BTG: April 2025 Discussion Thread

[GLATWT88]

Wow, really? Only two weeks in advance. I didn't know that. I wonder if that would work today as it might not be as cost effective.

[janea4old]

Last year they said BTG would debut "at the start of the year"
But it was vaguely-worded, so some of us at first assumed January.
But perhaps it could have been interpreted as anytime in the first few months of 2025.

I do think they delayed it by a few weeks from their original expected launch date (but that's just me guessing, I don't actually know anything). 

That Sheila Ducksworth instagram in which she said "after the holidays we..." she was saying that, in January (after the Christmas break in filming), they tweaked the dialogue of an April episode to time it with Easter.    That indicates to me that they were tweaking it to fit with the new airdates.  That doesn't indicate "sloppy" to me. That indicates being on top of things and paying attention to details.

[MontyB]

It would be interesting to know the behind the scenes goings on.

From my perspective, having a shorter taping to airing time would make it easier to make tweaks along the way.

As far as BTG is concerned, I think they'll have all together in a few months after looking back on what they can do better.

[Liberty City]

It was not "vaguely-worded" as some suggest; it was published, in text, that the Gates was set to premiere in January 2025. FACT.

• The Hollywood Reporter: CBS Greenlights the First Black Daytime Soap Opera in 35 Years (❝ The network on Monday announced that the series, following the lives of a wealthy Black family in a posh, gated community, will debut in January 2025. The specific time period, launch date and other details will be revealed later. ❞)
• Variety: CBS Orders Daytime Soap Opera The Gates Under NAACP Content Partnership (❝ The show is slated to debut in January 2025, though an exact date and timeslot will be announced at a later date. ❞)
• TVLine: New Daytime Soap The Gates Officially Ordered at CBS — When Will It Premiere? (❝ Soaps fans will have even more tasty drama to sink their teeth into: CBS has officially ordered a brand-new daytime series titled The Gates, which is set to premiere January 2025. ❞)

If we're going to try and be an endless wealth of information no one asked for, at least do some diligence and present facts. 

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 There was no assumption; we were told January. FACT.

[janea4old]

You are right.  I stand corrected.  I should have checked on the facts before posting.
Edit to add: I sincerely appreciate your correction.

Edited April 23 by janea4old

[Contessa Donatella]

Shows are notorious about NOT tweaking.

I am one who thinks it was originally aimed at Jan but then they decided to titie-in with Black History Month, which is February.

[Faulkner]

I certainly don’t want this show to fail. I’ve been waiting 25 years for something like this. But there’s a lot of adjustments to be made, and I feel like people have the right to not pull punches on what they’re seeing. Opinions are not facts. We all know that new soaps take time to gel. That doesn’t mean we have to stay mum when we don’t like something. I get why people are very protective of the show (the “bad guys” are trashing it, and we’re in an environment where people on the right knee-jerk dismiss a predominantly Black show as “DEI” when those same people watched The Jeffersons and The Cosby Show every week back in the day. I know some of those very people). And if you’re legitimately enjoying everything, that’s awesome. Are some people scared that someone from CBS is gonna come on this board and cancel BTG based on someone’s negative comments? It’s not gonna happen. They have too much at stake here. Surely this article from a couple years ago embarrassed them, and they’re going to hold firm on nurturing their baby. And I’m willing to give them the time they need while still being honest about what I feel. I love MVJ, but I do think there’s a learning curve on being a first-time HW (her short stint at GH aside) even for someone who’s an industry veteran like she is and even with the benefit of a longtime HW like Guza at her side. We saw that with Patrick Mulcahey. And we have no idea what restrictions CBS, P&G, and NAACP are imposing, even if folks are playing nice and claiming creative freedom in interviews.

Edited April 23 by Faulkner

[Taoboi]

And like I said and speaking for myself...as long as the person giving opinions are just not being mad at the person who is praising the show (and understand and see that such praise DOES come with criticism) and vice versa...I don't see there being a problem. We all have opinions and whether they line up with others or not should be allowed to voice them. 

I agree with this. As much as I've mentioned how much I don't like how 'about to fall off the backburner' the Martin's secret storyline has been, I can give credit that where it's due that now when it explodes, we have more of a feel for Martin, Smitty, and the family now that I would be more invested versus if we had gotten to it already. 

[Vanguardian53]

The most sensible response I've witnessed in a while.

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[ReddFoxx]

I was thinking that some scenes may have been pulled and re-filmed post debut. It seems like Ashley was more front burner, but has suddenly become quite a bit more supporting in the past couple of weeks.

[Contessa Donatella]

Hey. I think in this post you are going way over a line.  Do you mean to be showing contempt for another poster? If so, you are spot on. Me, I do not think that is a good idea. File this under "food for thought".

Many times, IMO, being right is not what it's all about. 

[Liberty City]

.

Edited April 23 by Liberty City
NVM. They're not worth my valuable time, or any time at that.

[te.]

Well, we know they had to refilm a lot of scenes, especially since they had some production issues early on with equipment not arriving on time plus no real soap veterans on the daily production that knew how to shoot a daytime soap. IIRC, I think either Daphne or Karla said that CBS told them that they couldn't continue to delay filming which is why the lightning was odd in the first or so week since the proper equipment hadn't arrived.

So, to me it's been pretty clear that it was likely meant to debut a bit earlier which seems to have thrown off some planning. Good to hear they're making a bit of adjustments to the scripts but I'd assume that cliffhangers might be thrown off for another few weeks at least as there's only so much they could adjust.

[Liberty City]

Writers:
Christopher Dunn
Judy Tate

Director:
Steven Williford

[ranger1rg]

Excellent post that says a lot that I'm thinking.

I enjoy the freedom to be honest about my opinions here at SON. I don't expect everyone (or anyone) to agree with me, but it's a comfortable place to post both positives and negatives about the soaps.

The praise for BTG was over-the-top in the first month, but I get it. We were starved for something new, something like this. I didn't agree with it all, but I let it go. I'm glad now, though, that we've settled into a place where it's OK to criticize what's wrong and needs work.

Is the general audience doing all this deep introspection and analysis and nitpicking the way we do? Of course not. But let's not kid ourselves -- BTG needs to build a steady and loyal audience, and that is not easy in 2025. The show doesn't have "forever" to get and hold on to viewers.

With all the TV out there, people move on from shows much more quickly than in the past. BTG does not have that same loyalty that Y&R and BOLD have -- shows that keep decent ratings even when the show is bad for weeks and even months. BTG cannot afford to do that.

On another note, I will never understand why it's a good thing to tape months ahead. I've heard all the reasons, especially that it's "cost-effective and cost-efficient." Sorry, I don't get it.

Why does GATES need to be 3 months ahead? If they still taped individual shows, how did that save money? Yes, I understand more than 5 episodes are taped per week. DAYS is getting closer to being a year ahead in taping. How does that "save money"? Would they save even more money by taping 15 months ahead? Two years ahead? I don't get the business model no matter how many times it's explained to me.