9 hours ago, Paul Raven said:

Back to the set situation.

The Hamilton living room still wins hands down as the ugliest set.

Beyond ugly. It's a question of taste, and that entire room is the very definition of tacky.

The furniture is tacky, the shelving is tacky, the colors are tacky, the decor pieces are tacky. It's such a huge miss that it has to be intentional, right?

Except I don't think it is.

From the conversation between Samantha and her study date:
"If you'll talk about Nella Larsen, I'll do the part about Zora Neale Hurston."

I love it when BTG makes me look things up and learn something I didn't know.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nella_Larsen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zora_Neale_Hurston

 

1 hour ago, janea4old said:

From the conversation between Samantha and her study date:
"If you'll talk about Nella Larsen, I'll do the part about Zora Neale Hurston."

I love it when BTG makes me look things up and learn something I didn't know.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nella_Larsen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zora_Neale_Hurston

 

I had to look them up, too.  I've read "Their Eyes Were Watching God" of course, but knew NOTHING about the author & very little about Nella Larsen.  I was embarrassed that Samantha Richardson (who's only 30) knew more about them than I did.  

12 minutes ago, Broderick said:

I was embarrassed that Samantha Richardson (who's only 30) knew more about them than I did.  

35!

On 9/12/2025 at 12:04 AM, Antoyne said:

I had no idea he was into wrestling. If he’s in Atlanta we’ve probably been at the same shows.

If you see him you should get a picture with him and post it here. Or just ask him who his favorite wrestlers are.

21 hours ago, Broderick said:

Tomas was even more robotic today than usual. Bless his heart.       

The sarcasm in this sentence made me cackle.

Alex Alegria, Ben Gavin, Jen Jacob are the weak links of the main cast.

Alegria is the worst, but Ben Gavin is just dreadful.

Jen Jacob is yet another case of a bland daytime starlet who would probably be best improved by going crazy onscreen. But while I could be here for it, even that shouldn't keep Ashley around for long. Sooner or later she's gonna go.

I've said before and I'll say again that the crime drama in Fairmont Crest will end with Vanessa taking over Joey's operation lock, stock and barrel. I think JL/Joey have come a long way but Vanessa is clearly the endgame and LB is killing it everyday. A true lady boss.

Edited September 13Sep 13 by Vee

I don't mind Jen Jacob as an actress, but the character of Ashley as written would have Meryl Streep struggling to make it work. Ashley would work as a supporting character but not a lead.

When she went through the plot points with her mother, you got the cliff notes of the story so far. On paper it looks interesting enough, but the way it has played onscreen just hasn't worked.

As for AA, he has not improved one bit in all these months and that is bringing the story down. Obviously no one is having a word in his ear about his performances.

 

Edited September 13Sep 13 by Paul Raven

Are we getting a new set next week or did I just fail to recognize one of sets in the promo? It seems like Andre and Dani are having drinks somewhere that doesn't look like Uptown, the CC, or one of their homes. 

Edited September 13Sep 13 by GLATWT88

19 minutes ago, Paul Raven said:

When she went through the plot points with her mother, you got the cliff notes of the story so far. On paper it looks interesting enough, but the way it has played onscreen just hasn't worked.

For it to work effectively on screen, the actor playing Andre needs to be a sure-enough "bad boy player-type" who's inexplicably smitten with the "sweet down-to-earth" nurse.  The audience should be wondering, "Can Andre really settle down with this girl and give up his playboy ways?  Or is he only going through a temporary phase with Ashley?"  Sean Freeman doesn't project this, and the writing hasn't helped him.  

The actress playing Ashley needs to be completely sincere and devoted to salt-of-the-earth Derek but inexplicably drawn to the more worldly Andre.  The audience should be wondering, "Can she forget Andre and settle down with Derek, or will she always have a weakness for a bad boy?"  Jen Jacob doesn't project this, and the writing hasn't helped her. 

John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John made this same story work in "Grease", but obviously Sean Freeman and Jen Jacob lack the charisma (and the effective writing) that made "Grease" so successful.  

The actor playing Derek needs to be blue-collar, sincere, down to earth, devoted to Ashley, and a little bit jealous that he doesn't have the free, wild streak that she finds attractive in Andre.  Ben Gavin doesn't project this, and the writing hasn't helped him.

All three of them are a complete bust, in my opinion. 

Andre works fine as Dani's "boy toy", but it's clear she's got the upper hand in the relationship, and he's just along for the ride.  I doubt that's the way it's supposed to come across.    

 

I think if someone like Josh Kelly from GH was playing Derek it would be a whole different ballgame, but you'd still have Jen Jacob to contend with.

I do think Dani/Andre have a very strong rapport and chemistry, even if Sean Freeman is still a bit limited. KM elevates him.

Andre has passion and heat with Dani, and none at all with Ashley.

Now if Andre created a romantic night in Paris for Dani, you know we would've gotten an off the charts heat generating love scene set to an R&B slow jam 🥰 🤤

Just checking in. I'm up to Chelsea's kidnapping and the "wedding" with Allison.

First of all, I have nothing but praise for the actress playing Allison. I've watched a lot of soap crazies and she's doing everything right. She genuinely makes my flesh crawl. I still don't care about Chelsea but the eps with her and Allison in the cabin kept my attention. I also like Kat and Jacob as crime-fighting partners.

Looking back I really enjoyed the Articulettes storyline but I'm disappointed that it got used to make Leslie/Dana rich. I confess that I'm tired of her and would like a break.

I've refrained from naming actors who I think are weak links but IMO the actor playing Tomas needs to go especially if Kat/Tomas/Eva are supposed to be a triangle. I'm thinking a young Kamar de los Reyes type. (May he R.I.P.)

I'm really enjoying Nicole on a lot of levels. She is over this mess.

 

Thursday was the first and only time I didnt mind Ashley and Derek. I actually saw chemistry between the two and wouldnt mind seeing them find happiness and being each other's end game. BUT then Friday happened and Ashley was back to being wishy washy and I cant with her. SHE is the problem

15 minutes ago, marceline said:

Just checking in. I'm up to Chelsea's kidnapping and the "wedding" with Allison.

First of all, I have nothing but praise for the actress playing Allison. I've watched a lot of soap crazies and she's doing everything right. She genuinely makes my flesh crawl. I still don't care about Chelsea but the eps with her and Allison in the cabin kept my attention. I also like Kat and Jacob as crime-fighting partners.

Looking back I really enjoyed the Articulettes storyline but I'm disappointed that it got used to make Leslie/Dana rich. I confess that I'm tired of her and would like a break.

I've refrained from naming actors who I think are weak links but IMO the actor playing Tomas needs to go especially if Kat/Tomas/Eva are supposed to be a triangle. I'm thinking a young Kamar de los Reyes type. (May he R.I.P.)

I'm really enjoying Nicole on a lot of levels. She is over this mess.

 

I also thought the actress playing Allison has done a good job giving us soap crazy, but while RonniRose has improved she really struggled through a lot of the kidnapping material for Chelsea. I will say she is handling the aftermath better. As for the opinions of this board, I think they are divided but I will say from my observation most feel the opposite that the actresses for Allison failed in her delivery and Chelsea rose to it or has come a long way. 

As for Tomas, I don't think I have seen anyone here or on any other platform say the actor is doing well. Doesn't help that the actresses playing Kat and Eva are the strongest of the young set. Yeah, they carry AA bad acting at times, but other times it further emphasizes how much work he needs.