Characters Without a Fanbase

[Vee]

It's not a nitpick when it affected both the viewers and the actors alike. The issue is that the audience, Eden and Tamara Braun all came onboard sold a specific pitch. They came in believing Bianca and Reese's romance to be a legitimate long-term storyline, not just a device to deliver Reese and then cut her loose from Bianca to fùck all of Pratt's other preferred (mostly male) characters. Eden dipped when this turned out to be a bait and switch while Pratt blamed her in the press, and Tamara either quit or was fired very soon after because the character tanked with the audience as a result of Pratt's story choices. That is not coincidence.

I don't have a problem with Reese being bisexual; I didn't even necessarily have a problem with her being into Zach, her brother-in-law, which was scandalous. (I don't even have a problem with the pitch to have Bianca sleep with Ryan as revenge, which turned most people off and probably is what sent Eden out the door.) But making her into a vixen would've been hackneyed '90s nighttime soap tripe, playing into old ciiches about queer seductresses at a time when it was the last thing the show or Bianca needed, and it was a waste of what was hailed as Bianca's frontburner new love interest played by a major daytime star.

The real issue is the execution. Sure, Zach providing his sperm for Bianca and her surprise new wife is scandalous and soapy to me. The tension between him and Reese is something you could play with over time without shortchanging Bianca and the central LGBT couple. It's all very similar to Lisa Cholodenko's The Kids are All Right with Julianne Moore, Annette Bening and Mark Ruffalo which was topical and controversial at the time - I'm all for a story like that. But almost as soon as Reese was introduced with Bianca, Reese and Zach became the story instead. They were making out by what, February? Reese came on at Halloween of the previous year. And by April, only a couple months after Zach and Reese started necking, Tamara was gone forever and Reese was history. Why? Because she didn't want any part of the story Pratt ended up telling, and neither did the fans. Pratt told a story at turbo speed, rushed through it to get to the beats he wanted and told a story both the fans and actors didn't like. What it cost the show was two talented actors.

I don't need my queer characters to be saints - far from it, I've been advocating for LGBT vixens and villains since before Reese existed. I did need them to not bait and switch the most popular LGBT character on daytime over and over after bolstering a portion of their audience on her rape by a man and then promising they'll finally give her an top-tier love interest only to send her to the guy where if Pratt squints he kind of looks like Sonny Corinthos. I needed Bianca to not just be a delivery system for Pratt's latest sex fetish doll like Faith Rosco. And when we got the opposite, everybody involved quit. So no, I don't think it's nitpicking. YMMV.

Edited October 2, 2023 by Vee

[Contessa Donatella]

I find I do not know this term. What does it mean? 

[Contessa Donatella]

I was thinking about this & as a lesbian soap fan I can see both sides of the equation. Yes, treat gay couples the same as all couples & Nope, not until we have a large body of work representing the marginalized community. 

And, I'm wondering what article you're itching to re-read. I might want to re-read it too. Take a gander at this & see if one of them jumps out at you? 

https://www.bing.com/search?q=Charles+Pratt%2C+Jr.+in+the+2000s+All+My+Children+articles&qs=n&form=QBRE&sp=-1&ghc=1&lq=0&pq=charles+pratt%2C+jr.+in+the+2000s+all+my+children+articles&sc=0-56&sk=&cvid=FCF2ADFCCDBE4980B9CC0C1BB8BFAB16&ghsh=0&ghacc=0&ghpl=

[Contessa Donatella]

@Vee  Abt your righteous rant, ... [golf clap] 

Helped me see why it's hard for me to delineate what I hated about Chuck Pratt at AMC in the 2000s. 

[DemetriKane]

Lol, I typed too fast and didn't proofread it. It was Rapist!

I haven't read the article,  Vee said  Pratt did a revealing piece about his plans for Reese. 

[DemetriKane]

I'm sorry it's a little bit of a nitpick to me. Their not the only ones on this show especially at that time to be sold a dream and given NOTHING, Debbi and Darnell had issues, so did Rebecca Budig. But I understand and value your frustration with his bait-and-switch storytelling and I won't try to change your mind. I just don't see it completely the same way and I don't think Pratt is the sole reason Reese didn't stay in town or return. 

As I said before, Pratt is already a polarizing writer so him being FORCED to include Zach and Ryan in his storyline did not help matters. Without those mandates to keep them apart of the A story would he even thought of Bianca sleeping with Ryan? Who knows. And for the record this Fan enjoyed the storyline overall, some things could have been better but I can say the same about many stories from Agnes Nixon and Bill Bell.

As for the Vixen thing, I feel Bianca could've been written more badass. She's Erica Kane's child for god's sake, Christina Bennett Lind played her with more fire while still being the heart of the show. At the time I thought it was the cool they found a way to make the gay character the heart & soul of the show, but now I personally feel making gays (Goody-Goody) is a trap to keep LGBT characters from fully flourishing, in the same way they handle black characters. 

Edited October 3, 2023 by DemetriKane

[Contessa Donatella]

Well, they spent so much time making Bianca a victim or just using her as any female with respect to a story about some guy. I mean "rape the lesbian" is a trope just as much as "kill the lesbian" is. Then, saddling a young lesbian with an infant is another was of not telling a lesbian story. In the case of the AMC/OLTL crossover they even made the lesbian the victim whose child died & then later revealed to be, no, whose child was kidnapped & spirited away from her moments after birth. Even her romance with Lena was touched by victimhood as Lena was a bisexual who was using her. It's no wonder BAM remains such a popular pairing as it was remarkably free of victimhood. Can't really be a badass & someone's victim at the same time. And, before you knew what you were about they were pairing Bianca with Zoey/Zarf which just seemed forced when a more natural pairing was right in front of them, Babe & Zarf. I thought Bianca & Reese was going to be a full-on grown-up romance with family life integrated & wasn't concerned with complications from Reese's family or so much Zack as long as they stayed true to the commitment between Binks & Reese ... and there was the problem. It was fine for Reese to be tempted or conflicted as long as she chose the commitment, which she unfortunately did not. Reese & Bianca's romantic scenes were the most mature shown on daytime but that kiss with Zack just undercut what they had built. And there was no apparent intent for Bianca to find out about it & for her & Reese to work through it as a conflict. No, it was just going to be a dirty secret the audience knew. 

[DemetriKane]

True. I think it would've been a natural progression for the character to be more nutty than nice considering that young Bianca was played kinda bitchy! 

I agree with your whole post. If we pick apart all of Bianca's storylines we would find a lot of issues underneath them. In defense of the writers, a lot of them do use tactics of victimhood(babies and rape are go-to) to garner support for their heroines it's rare to see a strong & smart heroine in daytime. 

Reviewing all of Bianca's adult storylines and it's all heavy drama, so I do get the cry to see Bianca finally happy and married. 

 

These reunion scenes

Please register in order to view this content

all things considered Reese is still my favorite Bianca pairing. Chemistry was off the charts and the potential stories were endless. Erica and Kendall hated Reese but Bianca was still head over hills.

 

Edited October 3, 2023 by DemetriKane

[Contessa Donatella]

Well, we have worn this sub-topic out & then some but come to a good place. I'd say Bianca definitely had a fanbase and Bianca & Reese did as well. Like you, TB & ER as Binks & Reese were my favorite Bianca pairing also. And, poor Pratt was not successful in destroying them even though he infuriated fans & actresses alike. 

Edited October 3, 2023 by Donna L. Bridges
typos are always with us

[DemetriKane]

!!!!

[dragonflies]

I'll never get over Pratt telling LaLucci & others "forget what you know about your character" UGH

[Vee]

I saw zero sign of Pratt being forced to use Zach. He was the typical macho character he favored among the men at GH, and he notably amped up all the crime/gunplay elements with Zach as soon as he arrived (as well as at Y&R). YMMV. Zach also romanced or bedded both Pratt's rotating new outside faves he promised would shake up the show but who tanked in story - first Tamara/Reese and then Jamie Luner as the miscast Liza.

The story Pratt gave Angie and Jesse seriously damaged Jesse's character on a fundamental level, even if it gave us Shannon Kane and gave Laura Bonarrigo from OLTL some work. It could also arguably be called playing into ancient racist tropes.

Edited October 3, 2023 by Vee

[Contessa Donatella]

I know! I was so appalled when I read that. I think of Susan Lucci going her whole career with never a negative word about anyone or anything in the business & then in her memoir getting quote/unquote & letting both Frons & Pratt hang on their own petards! It couldn't happen to a more qualified duo! 

[Soaplovers]

I wouldn't have minded Reese/Bianca breaking up because Reese is conflicted over what she wants without acting on her conflicted emotions.. and then the show could have had both Reese/Bianca grow as individual and then find their way back to one another... but Bianca sleeping with Ryan????  Yeah... plot driven dreck that didn't fit Bianca's character at all.

I remember my mom was a die hard Jesse/Angie fan in the 80s.. and she did  like the character Laura B played and also loved Shannon K as his daughter.   She thought it was a waste to bring on Laura B for such a short stint since she thought she and Tad had chemistry and it would be interesting to see a brief pairing and what that would do to Jesse (would he be happy or a bit jealous)

 

[DemetriKane]

@Vee Yes, he was forced to write for him. Actually, any head writer after 2003 had mandates about keeping Ryan, Zach, Kendall, and Greenlee front burner at all times. 

Zach is a character that Pratt would enjoy writing but that doesn't mean he didn't desire to write for others.  

I have no problem with being the lone wolf who likes and enjoys Pratt's writing and ideas. I thought Jamie Lunar rocked as Liza but mostly after Pratt left! It just shows he has good instincts.

 

!!! Truth be told I don't think I would have liked that beat either. Now if they fake it/pretended to make Reese pissed and Jealous cool. But I wouldn't believe Bianca would go that far.

Edited October 3, 2023 by DemetriKane