GH: Week of May 27 Discussion

[Cheap21]

James Franco was still playing a character, not himself, so I don't see this as any different than any other recast, no matter how preposterous the story.

Franco had longer brunette hair. He's since cut it and dyed it blonde.

[Juliajms]

I just can't with this madness. I actually enjoy a lot of Ron's GH, but this is just such a huge mistake. I can't wrap my mind around it.

[alexisfan07]

Oh right, duh haha

[EricMontreal22]

Wait, Franco was involved in Michael's rape? I obviously missed something but, yech.

EVEN if there's a further twist and their prob is and somehow this is a different Franco or whatever, it's still beyond ridiculous and insulting--so viewers can feel free to love him cuz he only made Sam THINK she was raped. Fun.

In an AMC thread someone complained that the show was misogynistic because they cut between the uncomfortable sex trafficking story (which so far I personally think they have managed to walk the thin line of not making exploitative, but fair enough viewers mileage can vary) and then had David shouting about the supposed abortion of his child being murder. I disputed that.

However, that's how I felt very much with GH today. The two main plots were this serial rapist/murderer torturing his victims with info about whether he did it or not, and Lulu basically saying she was forced into sex by a mad man and his crazy mother to save her family (and though it may be misleading, in the preview for the next episode, we have Dante shouting at her that sleeping with him is very different than kissing, making it sound like he is blaming her.) Fun show!

[EricMontreal22]

If this is genuinely Franco (or even if it isn't) what's the point with revisiting the character?? The *only* interest nearly anyone had in the character was that James Franco was playing him--and thoughts about the way he played him varied wildly (I often like James' work--and sometimes hate it--but it wasn't like he brought anything to the show IMHO.) And sorry, RH is no James Franco when it comes to looks.

[Antoyne]

Just watching Howarth's reveal as Franco and I'm missing all the money JFP/Guza blew on production values whenever Franco was on. This reveal is so cheap looking in comparison.

[EricMontreal22]

It could work in a typical soap manner, or at least I could maybe accept it, if RH as Todd hadn't just been on the show. I think that's too much to expect from soap fans--who are used to suspending a lot of disbelief anyway.

[EricMontreal22]

Isn't Roger still uncomfortable with these kinds of roles? I mean I accepted I guess that he came to terms with Todd, but why sign on for an arguably even more heinous character (who surely he knows will be turned into a romantic lead.)

Ohand I didn't see ANYTHING in his performance today that didn't just seem like recent era jokey Todd.

[Vee]

• He was on the show less than three months ago for over a year as a very prominent soap character played by a very prominent soap star
• He is now taking on another very prominent role played by a Hollywood star whose personal RL identity was intertwined with the character, right down to the name
• Franco is a serial killer
• Franco had Michael raped

Stop me when I get to the parts which are not utterly impossible going forward.

[Antoyne]

RH fell straight into Todd today...Actually his current portrayal of Todd on OLTL is better and less hokey.

[DRW50]

I think he decided that having money for his family was more important. I can't blame him there, but it's unfortunate that the fans who screamed, "Rape me, Todd!" now essentially have the main voice in this character (especially since RH's Franco is just Todd by another name).

[Vee]

You know we've reached Funkytown when Todd on OLTL (not to mention Victor) seems like the sane, socially responsible alternative character he's playing on his days off.

I don't think Franco is Todd. He's not even Victor. He's RC's wet dream of what TSJ's Todd/Victor could've been if those pesky longtime viewers hadn't gotten in his way.

[EricMontreal22]

Exactly. Soaps don't have to explain a recast's changed appearance--sometimes they like to sometimes they don't--usually there's some ulterior reason to why they choose one direction or the other. BUT, that all goes out the window IMHO when the actor in the recast was JUST on the show months ago in a very prominent different role and nobody acknowledges that. It's a lot for soap fans to accept--sure hardcore RH fans will bend over backwards to take what they can get, but especially in an era where people argue that soaps need to start being a bit more realistic, it just screams of inanity (and insanity.) Of course RC at his worse seems to write his shows almost as a not-very-funny satire on soap cliches (which sometimes strike as mean spirited a sort of thumbing his nose at any fans who want to take the story and genre more-or-less seriously "Look how silly you soap fans are, you'll accept anything!")

[EricMontreal22]

No, I can't blame him either--maybe that's why he plays up the camp side with the role--how else can you play it?

I still think juxtaposing all this "Is Franco a rapist--oh he just pretended to be one! How cool" crap with Lulu talking about being raped (by another cartoon character, but no matter) made it all feel all the skeevier. Couldn't they at least have had the stories on different days (or maybe RC thought it was dramatic irony--Lulu's story making viewers think "Ah Stavros is what a real rapist is like--Franco just fake raped Sam so we like him!"--and so would help win fans over to FrankenTodd).

[DRW50]

The sad part of this is that if RKK was around more often you would see people saying he could rape them anytime. That is what's left of the genre.