Ratings for the week March 25-29, 2013

Definitely haven't checked my brain at the door, but I disagree. They're certainly not perfect and the stories and the characters would benefit from a lot more fleshing out, but it all entertains me. I can't say that about the Guza years where yes there was stuff I loved, but more stuff that I hated. And most importantly for me, GH is miles above my other former soap, Days. There's simply no comparison. We all have our own reasons for watching and our own standards for what's acceptable. I'll take Ron & Frank's version of Port Charles any day over Tomsell's crapfest version of Salem.

Why do people always have to defend HackTini in contrast to some other head writer? I already acknowledged that people seem to like them better than Guza. They're better than Dena Higley too. Ok? That the bar is set so low and people will settle for it is not a referendum on how good they are.

This is one of the problems I have with our saviors. They are constantly hyped as the best ever in soap. They are Doug Marland. They're better than Doug Marland. And so forth. But most of the actual praise I hear about them is hey, someone else is worse.

I didn't see this before I posted. Well said.

Edited April 7, 201312 yr by rhinohide

Without hacktini we would have a cancelled Gh. I think we all saw we really wish they wouldn't come so Gh could have been finished. It was a done deal.

Without hacktini we would have a cancelled Gh. I think we all saw we really wish they wouldn't come so Gh could have been finished. It was a done deal.

NOT TRUE! That's all...

I'll be unpopular: If all that was left was to turn GH into some campy piece of [!@#$%^&*] with invasions from dead soaps and gutting existing characters to suit plot, maybe GH SHOULD HAVE been canceled.

RC/FV suck as much as Guza/JFP. It's just a different KIND of suck, not lesser. At least to me.

And at least if GH had been axed, maybe PP could have also picked it up and gave it a chance with people that actually give a s.h.i.t and just not surface stunts (i.e. bringing vets back but doing jack s.h,i.t with them).

Edited April 8, 201312 yr by Wendy

I think both DAYS and GH come across to me as being written well right now, although I am a relative newcomer of three months to DAYS and it's only been 11 episodes since I started watching GH again after stopping watching it in 1997. I'd previously watched GH for a few years in the mid-90s in junior high and high school, a glorious time.

DAYS is largely character-driven, with schemes and dilemmas for characters such as Kristen, Brady, Will, Sonny, Rafe, Kate, Sami, EJ, Nick, Gabi, and Nicole arising from their places in life, what they want, and what they have experienced, with intersections between stories and a feeling of community.

GH is using characters and relationships from its history for new stories in the present day. To say that GH brought vets back but isn't doing anything with them is inaccurate in my view. If anything, the vets have more to do the past couple weeks than newer characters. Laura is searching for her missing daughter and is in love with Scotty but always has a connection to Luke. Lucy is running the Nurses Ball, no small endeavor. AJ is in a feud with Tracy for control of ELQ. Brenda is back to deal with her addiction -- Sonny -- while Carly fumes at Brenda's seflishness. Anna is the police commissioner and thus always has a role in any crimes, in addition to having some story with Duke. Felicia has to choose between Frisco and Mac. Frisco has also been trying to get through to his daughter about telling the truth about her baby. None of this is particularly campy to me, although there is humor and fun. Also, there's something to be said just for having familiar faces who are back and able to be consulted.

You say that people praise "saviors" based on their being better than someone else, Carl, but I think that's just a subtext. It's not the main thing people say. There's also been no one on this board who's said Ron Carlivati is another Doug Marland that I'm aware of; you said you saw that on another board.

Carlivati didn't succeed Guza directly ... It's not just because he isn't Guza that people talk about him. There was already a "not Guza", Garin Wolf, who did not succeed at raising the ratings.

Edited April 8, 201312 yr by jfung79

This board is very balanced about "Cartini." It's some other boards and sites where, every time I go to them, it's feet-washing time.

Ratings are out! All soaps continue to be up year to year. So glad! GH solid in the ratings and should be even stronger in the actual anniversary week.

DAYS's slight drop means we don't have to worry TPTB will think the Jennifer/Daniel/Chloe story was a huge ratings grabber, thank goodness.

Edited April 8, 201312 yr by jfung79

That is awesome.

*fist pump*

This is one of the problems I have with our saviors. They are constantly hyped as the best ever in soap. They are Doug Marland. They're better than Doug Marland. And so forth. But most of the actual praise I hear about them is hey, someone else is worse.

I have never once claimed that they're the best ever, nor do I for minute believe that they are. I see many of the problems that drive their critics crazy. I choose to ignore them for the most part, lol. (the critics and the problems).

Toups, if you check in a quick question for you. What do you make of GH gaining 303,000 viewers and only gaining 17,000 in the 18-49 demo? A 6% demo bounce seems a mighty small percentage, IMO.

GH viewership is really skewing older than ever before.

For comparison, here are the March averages for 2 years prior to RCi:

Mar 2010 2,575,250 887,250

Mar 2011 2,734,250 795,000

Teameric nobody is paying attention to that as Vicki drummer the prexy said Gh is up fifty percent in demo. I don't think I have anything more prompted in years on Gh then this anniversary and ball. Geary on the view, genie on the chew, the Katie Couric talk show Gh episode, the soapnet marathon, the 20/20 episode And now two abc execs calling frank and Ron miracle workers and the saviors of Gh and the press is buzzing huge. Ron and frank are gods to the soap world given all the hype.

. I see many of the problems that drive their critics crazy. I choose to ignore them for the most part, lol. (the critics and the problems).

And that's really all I meant by leave your brain at the door. I'm sorry I overstated. I'm enjoying the hell out of Y&R right now. But I FF and ignore a lot.

And now two abc execs calling frank and Ron miracle workers and the saviors of Gh and the press is buzzing huge. Ron and frank are gods to the soap world given all the hype.

This. The hype is ridiculous given the product. I don't think it holds water.

Teameric nobody is paying attention to that as Vicki drummer the prexy said Gh is up fifty percent in demo. I don't think I have anything more prompted in years on Gh then this anniversary and ball. Geary on the view, genie on the chew, the Katie Couric talk show Gh episode, the soapnet marathon, the 20/20 episode And now two abc execs calling frank and Ron miracle workers and the saviors of Gh and the press is buzzing huge. Ron and frank are gods to the soap world given all the hype.

I recall Frons spinning some pretty numbers too. The overall numbers don't lie. GH is skewing older. The spikes aren't translating to gains in the 18-49 demo which sets the ad rates.

Actually I'm surprised with all the mainstream press GH received this last month, GH lost viewers 3 out of 4 months in March. I'm more surprised the Friday before the anniversary was only 1.9. I just expected far higher viewership based on all that free publicity.

Edited April 8, 201312 yr by TeamEric

If this board is balanced towards Cartini, then Carolyn Hinsey is a respected television critic.

looking for GH numbers to drop so she can be pat herself on the back again for knowing that RC sucks as a writer

*dead* I love you Cheap lol

NOT TRUE! That's all...

Actually it is, and it's not a matter of opinion, it's been said ad nauseum if they hadn't turned the show around it would have been cancelled, ABC was on the verge of it, even the actors said they knew the axe was coming

That is awesome.

*fist pump*

LMAO so were you fist pumping when the show dropped ratings like a week or so ago? We have no way to know what causes rises or drops. I could say "woohoo Connie not being on screen for weeks is what made the ratings rise" but then one could argue that her not being onscreen made them drop when they did.

Edited April 8, 201312 yr by dragonflies