out of every scene she was in, yet she was the DAYS token Emmy nom in the mid 90s year after year!

I don't think Doug & Julie should be the new Tom & Alice because Julie is NOTHING like Alice and never will be. Maggie better fits that role. HOWEVER, I do think there's a place for them on the canvas on a regular basis. Susan Seaforth Hayes's Julie is the ONLY DAYS character that I make sure to tune in for every episode that I know she'll be in and every episode of her frequent returns. I don't think I'm the only one.

Y&R I don't think MAB is the problem, or at least the largest part of it. I think Sheffer & Hamner are the largest issue with the behind the scenes issues on Y&R.

I LOVE Stephen Nichols as Tucker and loathed him as Patch on DAYS.

I think Loving was a better soap than OLTL ever was and was the 2nd best Nixon creation, behind AMC of course.

Except for the Josh Madden storyline and her last year and a half on AMC, I actually think Megan McTavish was one of the best writers in AMC's history and gave me far more winners than losers, story-wise. No, she'll never equal Lorraine Broderick's 90s tenure for me (she wrote MW's Liza better than any other writer during Liza's return IMO) but she was still very strong.

I absolutely LOVVVVED JFP's OLTL. Yes, I am a huge JFP fan as a producer, but I was more into OLTL than any other soap during her tenure, especially during 2000. It was unlike any other JFP production I'd seen before and at the very least, the show looked great.

Since we're discussing looks, I'll express some unpopular opinions:

In spite of his orange glow, Clairol-colored hair, and short stature, Maurice Benard is still a good looking man. I'll go further to say that if his character were written as well as it was in the 90s, then he'd be regarded as such.

As much as I loathed TSJ's smarmy and lazy "version" of Frodd and consider RoHo to be a far better actor, I must admit that TSJ does trump RoHo in the looks department.

I have no idea why some act as if Steve Burton looks as fresh as he did 15 years ago (I say "fresh" because I thought he was rather bland in the looks department back then), since he's looked like hot fried anus since 2005.

Another thing that has perplexed me is the fawning over Kelly Monaco's "hotness", as she is essentially tits on a stick with enough cargo under her eyes to pay baggage fees.

Although Charles Divins was the conventionally better looking Chad, I much preferred Donn Swaby (i.e.: the original Chad) in part because I thought that his everyday looks worked better with the character than Divins' GQ handsomeness.

While I liked both Gwens, I thought that Natalie Zea's looks made her a more believable aristocrat than Liza Huber's. Though I never believed that lie that the show tried to sell me about Gwen being a snobby bitch, I thought that Zea had the edge to play it either way because of her looks.

I think RKK probably would have had a short shelf life on DAYS no matter what. He was never at any of his soaps for too long, and I don't think either of his AW stints ended happily at all.

Lucky and Robin were characters who could have pushed the show away from the mob and are characters viewers have history with. Which is why I think they should have been valued characters instead of the same triangle of suck who have destroyed GH. They were a valuable alternative.

I concur.

I'll also add that not only is VMG is well worth the hype that she has receives, but that Brenda Barrett is the last truly successful original character that had zero familial ties to the canvas that GH has ever had. The fact that GH has tried and failed to duplicate her one-of-a-kind appeal via bootleg versions (Sam) speaks volumes. Frankly, I'd love the smell of my own sh!t, too, if the mere mention of my name still resonates twenty years later.

Edited April 17, 201213 yr by VirginiaHamilton

As much as I loathed TSJ's smarmy and lazy "version" of Frodd and consider RoHo to be a far better actor, I must admit that TSJ does trump RoHo in the looks department.

His face has looked like sh!t in recent years. The eye bags were often the most interesting thing about him onscreen.