Days4Life

Sep 4 2008, 06:07 PM

Although for the most part I'm not enjoying the autiism storyline, today's scenes were very good. Renee Jones was fantastic today and for the first time I felt an emotional tug from this story. Abe's line to Lexie about how she wanted hugs and "I love you"s from Theo but she might never get them and her reaction were very moving. I loved her fantasy about sitting in the sand with Theo, playing, and he looked at her and smiled and said "I love you, Mommy"...something most moms take for granted but Lexie may never experience with her son. Good stuff.

I don't know how EJ and Tony are planning on pulling off this Dimera coup, but I'm enjoying the scenes anyway. I'm such a Stefano fan I think he could probably read the phone book and I'd be happy...just as long as he kept rolling those R's! I'm really enjoying this version of Tony. The past few years he's either been too good or too bad; he should be a mix. Same with EJ. They both work much better in shades of gray.

I don't much care for Trent so his breakfast with Marlena was kind of blah, but I liked Nicole and John. Best line of the day was from John to Nicole "Whoa! Don't touch the hair!" Second best line--because I think it pretty much sums up the thoughts of most viewers--was from EJ to Nicole when he said he really didn't know what was going on with him and Samantha. The problem is NO ONE, not even the writers, seem to know what's going on with EJ and Sami.

If anything else happened today, I don't remember it. But overall the show was pretty good today; much better than Tuesday and Wednesday.

DrewHamilton

Sep 4 2008, 05:40 PM

I've loved this week so far. And that makes me wonder. Could this be Scott and the actors rewrites?

Everyone just assumed that the Olympics stuff was Scott's rewrites due to the vets being displayed and Stefano's return. However, if you remember one of Higley's blog posts, she said that she had big stuff coming for the Olympics. Maybe Stefano's return was part of her big plan. It fits if you ask me. And if you also ask me, everything that took place during the Olympics reeked of Higley IMO. So I'm going to go on thinking that the Olympic stuff was all Higley, and now, we're getting into Scott's rewrites. That has to be how it is. All of these stories are coming together and they're being written, sort of like Hogan's team used to, with the storylines interweaving with each other, something that was a huge staple on Y&R. This has to be Scott's stuff.

And if you remember, when news broke out weeks ago, it was said that the rewrites would take 6-8 weeks to air. It's been about 6 weeks since that news broke out, meaning the Olympics stuff would have been too soon to be the rewrites.

So that makes me worried. I'm finally enjoying DAYS, but with news that Higley's staying, I'm worried that her boring drab writing will return. What to do?

PhoenixRising05

Sep 4 2008, 11:36 AM

Flying Monkey

Sep 4 2008, 10:11 AM

PhoenixRising05

Sep 3 2008, 10:08 PM

Mitchapalooza

Sep 3 2008, 05:38 PM

Can we please kill off Stephanie/Max/Melanie/Nick/Chelsea/Daniel.

They have been SOOO overkill for the last 6 months I just want to punch someone!

I can see how Stax have been and Chan to an extent but earlier in the year the young cast was hardly featured and Chan and Stax have been cut down on alot until recently. Chan was only on alot last week because their story came to an end. As for Stax, they aren't really being forced on us anymore. Nick has barely been on and Melanie is new so I can't say that is overkill.

John/Marlena/Tony/Anna/Stefano are getting good airtime right now. Sure, it's different now because other stories are being featured too unlike during the Olympics where it was only one story but I see that as a good thing. Having only one or two stories gets old quick.

Before talking about today's show, I kind of want to go back to the points being made earlier about Higley. I think Higley basically is lazy and far too sensitive. She clearly wants to be catered too and if one thing goes wrong, things veer off course. I didn't get that feeling in her last stint because, more or less, I think she was nothing but a seat-filler. I'm convinced they knew JER was going to be forced on the show before she even penned her first show. I think Higley can write. She's showed that. She has alot of years of experience at Days and has penned some good stuff. Her first few months at OLTL were great. She even wrote some good story climaxes especially to the Daniel Colson stuff and, despite it being a ripoff of Sami's execution, she was behind Todd's execution story which was great. During her first stint at Days, she wrote a good ending to Sami/Brandon/Lexie and set up Lumi very well. She can do it. I think she just isn't as passionate as she should be. I think she's still used to just being a writer but not a head writer. As I said, it seems like she's too temperamental and finicky for the position. I also think that Tomlin bringing some organization to the writing team will help. Since April, it's been more or less a free for all but now they will each have defined roles. Higley's second stint has suffered from bad breakdowns and pacing at times. That should help. I'm not saying she is the best for the job but I think the situation will get better and one thing about her is that her stories never lacked direction like they have this stint. I blame that on backstage shit. Her stories aren't always good or executed right but they never lack direction like they have. I still think she will be out though soon.

Now, about today, with the exception of Lucas and Chloe popping in and out (it was story movement in a way but felt out of place), I felt the show had more cohesion today. I did think it was funny how Stefano dealt with them and I enjoyed his continued scenes with Tony and EJ too. Loving this power struggle. Nice touch too having Stefano notice the painting John put up.

Stefano/Victor was great to see. I just love them being allies and love how they tied it to the Paul story. It leaves a lasting ramification in that Victor owes Stefano. I can see some potential down the road here where one of them double-crosses the other. They seem to have the type of relationship where they have both targeted each other and each other's loved ones but they still manage to do business. I think it's more or less they are to not target each other's loved ones right now and things will be civil, which is an agreement that can implode at any moment. I did like how Stefano pulled the strings and let Victor know what was going on. It definitely filled some things in and Stefano helping John out was clever. John is sort of under his thumb again and I like how it was used to prevent John from going after Stefano. Nice ending too with the John/Philip stuff.

The cop shop stuff was ok. Philip/Morgan feels like a waste now after the latest news.

Max/Melanie was very enjoyable. I hope they don't let her go. She's far too talented and she's made Max interesting to me. I find the character interesting. Loved the little Nick appearance.

I did enjoy the Chan scenes today knowing it was the end and RM did seem to wake up today but, as someone else mentioned, SC was not into it at all. You do get the feeling he wanted out of the story and wanted more with LK while RM wants Chan. Melvin was better today and I'm glad it's over. The Chelsea/Theo moment was cute. I like her working at the hospital in this role. I guess we know who Marc was in the casting call. He's Theo's counselor and I can see how he would know Brandon (as was mentioned in the casting call in the scene with Nicole) as Brandon was a pediatric counselor. Nice seeing Lexie too. Too bad whatever she had to do involving her father never made it onscreen. I watched tomorrow's show and it's the next day and Lexie is with Theo, Abe, Steve, and Kayla and Stefano is in scenes with Tony and EJ again. I guess that is yet another consequence of the behind the scenes shit.

I think this has been a very good week despite the disjointed feel and obvious influences stemming from the drama behind the scenes. I'm shocked some don't like it or find it boring as some of the stories many hated are finishing and the vets and Dimera stuff is center stage. I should say that RJ gives a great performance tomorrow and the Nicole/John stuff is fun. The Dimera scenes are very good too tomorrow.

Stax has been featured heavily off and on throughout the year and Chan since its inception and both were ratings disasters. The Chan story has come to an end??? Stax isn't being forced on us anymore??? I'd have to disagree. As for Melanie, well I can say newbie overkill!

The only time that John, Marlena, Tony, Anna and Stefano were receiving good airtime was during this all too brief respite of the Olympic storyline and now that it's over it's readily apparent things are speedily headed south once again.

Having one main story with one or two smaller satellite stories is precisely how Days used to operate once upon a time. Unlike the current style which is to put everybody and their brother in a storyline and give them airtime. Devoting five minutes a week to most of the stories in meaningless and forgettable scenes that pointlessly drag on for eternity or fall by the wayside, entirely forgotten. This is supposed to keep people interested and tuning in??? That might work well for the short attention span generation but it doesn't work for me.

I agree that Higley is beyond lazy but as far as her being sensitive I would have to disagree and the writing reflects that. I don't really care about Higley as a person, I don't care to read about her daily life on her blog. Because it isn't about her it's about the job she was hired to do. If anything I think Higley has shown what a talentless hack she truly is. After being spoiled for that short period of time, when things were moving in the right direction with all the right players in the forefront, now that we're back to Higley's writing the differences are dramatic and not in a good way.

I didn't watch OLTL so I can't comment on her writing there but her first tenure at Days wasn't any better than it is now. I didn't like her writing then and I don't like it now. She certainly isn't head writer material and I wouldn't even want her on staff unless well supervised. I seriously doubt things will get much better with Tomlin in charge he can't make Higley be talented.

I thought the opposite, the show was a jumble. Far too many characters saying very little, much too confusing and disjointed and Stefano's abrupt change today saddened me.

I wouldn't think of Stefano and Victor as allies, they're both using each other to obtain something they want, but both men were always rivals in the past. Moving the story in that direction particularly at this juncture is ridiculous to say the least, Stefano has so much more to focus on right now. No need to add anymore layers to the story. I can't see the trees for the forest as it is now. Save it for another storyline, you can't included every single character in every story or feature them all weekly.

Phillip and Morgan were a waste long before now. Knowing that I won't have that newbie shoved down my throat any longer is a godsend.

Max and Melanie send me seaching for the mute button. The entire plot is a snore and the dialogue is insipid and there is far, far too much Melanie. Higley has no clue how to introduce a new character. I've always found Max a little boring since they brought him back, I could tolerate him as a supporting character much better than as a lead character.

Unlike you I'm not so sure this is the end of Chan, but one can only hope. But that type of uber ickiness is right up Higley's alley. No I didn't get that SC wanted out of the story and wanted more with LK, that's reading a lot into just a rather lackluster performance. Perhaps he's bored with the material he's being given or maybe he just isn't that great of an actor. Everyone in those scenes looked bored and just like they were going through the motions rather than putting forth any real effort.

I'm not a Chelsea fan and this autism story is going now where fast and has very little to with Abe and Lexie or even Theo really, just Higley trying to showcase her favorite cause and going about it all wrong.

Higley's work always leaves me with a disjointed feeling, now and before. She cannot write anything indepth, only discombobulated events that never tell the whole story, and lack any real emotion. So therefore the stories never suck you into and keep you there.

For a fleeting moment we saw all the right people featured center stage. Now we're back to throwing as many characters as possible into as many scenes as possible even if they don't belong or serve no real purpose in being there. It's distracting and so makes it a little harder to notice just how bad the writing really is. You really need a scorecard to keep up with all the characters in all the storylines that Higley tries to do all the same time.

One thing I've learned from all the backstage drama is who Higley likes to write for and who she doesn't like to write for and that differs radically from what the majority of the audience wants. Once again it isn't about Ms. Higley, who she is or what she wants, or what her personal causes are she was hired to write a good show that will bring in viewers and raise the ratings and she doesn't know how.

Wow...do we differ alot.

Stax was being forced on us earlier this year for sure but now? July and August were hardly Stax or Chan dominated. Hell, we never even saw Chan do anything until they broke up last week. Surely, the Stax/Trent/Melanie stuff will be on more now because the story is ending but after an August full of vets, I just can't see how anyone can say looking at the past two months that Stax/Chan/Nick/Melanie were forced on people. Not in those two months.

In this day and age, you can't just have one story. Days did that last year with the Vendetta and Touch the Sky and it crashed and burned. What happens if you have one story and it bombs? There is nothing to keep people watching. Even a good story won't be liked by someone so if some don't like that one story, you lose them. You can have several stories and still make it work. In fact, most fans enjoy having it work like that because it provides something for everyone. Unless you only watch for one or two people or a couple, I can't see how anyone can say not having multiple stories going on is a good idea. Every soap has been doing that for decades, except PC when it went to the arc format. I don't know what Days your talking about but I've been watching since the early 80's and back then it still had multiple stories sharing the spotlight.

I know many disagree on the fact that Higley can write but I do think if people looked back, they can see that. I'm not saying I want her on Days and I still doubt the autism stuff was her idea. I think that was all NBC and Corday. I don't care how terrible a writer is. If your writing someone that is very personal, you give it more focus and more attention and that isn't happening. Dena did not seem like someone who was inspired to write the story. She came off forced. You can always tell when someone is into what they are doing and it was clear that Dena was not the one who wanted the story. If she wanted it, she would be more into it. Just trying to be fair.

People also don't understand it can't be about who you want on everyday. You have to think about the big picture and also about others. everyone has their favorites and why should their wants be slighted just so some can get what they want? Alot of today's fans are selfish. They are even as bad as TPTB who are accused of forcing their own agendas. The fans that run around pushing for what they want without even thinking about those who have other ideas of what they want are just as bad as the producers and writers who force things on fans. It's the same thing. Fans try to force the show's hand and the show forces things on the fans. It's a shame because not only has the quality of each soap gone downhill but, in some ways (and I'm not saying every fan is like this), the quality of the fan has gone downhill too. It's all about "Me" or "I" and not enough about what is good for the show and it's fans as a WHOLE.

it's ok though. I guess we will just have to agree to disagree because you obviously don't like the show at all right now :laugh:

madelinehawaii

Sep 4 2008, 11:53 AM

Flying Monkey

Sep 4 2008, 10:11 AM

The only time that John, Marlena, Tony, Anna and Stefano were receiving good airtime was during this all too brief respite of the Olympic storyline and now that it's over it's readily apparent things are speedily headed south once again.

yeah, how dare Higley make the DiMeras actually discuss their own issues for a change

jane1978

Sep 4 2008, 12:25 PM

Reading we are heading into another transition period I will not comment the show anymore. Itīs pretty much pointless untill Gary Tomlin and other new hires names appear in the credits.

I just hope now, when KR was let go, Corday will finally admit his mistake and bring back MM as his love interest. She can easily play a different character, maybe some Belleīs twin Stefano created for whatever reason, so his beloved Shelle stay untouched. Phillip/Belle were the only one couple in the non teen cathegory which really had it all and already started to create a massive following of their own. This show needs this kind of couple and if it means a triangle with Chloe bring it on.

Itīs time to stop all this more realistic, more character driven and more whatever nonsense and get back to what people really expect from DAYS. Good passionate couples with chemistry, a lot of romance and crazy obstacles.

Btw. I really hope the show will not fire Melanie too, because I totally love the actress and Nick will need some love interest anyway. The Paris also seems to be the only story at the moment which still is somewhat coherent and with a direction.

FanODays

Sep 5 2008, 08:11 AM

The best part of yesterday's show were the DiMeras. I absolutely loved that Tony had a backbone and turned the tables on Stefano and that EJ sided with Tony. The performances were awesome as was the content.

The Theo story is a big disappointment because so much of what they talk about could pertain to any parent and child. The scene when Abe tried to get Theo to leave the playground is one that plays out on an hourly basis in all playgrounds around the world. They need to be more specific but I get that its difficult to do that with a child actor. Lexie wondering about school seems legit but why isn't she also talking about what Theo's therapists have to say on the issue. I assume Theo is in therapy, if not, shame on Days.

Hate Marlena's giggling with Trent as if she were in high school and while I used to find John enjoyable, I now find him annoying.

brimike

Sep 4 2008, 03:38 PM

jane1978

Sep 4 2008, 03:30 PM

It has to feature new characters. And it has to try to create new couples. Otherwise, itīs all just dying. The biggest mistake this show ever did is they kept most of the vets too long and didnīt shift the focus in time.

I really don't know when that started either. Bo and Hope were off the show for years, and the show did just fine. Shane and Kim left and it was all good. Roman and Marlena were gone for years, and the show was fine. (FYI, I'm a fan of all six of those characters, so I'm not saying I want them gone... just pointing out the show has always gone on.) Sure, they were missed. People wanted them back. Hell, I wanted them back. But back then knew how to foster new characters, bring new characters into the forefront in organic ways. (I'd kill to have Charlotte Ross back as Eve Donovan... the original Sami Brady. LOL!)

At some point in the mid-90's, this cast suddenly got locked in, and nobody was allowed to break away or take a back seat. Everything was frozen, and it ended up paralyzing the whole show so badly, it's never broken free of it.

There has to be a way to organically introduce fresh blood while still keeping focus on the characters people have grown up with. Other soaps do it all the time. I'll never understand why Days is so "stuck in place"

Has any long-term character been introduced, since the aging of the kids under Langan, that's still around? I guess Chelsea's really the only one with any lasting tenure, and even she's not that long. The rest all seem to come and go within a year.

Quote:

 

...then Lucas says that Chloe will be Ali's stepmom one day!!

Sariah

Sep 6 2008, 11:31 AM

Quote:

 

...then Lucas says that Chloe will be Ali's stepmom one day!!

That is the thing that probably struck me the most as being a WTF moment in that episode. Lucas indicates that he and Chloe have been "dating" for a couple of weeks (whatever that means, because it's all obviously happening offscreen, which is not a good way to build up a couple that the audience will root for) and he's already telling Sami that he and Chloe are going to get married and Chloe will be Allie's stepmom? Talk about out of left field! I can only hope they're rushing things along so that the end will come even faster.

mesagirl

Sep 6 2008, 12:38 PM

I did a double take with Lucas saying that Chloe would be Ali's stepmom one day as well. All the writers needed to do was add in one word to make it be plausible... might. Would have made so much more sense. Don't they do run throughs of the scripts where glaring errors stand out, or things that make it seem so choppy are found out before the scenes are shot? Seems like that was an easy thing to pick up on.

"Chloe might be Ali's stepmom one day, and if not Chloe, then someone else will be. You don't have any say in who I date Sami. Look at who you've chosen to be around Ali. You think EJ is a saint? It's not like you have any room to talk here regarding partner choices."

That's more or less what I was expecting to hear from Lucas.

Days4Life

Sep 6 2008, 03:55 PM

Sariah

Sep 6 2008, 11:31 AM

Quote:

 

...then Lucas says that Chloe will be Ali's stepmom one day!!

That is the thing that probably struck me the most as being a WTF moment in that episode. Lucas indicates that he and Chloe have been "dating" for a couple of weeks (whatever that means, because it's all obviously happening offscreen, which is not a good way to build up a couple that the audience will root for) and he's already telling Sami that he and Chloe are going to get married and Chloe will be Allie's stepmom? Talk about out of left field! I can only hope they're rushing things along so that the end will come even faster.

That was a jaw-dropping moment. I can't believe Lucas made that statement! He's barely ended things with Sami--the "love of his life" (BTW, I'm really growing to hate that phrase), he bangs Chloe in the elevator, saves her from an apparent life-threatening panic attack (sarcasm intended) during the hospital drama, and now he's making marriage plans? What????? I have never heard anyone say anything like that about such a casual relationship, and it shows Lucas's immaturity as a father. When you have a child and are considering bring a step-parent into his/her's life, you need to do things very slowly and make sure this is the right relationship for you and your child. I know single parents who have dated a person for months before even introducing them to their children, because they don't want to subject them to casual relationships.