Jump to content

B&B: Bold from the beginning


Recommended Posts

  • Members

It's an interesting question when the decline of Brooke's character began. 

I'd say she was pretty consistent for many years. She was fascinated by the Forresters and drawn to Ridge. I think even her brief infatuation with Eric was believable in terms of a rebound (with a little subconscious revenge on Stephanie thrown in).

For me, the moment when Brooke went off the rails was when she suddenly set her sights on Thorne in 1999 and proclaimed he was her new destiny. That was just such a shift for the character who up until that point had been all about Ridge (with Thorne firmly in the friend zone). The fact that Thorne was her third Forrester didn't exactly help. It just felt unhealthy at best, and out of character at worst, for both characters.

After that, Brooke became the scandalous woman who will sleep with anyone no matter who he is married to, including family members. And that part of her grew bigger as her other roles (as a professional woman and a mother) were pushed to the background.

I also feel this coupling signaled a shift in the show as a whole towards a more "anything goes" attitude in terms of which characters could be paired up. 

Edited by Videnbas
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 410
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • Members

I have to say, I almost miss this early attitude towards recasts. The writers clearly had a story to tell with the character and weren't dependent on any one actor to tell it. It's a refreshing change from the current actor-centered writing where the story tends to be adjusted according to which actors are available. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Yeah; it was such a jarring switch, and they kept using the voiceover for a few episodes. Such a bad change.

Switching from Clayton Norcross to Jeff Trachta was such a downgrade. For me, Norcross was the best in the role, followed by Winsor Harmon. Do we know why the switch between Norcross and Trachta happened? Or is it another Judith Baldwin/Nancy Burnett situation?
Thankfully, William J. Bell had this unspoken rule (at least I believe it was unspoken) to not recast a character more than three times.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Yes, at least for a while she pretended to be an intern at Spencer Publications and she wrote an article that Bill found genuinely impressive. Donna was really ruined by the recast when they pretended she was just a "dumb blonde".

Actually, I think recasting Thorne with Jeff Trachta worked really well, even though I liked Norcross as well. Trachta's Thorne had the same softness and sweetness that Norcross did, but added a more humorous and extraverted side to Thorne which worked well in his interactions with Macy and the Spectras (in fact, it was needed to match them). I also think Thorne's scenes with Stephanie became more interesting after the recast.

For me, recasting Trachta with Harmon was far more jarring because his Thorne was completely different from the character played by either Trachta or Norcross. We got a less refined version of Thorne, and the qualities that made Thorne Thorne - the softness, the contrast to Ridge's playboy style, the vulnerability - were downplayed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Yes, I remember seeing a scene where Ridge is lying down and the camera pans over his silhouette and in a very obvious way lingers over the outline of his body and uh, bulge, for lack of a better word.

Thinking back, B&B was the first daytime soap in my personal memory where sex was "sold" in a manner that was so blatantly obvious. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Have you all seen the episode where Ridge is chilling on a sleeping Caroline's bed in just a pair of red manties? That was a bit of a surprise.

It feels like the flesh parade really kicks off beginning on Memorial Day 1987. Might as well hook the young/summertime viewers, I guess.

I'm also amused by Ridge/Ronn strictly wearing Speedos or briefs, whereas Thorne/Clayton and Eric/John are in shorts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Also, they were competing with the likes of cable television, not to mention MTV, (which was only expanding a large fanbase among that demographic) which had more freedom to air more risqué content. 

I suppose that B&B, being a new serial at the end of the 1980s, might have been seen as an easier vehicle in which to push the boundaries than its predecessors, which were likely already being held to stricter standards.

Yeah, but B&B made it fairly obvious where they believed their bread and butter were. In the first episode, if memory serves me correctly, Ridge may have even stated that sex sells while grousing to Margo his disapproval of his father's conservative design practices.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I also recall on Y&R when the Abbotts or Newmans would have their annual 4th of July celebrations, Brad was always in a speedo while Nick and Jack stuck to shorts. 

In neither case were male bikinis considered to be in style at the time, it was just an opportunity to show some flesh.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I do recall a SOD article from summer 1997 that was discussing the renewed popularity of swim shorts on soaps (they'd gone in and out of fashion throughout the years) and (amongst other soap characters) the article mentioned Thorne (then played by Winsor Harmon of course) wearing shorts then specifically added the line "Ridge will never change" lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

They're almost done posting August 1987 and no preemptions for Iran-Contra. They have the show airing every day in July and August so far. I wonder if they are not posting the actual airdates but the planned airdates from ths scripts. That would mean they might jump ahead and have a bunch of "missing days" in September to catch up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



  • Recent Posts

    • Please register in order to view this content

       
    • OMG!

      Please register in order to view this content

      I LOVED HER TOO! She was crazy but great on Desperate Housewives! And that "The Powers That Be" show in which she was John Forsythe's daughter as well! Many people she would've done a great Maris on Frasier too
    • Hey boys, I know these aren’t really thirst traps but I think they belong here. Don’t ya agree?

      Please register in order to view this content

    • That’s one of the things I’ve liked since the new writers came in; more interactions between characters that they hadn’t really had scenes with 
    • Such a missed opportunity… 
    • Loved Valerie Mahaffey as crazy as a box of frogs Sandy Cooper on Wings. 2025 needs to chill out already. May Ms. Mahaffey rest in peace.
    • She was great on there. And Wings. And so many shows. I don't feel like we get those character actors as much now.
    • Cady did have a southern accent as Dixie in her first few years playing the character... but it started to minimize the longer she played the character (which tracks because my aunt had a heavy southern accent when married my uncle and years living in the north has softened it quite a bit). Her initial stint playing Rosanna was partly due to mirroring the previous actress and eventually developing her own take on the character. And the thing about her take as Kelly on Y & R was that she was too sedate when she first took over playing the role (she was supposed to play a woman that had recently lost her child.. and trying to keep things together) and then went OTT crazy and didn't play it well.    And I don't care to remember her attempt at playing Jennifer on Days. I think this Pamela character is the first time she's playing a character from the start and I think she's like a kid at a candy store.  She's having so much fun trying different things... and I hope eventually she decides to settle on a more consistent character for Pamela (perhaps her love of accents is a character trait based on something traumatic that happened to her in the past maybe).
    • That's sad. I remember her mostly from ER and the shortlived, yet very funny, sitcom The Powers That Be.
    • As always loved seeing Ric with Liz. I hope the show forever keeps them in each others orbit even if it’s just platonic. I’m sure she’s going to cut him out when she finds out he’s blackmailing Alexis though. So darn.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

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