Archives for January 2008

The Young and the Restless: Katherine Chancellor, Always!

By Patrick Erwin The Young and the Restless has a long history of being a solid hour of soap, mostly unmoved by trends or the fleeting fancies that other shows have lived (or died) by. But in the last few years, Y&R has undergone some substantial changes -- changes in writers, in producers, and in the pace the story unfolds on screen. Fans … [Read more...]

On Soaps, Multiple Suspect Murder Mysteries are So-o-o Done!

 By Marlena De Lacroix I have grown so tired of the soap opera convention known as the multiple-suspect murder mystery storyline.  Of late, they've become meaningless, predictable or, even worse, totally incomprehensible. The multiple-suspect murder plot was only done to perfection on the old full-time soap mystery show Edge of Night.  But the … [Read more...]

Guiding Light Today: A Few Flickers of Light?

By Patrick Erwin You may remember the last time I wrote about Guiding Light, I shared my opinion that the show was "operating at diminished capacity."  Those were harsh words for a show that used to be must-see-TV for me.  Now, I don't know that GL is out of intensive care just yet, but there're a few additions to the show that I think are … [Read more...]

Marcie Surrenders Her Son on One Life to Live: A Rare Soap Opera Grand Slam

By Marlena De Lacroix While we were all bitching and moaning about Budig, I for one almost missed the soap opera story of the year.  This is the denouement of that Marcie-on-the-run story on One Life to Live, in which Marcie had fled Llanview with her "adopted" son (newly handed over by the court to Tommy's biological father, rapist Todd), … [Read more...]

Rape Stories: Days of Our Lives Shows That “No” Really Means “No” This Time

By Patrick Erwin For all its onscreen and offscreen turmoil, Days of Our Lives seems to have a few stories working for it right now. One of them is Chelsea and Stephanie and the sorority girls dealing with the aftermath of the campus rapist, Ford, who raped Stephanie and Cordy and threatened Chelsea. Initially, the story didn't seem too … [Read more...]

All My Children’s Over-hyped Return of Rebecca Budig

By Marlena De Lacroix A member of our family has been ill, so it's been hard enough to post.  And so at the end of  tough days,  I turn to where I have always turned since I was a teen for a bit of relief, comfort and a sense of belonging:  to daytime soaps.  Right now -- late Saturday afternoon - what's going on is SoapNet's  "Welcome Back … [Read more...]

From Hank to Luke and Noah: A Personal Journey

By Patrick Erwin Most soap operas are a unique combination of realism and complete fantasy. But every once in a while, there are characters or storylines that transcend the fictional wall, and spill over into real life -- one's own real life -- in a very powerful way. … [Read more...]

Soaps’ Scab Scripts: Seinfelds They Ain’t

By Marlena De Lacroix We've just passed New Year's, and a certain ennui has set in this week on soaps.  This winter of Marlena's discontent is made worse by the arrival of scab-written scripts. Are they here so soon?  On General Hospital and The Young and the Restless, this would seem to be the case.  Are there more?  Perhaps.  I'm listening … [Read more...]

Back to the Future: Soaps Try to Revive 80s Glory

By Patrick Erwin The death of the soap opera may have been widely exaggerated -- they're still alive and kicking.  But it's no secret that the patient is ailing.  Ratings for many of the shows are anemic, and they've continued to shrink. … [Read more...]