Jump to content

Realism on Soap Operas


Recommended Posts

  • Replies 50
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • Members

They were probably assuming or hoping that no daytime drama fans would be reading that article.

What those comments told me though, was that, whether pursue that particular model, they are clearly looking for a way in to using "television"/streaming or whatever the latest model will be to sell their product via entertainment on some screen. All while leaving their history behind, hopefully forgotten.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Those are good questions Faulkner.

I am one that likes soaps being an hour long and would prefer they stay that way.. (Though half hour soaps are better than no soaps at all). I particularly like the longer soaps, for when there are big casts and lots of storylines going on. I like to see more of the characters/storylines in each episodes. I feel this way about primetime dramas, and most of them are usually an hour as well. 

Regarding half hour shows, back in the day Y&R did a good job with the half hour episodes. Their shows were nice and meaty, like that episode someone posted in the classic Y&R thread that showed the Brooks sister and their father coming together at the hospital for their mother. That was a very well done, filling 30 minutes. B&B on the other hand handles their half hour shows very poorly. They focus on the same few people over and over again, and the show feels like empty calories.

Edited by xtr
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

In a better world, I generally prefer hour-long shows too, as I love the big-canvas soaps (like Curlee’s GL) that networks can no longer afford. (GH is managing their larger cast relatively decently right now, but they’ve leaned down a bit.) 

I do wonder if Y&R would be better served creatively as a half-hour nowadays, as certainly the current content—which they’ve shown no interest in adjusting, despite wide dissatisfaction from viewers—doesn’t justify a full hour. But it could end up like its sister soap B&B, which hasn’t made good use of its trim runtime in years, as you say. (A 30-minute slot these days also has many more ads than the soaps we had years ago.)

I’m genuinely curious whether or not scaling down could ever be a viable option. Is it just easier to cancel something outright? At least in this country, aside from AW going back from 90 to 60 minutes in 1980 or a show completely rebooting years later (like the online AMC), you just don’t hear of it happening much. 

I know some set-in-their-ways fans would balk, but if offered the choice of a shorter, 30-minute show vs. no show at all, I feel like people would grudgingly come around. I know some posters have envisioned, instead of launching potentially expensive new programming, padding out the gaps with classic soap episodes, but that could be problematic for several reasons (one being that it’ll make it clear to viewers how inferior the current, shallow, low-budget shows are compared to soaps of yore). Plus, I’m not sure how ad sales-friendly it is.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Webmaster

Reducing the amount of content from one hour to half hour (really 36 minutes to 18/19 minutes after commercials) would drastically reduce the budget and the amount of cast the show has on contract. The long-term benefit, however, would be the ability to sell internationally and allows the show to become more bingeable on a streaming service. 

Without giving back a time slot, the network(s) could program whatever they want during the hours they own. Marketing wise, yes there would be a cost to launch a new daytime program, but no where near the outrageous prices Disney for instance spent  to launch "Katie" a few years back (roughly $80 million). I'd imagine the overall cost to produce more than programs in the five hours for CBS, three for ABC and essentially one hour for NBC would be equal to what they are spending now, but with any one hour getting two shows rather than one individual program it'll give the daytime lineups more diverse programming. At least that would be the hope.

I don't understand why networks think all daytime programming should consist of is soap operas, game shows and talk shows and primetime can be comedies, dramas, reality TV, and other genres. No one is watching TV on a schedule these days and reruns of primetime shows flourish on cable during the daytime hours. No reason they can't play around and take chances. Another tangent post. Sorry.

(This is no way means I want the networks to cancel the soaps or air reality shows in their place)

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



  • Recent Posts

    • I would appreciate (if they're not coming), for future scripts to refer to them by their iconic hairdos.  For example, if Hope needs to call Chelsea because Bo has Sepsis, I'd like Shawn-D to say, "My Mom called Chelsea (the one with the sassy short black hair) for an update." Also, new rule, if Melanie does return, she needs to dye her hair back to red.  I googled who she was five times during Victor's funeral.

      Please register in order to view this content

    • Broderick, thank you for all of the info [I edited for space]. I am so grateful for everyone filling in the blanks for me. I suspected the Nora/Eliot scene was very important and it was setting something up but I didn't know what. Can't wait to see it play out. The two actors had such a great back and forth. I should have made the Paige/Patty Hearst connection. I thought Paige was in love with Brian from the first episode I watched but it seemed as if they were brother and sister. Steve kept being affectionate with her so I assumed he was the love interest. Then she was affectionate with someone else and well..she's a very busy woman. I can't wait to see Frances Fisher show up. (I'm trying to be vague because I don't know what would be a spoiler in this storyline) Now it makes sense why Draper would be upset. I didn't get the whole background of why he didn't go to NY. I'm a sucker for good acting, so I might still side with April and Margo, if the writers don't give Draper more to do besides yelling.  He had more chemistry with Logan, but I know that's not happening.  Something else I noticed: the show really takes care with even the smallest parts. The acting is superb. Too often, I noticed on older soaps they don't take care with the recurring or day players (Ryan's Hope was so bad with this that I couldn't make it through some episodes). It's only been six episodes, but so far, the casting department was spot on.
    • I thought Dante was overreacting.  Gio made some mistakes but he's young and he tried.  It's not like he dragged two 14 years to a party and made them get blackout drunk.  Dante can have the initial upset reaction, but to go on and on was a bit much.  
    • His (adoptive) nieces.  Chelsea and Stephanie.  I think Abby was involved too, but I am not sure if they are related lol.
    • That was such a dark story. I never liked Swamp girl after that. And then the dating your cousin thing. I think wasn’t Max in a triangle with two of his cousins?
    • Thank you, @j swift.  I'm probably more sympathetic to Draper Scott than most audience members are -- even though I'm absolutely CRAZY about Ann Williams & her bizarre Margo Huntington character 

      Please register in order to view this content

      The more I watch these episodes -- and I've watched several of them a zillion times, I'm ashamed to admit -- you realize there's a WHOLE lot of passive-aggressive hostility brewing inside Margo Huntington about Draper.  She wants to take April AWAY from him and recreate the childhood that she never got to experience with April, because of the adoption 25 years ago.  Draper has sense enough to realize how heartless and vindictive Margo really is about other people's lives and their feelings, but he bites his tongue rather than poison his wife's mind about how horrible her mother really is.  And I admire him for that.  He's a sweet boy.   
    • Unfortunately, as the 90s wore on, Felicia started wearing as many gray and neutral tones as Giorgio Armani and Donna Karan could produce, and the shoulder pads deflated to a drop sleeve.
    • I think Dante is reacting how most parents would react. 
    • 5-2   Lord... At least the week started off well...I think. I don't know where to start.   Oh, yes, I do. It was mostly background noise to me. There was nothing to the majority of the characters that were on. Meaning, it was mostly characters that I didn't care for or I've gotten accustomed to just FF-ing through. Or just zoning out. Even the possibility that Michael and Lauren might have a story was just meh simply because we have done this dance before and Lauren was coming across like Michael was working for Sonny on GH the mob.   The biggest thing I really took away from last week was that the new costumer designer has stepped up her game again. It didn't bother me at all, but I wish there was some drama with this fashion. I liked Claire's outfit, LOVE Nikki's. And I continue to like brighter colors on Nick though I hated those pants. And I could go on about the clothes misses like Billy in that short sleeeve, but I digress.   The only things that held my interest...   THE SICKENING OF COLE. As soon as he started to cough, I went uh oh. I'm happy to see he might be getting a story. And I guess it shows how much history I have with the character that I care. But still...ugh.   ALL THINGS AUDRA. I admit that I was taken aback to see Victor with her at Crimson Lights. When was the last time he was there? I want to say recently with Kyle/Claire, but otherwise I still found the scene taking me aback. But I like her being soft with Kyle who actually came across annoyingly flirty for someone that hates Audra. I actually can't wait for him to eat crow. And since Audra is now being used to drive a wedge between Kyle and Claire, I have to talk about...   SUMMER'S EXIT. Mmmm...mixed feelings. It don't seem half as bad as others appear to see it. Yes, if I didn't have the context, it still seem odd that her part in the Kyle/Claire drama was barely touched on. And she interacted with everyone I felt she should interact with. But in the overall context...I still didn't mind the exit. Though it was abrupt.    I did like hearing that Noah and Allie are still together. And don't get me started on the offscreen Mariah drama. 
    • I'm sure old Reva/Josh fans saw the writing on the wall--and this was their pattern. They (or usually Josh) was so angry that they'd spend months yelling at each other, and then "boom", they were macking up on each other, regardless of who else they were entangled with. (This is the couple who slept together under HB's roof while Reva was married to him, after all.) "Always". *gag me*
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy