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| SOD: Austin Peck on JER: "His writing was maddening and genius!" | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 28 2012, 12:56 AM (6,167 Views) | |
| Kenny | Jan 28 2012, 12:56 AM Post #1 |
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I don't have the full article, but I saw this excerpt posted on Twitter.
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| Kenny | Jan 28 2012, 01:44 AM Post #2 |
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I agree with him that JER's writing was both maddening and genius. Although he wasn't the strongest character writer in the world (most of his characters were either "good" or "evil" -- no real in between), he had great talent in that he presented his stories in a way that kept you on the edge of your seat wondering what would happen next. There was constant suspense, even as the plots inched along at a snails pace. There was a sense of urgency that made it seem like the shit could hit the fan at any moment and if you dared to look away, you would miss the big moment. It was a constant tease: "Oh look, Kristen's about to find Tony's diary! If she reads it she'll find out he faked his death and John will be saved from the gas chamber! If not, he'll die! What happens now could change everything!" You would sit on your sofa screaming at the TV, "Look down! The diary's right there! Your hand is right by it!" By the time all was said and done, you felt like throwing your sandwich at the TV but at least you were engaged. There was always something happening. Someone was constantly in danger of having their secrets exposed or plotting something wicked that made you want to strangle them. The stakes were high. The rooting couples were thisclose to finding happiness together, reminding viewers what the incentive was to stay tuned. Rooting values were clearly established and strongly defined. Beats were played and never skipped. Cliffhangers happened daily. Fridays were huge. Payoffs were big and always worth the wait. The show today doesn't even compare. Just look at the clip below. It's got a bit of everything I described above. Downstairs, Laura encourages Marlena to talk to John and tell him she loves him. Marlena, however, feels it would be wrong to do that because John is engaged to Kristen. What Marlena doesn't know is that John is madly in love with her and he would be with her if he knew she loved him too. Still, Marlena decides to keep her feelings a secret out of respect for Kristen, who she thinks is a loyal friend. Laura: "Why are you always putting other people before yourself? What about your right to be happy with John?" Marlena: "Being with John would make me the happiest woman in the world, but I would rather learn to live without him than take advantage of him. Besides, he seems fairly happy with Kristen. Maybe this was just meant to be." Laura: "I think we make our own fate." Marlena: "Then I sealed my fate when I refused to tell John how I felt in time. I have no right to interfere with his happiness with Kristen. I think if Kristen were in the same position, she would refuse to interfere as well. I think she would accept the fact that she had lost John and she would move on without having him in her life." At this point we're screaming at the screen, "No Marlena! Don't you understand? Kristen is evil! She hid the letter John wrote to you so you wouldn't find out he still loved you and now she's upstairs smashing your picture against the wall! Don't let her get away with it!" Who are we rooting for in this scenario? Marlena. Who are we rooting against? Kristen. Meanwhile, up in the guest bedroom, Kristen holds a picture of John and Marlena in her hands and begins to rant angrily. Kristen: "So what do you do, Marlena? Do you look at this picture and fantasize about taking John away from me? Is that what you do? Well it's not going to happen. I will destroy you. I will destroy you and everything that reminds John of you." Kristen grabs the picture and begins to smash it against the nightstand. Kristen: "This is what's left of John and Marlena! This is what's left of John and Marlena! This is what's left of John and Marlena!" The picture drops to the floor and she stomps it with her heel until it's completely destroyed. Kristen: "Don't you get in my way!" Kristen takes a moment to compose herself and then she continues with her rant. Kristen: "I could do it. When I heard John say he still loves you I felt my heart go cold... and that's when I realized I would do anything to keep from losing him." Kristen looks at herself in the mirror and walks towards it, issuing a stern warning to herself. Kristen: "Don't you ever show this side to John or you will lose him. You will lose him for sure. No one's ever gonna now. No one's ever gonna know." Suddenly, we see Rachel pop out from behind Kristen, apparently having witnessed the entire meltdown. Kristen sees her in the mirror and lets out a startled gasp before whipping around to face her disapproving mother. How much did she overhear? The music swells as the scene fades to black. Cliffhanger! |
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| CarlD2 | Jan 28 2012, 01:57 AM Post #3 |
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What impresses me about Reilly's first stint, most of it anyway, was how solid the day to day episodes were even if the stories dragged on for years. You didn't feel like you were wasting your time. |
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| DaysForever | Jan 28 2012, 03:20 AM Post #4 |
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Sadly, I don't think that could be mastered today. |
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| Drew | Jan 28 2012, 04:29 AM Post #5 |
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I'd agree he was a terrible character writer. Every single plot relied on characters being stupid, or acting out of their previously established character to make them work. I also think his era's been romantacised as better than it actually was. It's great in clip form of the more memorable moments, but if one was to watch it now in its entirety (every day) I really think people would see it in a new light. |
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| lene | Jan 28 2012, 04:30 AM Post #6 |
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JER was great in the 90s! But his second stint on the show was terrible, except 2005-06, that was only bad. Yes, Jack died again & shit, but It was better then 2000-04.
Edited by lene, Jan 28 2012, 04:31 AM.
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| Drew | Jan 28 2012, 04:33 AM Post #7 |
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2000-2001 was mostly solid with the culmination of the long running Franco Kelly murder story in Italy & Lucas' exit in the fire. As was 2002-2003 under C&B.
Edited by Drew, Jan 28 2012, 04:34 AM.
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| lene | Jan 28 2012, 05:01 AM Post #8 |
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Yeah, I was mostly thinking of this shit though This was probably before that though, but DAYS has always been a few years behind US episodes here in Norway! |
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| Drew | Jan 28 2012, 07:14 AM Post #9 |
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There's no defending the Garden. Though this was in the era where everyone was trying to go supernatural or ridiculously outlandish because it worked for Days. I think that was the summer AMC gave everyone on a cruise ship a drug that made them all have a massive sex orgy. Reminds me of the 30 Rock gay bomb. Edited by Drew, Jan 28 2012, 08:20 AM.
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| Paxton | Jan 28 2012, 09:56 AM Post #10 |
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I agree. Yes, there were good payoffs and there was a lot I liked, but I really don't miss the endless dragging out and the, as Peck put it, eye-gougingly repetitive dialogue. And your banner :lol: |
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| Kenny | Jan 28 2012, 10:20 AM Post #11 |
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It's all a matter of personal taste, really. JER was far from perfect but the things he got right, he got very right. My biggest issue with his writing was his use of repetitive dialogue and constant flashbacks to explain the plot to viewers. Those things I could've done without. Aside from that though, I thought he was great. I loved the dramatic, gothic tone of his plots and the sense of suspense and excitement the show had when he wrote. It wasn't just fun to watch -- it was addictive. As much as you wanted to throw something at the TV, you had to tune in Monday to find out what would happen next. JER had the ability to engage viewers and hook them in a way that no writer has been able to master since -- hence the ratings taking a nosedive when he left to create Passions. As soon as his long-running stories ended and SSM's schlock began, the show tanked almost immediately. I didn't even mind the snails pace of his plots because I actually liked watching them play out. I knew I wasn't wasting my time because I trusted that the payoff would be worth the wait. For me, the journey was just as enjoyable as the destination. At least the beats were played and not rushed through or skipped altogether like they are today. And there was rooting value -- something the show hasn't had any of in years. |
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| Sindacco | Jan 28 2012, 10:37 AM Post #12 |
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I have alot of episodes from the JER era on tapes and DVDs and I still love watching them every now and then. Whenever JER's first run is discussed it's always the John/Marlena/Kristen stuff that gets praised but I liked alot of the other stories too. Stefano and Tony's returns in 1993 leading up to Tony and Kristen's wedding in 1994 and Stefano faking his death and going to Maison Blanche, the "Who Killed Curtis" story that same winter. And the Aremid storyline was great not just because of Tony framing John but also Lexie finding out who her parents were and Jude St Clair kidnapping Hope. Stefano faking Peter's death and Jack going to prison, Franco breaking up Bo and Hope, Bo and Billie going undercover to bring down JL King. So much good stuff. |
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| lysie | Jan 28 2012, 10:44 AM Post #13 |
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Oh gosh. I could not disagree more. I think 2005 is one of the worst years the show has had. Great cast. Horrible show. As bad as Melawen was,it had some worthwhile moments. Same with SSK. 2005 had some good reunions but overall it was just a bunch of random couples together. They all ended up breaking up, so it was a pointlessly frustrating year. I think until that point, even when crap like the garden of Eden was happening (which wasn't JER) there were still some good things happening. I like Kennys point about payoffs. That seems to be one of the biggest frustrations of most viewers. I can't even remember the last time we had a worthwhile payoff. It probably was during JER'slast stint. I don't think we even got a good one from Hogan. |
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| Kenny | Jan 28 2012, 11:07 AM Post #14 |
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Thank you so much for posting this clip! I remember watching this back in 1994 (or was it 1993?) but I haven't seen any of it since. So much good stuff with John interrupting the wedding, Stefano revealing John's betrayal of Kristen, John shooting at the car, the explosion, Stefano's "death," Kristen going ballistic and vowing to never forgive him, etc. |
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| DaysForever | Jan 28 2012, 12:31 PM Post #15 |
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^ That was some good stuff. I wish I could've been watching at the time... The show then compared to now is so different. |
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| Days4Life | Jan 28 2012, 02:31 PM Post #16 |
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Although the pace of JER's stories was absolutely maddening at times, I don't think I ever FF'd through scenes. You never knew what you would miss if you did. Yes, there were lots of false cliffhangers but somehow he kept you engaged and always thinking "this could be it!"...the reveal/payoff, etc. I do remember being sympathetic to the actors, because it did seem like they repeated the same dialogue day after day after day. But when something big did happen, oh the craziness and excitement of it all! |
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| Cupcake06 | Jan 28 2012, 03:17 PM Post #17 |
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True. I was pretty much always entertained when watching Passions, no matter how fucked up some of the stuff was. |
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| Mason | Jan 28 2012, 03:21 PM Post #18 |
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I agree to a point. It wasn't the show's greatest era (by any means) -- watching clips and bootleg DVDs I've bought has revealed serious flaws to me that weren't as apparent when I was a kid and it was actually airing. However, I do think it was the last compulsively watchable era of the show (with the exception of B&C's stint). |
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| JamesScott_19 | Jan 28 2012, 03:25 PM Post #19 |
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Don't get up. So how are you? What happened, eh? Let me guess, Stefano told you that you could fly,and you jumped off a building. HeHe It's funny right, no I'm sorry Bad EJ, I should'nt be that cruel!
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Is James the same writer that wrote that show Passions or am I missing something? |
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| Kenny | Jan 28 2012, 03:29 PM Post #20 |
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I know. I ask myself all the time why I still bother watching because this isn't the same show I started watching 19 years ago. The gothic melodrama is what hooked me and we haven't had that kind of storytelling in years. There are still elements that I enjoy, but overall, I haven't loved the show since 1997 or so. |
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