On 5/14/2025 at 12:28 PM, Maxim said:

I just need to see more good material given to Tamara Tunie. I think she's been only walking on the edge of what she is capable of. I want an old rival from back in the day when she was beginning her career... a bitch that envied her talent and her success through the years...  Do I ask of too much? 

You are not. I'm so happy that this storyline for Anita is finally showing movement. 

very danceable theme song

https://x.com/iammskye1/status/1923509048416043443

My kid lives for the #BeyondtheGates theme song— pic.twitter.com/ShNNhAal7L

— IamMSkye here for Keef (@iammskye1) May 16, 2025

Edited May 17May 17 by janea4old

5-15

 

And now...back to the A plot. I can't say enough about how great this week has been that I've been enjoying the fallout from the SilkPress/Eva reveal. I can't believe that it's been almost a week, and it is STILL going on. And they are playing every beat. And rightfully so. It's a strength to the story that this episode is full of mostly those beats with one (okay 2) C plots. I loved how this episode seem centered on dealing with the Bill of it all from his reactions to the reactions of the ones who actually care about him. And meanwhile, Kat getting a clue and connecting it back to the plot thread of Laura's accident. 

 

Game recognizes game. My way of saying I loved Bill vs Silk Press Sheila. They have great adversarial chemistry. And I loved that Bill not only gave the heads-up to NuTed, but already figured out that Ted had paid her off. A dumbed-down villain Bill definitely is not. And awww at Naomi walking in on him and NuTed. lol. Like father, like daughter cuz they both stay reading people. Also loved the scene of Naomi and Chels together discussing their feelings about their father in light of the reveal. 

 

It's so sad to see Kat thinking in the right direction and STILL took a wrong turn. That said...great to see the Laura plot thread picked up and Kat moving to get to the bottom of it. It's just sad that her strong disdain toward Eva is blinding her to the real threat. Makes her easy prey for SilkPress to manipulate and harder for Eva to get acceptance if people still think she's up to no good. Also intensifies their rivalry. Kat vs Silk Press Sheila was reaaallly good, too. The direction. The camera angles. The lines. Even got background music. And...HAHAHA I love how SilkPress Sheila reacts to the word 'crazy' the same way Sheila herself reacts to the word 'bitca' right before one of her catfights on B&B. Honorable mention to another SilkPress vs Eva scene where Eva avoids the gaslight and that Andre/Eva scene where he continues to be there for her. 

 

And speaking of the reveal...now that I've seen the full episode...I've warmed to NuTed a bit. I thought in the brief scene I saw on my busy Thursday that he did what I love when a role gets recast. The actor uses some of the mannerisms of their predecessers, but not do a complete parroting of them. And that I felt he pulled off well. It allows for the actor to slowly enter their own vibe to a role and make it their own. And so far...I felt Keith was still...Ted. Love the scenes with NuTed/Kat. But time will tell if I feel he will make it his own.

 

The only good thing I can say about that Andre/Ashley scene...they both have gotten comfortable in their roles, and it was nice to see. I'm Team Dani/Andre over here. That said...I actually am loving the C plot of Ashley, Derek, and the apartment because they are finally getting drama. And I'm actually Team Derek though I completely understand where Ashley is coming from. Thankful that we got that phone call with her mother for her POV and background life. She really is not used to living with someone and what that is like. And it's relatable. But she's handling it all the wrong way. As for their overall place on the canvas though, I can't help, but think about what I said in the first week...they are just meta to me...getting the development...or lack thereof...that black characters get on other soaps...just in reverse. 

 

Awww at June saying that she just finds the picture lovely. I don't completely believe her hehe, but it was nice. 

 

The anvils about Eva's birthday...smh. lol. 

3 hours ago, ranger1rg said:

The fact that you're using DAYS to defend a BTG set is telling, since we all know DAYS is poverty level soapdom. I expect so much more and better from Gates.

And they've given us plenty. Sets, outdoor scenes, music licensing, etc. And that was the point of me using DAYS... so.

It's obvious the casino set is not intended for long-term use, hence why it's likely it wasn't as evolved as the other community sets, etc.

Just compared the open on Friday's episode with the first week episodes. I think the difference is that the bass line is much more apparent -- stronger and harder.

Just had a random thought that Vanessa Bell Calloway would be good casting for Sharon (The Articulette who hung up on Anita). She usually plays nice, but if you saw the Temptations biopic you'll remember she was pretty good playing that crooked manager that ripped them off. She might also sing because in Polly and Polly Comin' Home her character sang but I can't tell if it was a dub or not. Lastly, she did AMC and DAYS for short stints so she is no stranger to soaps.

Edited May 18May 18 by ReddFoxx

Too bad she ended up on Y&R. Actress Valarie Pettiford might've been "Sharon" because she sings too and does it pretty well.

1 hour ago, ReddFoxx said:

Just had a random thought that Vanessa Bell Calloway would be good casting for Sharon (The Articulette who hung up on Anita).

She would be great, but I of course am thinking of her in What's Love Got to Do with It.

11 hours ago, ranger1rg said:

Jon Lindstrom proved with Ryan Chamberlain on GH that he can play menacing and evil. He's not doing it here, and I think it's a combination of writing and performance.

 

To be fair, Longoria has modeled and has represented major companies like L'Oreal, but she was never a runway model.

I don't have any problem with seeing Dani as a runway model. I think it's more than possible, and I don't understand anyone criticizing her look.

I actually have a bigger problem with the whole "Anita is an EGOT" thing. I think it goes way too far. Give her a Grammy. Say she was nominated for a Tony, or even won. But an EGOT winner? No.

 

The fact that you're using DAYS to defend a BTG set is telling, since we all know DAYS is poverty level soapdom. I expect so much more and better from Gates.

 

 

I can't help it, but I'm LOL at the people defending that backroom bingo hall casino and making excuses for it. It's hilariously bad.

 

Small Bar is a better set than the casino set.

On 5/15/2025 at 11:32 AM, Soaplovers said:

I remember when Andre was shooting that documentary, there was a snippet shown of Nicole where she mentioned three times that Ted hadn't been there for her.  She mentioned one of the times was when Martin was ill, and the miscarriages was the second thing.. but I don't recall what the third thing was.

If I remember correctly, they were interrupted before Nicole could reveal what the third thing was. I remember feeling like it was an intentional interruption, too. 

I usually don't want Tide placement in the middle of an intense sad scene, but this is an interesting point

5 hours ago, janea4old said:

I usually don't want Tide placement in the middle of an intense sad scene, but this is an interesting point

To me the product placement normalizes these folks. Your bound to see household products around no matter how immaculate someone's house may be. 

15 hours ago, Vee said:

She would be great, but I of course am thinking of her in What's Love Got to Do with It.

I was just thinking about her as Yvonne on AMC. Yeah, would love to see her. 

On 5/15/2025 at 3:19 PM, Soaplovers said:

It fits since Judy Tate (script writer) wrote for P & G soaps for years and Zimmerman (breakdown writer) worked on both Bell soaps.

Oh, really? That explains why the reveal episodes...the majority of which Zimmerman did the breakdowns for...hit perfectly. Cool!

On 5/15/2025 at 3:48 PM, janea4old said:

I do love that the episode ended with Kat exclaiming when she was alone "Gotcha!"

I really loved that. Background music and all. 

 

 

2 hours ago, MontyB said:

To me the product placement normalizes these folks. Your bound to see household products around no matter how immaculate someone's house may be. 

Agreed.

2 hours ago, MontyB said:

To me the product placement normalizes these folks. Your bound to see household products around no matter how immaculate someone's house may be. 

Oh that's a good point!

I was saying only that I'd prefer that the product placement not be heavily featured by the cameraperson during a stressful scene, because it takes me out of the moment. I don't mind it being part of the background of scenes -- most of the time, I like it.

I saw a similar tweet from another BTG viewer that said something along the lines of Tide being for when there is (emotional) mess to clean up...  and Febreze is for the calming after the mess.