22 minutes ago, Michael said:

But it's taken the most compelling story on the canvas (the drug story) and shifted its focus from Tate, Holly, and their families to... Ava, Stefan, and Harris, which is an absolutely hideous trade.

This!

I'm sure the scabs did this so that Ron could finish it. You know it going stink up the place when Ron returns.

Has it been established that Fired Guy was the one who was responsible for Nicole, Holly and Tate’s exits? 

10 hours ago, Donna L. Bridges said:

I just think you can almost feel Alex getting more & more jealous with every passing moment 

I don’t mind that lol 

3 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Has it been established that Fired Guy was the one who was responsible for Nicole, Holly and Tate’s exits? 

I don’t mind that lol 

No, I don't think it has been established. 

And, Alex's growing jealousy, like Sloan's growing concern about her fitness as a mother plus possibly her not getting enjoyment out of the baby, yes, they're soapy dramatic elements, which if taken to some conclusion we might really get a kick out of them! (When you read that sentence you may realize that I love Faulkner.)

We have the scabs till May is what was said, right? Seems they will have to take some things to some high point of conflict!

'

3 hours ago, Michael said:

I think the overdose itself was in Carlivati & Quan's plans, so the scabs executed it, but then they put that story on ice because they're not really doing anything huge or canvas-changing during the strike material. But it's taken the most compelling story on the canvas (the drug story) and shifted its focus from Tate, Holly, and their families to... Ava, Stefan, and Harris, which is an absolutely hideous trade.

Really hideous.

Imagine telling your audience "We're going on strike for a while, so we're giving you 6 months of sh_it until we return! Hope you enjoy it!"

 

Ron's writing ideas aired only into second week of December.  None of his ideas have aired since then.

The shift in focus was likely from the firedguy who was giving supervision to the nonunion writers.

That was implied by Deadline here: "writers strike, which has shifted some of [firedguy]’s attention to keeping scripts being generated"
https://deadline.com/2023/07/days-of-our-lives-misconduct-investigation-albert-alarr-1235417732/
From the way Deadline worded that, it seems that firedguy was unofficially headwriting.

We will have another two months of stuff the firedguy oversaw in writing, that was written before he was fired and taped after he left.  The only hope for changes in that would be if Janet nixed prewritten scripts.

Edited February 2, 20241 yr by janea4old

I disagree with the consensus that nothing is happening.  I'm not attuned to the credits, so I don't notice too much of a change, as I doubt the average viewer could tell who wrote a certain script.

Paulina has cancer.  Johnny got engaged.  The Pawn story has shifted Konstantin into a more mysterious guy.

We've also gotten much character exploration from Everett, Chad, and Stephanie that I've appreciated.  The common criticism that Days is too plot driven certainly does not apply currently.  And, if you're a fan of adults talking about mature issues like drugs, commitment, and loss, this would be the place to find that type of dialogue. 

Something is always happening in Salem.  The population is in constant upheaval.  It is just the pacing and inscrutable character motives that annoy me at times. 

Edited February 2, 20241 yr by j swift

20 minutes ago, j swift said:

I disagree with the consensus that nothing is happening.  I'm not attuned to the credits, so I don't notice too much of a change, as I doubt the average viewer could tell who wrote a certain script.

Paulina has cancer.  Johnny got engaged.  The Pawn story has shifted Konstantin into a more mysterious guy.

We've also gotten much character exploration from Everett, Chad, and Stephanie that I've appreciated.  The common criticism that Days is too plot driven certainly does not apply currently.  And, if you're a fan of adults talking about mature issues like drugs, commitment, and loss, this would be the place to find that type of dialogue. 

Something is always happening in Salem.  The population is in constant upheaval.  It is just the pacing and inscrutable character motives that annoy me at times. 

I see what you're saying, but I don't feel any momentum at all. Paulina has cancer and she's just kind of... huffing and puffing and talking to about three people about it. The scenes where she found out (offscreen!!!) left me totally cold. Johnny and Chanel got engaged with, like, zero story after a rushed reunion, and aside from Paulina and some forced interactions between Johnny and Stefan/Chad, no one has reacted to it or had an interesting perspective on it. (And I appreciated what they were trying to do with Chad and Johnny, but it felt so abrupt.) Technically things are happening, but it all feels very dull and directionless.

I agree that we're getting more scenes focused on character and relationships, which is great, and it can make it interesting on a day-to-day basis, but since Tate, Holly, and Nicole went offscreen, most of it feels sort of random and... well... like filler. Those in-between beats and moments that don't explicitly push story are necessary for a good soap, but they need to be attached to some kind of drive, too. I feel like that's missing in every area other than Ava & Stefan's Big Drug Adventure, which is the least interesting story featuring the least interesting characters. The Konstantin/Pawn stuff had me curious at first but it just feels like more of shoving John and Steve together in some weird revisionist history and it doesn't have enough shape yet. The other day, John and Steve said something about no one had mentioned "the Pawn" in years and that's why John is so rattled, and I'm like... this comes up at least every six months when they give J&M a walk down memory lane.

I do find some of the Everett stuff intriguing, as you mentioned, but it's so attached to Stephanie and this narrative that she's got some unbelievable catch that it takes me out of it. Maybe when we get more on the Jada connection, it'll pick up some steam, but I think this Stephanie has been way overplayed in a succession of uninteresting, chemistry-free relationships, so that factor is dragging the interest level down for me, too.

Eric was super tan today. 

10 hours ago, janea4old said:

Ron's writing ideas aired only into second week of December.  None of his ideas have aired since then.

The shift in focus was likely from the firedguy who was giving supervision to the nonunion writers.

That was implied by Deadline here: "writers strike, which has shifted some of [firedguy]’s attention to keeping scripts being generated"
https://deadline.com/2023/07/days-of-our-lives-misconduct-investigation-albert-alarr-1235417732/
From the way Deadline worded that, it seems that firedguy was unofficially headwriting.

We will have another two months of stuff the firedguy oversaw in writing, that was written before he was fired and taped after he left.  The only hope for changes in that would be if Janet nixed prewritten scripts.

These are good points. Blast, I am so ready to be done with him & with his influence. If I understand, at the height of his power, which apparently was right before the fall came, he was supposedly de facto HW & was overriding Ron's decisions, left & right. 

On to today, it's been a good while since we've had an episode this long, 45 minutes. Sonia directing again & another day of very interesting sexiness that is really hot! I had no desire to see action between Ava & Stefan, or really Stefan with anyone sexually, or anyone with Stephanie or any romance from Everett, but all of the scenes were quite good, even moving. 

What did Xander say about himself: his stubborn Scottish side & his what Greek side? 

So, is it just me or is Theresa really wanting to get it on with Brady? And does he see this?

I'm gonna have to say that today was a good DAYS. 

Another long one. 45 minutes.

A lot of horny people in Salem today 😂

I’m sure we all expected this for Stefan and Ava and I don’t mind it. Maybe the show could’ve built it up a little better but I’m interested in seeing how this all plays out. That seems to be the biggest flaw with the scab writers: the ideas are good and they’re executed well but they need to build them up and establish them a lot better. But that could all been Fired Guy, dictating things to the writers. 

I just hope Clyde doesn’t find out about it and tries to blackmail Stefan and Ava. The last thing soaps need is another Cyrus Renault: a sleazy drug trafficker who just likes to be a ball breaker 😂😂

I still think Maggie knows that Konstantin is full of crap. As much as I dislike the storyline and Konstantin, I’m glad it’s being written that way. I was so worried she was gonna be written as dumb and would need to have Xander or someone come and save her. Hopefully Konstantin will get killed off when it all comes out. 

Too bad the same can’t be said for Stephanie lol something tells me that she’s gonna feel pretty dumb when she finds out about Everett.

And as much I’d like for Brady and Theresa to reunite, someone really ought to tell Theresa that she and Brady are not the next John and Marlena and won’t ever be 😂😂

20 hours ago, carolineg said:

It's odd both Holly and Tate just disappeared, for sure.  

It's giving me visions of when Natalia Livingston was cast as Taylor and they fired her before she even aired, and it semi-backfired. Another downside of being six-to-eight months ahead tape-to-air (or now tape-to-release).

2 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Another long one. 45 minutes.

A lot of horny people in Salem today 😂

I’m sure we all expected this for Stefan and Ava and I don’t mind it. Maybe the show could’ve built it up a little better but I’m interested in seeing how this all plays out. That seems to be the biggest flaw with the scab writers: the ideas are good and they’re executed well but they need to build them up and establish them a lot better. But that could all been Fired Guy, dictating things to the writers. 

Well, Tamara is certainly HOT. 

2 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

I still think Maggie knows that Konstantin is full of crap. As much as I dislike the storyline and Konstantin, I’m glad it’s being written that way. I was so worried she was gonna be written as dumb and would need to have Xander or someone come and save her. Hopefully Konstantin will get killed off when it all comes out. 

I hope you are right about Maggie. But if she knows, then why does she keep him around? And, I hope his meet with John will mean we're about to have some momentum, going forward ... but, toward what? 

2 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

And as much I’d like for Brady and Theresa to reunite, someone really ought to tell Theresa that she and Brady are not the next John and Marlena and won’t ever be 😂😂

That reminds me, do we think that J&M are today's Tom & Alice? I think they are. I just wondered if most people also think it. I remember when everyone predicted J&J to be the next T&A. That didn't work out. 

18 minutes ago, Liberty City said:

It's giving me visions of when Natalia Livingston was cast as Taylor and they fired her before she even aired, and it semi-backfired. Another downside of being six-to-eight months ahead tape-to-air (or now tape-to-release).

Oh, I thought she was dreadful. She and EJ were sniffing that damn scarf for however many weeks she was in the role. She was just no match for Nicole at all, and her "sweetness" came off as cloying and fake instead of a real counterpoint to Nicole's scheming and impulsiveness. 

Recasting with Braun, who has a totally different energy from both NL and what Taylor was supposed to be, didn't really work anyway, but they kind of twisted Taylor into a harder-edged character to fit her. The whole thing was a mess.

4 minutes ago, Michael said:

Oh, I thought she was dreadful. She and EJ were sniffing that damn scarf for however many weeks she was in the role. She was just no match for Nicole at all, and her "sweetness" came off as cloying and fake instead of a real counterpoint to Nicole's scheming and impulsiveness. 

Recasting with Braun, who has a totally different energy from both NL and what Taylor was supposed to be, didn't really work anyway, but they kind of twisted Taylor into a harder-edged character to fit her. The whole thing was a mess.

Oh see, I liked Livingston in the role and kind of liked that she was the opposite of Arianne Zucker's Nicole. Plus, they claimed she didn't share chemistry with James Scott's EJ and I have to disagree, and in the end... they did not even stick to that dead pairing. And while you call her sweetness "cloying and fake," that easily could have turned into some kind of storyline where it came out that it was a fake façade; we saw when she came back to General Hospital as Rebecca she could possibly play someone more bad-ass, but she wasn't given that chance. And then introducing Jordan a few years later when Chrishell Stause easily could have been another recast Taylor, and keeping ties to the canvas, et al. Decisions are just poorly made.

Now that you mention it, I could easily have seen Chrishell as a more effective Taylor.