BTG: April 2025 Discussion Thread

[Taoboi]

I don't think nobody has. Mostly we are all worried that Nosy Nurse is in danger. 

 

That's an interesting angle, though. Especially given the growing friendship between Andre and Eva.

[Marco Dane]

Finally caught up. Loved that ending scene with Anita. 

[Contessa Donatella]

Hey! I love every scene with Anita. 

[Aback]

First of all: I’m really enjoying the show. Sure, some storylines and a few actors are a bit of a dud, but overall the show feels wholesome.

I really appreciate how they’re trying to create divisive characters and storylines where viewers are actually encouraged to take sides. You get multiple perspectives, and that’s exactly what soaps should be about.

Also, it’s clear they’ve stepped things up with the background music—there’s more integration now, and it adds to the scenes in a good way.

I love that they’re incorporating P&G’s products into the show. Like… was it really this hard to do before? I can’t remember Guiding Light or Another World doing it, but it’s such a no-brainer. And there are definitely smarter, more natural ways to do product placement. It’s kind of hilarious how the products always end up in the hands of the “good guys” (ie. Nicole and Ashley). I guess we’ll never see Silk Press Sheila Swiffering her floors!

In my opinion, soaps should also be about squeezing the drama out of every single beat. But with Beyond the Gates, some of the storylines are being rushed through so mindlessly. Case in point: Leslie. Where did she even get the potassium? How is she affording all those costumes? What does she do for a living? It’s starting to feel cartoonish.

And Ted barging into Leslie’s apartment? Totally a missed opportunity for drama. Imagine someone lurking while Dana is shopping for groceries. Nobody in the audience would’ve suspected it was Ted. (Yeah, I get it—budget and time constraints—but still, you get my point.) Also: Leslie's apartment is filled with pictures of Eva or Baby Eva. Yeah, Leslie hid one, but they could’ve milked that scene—imagine the tension of her panicking that Ted might turn around at any second and see them.

The pacing continues to be a problem. As others have noticed, one minute Nicole’s thinking about hiring two assistants, the next she’s unsure what to do with Eva and considers making her the Country Club’s hairdresser. Same with Samantha. One minute she can’t even walk in heels, and the next she’s America’s next top model?

And speaking of Samantha—I’m one of those who can’t unsee her real age. The actress is lovely and strong but she is not 15. Also, what was the point of that “divide and conquer” strategy? It made zero sense. I wasn’t even sure if they were hinting at some weird heteronormative thing when “Pop” said, “Of course Tyrell would want to talk GUY stuff with me!” Huh? Spoken by Martin, who was practically queening out over Samantha the night before.

Last but not least:

- I’m pretending Ashley, Andre, and Derek don’t exist. Same goes for the whole casino mess.

- Speaking of the casino, how many more scenes do we have to sit through of Joey frowning about Doug’s gambling? And we still don't know why he cares so much. This has GUZA written all over it.

- The actor playing Ted is a caricature. He’s endearing, but he’s definitely not leading man material—pure character actor vibes.

- And the Duprees (Vernon and Anita)? Total villains. I cannot stand their mob boss energy.

[te.]

IIRC, Leslie was described as being a bartender in her official character description, so I assume that's how she met Ted initially. But also, since the show only has two sets where she can bartend (country club and Uptown), they're not going to have her do it there as long as she is running around in different week every week. With that said, it'd be nice if they had her off hand mention she's been bartending (or something) when she's not been in a couple of episodes.

Down the road, it wouldn't surprise me if she ends up owning Uptown though. It would be a way for her to stay on the canvas after she's revealed as a devious schemer (assuming all the illegal stuff doesn't come out). 

[MontyB]

Guiding Light did it big time starting a few years before it went off the air. There was one scene where If I'm recalling correctly a couple of characters were locked in a storage closet full of P&G products. It was quite amusing. 

[Contessa Donatella]

That was all Ellen Wheeler. P&G would not even budget for the products. And, it was also not something that was mandated by CBS, which the new production model was. She was determined to show using product placement within the context of the show was possible instead of buying ad time. Other things that were her idea: the Otalia pairing, the special Wednesday episodes (Into The Light) & building houses in certain communities.

[MontyB]

I shudder thinking about those Wheeler days. She tried, though.

Glad P&G decided to get back into the game a little.

 

[Vanguardian53]

I'll agree on one point and disagree with another. Anita and Vernon are villains. Maurice Johnson as Ted is a leading man. I said it before, he and Nicole could've been the black Sky and Raven of this show.

Edited Sunday at 10:31 PM by Vanguardian53

[dragonflies]

I do, IMO her age shows in her face. She looks way older than people who are supposed to be OLDER than her character.

I'm not bashing or judging but honestly to ME she looks older than 30 

[DemetriKane]

Nope, I have not thought of that!

Long as Nicole kill the bitch, bring it on.

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[GLATWT88]

ATWT was also big on the product placement around that time. I still remember a storyline around 2004 when Dusty had taken Lucy to a hideout which was a warehouse filled with P&G products. It made me laugh and I still think of that from time to time.

I don't mind the product placements as long as they're done organically. Don't zoom into a bottle of Dawn at the sink. 

Wow, I agree with all your points aside from the last two about Ted and the Duprees. I think the Duprees are a bit more nuanced than we may believe. Vernon fought through the Civil Rights movement, he beat the system to make a legacy for himself and his family, so he's not going to easily have that stripped away. While Anita and Vernon may be too quick to fix their kids' problems, they know there are ramifications for those things in their gated community. It's all about the image you can present to the outside not what's really hidden inside. 

Edited Sunday at 11:29 PM by GLATWT88

[DemetriKane]

I agree. Maurice Johnson is a good romantic leading man; he is charming, has charisma, and a decent screen presence. I wish his first storyline was focusing on how brilliant of a Doctor he is.

[Contessa Donatella]

What I said was that it put him in an awkward & difficult position because  he is as close to Nicole as he is to Ted. 

But, what danger is it that you are thinking of?

[LondonScribe]

If it somehow slips out to Eva, and she naively passes it on to her mother, or Leslie/Dana somehow gets wind that he [Andre] knows before the anniversary event, she might be inclined to go after him to (try and) silence him.