Sony and Corday should move the show to CBS and leave NBC.

CBS is doing just fine, I doubt they want any more soaps.

Get rid of THIS:

He's not the main problem but YES get rid of this beast.

The biggest difference between the shows is that many of the people on GL still tried. Many of the actors on DAYS seem to have given up.

I said that on another board. The actors come across as tired, uninterested, and bored. I swear if you watch John Aniston when he's in the background, his eyes are closed. And how many times does Melissa Reeves have to play out the scenes where Jennifer mourns Jack after he dies? And when their characters do something out of character, the actors show that they're annoyed and frustrated.

Edited January 4, 201312 yr by MrQuartermaine

In my opinion, Days of our Lives never recovered from Jim Reilly leaving in 1997 to create Passions and try to fix Sunset Beach. Sally Sussman held it together, but Tom Langan totally shot it all to hell by writing 'Reilly stories' without the Reilly panache. Then, every writer post Tom Langan was left trying to recreate a moment that had long passed. So they brought Jim Reilly back. Henry Slesar and Bill Bell could write two half hour shows in the 70s, but Jim Reilly couldn't write two hour long programs in the 00s, not because he wasn't talented, but because it was just too much work. Even though I will go to my grave saying that the Salem Serial Killer was pure genius up until they all came back alive.

Days of our Lives has had three distinct periods, The Bell Era, The Super-couple Era, and The Reilly Era. Everything before, after and in between those periods was just meh.

What stands out about those three eras was that Days had a clearly defined identity and purpose. A clear vision. Bill Bell's Days was messy and psychological and engaging. Even though the super-couple era was complete ripoff of GH, Days shamelessly took the format and ran with it and never apologized for doing so and in many ways bested GH at its own game. The Reilly Era was classic soap opera for a new generation. Pure soap opera bones filled with, Harlequin romance, over the top insanity, Gothic characters, and the supernatural Even people who hated Jim Reilly had to see what he was going to do next.

Days is currently stuck and has been for 16 years. The same way that it was stuck in that period between Bill Bell and the super-couples. The same way it was stuck in that period between the super-couples and Jim Reilly.

The way to fix Days is to simply do what Bell in the 60s, those poached GH writers in the 80s, and Jim Reilly in the 90s did. Blow it up and reimagine. Take the show into a whole new world and do something different, while at the same time keeping it a soap opera. I'm not saying throw away characters and history, but I am saying get rid of dead weight, tighten the show, and refocus. You're gonna piss off fanbases and like good plastic surgery, the show is gonna be bloody and swollen and bruised for a while, but the end result will be worth it. The show can be saved, if someone really wants to save it. and it is not going to happen under Gary Tomlin and Chris Whitesell, (the Nina Laemmle and Gene Palumbo of 2013

In my opinion, Days of our Lives never recovered from Jim Reilly

This is where it starts and ends for me. I know it is heresy in some circles, but there it is. I know the show got big numbers from the man, but it ripped away - IMO - any semblance small-town sense Days' Salem had to do it, in terms of being grounded in a sense of realism while stuff happened to the inhabitants.

The '80s, for instance, started the larger-than-life stuff but, somehow, it still managed a sense ironically of still being that small town with families in the midst.

Reilly did shock value for its own sake, IMO, not out of any organic story issue. The stunts were cool for a while, but then it just got too out there, too far away from what the show was once about. And once the stunts started going in circles, once Reilly couldn't top his own stuff and started repeating, and once he started putting his strange personal beliefs ahead of the characters and their history (Bo and Hope could never reunite because Bo made a promise to Billie under God? What?! IT'S A SOAP!), that was the first nail in the show's coffin so long ago.

I know many will disagree with me here, and that's cool. But Reilly was the first harbinger of Days' doom, and his comeback only worsened it. He changed the very fabric and while the short-term gain was great, the lasting effect turned the show into camp city and the acting suffered for it, and never completely righted itself.

Reilly did amazing things for Days in the 90s. He truly brought the show new life and changed it.

The problem is the show has never moved on. Days lives in the past. It trys to bring back old supercouples and the feel of the 90's instead of finding a new idenity and sticking with it. The show actually did this for some time under, shockingly, Dena. Her days was very character based, multi generational, mixed up characters and had long term umbrella stories that had payoff. But it only lasted for about two years and then became stale.

MAB who truly hated Y&R

I'm intrigued. Is this comment based solely on the quality of MAB's show or did you hear this from someone in the know?

Reilly did amazing things for Days in the 90s. He truly brought the show new life and changed it.

The problem is the show has never moved on. Days lives in the past. It trys to bring back old supercouples and the feel of the 90's instead of finding a new idenity and sticking with it. The show actually did this for some time under, shockingly, Dena. Her days was very character based, multi generational, mixed up characters and had long term umbrella stories that had payoff. But it only lasted for about two years and then became stale.

Agreed. When Days re-imagined itself as a gothic soap about many families interacting across the generations, that is when it seemed to have real potential to move forward.

The potential is still there. The ingredients are there. But they are being used so blandly. Like Tomlin and Whitsell are petrified of thinking outside the box. Where is the heart? The excitement? Some people think excitement = speeding up stories but as Toups pointed out last month, Brady and Kristen sleeping together was rushed way too fast and should have been drawn out from a kiss to lusty dreams to the final act for maximum tension over the space of 3-6 months.

So according to us here, Days needs to:

- drastically improve storytelling.

- Up the tension/mystery/romance/a few out-there SLs and their pay-off. Make it fun and never boring.

- Re-jig the shooting schedule so that mistakes can be fixed according to viewer reaction (I suggest 1.5 months in advance).

- Fire Dr. McHairychest.

- Rebuild the younger set. I'd bring back JKJ, Shelley Hennig and Mark Hapka as a start.

- Retain the interaction between generations.

- Improve production standards (mostly a lighting and directing issue and shouldn't necessarily cost $$$).

- Bring back Bo.

Edited January 4, 201312 yr by Cat

The way to fix Days is to simply do what Bell in the 60s, those poached GH writers in the 80s, and Jim Reilly in the 90s did. Blow it up and reimagine. Take the show into a whole new world and do something different, while at the same time keeping it a soap opera. I'm not saying throw away characters and history, but I am saying get rid of dead weight, tighten the show, and refocus. You're gonna piss off fanbases and like good plastic surgery, the show is gonna be bloody and swollen and bruised for a while, but the end result will be worth it.

Same.

Poor Gary and Chris to be called that!

True dat, but it's a pretty effing apt comparison if you ask me. As I've said before, I appreciate Gary Tomlin for bringing DAYS back to basics, both as HW, and before as Co-EP. But this guy (and Chris Whitesell's) heart clearly isn't in doing anything exciting or worthwhile for this show or its fans.

I'd say DAYS is in a better place than GL. The budget cuts have been severe but they can still afford to have big events (like the "Daysaster"). They aren't being run by a company and network that wants out of the soap business.

The biggest difference between the shows is that many of the people on GL still tried. Many of the actors on DAYS seem to have given up.

Same to this as well.

He's not the main problem but YES get rid of this beast.

Or at least restrict his access to self-tanning lotions and tanning beds.

This is where it starts and ends for me. I know it is heresy in some circles, but there it is. I know the show got big numbers from the man, but it ripped away - IMO - any semblance small-town sense Days' Salem had to do it, in terms of being grounded in a sense of realism while stuff happened to the inhabitants.

For the third time today: "Same."

How about doing a little bit of all three eras? I would like to see DAYS build our families back up and reunite our supercouples and give us some fun, exciting adventure stories and give us some of the craziness of the 90s like Carly being buried alive, etc but at the same time not losing it's identity it had in the 60s and 70s and as a show based on family stories and drama.

I just saw the Jan 1st episode and I have to say the scene with Kristen laying in to John was brilliant. You had a nod to history, even with Kristen's slant on what happened, character development and motivation, good dialogue and great performances. Even Drake impressed me when he seemed so sad for Kristen while she was recounting how she felt and then angry and disgusted when she talked about Brady. While Eileen going from heartbroken to angry to just plain evil was amazing. This is the potential Days has and the richness of character that is being wasted on this show. Most of the characters on the canvas have the opportunity to be complex and interesting if given the chance. Even Gabi and Nick believe it or not.

I also liked Will confronting Nick the day after, Chandler seemed defiant yet slightly intimidated and though I dislike Nick he did shut Will down, despite the fact I got the sense Will had no interest in letting things go. Again so much of what they need in this show is there, and those two scenes showed me it is possible with the right writers.

I think Days can do the Bell era easily as I said these characters have the potential for something deeper. I do agree with others about what needs to change though and it is going to take a brilliant EP and HW to make it happen.

Edited January 5, 201312 yr by will81

I agree the potential is there. It absolutely is. The problem is the show just doesn't know what it is anymore.

Who wrote the new years episode? They did a great job. That person needs to be head writer. But I'm sure Ken won't hire somebody who would give us good dialogue, character development, good stories and lots intriguing scenes. Instead he will do something stupid like hire writers who didn't work on other soaps or who didn't work on DAYS. Sigh :/

Edited January 5, 201312 yr by doolfan

Who wrote the new years episode? They did a great job. That person needs to be head writer. But I'm sure Ken won't hire somebody who would give us good dialogue, character development, good stories and lots intriguing scenes. Instead he will do something stupid like hire writers who didn't work on other soaps or who didn't work on DAYS. Sigh :/

That would be Melissa Salmons. And yeah, she's been the best thing to happen to the writing staff in awhile. Fantastic episode. The 1/3 episode wasn't bad either. I totally buy the Eric/Sami as brother/sister. I'm hoping the energy in these episodes continues, but I'm not holding my breath.