B&B: Bold from the beginning

[Maxim]

Who are you to tell people they are not elevated.... Who made you God?

[DramatistDreamer]

It was a plea more than anything. Feel free to simply ignore.

And I wasn't claiming that people weren't elevated, I said the level of discussion wasn't. There is a big difference.

[Videnbas]

To me, that is like asking me which star in the constellation of Orion is my favorite. They all catch my eye, some shine a bit brighter than others, but what really gives them meaning is their relationship to the other stars, and the pattern that emerges when you look at all of them together.

For me, the characters of early B&B were like stars in a constellation. They all work together to tell a story and paint a certain picture. It's impossible for me to reduce that complexity to a competition between teams. 

[Manny]

I never thought in my life that I would enjoy B&B. Based on what I have seen in the past through the 00s, I always found B&B to be the worst soap out of the bunch (except Passions.. nothing was worse than that). 

But watching now this show from the beginning, I am shocked at how much I am enjoying it. Such old fashioned soapy goodness! And indeed the characters work together really well. It's a shame that Logan family seems to have disappeared rather quickly after the first season though. I wonder how I will like that. But lets see.. I have now arrived to the point where Caroline's trial is finishing and the verdict will be announced (so exciting!!!) And omg, at that trick they did when they showed the verdict being read and it turned out to be Bill's fantasy. I was so confused that half of the episode would be about Donna's aspirations of being a model and Kristen and Clarke and then suddenly we are at the trial. I was so confused. And then the freeing verdict and Ron gloating in front of everyone and then Bill shooting him. It was so strange. But then it turned out to be a daydream

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 Good one, Bill Bell!

[Videnbas]

The similarities lie mainly in the starting point of the stories, and the personalities and backstories of the characters. As the story goes on, the two plots diverge more and more.

So it’s basically the premise that is the same, or the very beginning of each character’s story arc.

For example, Ridge/Don Giovanni is a playboy who routinely and casually seduces women and then leaves them. He keeps a record of ”his” women in a little book that he carries with him. He is wealthy, arrogant, charming, irreverent and hedonistic. His arrogance is probably his greatest flaw and fatal weakness.

Margo/Donna Elvira is introduced to us as one of Ridge’s/Don Giovanni’s past conquests. She fell in love with him but he dumped her and she is filled with anger and bitterness towards her past lover, but also has a soft spot for him and is on some level still attracted to him. She tries to keep new women from falling into the playboy’s trap.

Bill Spencer/The Commendatore is the powerful and protective father of Ridge’s/Don Giovanni’s latest conquest, the noble Caroline/Donna Anna. He is a commanding and intimidating man. He finds out that the playboy is after his daughter and this results in violent animosity between the two men, where Ridge/Don Giovanni gets the upper hand at first. But shortly after, the father gets his revenge by bringing the playboy down as a result of his own immoral actions.

Brooke/Zerlina and Dave/Masetto are ordinary people who are about to start a life together when Brooke/Zerlina becomes starstruck with the seductive and worldly Ridge/Don Giovanni and immediately forgets all about her intended husband, who is not nearly as glamorous, when the playboy awakens her sensual side.

Rocco and Leporello also share some similarities. They are both basically the playboy’s comedic sidekick/employee, ”lower class” although they dream of having the same kind of status as their master/boss themselves one day. And they sometimes get their boss out of trouble. But Leporello is a lot more disillusioned and less enthusiastic about his position than the much younger Rocco is.

Oh, and there is also the part of the story where Ridge/Don Giovanni quietly sneaks into Caroline’s/Donna Anna’s room at night to seduce her and she at first mistakes him for her spouse Thorne/Don Ottavio, who swears vengeance when he finds out about it. At a later point, Thorne/Don Ottavio pulls a gun on Ridge/Don Giovanni. (And it remains ambiguous throughout the story whether or not Caroline/Donna Anna was taken advantage of or whether she actually consented to being seduced by Ridge/Don Giovanni.)

End of thesis, lol!

Edited January 13, 2022 by Videnbas

[Manny]

Wow, so many similarities! Thank you for sharing this. It was definitely interesting to read. 

[Broderick]

Back in  1987, I wasn't particularly fond of B&B either.  Sometimes watched it during lunch, but it was a take-it-or-leave-it type of viewing.  But I've REALLY been enjoying re-watching it "from the beginning", because these old 1987/1988 episodes seem so superior to today's soaps.  

[kalbir]

I hated that Ridge took advantage of a drunk Caroline, especially when you consider that less than a year earlier Caroline was raped.

[Manny]

You are right, maybe this is why I am enjoying it too. Because there is no current soaps to enjoy lol

I do see some cliches and continuity issues in these old episodes, and some wtf moments within the stories, but I still enjoy it quite a lot

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[Manny]

So I got to THE letter part.. and omg, not only did Brooke take the letter, but she took it as an agreement with Thorne!

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Oh, Thorne... I do like you, but this is sad. 

[j swift]

I was watching today's upload ep346, from 1988.  The dialogue is bizarre.  Nobody has a specific voice or vocabulary.  For example, Brooke is lounging at the pool with Ridge apres-nooky, and she tells him that he "made Sir Galahad look like Pee Wee Herman."  I guess that means he was good in bed, but what 20something girl from the valley would use that reference?  Even Rocco sounds like a parody of a teen rather than an actual human.

Edited January 15, 2022 by j swift

[yrfan1983]

What was the airdate? That could have been during the writers strike

[kalbir]

The writer's strike was March-August 1988.

[Maxim]

When I watched 1987 and 1988 for the first time year ago... I thought it was amazingly written... But then I got to 1991 and 1992... and now these early ear PALE in comparison. The show happens in 1991-1992. The energy is top. And then I think it peaks in 1993.

[Soaplovers]

I think season 1 spent time getting to know the characters and setting up the plotlines that start to kick into high gear as season 1 ends.

If B & B debuted in 2022 instead of 1987, Brooke and Ridge would have met in the first few episodes instead of in episode 60.  Margo would have revealed her true feelings against Kristen, and Thorne would have started scheming to get Caroline by week 2....and Beth/Eric would have started their emotional affair with Stephanie figuring out who Beth was right away instead of becoming friendly with Beth weeks before she knew who she was.