Soap Storylines/Moments You Would Have Written Differently

[DramatistDreamer]

Admittedly, I am also bitter about the last twelve years, particularly the last decade. The actors and longtime fans of the show deserved much better imo. I get that some people saw little problem with the show's final years but I am not one of those people. I am  not even talking about sets, wardrobe or hair and makeup but storytelling, and overall treatment of the cast/crew. We have heard from more than one person who described the toxicity practiced by some in the executive production arm of the show. It's been confirmed. You cannot convince me that that level of toxicity did not rot the inner workings of that show. I once worked BTS of a toxic television show. The rot will eventually work its way to the core.

If the show had managed to keep some of its soul, and the camaraderie that the majority of the actors who worked on the show during its best years, I would have been more at peace with it ending, but since its cancellation, the  negative accounts of the atmosphere there have been trickling out, particularly those final years. 

What a sour taste it leaves on my palate, that I avoid watching any episodes from that final era.

[Mitch64]

Yes, the fanbases proved to be the downfall of GL...even know, on the GL Facebook pages...there are people who constantly post about their fave "couple" and its so weird how invested they are in making that fantasy a reality STILL.  And I have to say, most of them don't seem like..uh, they are all that bright...or even sane..one poster just keeps posting over and over again that "Kim" and "Robert" are her faves, they are like "family" and always will be though she has never met them (luckily for both actors! I think that was part of the it all, not very intelligent people were writing in about their fave couples, and accepted the sloppy and repetitive storytelling as long as their couple is onscreen and will eventually end up together to do it over and over again. Smarter viewers..( you know the ones that want coherent storytelling or at least attempts at it) just left as it was all..repetitive crap.

 

Agree with everything you say about this, particularly the statement from MADD which would set Twitter on fire these days and most likely have gotten legitimate negative press. I particularly am annoyed that they dropped the ALS story to focus on..."the Clone"!  However, I do agree that having an ALS story with someone who was actually suffering from it would be problematic for production. The disease progresses differently from person to person in terms of its progression some faster then others, and some days are worse then others. It would difficult to plan a long term storyline and expect Zazz to be "on" every scene, the only alternative would be to film all his scenes in the matter of weeks to have in the can, but would you really want Zaz to film his own death? I watched a scene on You Tube off Rog visiting Van as she thought she was dying. Their conversation on Van's impending death sends shivers down your spine in light of what was going to happen and Zaz is visably suffering from ALS at this point, he is stiff, and is working very hard to speak..(it comes off well, as old nemises call a sort of truce at one's death bed, and Roger comes off as being more gentle with Van then he would, and Zaz can stil work those eyes but...its hard to watch) I agree that producing it would be hard, but how they handled NOT doing it, was all on them and terrible.

So, to rewrite two storylines, Roger leaving AND Amanda's paternity. Going back years I would have it that Bradon blackmailed Jennifer to sleep with him to punish Alan. She becomes preggers and does not know  who is the father and confides in Alex, who spirits her away to have the baby. Alex doesn't know that Brandon found Jennifer and sends his trusty secretary Bess Loweel to talk her and force her to put HIS name on the birth certificate and he would arrange for the baby to be adopted by a "good mother" Lucille Wexler (who was decidely NOT a good mother. Flash backs would show Bess browbeating a very pregnant Jennifer, who lives in a hovel, "We can make this all go away and you can have a life if you just agree to one small thing." At Brandon's death in Barbados Alex finds the birth certificate for the baby and a will that IF Amanda was indeed his daughter, all of Spaulding went to her, cutting out Alan and Alex to punish them both. The will is unsigned (as Brandon under the influence of Sharina, later had misgivings of his treatment of both Alan and Alex... so Alex destroys the document, as Alan thinks he is the father and Alan was presumed dead at that time anyway. Its Roger who investigating Bess' old documents, finds finds a copy of the document of the will, forges Bradon's signature and arranges false DNA tests to prove Amanda is Brandon. Once the reveal Alex still agrees to leave town but on the condition that Amanda remains Alan's daughter in public and Alex gives her share of Spaulding to Amanda, to avoid a long and lentghy court battle and bad publicity.

So Zaz last week would be his wedding to Amanda , but Alex returns stops the wedding at the cliche part of the ceremony and produces evidence that Rog was forging docs all over the place (she gets a signed confession from Bess on Bess's death bed)   Alex, being Alex, dramatically brings her own doc for the DNA test and the cops to arrest Roger, who runs.  Of course he runs to Holly and the last scenes are he and Holly discussing their history as Roger tries to convince her to pack up Meg and disappear with him forever. Holly almost goes, but remembering their inherit dysfunctions sends him on his way. Later, the fact that Holly helped Rog escape makes Fletch pack Meg up and leave.

This ending as convoluted as it is, at least fixes Amanda's parentage and give Roger a reason to not be on screen with no recast. It would also leave him open to returning if he could and would be a bit more respectful of the actor, the character and the fans.

Edited March 30, 2022 by Mitch64

[ClassicSoapsFan]

Your idea of an exit story for Roger was fascinating to read and I would be here for it. Convoluted? Maybe but it is a soap opera after all and considering the circumstances of Zaslow's condition, it probably would have to be rushed since remember Roger's recast Dennis Parlato was on for under a year but it can be forgiven given the situation. The only issue, it will likely still lead to Holly's Nursery Rhyme Stalker mess which as someone who only watched on/off since the early 90s, I didn't buy Holly going down that path. Now that's a story I would also love to see disappear and replaced with something else.

As for the problematic situation of my idea, here's where I was coming from. I hate to bring her name up but I have to in this case. While JFP will be one of my least favorite EP's in daytime (even television), I have to begrudgingly give her props for bringing back Zaz as David Renaldi on OLTL who had an advanced form of ALS which required him to have a wheelchair like Stephen Hawking. I remember seeing those scenes when they first aired and I was in tears. I think because of the progression of his illness, Zaz wasn't on that long and of course died in 1998. From my understanding, there wasn't any malicious intent in brining back Zaz, except maybe a deservingly petty one towards MADD which if that's the case I also have to give JFP her props, again begrudgingly, or complaints of problematic conditions while he was David on OLTL. I could be entirely wrong and am willing to be educated on that on my end. They could have created a way for Zaz to not be as active have minimal dialogue and pretty much let Maureen Garrett, Liz Kiefer, and (I think) Frank Grillo to carry the story (of course, Maureen would have most of the weight.) I remember seeing Patrick Mulcahy on I think Twitter mention this idea so it wasn't mine to begin with. It always stuck with me the loss potential of this storyline and that the writer who Zaz thanked in his Emmy speech was willing to do it.

 

[Khan]

Someone whom I met eons ago on the old GLBuzz message board (and who remains a FB friend to this day) once remarked that it had been her experience that ATWT and GL fans tend(ed) to be big classic literature fans - and I tend to think that's true as well.  Not to denigrate fans of other soaps, but it does seem as if those who followed ATWT, GL and even AW, EON and SFT treasured good story over this-or-that character and couple.  Did we have our favorites?  Of course, but in most long-time fans' eyes, what mattered most was the writing.

Then, the mid-'90's arrived.  Suddenly, things like "endgame" and "supercouple," which hadn't really been part of the P&G soap viewing experience the way it had been elsewhere in daytime (save for the Bell soaps), became the only things most (newer) fans talked about.

When then-HW's Barbara Esensten and James Harmon Brown remarked in the GL anniversary book that what they emphasized in every story was what was at stake for the LOVERS - and not for the FAMILIES, which had always been GL's (and most other P&G soaps') bread-and-butter - I knew times had changed.

Edited March 31, 2022 by Khan

[ClassicSoapsFan]

Prime example of this for me, Rick and Abby basically were raising Michelle because Ed was never around. If a new viewer was watching GL around that time, I wouldn't blame them if they thought that Michelle was their teen daughter and not his little sister.

[DramatistDreamer]

I basically stopped watching daytime soaps several years ago because all I ever seemed to be doing was thinking how differently I would write stories on the daytime soaps I had been watching. After awhile, it got too mentally exhausting just to watch and I realized that not only was I no longer enjoying what I was watching but it was causing me frustration just to watch.

[Spoon]

Redundant post deleted.  But agree with the previous posts regarding GL.

Edited March 31, 2022 by Spoon

[j swift]

Although I didn't watch them in "real time", I am big fan of both the EON Winter Austen story and AW's Walter Curtin plot, because I am intrigued by the idea of characters getting away with murder; even after a trial.

Of course, the soap gods have decided that no murderer can go unpunished so both Walter and Winter met their final fate and, to some degree, justice was served.

But, what about if Walter lived?  I would have loved to watch the outcome of Lenore realizing the depths of Walter's deceit and then having them work through it was a couple.  After all, Walter got her off, no harm no foul. And, he wasn't the one who got her arrested and charged in the first place?  Once they discussed it, and Walter found out that Lenore was never involved with Wayne, it would have opened a world of opportunities to exploit the idea that Walter had killed Addison for no reason.   They could have formed a dynamic where now Lenore could use Walter against another character (either Liz or Jon).  She could have developed a "Lady McBeth" sense of power by pulling on Walter's strings.  Playing on some of the early snobbery of the character, Lenore could have wanted Walter to gain more wealth, and perhaps she could have become an adversary to Rachel.   Eventually, Walter would have been caught and Lenore would be reformed by her love for Robert.  But, that could have been fun.

And what if Winter got away with murder and, rather than go crazy, she used the experience to gain confidence and power?  She got away with it once, who's to say she couldn't do it again?  When faced with questions by Nicole, she could have laughed and simply told her that double jeopardy laws would prevent her from ever being re-tried for murder.  She could have used her new found confidence to write books and help other women overcome their abusive lovers.  Using the cultural issues around feminism at the time (and movies like The Stepford Wives), Winter could use her fame to start a group of empowered women, but it is all a scam because she really was everything as described at her trial.  Nancy gets intrigued by Winter when she gets her own show at WMON.  Raven gets annoyed by Winter's ability to play Draper and Logan against each other.  And April worries about Winter's hold over the men of Monticello.  So, Nicole, Raven, Nancy, and Raven team up to expose Winter.  Only to face a backlash when her followers accuse them of being bad feminists for going after another woman due to jealousy and spite.  Winter uses her fame to move to the big city, but not before plotting one more murder.  She decides to get rid of a certain pesky federal agent named Jefferson Brown...

Edited March 31, 2022 by j swift

[Contessa Donatella]

Well, that's brilliant! Both. I wouldn't have been such an unhappy camper, heck, I might even have been a happy one.

Both some Writers (and some Directors, maybe in another chat) have talked about this in Locher Room chats & they basically started batting around ideas for how they could do it as soon as Zaslow approached GL & asked them to create a story for him that would include his ALS. What they had come up with before Paul told them to stop & said that it was not going to happen & everyone knew that it was not going to happen & why. And, then, MADD piled on, of course, with her infamous egregious line that I will not type in here. So, like I was trying to say before I got in my own way & am now verklempt, is that they would put Holly back with Roger & have her be his advocate as well as his helpmate & they felt good about what they could write that would be good for MG as well as for MZ. Instead GL did not go forward as Zas had asked & he sued & presumably there was a settlement. And, he went to OLTL & for once in her life JFP did the right thing. As much as I dam* her, there are occasions when I have to give her her due.

[Contessa Donatella]

I hope I'm not duplicating. I've looked. And, right off the bat, it's not anything that came out of my head. Nope, it's from Nancy Curlee Demorest's brilliant & composed brain. I was just making notes, and dropped my pen when she said it, in a Locher Room chat with Alan hosting her & her husband, Stephen. Great chat! Now to the point:

Alan Locher did a Locher Room YouTube chat with husband & wife team, Daytime Emmy winning, Headwriters for GL, Nancy Curlee & Stephen Demorest. Curlee floored me by telling the room what she wishes she had done about Maureen Bauer looking back on everything that has transpired since the character was killed off from one of their scripts.

 

... Now, looking back on it, Nancy wishes she had written an altered story. The car would've gone over the cliff. The audience would see Roger take Maureen to an airport & put her on a plane with 'Mo just muttering over & over that she had to get out of here.

 

You could practically feel the chat room's immense approval of this alternate universe cliffhanger. ..." This should go down in soap history as the best "what if" that was conceived of but not run up the flagpole!

 

... I can just see it. The camera follows the car down, down, down, then pans back up & it seems like there are two people standing up there, as we get closer we can tell that Mo is up there! Even closer & Roger is with her! ...

Then, of course, it would be tough to write in bringing Mo back alive after keeping her hidden out for awhile. But it could have been done, I think.

[Mitch64]

So why didn't they pursue it? Were they afraid.....had to have room for two Zimmers to chew scenery?  I can see why they had to recast at the last minute but it should have been temporary to write Roger out until they could figure out what to do with Zaz and the character.

 

[Contessa Donatella]

It was said that Paul, Rauch of course, said that it wasn't going to happen & everyone knew that it wasn't going to happen & that everyone knew why. Then, MADD made her statement. I was shocked, then  delighted, to think that anyone had considered it & it warmed my heart that the Writers just immediately set to brainstorming it just as they would any other idea that had just been brought up. But, Rauch & MADD, the thought of them gets me mad all over again.

I was trying to remember who had talked about this in that chat & could not so I looked it up. James Harmon Brown whose colleagues call him Jimmy. JER's colleagues call him Jimmy also. Maybe it's a thing. Grown men called by childhood nicknames.

Edited April 20, 2022 by Tonksadora
I looked up who said what & thought to add it.

[DemetriKane]

This!!!!

[Contessa Donatella]

@ClassicSoapsFan  Regarding Holly functioning as some sort of demented Pied Piper of Springfield Kidz thnx to B&E, given yours, mine, theirs, etc. reaction, just imagine Maureen Garret's reaction on getting that script. Probably you have already.

When the last 4 to be canceled, were canceled, I wasn't watching DOOL or GH or Y&R or B&B so I just didn't pick up any soap, for awhile. Watching had become exhausting for me, too. I think it was the first time I was soap-less since I began following soaps in 1968.

 

Edited April 21, 2022 by Tonksadora
Just tidying the text.

[DemetriKane]

@Tonksadora By the time GL went off the air, i made a decision to DVR all the shows.  I saw the writing on the wall and wanted to support them all before the end. I had this dope schedule of watching my fantastic four during the week, and the other 3 over the weekend. 

That saying "Once you fall out of the habit, it's hard to fall back in" is true. The last time i was invested into one of the soaps had to be 2015ish. It has truly been a struggle for me, i would watch one for maybe 3 days, and then go 3 months without it. I been getting my soap fix from the oldies on youtube, and streaming services. Daytime today just doesn't measure up imho!

 

By the way, One Life is funny as [!@#$%^&*] while you're high. 

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Edited April 21, 2022 by DemetriKane