Is it just me or has there been a complete shift in the writing for Marco? A shift that doesn't seem like it was planned until recently

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Edited 3 hours ago3 hr by AbcNbc247

They generally have wanted us to feel Valentin is both misunderstood and loving and also a dangerous, powerful man lol. I just find him to be a !@#$%^&*]in' wuss, to put it as politely as possible. He has never been anything but pathetic to me, with the brief exception of the moment when Mulcahey leaned into his obvious creepiness to begin to set him as a villain ready to exit the show. Once again, here he stays!

They have already signposted that Lucas is actually rebounding from Brad, are constantly mentioning Brad, etc. and members of this creative team have long adored Brad and Brad/Britt. It is a matter of time before he returns and now that Marco is actively plotting with Sidwell, the pieces are all there for Lucas to be shamed and humiliated for ever doubting Sonny's wisdom re: Marco, leading to his inevitable reunion with Brad. Ugh.

3 minutes ago, Vee said:

re: Marco, leading to his inevitable reunion with Brad. Ugh.

Emphasis on the uggghh!

Brad needs to stay away. I kind of liked him until that thing he did to Portia.

25 minutes ago, Vee said:

He has never been anything but pathetic to me, with the brief exception of the moment when Mulcahey leaned into his obvious creepiness to begin to set him as a villain ready to exit the show. Once again, here he stays

Agreed! I cannot believe they are all slowly working their way back onto the show. And Valentin is getting the FV special for his friends- tie them to a core character like Carly. They have used Liz for this so much that I’m surprised he didn’t parachute into her yard and need medical help.

It’s like they all forgot their ratings were not great when all these people were leading the show the first time around. They tanked the show themselves fighting for control after Mulcahey got there. Things did pick up when Michael was recast, and they were blowing through stories at lightning speed. But then Britt’s return and Ronnie derailed everything and you can feel the story manipulation happening again to prop those tired old characters. Valentini has driven me away before doing this. The fact that Laura has something marginally entertaining going on is keeping me watching.

Edited 3 hours ago3 hr by titan1978

10 minutes ago, titan1978 said:

Agreed! I cannot believe they are all slowly working their way back onto the show. And Valentin is getting the FV special for his friends- tie them to a core character like Carly. They have used Liz for this so much that I’m surprised he didn’t parachute into her yard and need medical help.

She's Plan D!

I am hanging around for the Drew/Willow saga and Michael atm. Not much else, and not five days a week.

1 hour ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Is it just me or has there been a complete shift in the writing for Marco? A shift that doesn't seem like it was planned until recently

You're absolutely right. They've suddenly written Marco as his dad's enforcer (as in today's scene with Britt) and active co-conspirator, even treating creepy Pascal as a friend of the family. It's a shame because Marco and Lucas still have great chemistry, and from the little we've seen with Van Hansis in the role, Lucas/Brad do not. (It doesn't help that the Brad actor still can't really act). My only hope is that the success of Heated Rivalry shows TPTB that there's a huge audience for hot gay romances with more conventionally masc characters like Marco--and that they pull back from their plans to tank the Lucas/Marco romance.

1 hour ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Is it just me or has there been a complete shift in the writing for Marco? A shift that doesn't seem like it was planned until recently

40 minutes ago, prefab1 said:

You're absolutely right. They've suddenly written Marco as his dad's enforcer (as in today's scene with Britt) and active co-conspirator, even treating creepy Pascal as a friend of the family. It's a shame because Marco and Lucas still have great chemistry, and from the little we've seen with Van Hansis in the role, Lucas/Brad do not. (It doesn't help that the Brad actor still can't really act). My only hope is that the success of Heated Rivalry shows TPTB that there's a huge audience for hot gay romances with more conventionally masc characters like Marco--and that they pull back from their plans to tank the Lucas/Marco romance.

Most of the audience for that softcore show would never go near a daytime soap. I'm surprised that GH even had a few intimate moments for Marco and Lucas, but I guess we all knew that could never last. Carly and Sonny are always right and the show is mainly for socially conservative women who have been watching for 30-50 years. Lucas and Brad will show up once every other month to make bitchy comments with Britt.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by DRW50

1 hour ago, titan1978 said:

Agreed! I cannot believe they are all slowly working their way back onto the show. And Valentin is getting the FV special for his friends- tie them to a core character like Carly. They have used Liz for this so much that I’m surprised he didn’t parachute into her yard and need medical help.

It’s like they all forgot their ratings were not great when all these people were leading the show the first time around. They tanked the show themselves fighting for control after Mulcahey got there. Things did pick up when Michael was recast, and they were blowing through stories at lightning speed. But then Britt’s return and Ronnie derailed everything and you can feel the story manipulation happening again to prop those tired old characters. Valentini has driven me away before doing this. The fact that Laura has something marginally entertaining going on is keeping me watching.

I wonder if anything has changed with Valentin other than swapping Anna out with Carly. Doesn't he pop up for heavy focus when JPS is available and then vanishes again for months?

It was tough for me to imagine Mulcahey managing to pry him out. JPS doesn't seem to be under the same rules that Easton and Howarth were when they were finally let go.

I don't think it helps with regard to ratings that they probably have no idea who is responsible for any positive numbers. They likely just give credit to their favorites, or to themselves and assume viewers will be there as long as they don't rock the boat. And any minimal boat rocking done under Mulcahey (like lip service criticisms of Sonny that had a clear out) got the blame.

It was great seeing Anna again!

Gosh, I haven't seen Mac in AGES. That was great to see him. His voice seems much deeper, but perhaps that's aging.

I liked the twist that the ADA is actually playing Sonny. I'm going to guess she doesn't last long once he catches on.

I'm actually really enjoying this show. It's never boring, at least (for me).

It's amazing how much Lulu and Charlotte look like mother/daughter in real life.

41 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

I wonder if anything has changed with Valentin other than swapping Anna out with Carly. Doesn't he pop up for heavy focus when JPS is available and then vanishes again for months?

It was tough for me to imagine Mulcahey managing to pry him out. JPS doesn't seem to be under the same rules that Easton and Howarth were when they were finally let go.

I can only imagine the furor BTS re: not just the Sonny stuff but Mulcahey's obvious intent to ice out Valentin along with Easton and probably Sasha (who they attempted to heavily re-root into the show immediately after PM was ousted with a Quartermaine baby and Scorpio ties, before they finally needed to cut her likely for budget).

FV has always favored JPS and angled major story around his availability. I knew that if Valentin wasn't killed and finished off during Mulcahey's Pikeman wrap-up Frank would find an way to slowly re-weave him back in, and sure enough he has.

I do agree they probably just credit their favorites with any number increases.

6 minutes ago, Vee said:

I can only imagine the furor BTS re: not just the Sonny stuff but Mulcahey's obvious intent to ice out Valentin along with Easton and probably Sasha (who they attempted to heavily re-root into the show immediately after PM was ousted with a Quartermaine baby and Scorpio ties, before they finally needed to cut her likely for budget).

FV has always favored JPS and angled major story around his availability. I knew that if Valentin wasn't killed and finished off during Mulcahey's Pikeman wrap-up Frank would find an way to slowly re-weave him back in, and sure enough he has.

I do agree they probably just credit their favorites with any number increases.

Even dying wouldn't have mattered.

I suppose he is just the new version of the type of character some fans loved with Sebastian Roche's Jerry and William DeVry's Julian, just with more producer support (although didn't DeVry have some for a while).

How would rank the three, if you had to rank?

Just now, DRW50 said:

I suppose he is just the new version of the type of character some fans loved with Sebastian Roche's Jerry and William DeVry's Julian, just with more producer support (although didn't DeVry have some for a while).

How would rank the three, if you had to rank?

Frank (allegedly) despised Julian/WdV lol. Tried to kill him off multiple times before the bitter end, including the time Julian tried to murder Alexis with the dagger that killed her mother. FB viewers or something saved him from above, I think.

I would put both Jerry and Julian far above Valentin, and I was far from Julian's biggest fan (or Jerry's most of the time). They at least had some presence (and/or menace for Jerry) and didn't weep constantly or come off like subway perverts.

Edited 41 minutes ago41 min by Vee

10 minutes ago, Vee said:

Frank (allegedly) despised Julian/WdV lol. Tried to kill him off multiple times before the bitter end, including the time Julian tried to murder Alexis with the dagger that killed her mother. FB viewers or something saved him from above, I think.

I would put both Jerry and Julian far above Valentin, and I was far from Julian's biggest fan (or Jerry's most of the time). They at least had some presence (and/or menace for Jerry) and didn't weep constantly or come off like subway perverts.

Ah. For some reason I thought DeVry had had support at some time. Thanks.

Valentin sums up many of the reasons I haven't felt very invested in the Cassadines bar the first year or two of Stefan - the hype never matches the reality (unless you are played by Constance Towers). But I think the likes of Guza never would have put up with such a lightweight character who, like the old Desperate Housewives quote, probably cries during sex.

I never understood the fan support for Julian or Julian/Alexis. It was an awful pairing and the character was not well thought out or developed, IMO. Not like Alexis has ever really had good pairings or anything though.

I wish Guza didn't bleed the character of Jerry out until he ran dry. SR/Jerry was a villain you could bring back sparingly.

I'd put both Julian and Jerry slightly ahead of Valentin, but if I never saw any of the three again I would be fine.

Wasn't TB's character pregnant by Julian when she left? I am totally blanking on the character's name, but Oscar's mom.