ALL: Epic Soap Opera Fails

[BetterForgotten]

Kate is Natalie, but I’ve always preferred Robin Mattson as Janet.

 

[Contessa Donatella]

Well, this is not universal. There is some disagreement but to me

Sonia Satra on GL. 

I think that way about each & every part that Robin Mattson has played, at least I think I mean all of them. GL, SB, GH, AMC, ... what am I not thinking of? 

[Janet Marlowe]

I liked both KC and RM as Janet for different reasons. 

A lot of people think of Kate's Janet as ALL CAMP ... but I think she did "disturbing" WELL (pun intended). 

Please register in order to view this content

 

Edited January 31, 2024 by Janet Marlowe

[BetterForgotten]

I don’t think KC could’ve played Janet’s redemption arc as successfully - it probably would have made me long more for Natalie. I think RM came in at the perfect time and to push the character forward. 

AMC was saved by some really stellar script and breakdown writers during this time who went a long way in making Megan’s stories palatable, along with some solid key actors and directors. It’s beyond me how anyone kept a straight face playing this scene, but it somehow worked: 

Please register in order to view this content

And, of course, always liked this scene of RM’s Janet calling out the hypocrites of Pine Valley:

 

 

[Janet Marlowe]

In particular, Hal Corley.

Edited January 31, 2024 by Janet Marlowe

[Janet Marlowe]

Any fan of RM's Janet will appreciate this:

Please register in order to view this content

 

[AMCOLTLLover]

RM is the best that ever happened to Daytime TV. I do think she always played the unstable nutcase to perfection but she got a point there. They did her all dirty

[ranger1rg]

The final scene with Rachel and Carl (played with the Bette Midler track) was absolutely brilliant, but I will never -- ever -- understand writing that includes a gorilla in a series finale. I'm still dumbstruck, 25 years later.

 

[Contessa Donatella]

Well, I can explain what it was & what it came from but not why he did it. All along he said that they would not be doing nostalgia at the end & then he did blatant 1980s nostalgia. WTHeck does that mean. No. Yes. ??? 

But in the 80s during the highjinks of Cass, Felicia & Wally there was a gorilla named Carolyn (after Carolyn Culliton) & she had a mate named Richard (Richard Culliton) and a handler named Sam (Writer thought to write the best comedic soap Sam Radcliffe). So, it was an homage to that back then. 

Now the scene of Felicia grinding the gears, driving a truck, where the brakes have gone out, and she & Wally are in the front of the truck screaming & Carolyn the gorilla is in the back of the truck, presumably also screaming & they ran into Tall Boys, the restaurant, that scene is hilarious but it doesn't make me any less mad about the damned gorilla in the finale!!! 

Now if you already knew all of that, oops, sorry. 

The final song & the final scene & Carl & Rachel's acting & brief dialogue with Rachel making the rounds of the portraits, yes, that is lovely. But, the only thing I find brilliant is the device of all the wedding guests speaking into the video recorder to give their well wishes to the happy couple, when really everyone in the show gave a message directly to the fans. That was worthy!!! 

[kalbir]

@OpportunisticSlut That scene to start the thread was probably the nadir of Ronn Moss as an actor.

He is probably the only actor on daytime who's acting got progressively worse the longer he played his character.

[Contessa Donatella]

When you ask the question what kind of a writer was James Lipton, the only possible reply is that he was an excellent host of Inside the Actor's Studio.

In like fashion what kind of actor was Ronn Moss, he clearly was a great pop rock persona. 

[soapfan770]

Here’s a few epic failures I can think of right off the top of my head:

ATWT: So many failed recasts. Let us start with Christina Chambers as Molly in 2004…

Days: Letting Dena Higley be HW over and over again 

B&B: Except for a few things there 2012-2015, almost anything Thudley has written since like 2005, maybe earlier than that. 

GL: San Cristobel and Santos Mob

Y&R: Letting Josh Griffith be HW over and over again 

[I Am A Swede]

To be fair to Ronn he, like the rest of B&B's cast, had to deal with writing that also got progressively worse over the years. And unlike some of his colleagues his acting skills (or lack thereof) couldn't handle the poor quality of the writing.

Edited February 2, 2024 by I Am A Swede

[Liberty City]

I agree he got progressively worse, but I wouldn't say he was the ONLY actor.

[Sapounopera]

Out of AW's entire run this needed a homage in the last episode...