I posted the above in the Bitterness thread yesterday because I had just read yet another article that slammed Arrow for turning into a "soap opera" (term used contemptuously) while simultaneously praising The Flash for sticking to its comic book roots (the unstated assumption being that real superhero shows are not soap operas because comic books are not soap operas). I got so fed up that I did some research...
Stan Lee (legendary comic book creator for Marvel): "Comic book stories? 'I thought of it a little bit like [writing] a soap opera,' says Stan Lee."
(Excerpt from book titled Comic Books: How the Industry Works by Shirrel Rhoades, with Afterword by Stan Lee, copyright 2008)
Grant Morrison (legendary comic book writer for DC and Marvel): “'They’re missing the full spectrum of these character’s emotional lives. The most important thing is the long, involved soap operas. It’s a type of narrative that you don’t get anywhere else except on very long-running soap operas, where characters can go into depth. 20 pages every month going into these characters lives over decades give you a lot more insight and a lot more involvement than say a two hour movie, even with Robert Downey Jr.' – Grant Morrison, explaining what fans of superhero movies are missing if they don’t read the comic books."
("‘The most important thing is the long, involved soap operas’" by Kevin Melrose, May 13, 2013)
Shirrel Rhoades (former Executive Vice President of Marvel Entertainment): "FLASHBACK ... At Marvel's offsite editorial session, we familiarize writers and artists with our characters, offer a refresher course in sequential art storytelling. Editor-in-chief Bob Harras brings in scripts from television soap operas to use as training material, explaining that comics tell an ongoing story from issue to issue, not unlike Guiding Light or Days of Our Lives."
(Excerpt from book titled Comic Books: How the Industry Works by Shirrel Rhoades, with Afterword by Stan Lee, copyright 2008)
Shirrel Rhoades (former Executive Vice President of Marvel Entertainment): "Marvel's monthly publications have been likened to graphic soap operas, depicting super heroes with human challenges and frailties."
(Excerpt from book titled A Complete History of American Comic Books by Shirrel Rhoades, copyright 2008)
The New York Times: "Comic books and soap operas have a lot in common: never-ending stories, characters with complex histories and a preponderance of long-lost relatives (evil twins or otherwise)."
("Pulpy TV and Soapy Comics Find a Lot to Agree On" by GEORGE GENE GUSTINES, October 31, 2006)
ComicMix: "Mainstream comics also show soap influence. When I started to read comics, every issue was self-contained, and most stories were about the fights and the powers. Now the characters have more developed emotional lives, and readers are as caught up with the personalities as they are with determining who would win in a fight."
("Of Soap and Comic Books" by Martha Thomases, September 23, 2011)
Comic Vine: "People associate comic books with superheroes but they often end up being more like soap operas. ... Superman, Lois Lane and Clark Kent was one of the first superhero love triangles we saw. From the beginning, Lois was fascinated with Superman. In his alter ego, Clark tried winning over Lois but she was barely aware he even existed. This went on for decades until Lois finally started seeing Clark for who he was. They started dated and eventually got engaged. This was when Clark decided to finally confide in Lois and revealed he was actually Superman. The two got married but with DC's 'The New 52' relaunch, Lois and Clark are no longer married. This allows readers to witness the Clark try to win Lois' affections all over again. ... Superhero comics aren't just about heroes and villains fighting. For love and romance to play such a big role in the action-orientated comics, it says something about what readers want. Seeing the heroes let their guard down and get close to another let's us see them as a little more human."
("Off My Mind: Love and Relationships in Comic Books" by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero, September 25, 2011)
Comicsgirl: "But reading about the 'death' of Batman (and unless you’re living under a rock, that’s not really a spoiler) makes me think the comic-books-as-soap-operas thing is a little big closer than most people want to admit. ... Because no one stays dead in either."
("Comic books as soap operas" by comicsgirl, Nov. 26, 2008)
Beams and Struts: "[On things comics and soap operas have in common:] 1. Everyone's really good looking. And fit. And young. Older characters are wizened old villains/villainesses or kindly elders. ... 6. People come back from the dead. If a character died outside the scene, don't trust it. It only looks like they died. If they're popular enough, they'll be back. If they absolutely and finally kicked the bucket, and everyone saw it, don't trust it. If they're popular enough, they'll be back. There might be a plausible explanation, a ridiculous explanation, or no explanation. ... 7. Everyone has a significant and previously unmentioned sibling/parent/child/twin. With comics, add clones and aliens to that list. If the viewer/reader isn't aware of every second of a character's backstory, there's someone they're related to waiting in the wings to stir up a storm. ... 8. Both tell ongoing stories, indefinitely. There's no resolution in sight, folks. Batman will never retire, nor will he clean up all of the crime ridden streets of Gotham City. If he dies (and doesn't come back to life) someone else will become Batman (and then the original Batman will come back to life). The people on The Young and the Restless will never solve their differences and live happily ever after. Unless the show gets cancelled. Even then, probably not. ... 10. They give the audience what they expect but still surprise them. The format is set. But suspense is a must. Heroes battle their familiar rogue's gallery, and win, but with new moves, new tricks, new devices, new twists, new quips. Soap characters enact their machinations to sabotage each others relationships and/or preserve their own relationships, but it can't be exactly like it happened last season, or last month, or last week. But it can't be too different either."
("13 Things Comics and Soap Operas Have in Common" by TJ Dawe, December 18, 2011)
GQ: "First, though, a few things you should know: One, this sort of thing happens in comic books all the time. Superhero comics are, essentially, soap operas, but with lasers and shit—and like soap operas, shocking deaths, disappearances, and resurrections are all par for the course. When you are telling one long ongoing story for decades, crazy stuff is bound to happen now and again."
("And Just Like That, the White Captain America Is Back" by Joshua Rivera, January 21, 2016)
Charleston Gazette-Mail: "Neither side likes to admit it, but comic books and soap operas are a lot alike. Both tell melodramatic stories and use elements that require quite a bit of suspension of disbelief. Both have rabid fans who follow the stories closely and call 'foul' quickly when something violates established continuity. And both genres are treated with no small level of disrespect by the mainstream press."
("The Comic Book/Soap Opera Connection" by Rudy Panucci, October 31, 2006)
Bradford W. Wright (author): "The Amazing Spider-Man become one of the first superhero soap operas, inviting readers to return each month to check in on the latest trials and tribulations of the hero and his supporting cast. It was all part of Lee's calculated marketing to teenagers."
(Excerpt from book titled Comic Book Nation by Bradford W. Wright, copyright 2001)
Amanda M. Lee (author): "I see a lot of people tossing the phrase 'it’s becoming a soap opera' around about various shows like it’s a bad thing. ... First off, I’m a huge soap opera fan – and I don’t think that’s an insult. The genre has survived for decades for a reason. ... Secondly, The Walking Dead television show is based on a comic book. And, quite frankly, comic books ARE soap operas. They’re just soap operas for boys. Don’t believe me? Comic books are all random sex, back from the dead characters, long lost twins, reboots, recasts and past retconning. The same as soaps. ... Just because you hear a buzz word on something, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true -- or that truth is somehow bad."
("Is The Walking Dead a soap opera? And is that a bad thing?" by Amanda M. Lee, February 11, 2014)
MisAngela (fan blogger): "Marvel and DC are soap operas for comic book nerds. They have convoluted stories, multiple universes, characters being killed off and then magically coming back, changed backstories to suit the writer at the time… It’s the same. Exactly the same."
("Why DC and Marvel are Soap Operas" by MisAngela, January 27, 2011)
That TV Line "2016 Fall TV Scoop" article (posted in the Spoilers thread by @dtissagirl) also included spoilers for LoT:
