TVGuide: The Best in Soaps 2009

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TVGuide: The Best in Soaps 2009
Topic Started: Dec 15 2009, 03:50 PM (2,262 Views)
Ellie	Dec 15 2009, 03:50 PM Post #1
Posts: 11,979 Group: Staff Member #431 Joined: October 2, 2007 Twitter ID ellie029	http://www.tvguidemagazine.com/soaps/the-best-in-soaps-2009-3534.html The Best in Soaps 2009 by Michael Logan December 15, 2009 02:34 PM EST Best Soap: ABC’s General Hospital I know I’m going to take crap for this pick because no soap maddens its fans like this one does. Yes, GH is dark and dismal and depraved. It glorifies skanks and mobsters and utterly lacks transcendent romance. You might even call it soulless. But, compared to the rest of the soaps this year, it is the one that most commanded our attention, and not just because it somehow happened to land James Franco (who is doing a weird, fine job by the way). GH, on its best days, is smart, muscular and chillingly complex, daring to let its characters be ugly and screwed up and, sometimes, hopelessly doomed. (Claudia’s death by hatchet was a welcome relief.) It boasts the finest acting ensemble in daytime and a casting director, Mark Teschner, who ushered in lots of startling young talent in 2009 (nuKristina, nuMichael, nuMolly—all marvelous!). The production design and camera work remain rich and artful despite the drastic across-the-boards budget cuts that are making most other soaps look kinda cheap. (However did they pull off that sprawling, spectacular Carnival of Terror?) GH is not without its laughs (thanks in large part to Carolyn Hennesy’s caustic Diane) and it can be infectiously charming when it wants to be (Maxie and Spinelli’s almost-wedding was the best episode of the year) but it stubbornly decided long ago not to be your mama’s cup o’ tea. Instead it’s for folks drawn to Dexter and Rescue Me and Breaking Bad—shows that mesmerize even as they sicken and repel. Best Actor: Eric Braeden The Young and the Restless claimed to be in talks with “names” after Braeden quit in a contract dispute (Paul Michael Glaser indeed!). But there’s no way in hell you could ever replace this guy. His Victor Newman—love god, toxic bully, heart-melting mensch—is an incomparable creation. Braeden returns January 15, thank heavens. Y&R has been a bore without him. Best Actress: Robin Strasser It was tempting to detest her shameless One Life to Live character, Dorian Lord, who pretended to be Buddhist in order to snag a wealthy heir, then faked being lesbian to win the gay vote in the Llanview mayor’s race. But the timeless Strasser—who joined OLTL 30 years ago—magically made us laugh and care and, yes, even forgive. No one in soaps performs with such pride and passion. Best Supporting Actor: Peter Bartlett This revered Broadway vet—a true supporting actor—has long been a snooty hoot as OLTL butler Nigel Bartholomew-Smythe, and now he’s doing double duty as Nigel’s toothy Brit cousin Neville. It’s pure, goofy bliss! Bartlett would have been perfect for those great screwball comedies Hollywood made back in the ’30s and ’40s but, alas, he was born too late. Lucky us. Best Supporting Actress: Lisa Lo Cicero As GH stunner Olivia Falconeri, she’s having a cougar fling with one guy, yet also loves the local mob boss who doesn’t know he fathered her kid. And now the kid’s working with the cops to bust daddy for murder! Throughout this hot mess, Lo Cicero has been a tough and tender marvel and the best thing to hit Port Charles in years. The Rest of the Best • The Bold and the Beautiful may well grab its second best-soap Emmy in a row for killing off its pain-in-the-ass matriarch Ann Douglas. The four-day event—featuring a sublime farewell performance by Betty White—was deeply sad yet profoundly uplifting, and unlike anything ever seen in daytime drama. Kudos, too, to B&B wonder woman Ashley Jones (Bridget) who juggled her front-burner role on the soap with a big story arc on True Blood and terrific guest stints on The Mentalist, FlashForward and CSI. You can have it all! • More Great Performances: Louise Sorel, who is back and 50 kinds of crazy as Days diva Vivian Alamain; Scott Evans as the closeted gay cop Fish on OLTL; Beth Maitland as Y&R’s ever-mourning earth mother Traci; Robert Newman and Kim Zimmer as GL’s legendary Josh and Reva. They were brilliant to the bitter end. • The shocking cancellation of As the World Turns can’t be allowed to overshadow how good the show is these days. The writing is increasingly sharp and the cast—led by Maura West (Carly) and Michael Park (Jack)—remains awesome. GL was brain dead long before the plug was pulled. Not so with ATWT. This is a show still brimming with life and limitless possibilities! Star of the Year: Crystal Chappell She was absolutely everywhere. Steam queen Chappell became a worldwide media sensation when her formerly straight Guiding Light character, Olivia, entered into a romance with her housemate Natalia (Jessica Leccia). Fearing conservative backlash, GL wouldn’t let the gals kiss, much less have sex, so Chappell satisfied angry “Otalia” fans by producing the sumptuous web series Venice. It kicked off December 4 with Chappell and Leccia (as another pair of lovers) exchanging hungry liplocks after a night of unbridled lust. Take that! When GL left the air, Chappell also made a triumphant return to Days of Our Lives—after 16 years—as bad-news heroine Carly Manning. The show’s ratings instantly zoomed up. Cowinky-dink? I don’t think so.



IMissAremid	Dec 15 2009, 04:07 PM Post #2
After all... tomorrow is another day! Posts: 10,157 Group: Veteran Member #20 Joined: June 13, 2007 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera Days of our Lives Favorite Soap Opera of All Time 1. DAYS 2. Y&R 3. PASSIONS 4. AW 5. OLTL 6. GH 7. AMC 8. B&B Favorite Current Primetime Soap Opera Big Brother Favorite Primetime Soap Opera of All Time Dynasty - Beverly Hills, 90210 - Soap	Wow. What generally awful picks. GH for best soap? Um no. Only OLTL and Days would be acceptable answers there. Eric Braeden as the best actor? Why? For the show he was putting on in the press about actually leaving Y&R? Because certainly not for anything he was doing as Victor Newman. And as much as I love La Strasser, the correct answer for best actress this year is Ari Zucker. The pick for the Nigel actor is so damn random. Was he on even 20 episodes this whole year of One Life? I mean I like the guy, but if you're going by just some random dude who pops in every once in a while and makes you laugh well then why wasn't Carolyn Hennesy the best supporting actress pick... Which brings me to this. I don't hate Lisa Lo Cicero as much as many GH fans, but I can think of at least a dozen soap actresses more worthy of recognition than her. Finally, I love Crystal Chappell but the OTT fawning over her (and only her) in the soap press is getting kind of obnoxious. It just feels like all the Michael Logan, Nelson Branco, Stephanie Sloane, Roger Newcomb, Jamey Giddens types of the world all praise her because it's the hip thing to do, and not because they actually have any genuine positive opinion about her because they all say the exact same thing.



Ellie	Dec 15 2009, 04:13 PM Post #3
Posts: 11,979 Group: Staff Member #431 Joined: October 2, 2007 Twitter ID ellie029	IMissAremid Dec 15 2009, 04:07 PM the OTT fawning over her (and only her) in the soap press is getting kind of obnoxious. It just feels like all the Michael Logan, Nelson Branco, Stephanie Sloane, Roger Newcomb, Jamey Giddens types of the world all praise her because it's the hip thing to do, and not because they actually have any genuine positive opinion about her because they all say the exact same thing. I know. Plus, the ratings didn't "instantly zoom up". I hate when people write stuff like that without anything to back it up. AND, when they did go up, it was the climax of the baby switch story. imo Crystal really has had nothing to do with the ratings increase. We saw them fall .2 last week when the baby storyline had a lull.



Kenny	Dec 15 2009, 04:26 PM Post #4
Posts: 46,028 Group: Admin Member #2 Joined: June 6, 2007	IMissAremid Dec 15 2009, 04:07 PM Finally, I love Crystal Chappell but the OTT fawning over her (and only her) in the soap press is getting kind of obnoxious. It just feels like all the Michael Logan, Nelson Branco, Stephanie Sloane, Roger Newcomb, Jamey Giddens types of the world all praise her because it's the hip thing to do, and not because they actually have any genuine positive opinion about her because they all say the exact same thing. I agree with the press that Crystal Chappell is amazing and I absolutely love her as an actress, but she needs to actually do something on Days before people start heaping the praise on her for her latest run as Carly Manning. I'm enjoying her quite a bit, but she hasn't really done anything at this point to warrant all this fawning. As for Venice, the first "episode" (if you can call it that) was better than Gotham, but it was far from amazing. I need more than a little girl-on-girl face sucking action to really be impressed, LoL. There's also the website issues which are quite annoying. Not only were Crystal's fans shocked to learn that they would have to pay for the episodes at the 11th hour, they were also disappointed to learn that the second episode (the one they paid for) would have to be pushed back because the website is shit and it crashes anytime five or more people try to visit it. Or something like that. Such a disaster. Anyway, I love Crystal and all, but everyone needs to reel it in with all this over-the-top praise before it backfires and everyone revolts due to annoyance, LoL.



talbab1994	Dec 15 2009, 04:40 PM Post #5
Posts: 1,960 Group: Elite Member Member #455 Joined: October 11, 2007	Kenny Dec 15 2009, 04:26 PM Anyway, I love Crystal and all, but everyone needs to reel it in with all this over-the-top praise before it backfires and everyone revolts due to annoyance, LoL. I am there. I am SO Crystal 'ed out. I'm tired of hearing about Venice and about how Carly is the Second coming for Days. And GH? Seriously? Days has pulled itself up from the talk of cancellation to be the champions of NBC. One Life has awesome writing and acting and needs the press to show them the love the deserve too. We're going to be down one show next year, the last thing this genre needs is another to leave us. Not feeling the other picks too. Some many others who really deserve this kudo. Edited by talbab1994, Dec 15 2009, 04:41 PM.



Paxton	Dec 15 2009, 04:55 PM Post #6
Dreaming of a Melanie-free Days Posts: 5,273 Group: Elite Member Member #2,445 Joined: June 24, 2008 Favorite Soap Opera of All Time Days Of Our Lives	Kenny Dec 15 2009, 04:26 PM Anyway, I love Crystal and all, but everyone needs to reel it in with all this over-the-top praise before it backfires and everyone revolts due to annoyance, LoL. Too late. She's already the Tim Tebow of daytime TV as far as I'm concerned.



Lucid	Dec 15 2009, 05:01 PM Post #7
Posts: 224 Group: Members Member #5,489 Joined: September 28, 2009 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera DOOL Favorite Soap Opera of All Time Y&R Favorite Current Primetime Soap Opera Gossip Girl	GH best soap? Logan is nuts :drunk:



JDB	Dec 15 2009, 05:11 PM Post #8
Posts: 216 Group: Members Member #3,524 Joined: February 14, 2009 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera AMC Favorite Soap Opera of All Time AMC Favorite Current Primetime Soap Opera none Favorite Primetime Soap Opera of All Time Melrose Place	I agree with him Maura West is awesome, but that's it.



IMissAremid	Dec 15 2009, 05:11 PM Post #9
After all... tomorrow is another day! Posts: 10,157 Group: Veteran Member #20 Joined: June 13, 2007 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera Days of our Lives Favorite Soap Opera of All Time 1. DAYS 2. Y&R 3. PASSIONS 4. AW 5. OLTL 6. GH 7. AMC 8. B&B Favorite Current Primetime Soap Opera Big Brother Favorite Primetime Soap Opera of All Time Dynasty - Beverly Hills, 90210 - Soap	Paxton Dec 15 2009, 04:55 PM Kenny Dec 15 2009, 04:26 PM Anyway, I love Crystal and all, but everyone needs to reel it in with all this over-the-top praise before it backfires and everyone revolts due to annoyance, LoL. Too late. She's already the Tim Tebow of daytime TV as far as I'm concerned. LOL! Tebow is on a whole other plane of obnoxious for me but your analogy is hilarious.



lene	Dec 15 2009, 05:19 PM Post #10
Posts: 2,322 Group: Elite Member Member #1,800 Joined: February 2, 2008 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera Days Of our Lives Favorite Soap Opera of All Time Days of our lives	What a joke!



lastDays	Dec 15 2009, 05:23 PM Post #11
Posts: 1,778 Group: Elite Member Member #3,546 Joined: February 17, 2009 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera Days of OurLives	Best soap GH?Does this idiot ever watch GH? Days deserves to be best soap.The writing and ratings have picked up tremendously this past year



PhoenixRising05	Dec 15 2009, 05:45 PM Post #12
GET EM STEPH!! Posts: 16,381 Group: Veteran Member #82 Joined: June 14, 2007 Favorite Current Daytime Soap Opera Days of our Lives Favorite Soap Opera of All Time Days of our Lives Favorite Current Primetime Soap Opera ER Favorite Primetime Soap Opera of All Time Melrose Place Current Soap Rankings 1.) DAYS 2.) B&B 3.) GH 4.) Y&R	LOL to Logan saying he would take flak for the GH pick. He's going to take flak for ALL of these picks. They are awful! This is hardly representative of daytime this year. This reeks of sucking up to his buddies or whatever. Where is OLTL or Days for best soap? Where is people like Arianne Zucker, Florencia Lozano, etc? By looking at these, you wouldn't see any of the year's big stories represented. The only thing he did was give ATWT props for improving. Other then that, blah. As for CC, I love her and all but how did she result in a surge in Days' ratings? She does not deserve that praise. I'm sure she brought in some fans but Days was doing well even before that and it's biggest rise had more to do with the baby switch then anything else. I won't hold it against CC because she isn't forcing the media to cover her like this but it's beyond annoying and unfair. Days worked it's ass off and to pin it all on CC's return as the only reason for their success is ridiculous.



esp13	Dec 15 2009, 05:51 PM Post #13
Posts: 3,038 Group: Elite Member Member #676 Joined: December 20, 2007	Paxton Dec 15 2009, 04:55 PM Kenny Dec 15 2009, 04:26 PM Anyway, I love Crystal and all, but everyone needs to reel it in with all this over-the-top praise before it backfires and everyone revolts due to annoyance, LoL. Too late. She's already the Tim Tebow of daytime TV as far as I'm concerned. Perfect analogy. I think CC is a good actress. I liked Carly back in the day. But, the fawning by the soap press has completely turned me off. CC is not the savior of Days. She does not magically turn crap into Oscar worthy material. She's done nothing on Days that I have found to be all that news worthy. So, can we stop annointing her as the be all and end all?



RogerNewcomb	Dec 15 2009, 06:14 PM Post #14
Posts: 665 Group: Contributor Member #261 Joined: August 16, 2007	I'm one of those "types of the world"!! Woo hoo, maybe I've made it. LOL Seriously, I love Crystal. I loved her on DAYS, didn't love her so much on her OLTL, loved her VERY much on GL and enjoying her DAYS return. I think she deserves the award Logan gave her. She's managed to get a lot of mainstream attention for positive things this year (NY Times, Vanity Fair, etc., versus leaving a show and throwing a tantrum to get press). I would agree that she's probably done too much press in the past few months -- if too much press can be a bad thing (I actually turned down an interview a couple of months ago because there were so many out at the same time) -- but she was promoting her new show plus DAYS wanted her to do press. Anyway, I think on message boards and probably in general when someone gets a lot of praise there is always a backlash. Society loves to build people up and then tear them down so it's probably inevitable anyone who gets tons of attention and press is going to have detractors. But I think it's rather slanderous to say that I or anyone else kisses someone's ass because it's a popular thing to do. I promoted the hell out of Otalia before most people even knew there was an Otalia. It just completely insults my integrity, and that is one thing I hang my hat on. Not sure why message boards always insult real people as if you know them versus talking about characters and stories. Anyway, just had to chime in with that. As for Logan's picks, were it not for AMC, GH might be my worse soap of the year! OLTL or DAYS are really the only two that I found consistently entertaining and even those were spotty. I enjoyed a lot of Y&R with the vets but there was a lot of bad too. ATWT was mostly bad until the past six weeks. GL was my favorite the first five months or so. AMC is a heartless mess unfortunately.



ladyofthelake	Dec 15 2009, 08:03 PM Post #15
Posts: 7,096 Group: Veteran Member #1,765 Joined: January 31, 2008 Twitter ID ladyofthelake60	All I want to know is......how much did those people pay him to say that?



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