What storylines do you think soap operas would never do?

[AlexElizabeth]

[Gray Bunny]

Not to be rude, but for some, that would be like literally looking in a mirror, only the "friends dropping by for a visit" are the soap characters they're watching on TV for 1 hour a day (or half-hour, if you're a B&B fan).

Some of these topics are just too depressing. Escapism would go out the window and suicide rates of shut-ins would increase.

[cassadine1991]

That's taking it a bit over the top

[Khan]

But they have a point. Even I, who gets all sanctimonious and self-righteous at the mere mention of soaps being escapist fare and nothing else, believe there are some topics that, for whatever reason, just wouldn't work on a traditional soap opera.

Q: I've read how Y&R had their characters break into song back in the day. Anyone know why Bill Bell phased out that stuff?

[titan1978]

Was Bradley still abusing Beth on Guiding Light? I know she was a teen by the time we met her.

[NothinButAttitude]

That's what I was going to reply with--that with the right team, it can be done and handled properly. It might be a little tough for the audience to swallow, but that's daytime. Daytime was the original genre to push the envelope. Look at Roger/Holly's marital rape. It was a tough pill to swallow but it lead to many women speaking out about being raped, and it's one of GL's most memorable and renowned stories. That story alone set the foundation for multiple stories till GL's end. It was that powerful.

And replying to EllaBelle, I respect your opinion; however, most child actors have the mindset of a grown person. I think they'd be able to handle this type of material. Not a 3 or 4 year old, but I think a young actor from about 8-15 would be able to handle it. We learn about "good touch, bad touch early on." The concept wouldn't be new to them, and I think a w/ production and their parents would make them realize that this fake (the acting itself) BUT it's a serious story that occurs to many their age.

And no one is asking that show the actual molestation on screen. It can be implied and hinted too before the attack occurs. I just think that it's a good story to tell and one that should be told. EastEnders had the balls to do it. Why can't we?

It was bit before my time, but I think he was.

[BKuzak]

done it...well sort of. Todd Manning was "raped" by that evil Margret Cockran on One Life to LIve. Although they weren't involved. She just had a sick obsession with him so she kidnapped him and raped him. Of course we now consiser that man to be Victor Lord Clayton but that's a whole other story. LOL The man being raped is a storyline that is rarely shown.

and about "kinky sex", I know on One Life, they hinted that Alex Hessor and her husband Carlo also had a very kinky sex life. I don't know how graphic that got either.

[cassadine1991]

I honestly think that the higher-ups cater to a certain fan demographic that is preventing them from "GOING THERE" with several storylines and are afraid of losing those viewers

Look at the uproar over the new content of AMC/OLTL 2.0 before they were even streamed

Also, they folks in charge just don't care

[Days22]

Cant say I ever want to see a child molestation story. :/

[sivad40]

That pretty much sums it up for me. I remember the pearl clutching that was going in numerous GH threads over siblings Britt and Nathan possibly hooking up before they found out they were related. I remember there was pearl clutching over the Cassandra storyline in the AMC thread. Y&R had a cult storyline scrapped in part because the TPTB was afraid of the fan's reaction to it. I could go on and on.

[amybrickwallace]

Getting back to the Passions/ape thing, I don't think "Precious" and Luis count as far as bestiality goes because they never, ahem, went all the way. Unless I missed an episode or two. (Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww...)

[Cheap21]

By your own description here, it hasn't been done. I don't think that's quite what was being asked about here

[amybrickwallace]

Getting back to the cult thing, I know that EON had to rewrite the evil Elliot Dorn as a gigolo instead of a cult leader because that was right when the mass suicides in Jonestown occurred and made worldwide headlines.

[cassadine1991]

That was for the best

[amybrickwallace]

I agree. The wounds were still so raw from what Jim Jones had done that changing that EON story was ultimately for the best. I know that Mitch Laurence came on OLTL as a cult leader of some kind, but that was several years later.