Beyond the Gates: Daily Episode Discussion

[Crashcourse]

I'm already kind of exhausted because there's just too much going on with too many people and too many stories.  I'll give it a little more time, but I'm tempted to bounce and relax and listen to some Roberta Flack and Jerry Butler.  

[JudyObscure]

15 hours ago, mbluecpa said:

I do feel like I need a flowchart to keep all of the characters and family relations straight and the actor/character age differences (typical for soaps I know) don’t help.

I've been trying to make one of my own today,  but every site I went to wanted to talk less about the characters and more about the actors, naming all the roles they've ever played, and leaving me even more confused. 

I'm going to stick with it though. They say old people  should do a daily crossword or Sudoku to stave off dementia.  I'm going to do this show.

 

So now we know why Laura needed to be incapacitated. Now Eva will be in position to make lots of trouble.

No matter how bad Bill has been, it made me cringe to hear his daughter talk to him like that.

[SiouxB]

To be honest, I was hoping not to like this show because the last thing I need is another soap in my repertoire lol… but I’m really enjoying this show and it’s very interesting to be in on the ground floor so I like that… favorite characters so far are Mr. and Mrs. Dupree, Nicole, Dani’s two daughters.. not a huge Karla Moseley fan ….I never was… going all the way back to Guiding Light… so she may have to grow on me but all in all I think we may have something here ..I’m in !!

Edited Thursday at 07:55 PM by SiouxB

[Melgaypet]

I'm so glad some others have admitted that the young men are hard to tell apart. I, a white lady, was feeling like a real asshole. But they all have similar hair and facial scruff and head shape. Bill is distinct to me, despite being facially similar, because of the charisma of the actor and, while I don't know how big he actually is compared to anyone of the other guys, he has presence that makes it feel like he fills the room. Martin I think I've got a handle on, but Orphaned Photographer Nephew and Cop Husband? I'm not sure I could tell who was who if you stood them next to each other.

[Rodney]

Disappointed that Anita and Vernon weren't on today.  No Martin or Smitty, either.

So Laura's okay.  Thank God.  But she's out of commission for six to eight weeks, so no Maui for her.  But how is she "extended family" to the Duprees?

Chelsea's actress really does look stunning enough to be a model.  That shoot was pretty good.  And shooting for Ebony is quite an honor.

So we get to see how Naomi really feels about Bill.  She clearly does hate him for what he did to her mother.  I'm just wondering how Chelsea interacts with him?

The on-show time went from day to night very quickly, and in just one episode!

Andre coming on to Dani is just . . . no.  Please no.

So Naomi's father-in-law is the police chief?  Interesting.

Has Chelsea met her love interest?  Wonder when Kat will meet hers?

I thought that someone had taken a shot at either Bill or Hayley during their engagement party!  Was relieved that it was just a cork being popped.

Whoa.  Dana/Leslie wanted Laura out of the way not for anything malicious against her, but because she wanted to install Eva in her place.  Wonder what kind of trouble she's going to stir for Nicole and her husband?

Decent episode.  But I'm ready for some shit to start getting real.

[dubbel zout]

17 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

I'm going to stick with it though. They say old people  should do a daily crossword or Sudoku to stave off dementia.  I'm going to do this show.

Figuring out who's who and who's related to whom and what everyone is up to is definitely a mental workout!

[wonderwoman]

39 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

16 hours ago, mbluecpa said:

I do feel like I need a flowchart to keep all of the characters and family relations straight and the actor/character age differences (typical for soaps I know) don’t help.

here you go. 

character cheat sheet

45 minutes ago, Crashcourse said:

I'm already kind of exhausted because there's just too much going on with too many people and too many stories.  I'll give it a little more time, but I'm tempted to bounce and relax and listen to some Roberta Flack and Jerry Butler.  

with you! i get not wanting to go back to the glacial pace of soaps of old, but this is way too much, to fast!

here’s a cheat sheet. 

character cheat sheet

[AnimeMania]

What was that thing that Dani put into her teacup and why?

Hayley's glass clicking seemed very weird, they should have replaced the sound.

Edited Thursday at 08:35 PM by AnimeMania

[tessaray]

Today was soapy. The first couple of days were so exposition-heavy, the characters didn't feel real. 

Honestly, they need to flesh out Bill a bit more (soon!) because I really need to know what about Hayley appeals to him. She seems similar to characters like Erica Kane (AMC) and Carly Benson (GH) who were scheming and insecure, thinking that belonging to an important family will make things right for them. But Hayley is less vixen-y and more needy. It's a little weird. 

[wonderwoman]

20 minutes ago, tessaray said:

But Hayley is less vixen-y and more needy. It's a little weird. 

i’m actually finding that aspect rather intriguing and look forward to knowing more. 

[Melgaypet]

14 minutes ago, tessaray said:

Honestly, they need to flesh out Bill a bit more (soon!) because I really need to know what about Hayley appeals to him. 

I think Naomi was right - he's a cliche. Young, beautiful, worshipful woman strokes his ego. I'm sure he considers her less demanding than Dani - who, while clearly awesome, is also clearly A Lot.

Speaking of, good for Dani, getting with Hot Photographer. He's not her nephew. I expect Nicole would be horrified. I love Daphnee Duplaix, but I want to see underneath that smooth veneer soon.

[ShadowHunter]

I was good with Naomi laying into Bill. Hayley was her best friend so that adds an ink factor and she feels betrayed as well. 

I love how they made sure Andre said he wasn't a Dupree by blood before he slept with Dani. I don't care for the stage mom aspect of the relationship she has with Chelsea. 

Chelsea looks like she could be a model though. Way more realistic compared to Models Inc lol. 

I'm going to need Hayley to stop almost begging Dani and others to forgive her. It's already on the way to becoming desperate.

Vanessa will probably rope that instructor into role play as well lol. Well at least she will wan't to anyway. 

[SoapDoc]

1 hour ago, Melgaypet said:

I think Naomi was right - he's a cliche. Young, beautiful, worshipful woman strokes his ego. I'm sure he considers her less demanding than Dani - who, while clearly awesome, is also clearly A Lot.

I feel like Dani was like that when they got married. She was young--I think Anita or Dani mentioned that she was 19 when she married Bill (am I imagining that?). She gave up her modeling career to be with Bill.

I can see why Dani is so angry though. I think some of it is resentment. She gave up herself, her career, her dreams to marry him. And dealt with him cheating on her during the marriage. Just to have him stroll off to some young family friend.

I'd be pissed too.

 

The motorcycle rider (Leslie/Dana) was drooling over Ted at the hospital. Maybe he's a target for whatever she has planned.

[dubbel zout]

17 minutes ago, ShadowHunter said:

I'm going to need Hayley to stop almost begging Dani and others to forgive her. It's already on the way to becoming desperate.

It's already reached pathetic, IMO. Hayley needs to accept that people are going to be angry with her for an undetermined amount of time. You can't force people to forgive. She seems to have grown up poor, or at least without too many extras, and I think she desperately is trying to fit in. 

4 minutes ago, SoapDoc said:

I can see why Dani is so angry though. I think some of it is resentment. She gave up herself, her career, her dreams to marry him. And dealt with him cheating on her during the marriage. Just to have him stroll off to some young family friend.

I'd be pissed too.

She certainly has a right to be angry. But she knew Bill cheated—more than once—during their marriage, so him leaving her isn't all that unforeseeable. I hope we don't see her pity party for too much longer. There's no drama in it.

I like that Bill is a sleaze and the show isn't shy about that. And it seems that he gave Hayley her job as a paralegal, so I'm sure that will come into play down the road.

Some of the scenes going into commercial breaks are kind of awkward, but the ratio is getting better with each episode.

[wonderwoman]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

Some of the scenes going into commercial breaks are kind of awkward, but the ratio is getting better with each episode.

a commercial break every 10 minutes with scenes ranging from 4=6 mintes  is not my idea of getting better  

episode 4 commercials and promo breaks

1st and 2nd within 1st ten minutes

3rd@ 2:22-2:25

4th@2:30-2:35 

5th@2:39-2:42

6th@2:48-2:51

7th@2:57-3:00

[Grinaldi]

I've only seen episode 1 but I'm in. Really enjoying the subversion of tropes (it's the token white couple who are almost purposely boring.) But it is fascinating to see so much exposition. And at least in the first ep the act outs are pretty tame. Once the relationships are more established I'm sure we'll get some soapier shots going to commercial.

Karla Mosley is the standout to me. This may only make sense to DS9 fans but she's got them Gowron eyes and I am living for it.

[Melgaypet]

7 minutes ago, Grinaldi said:

Karla Mosley is the standout to me. This may only make sense to DS9 fans but she's got them Gowron eyes and I am living for it.

Glory to you and your house!

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

Hayley needs to accept that people are going to be angry with her for an undetermined amount of time. You can't force people to forgive. She seems to have grown up poor, or at least without too many extras, and I think she desperately is trying to fit in. 

I wonder if the wedding where Bill made everyone who hates her attend is going to be her origin story.

Today was probably the most traditionally structured soap episode in that they didn't try to squeeze in a ton of exposition nor did they try to give face time to 99% of the cast.  Every segment contained the same basic stories so they were allowed to take hold a bit better. 

2 hours ago, ShadowHunter said:

Vanessa will probably rope that instructor into role play as well lol. Well at least she will wan't to anyway.

This story is the one that low key intrigues me the most because it feels like it might be different than the other, more traditional soap stories they have going on.  A married woman who is straight up engaging in semi-anonymous hookups is different and it makes me wonder if she and her husband are going to be in an open marriage.

 

[sugarbaker design]

2 hours ago, wonderwoman said:

a commercial break every 10 minutes with scenes ranging from 4=6 mintes  is not my idea of getting better  

episode 4 commercials and promo breaks

1st and 2nd within 1st ten minutes

3rd@ 2:22-2:25

4th@2:30-2:35 

5th@2:39-2:42

6th@2:48-2:51

7th@2:57-3:00

I watch it on Paramount+, each ad-free episode is approx 37 minutes.

[wonderwoman]

40 minutes ago, sugarbaker design said:

2 hours ago, wonderwoman said:

a commercial break every 10 minutes with scenes ranging from 4=6 mintes  is not my idea of getting better  

episode 4 commercials and promo breaks

1st and 2nd within 1st ten minutes

3rd@ 2:22-2:25

4th@2:30-2:35 

5th@2:39-2:42

6th@2:48-2:51

7th@2:57-3:00

I watch it on Paramount+, each ad-free episode is approx 37 minutes

that adds up. what i’m not loving is not the length of the commercial breaks, but their frequency. i find those short scenes in-between — 4-6 minutes —  make the pace really choppy.

from the moment i heard about btg, i was curious about how they were going to make the the show financially sustainable.  these frequent breaks are clearly part of the solution, so it’s not likely to chance. 

as i said — really not loving it!  

Edited Friday at 04:51 AM by wonderwoman

[ByaNose]

3 hours ago, wonderwoman said:

a commercial break every 10 minutes with scenes ranging from 4=6 mintes  is not my idea of getting better  

episode 4 commercials and promo breaks

1st and 2nd within 1st ten minutes

3rd@ 2:22-2:25

4th@2:30-2:35 

5th@2:39-2:42

6th@2:48-2:51

7th@2:57-3:00

And, the really quick fade to black which they don’t really do. It just ends. Everyone BTS knows the fade to black is soap 101 but here it’s so abrupt. At least, that’s how I see it. YMMV.

Edited Friday at 05:30 AM by ByaNose

[Badsamaritan]

Bill is absolutely a whole ass cliché, and to top it off, I'm pretty sure his end game is to dethrone the Duprees and become the king of Fairmont Crest. He was probably envious of their power when he was married to Dani, and knew he was still considered an outsider to the family. So I think him leaving Dani and taking up with Hayley is part of a much bigger plan on his part. He's too self-centered to love Hayley like she thinks she loves him, he definitely has ulterior motives.

Be careful, Bill. Like they say, if you come for the king, you best not miss. 🤷🏽‍♀️

[dubbel zout]

9 hours ago, ByaNose said:

And, the really quick fade to black which they don’t really do. It just ends. Everyone BTS knows the fade to black is soap 101 but here it’s so abrupt. At least, that’s how I see it.

This is what I meant. There's no fade to black or meaningful look before some of the scenes cut to commercial.

 

 

[mostlylurking]

I felt horrible for Dani.  It’s so dumb to have the entire family at the wedding, obviously they don’t wish the couple well and why would they?  Everyone will know this.

Whats up with Martin…..at first I thought it was some type of PTSD like he was former military or something.  With the nightmares and such.  But he doesn’t remember??  Does he actually not remember or is he lying?

[mostlylurking]

Ooh so Vanessa is married??  And that guy at the bar was definitely NOT her hubby.  She looked so fabulously ridiculous in that scarf and sunglasses.

[AnimeMania]

22 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

What was that thing that Dani put into her teacup and why?

It was a lemon slice, I guess she was drinking tea.

[Rodney]

So Dani wants to forget that her fling with Andre happened?  Huh.

Hayley's father ran out on her mom after she got pregnant with her?  No wonder she has sort of a daddy complex with Bill.

Does Dani really want Bill back?  Or is she playing at something?

Jacob!  Naomi's husband's name is Jacob!

It sounded like Ted was okay with Andre possibly pursuing Ashley, even though she's with Derek.  Is he okay with that?

So a bit of backstory of how Bill and Dani met.  Nice story.  But it didn't do much to move the needle for Dani.

I like the family vibe with Ted, Nicole, and Kat.  I'd like to see Martin thrown in them, though, to complete the family unit.

I like the "funeral" comparison that Vernon made to Bill.

Hayley made Caroline her maid of honor?  Does she even know her?

I'm still confused as to why Anita and Vernon didn't just tell Dani why they were asked to the wedding?

Whoa.  Vanessa is married to a black man?  He sure looks gorgeous!

Who's this white best friend of Dani's?

So are we meeting Kat's love interest now?  Hunky-looking Latino guy, this Tomas Navarro is.

So Martin came and brought Smitty with him.  But not their kids?

Well, I'd been waiting to see Chelsea interact with Bill, and even their brief moment didn't disappoint.  She doesn't hate her father, but she doesn't like him very much.

What was with Bill's veiled threat to Martin?

All of them men standing for Hayley, and then sitting with Anita glared at them, made me titter.

Holy fuck!  Props to whomever guessed that Eva was Ted's daughter!  So that's what her and Dana/Leslie's plan is!

Oh, shit!  Dani's packing a gun for the wedding!  Great Friday cliffhanger!  But we'll see on Monday whether it was real or a daydream.

Great way to wrap up the first week!

[Badsamaritan]

Ahh that was an amazing week of soap opera! 

Cady McClain! For those who don't know, Dani's BFF that showed up is a soap veteran. She played Dixie on All My Children and was famously killed off via poisoned peanut butter pancakes. She's also been on As the World Turns and other soaps as well. She's a good actress, I'm interested to see what she gets up to eventually. 

Although Dani going to jail in the first 5 days of a brand new soap would be crazy work, I hope it's a dream. I just want them all to get up and walk out soon as the minister says 'You may kiss the bride'. I love a petty family standing ten toes down in their pettiness so just let them leave the fune exactly as they arrived. And let all the members follow them so it's just Bill's employees and Hayley's rent-a-bridesmaid's girly left. Maybe Naomi stays back and gives Hayley the business. We haven't seen a confrontation between just the two of them yet, right? 

Now, Eva. What do you and your crazy ass momma have planned, and are you just as crazy as her, or more? And, why y'all going after poor Nicole? Does Ted even know he's your daddy? Who told you? Your crazy ass momma? Are you sure she's telling the truth or just using you to further a completely different agenda?

Who you talkin to, Smitty? A lovah? Naw, I'm playing, you seem super nice, it's probably about a job as a reporter again. 

Alright Kat. Let the tall handsome Latino man take you to dinner. But meet him there, don't let him come to your house yet, he don't know you like that. 

Andre. You are the definition of community peen. But it's deserved cuz you fine as Hell. Proceed. 

Who is this man that you're cheating on, Vanessa? And have we seen him before today? I feel like there was a brief scene of 2 guys in a car exchanging some kind of small package, was one of them Vanessa's husband? Oh he's a doctor too, so we will be seeing him on that set I'm assuming. I like how the show is establishing sets that make sense for many different people to interact. So it's not just the club, we have a hospital too. And most likely some kind of police department set soon, now that we've had an attempted murder. Plus Jacob talked about getting a new partner and his father being the police chief. 

I'm really happy with all the threads they've laid in this kickoff week. They've done a good job with world building, and I feel like MVJ is confident in her show's bible, and all the possibilities she's already laid out in just one week are gonna set us up for some great soapy storytelling. 

I'm ready to ride til the wheels fall off. 

[sugarbaker design]

2 hours ago, mostlylurking said:

Whats up with Martin…..at first I thought it was some type of PTSD like he was former military or something.  With the nightmares and such.  But he doesn’t remember??  Does he actually not remember or is he lying?

It's already established that something happened with Martin years ago that only Momma and Poppa DuPree, as well as Bill the fixer, are aware of.

Martin's been having nightmares of a past trauma.

Since Martin is part of a political dynasty I'm figuring a Mary Jo Kopechne kind of tragedy.

[ShadowHunter]

Tomas is nice. We have only seen him briefly twice this week and honestly he needs to be front and center a bit more. 

Martin and Bradley continue so far to be a bit blah. I don't feel like they are in a relationship. They seem more like friends. It's like Matt back in the day on Melrose Place who could only give hugs. 

Everyone dressed in black for the funeral was funny. 

I didn't care for Dani trying to get Bill back. Revenge is fine but honestly wanting him back is weak.

Great to see Cady McClain as Pamela. Still its another character lol. 

Eva being Ted's daughter is interesting and I am glad they dropped that info quickly. 

[wonderwoman]

22 minutes ago, ShadowHunter said:

Eva being Ted's daughter is interesting and I am glad they dropped that info quickly. 

wouldn’t have wanted to drag on for months, but it is only the first week, and with so many characters introduced — as you noted, cady mcclain — i would have been ok if they had waited until next week, or even the week after, for this reveal. 

[Crashcourse]

This is too much for my feeble brain to process, so I'm out.  

[Melgaypet]

Holy shit! Now that's how you do soap!

[Artsda]

Why would anyone want a room full of people who hate you at your wedding. 

You're asking to have an objection and that's how you do it. Lol 

[Melgaypet]

Okay, slightly more coherent thoughts:

• Karla Mosley owns this show.
• Glasses was not wearing his glasses, just to mess with me!
• I was wrong when I said I could recognize Martin. It was halfway through his conversation with Bill before I realized he wasn't Cop Husband. (James?)
• I laughed when I saw the pregnant lady by the elevator, because I knew where this was going. That is the hoariest cliché in the book, I have to think it's deliberate. No one is going to be tuning in Monday to see Nurse Ashley and Hot Andre deliver a baby in an elevator.
• Everyone wearing black was hilarious. They also looked fabulous.
• Karla Mosley owns this damn show.
• Should've let Dani jet off to Paris, Vernon and Anita! I wonder if they'll feel any guilt over this or will they just blame Big Bad Bill?
• I'm getting a little tired of Hayley's constant need for reassurance.
• So Eva wasn't at all fazed by her mother running the poor assistant off the road. That did surprise me! And she's Ted's (I have got his name now) daughter. Well, that will put a crimp in Nicole's perfect life. Good, I was getting a little sick of hearing about it. Won't make it so easy to condescend to Dani in the future.
• It feels slightly weird that this is when they introduce Cady McClain
• Karla Mosley OWNS THIS SHOW.

Edited Friday at 11:39 PM by Melgaypet

[VanillaBeanne]

I will have to look up what else Kara Mosley was in.  I know I’ve seen her before and didn’t think she was that interesting an actress, but yes she is carrying this show, which is all the more impressive since it must be hard to launch a soap.  I like her parents,  and her sister, too.  

it’s been a week and I don’t care for Bill.  He’s  not that attractive or charismatic.  Usually when the middle aged hubby leaves the wife and kid for a young squeeze, he hits the gym.   I know that’s a mean thing to say but I hate it when the actresses are all thin and beautiful but male actors aren’t held to the same standards. 
 

Also Hayley is not interesting enough for the screen time she gets.  And I don't get that anyone is that naive that they think they can break up a family and that jilted wife and daughters would forgive and forget.   So I’m having a hard time feeling like she’s a real person.  The actress doesn’t seem that talented but it’s only been a week.  
 

—oh just googled Kara Mosley.  She was Maya Avant.  I started sporadically watching B&B around the time her sister was reneging on letting Maya adopt her baby.  I wasn’t impressed with anyone in that story line, but I guess I missed her earlier, meatier trans storyline.  

Edited Saturday at 12:16 AM by VanillaBeanne

[dubbel zout]

Dani, there's such a thing as a disposable lover. Have some fun with Andre—he said there were no strings !

Dani and Hayley are both desperate and pathetic in their own way. Yeesh, ladies, have some self-respect.

Timon Kyle Durrett is 6'5", and he looked it today towering over 5'5" Karla Mosley, who plays a former high fashion model. (Oh, soaps! You crazy.)

1 hour ago, Artsda said:

Why would anyone want a room full of people who hate you at your wedding. 

You're asking to have an objection and that's how you do it. Lol 

I don't get it either. Bill wanting the DuPrees at his wedding seems like a weak favor to call in. I know it shows the community a sort of support, but wouldn't that favor be better used for Hayley wanting to join the women's group at the country club or something? But that cliffhanger was excellent, classic soap. Too bad the preview kind of ruined it. Not that there was a spoiler, but they should have left it there.

If I never hear Pachelbel's Canon in D again it will be too soon.

1 hour ago, Melgaypet said:

I laughed when I saw the pregnant lady by the elevator, because I knew where this was going. That is the hoariest cliché in the book, I have to think it's deliberate. No one is going to be tuning in Monday to see Nurse Ashley and Hot Andre deliver a baby in an elevator.

I LOLed at the lady's face when Andre said he'd protect her.

[JAYJAY1979]

I'm looking forward to a Dani free episode, she's too much.  No wonder Bill left her. 

I'm more interested in the Nicole/Ted/Eva/'Leslie' story then in anything Dani related.

Nice to see Cady!  This is her first soap role she's originated.  She seems to be playing a society lady that lunches type of character so far.

Hayley's bacnstory explains why she's drawn to Bill...and I do think Caroline works with Hayley/Bill.

Curious about the role play lady and her hubby....open marriage?  A beard?  All of the above?

[ByaNose]

It totally forgot Cady McClain (who finally aired) and Jon Lindstrom (who hasn’t aired) have joined the cast. Great actors but yes more actors to keep track of. How many people and voices does MJV have running that brain of hers?! LOL!!!!

[wonderwoman]

57 minutes ago, ByaNose said:

How many people and voices does MJV have running that brain of hers?! LOL!!!!

this may not be popular, but after this first week, it might just turn out to be too many.

i know they’ve already shot several weeks — maybe a couple of months — ahead, so it’s going to take a while for them to make any corrections. 

Edited Saturday at 04:05 AM by wonderwoman

[Irlandesa]

9 hours ago, Badsamaritan said:

I feel like there was a brief scene of 2 guys in a car exchanging some kind of small package, was one of them Vanessa's husband?

Yes.  I think.  One of the guys called the other one Doug and that's the name of her husband.

They clearly want to set up Dani as the grande dame of the show.  It makes sense.  She's beautiful.  She's younger than Tamara Tunie.  And she is probably the best established character on the show.  The problem I have is the story they chose to spend so much time on the first week.  I don't care about any of the couples yet.  Certainly not enough to know why I should root for or against them. 

That makes it kind of difficult to care about Dani's pain at being betrayed by Bill.  It's hard to care about Bill and Hayley getting married. It's intriguing that Bill has some secret about Martin but it makes no sense that he'd use that leverage to get the whole family at the wedding.  To what end?  The only time I could see him doing something like that would be to reveal a secret in front of everyone. 

Martin having a secret that only Bill and his grandparents know, Leslie and Eva's machinations, and even Vanessa's extra curriculars are more intriguing to me than this whole Bill/Dani/Hayley thing.

It feels like they're making Dani do outrageous things just for her to be outrageous.  Part of me thinks starting the show with the wedding would have been a better kickoff and then fill in the who's who as the week goes on.

 

Edited Saturday at 06:22 AM by Irlandesa

[ByaNose]

2 hours ago, wonderwoman said:

this may not be popular, but after this first week, it might just turn out to be too many.

i know they’ve already shot several weeks — maybe a couple of months — ahead, so it’s going to take a while for them to make any corrections. 

I saw the Fairman interview and Karla said they are almost 3 months out. 

[mbluecpa]

On 2/27/2025 at 12:02 PM, dubbel zout said:

Figuring out who's who and who's related to whom and what everyone is up to is definitely a mental workout!

I started quizzing myself on Thursday’s episode just for fun and was excited when I remembered the details of the four characters in the restaurant scene…though Derek is still “dull as Michael Corinthos but hotter firefighter.”

On 2/27/2025 at 8:09 PM, sugarbaker design said:

I watch it on Paramount+, each ad-free episode is approx 37 minutes.

The episodes do feel short, or maybe as someone noted it’s just the choppiness.  GH shows up at a touch over 36 mins on Hulu and usually wastes the first 60-90 seconds repeating a prior scene.

The first week has me wanting more, so for me at least they’re succeeding.  Friday’s wedding scenes were classically soapy and the non-verbal acting from Karla Mosley and Tamara Tunie was (chef’s kiss).  With Friday’s reveal on Eva being Ted’s daughter, I think the clock is ticking on when we get to see Nicole as something other than always-in-control.  

[ShadowHunter]

I have to say for the first week of a new soap all in all it was pretty good. I do hope a few other characters get a little more focus next week. It is never good for any character even a really popular one to be on every day. Sonny, Jason, and Carly destroyed GH by being on all the time. They are still on too much. GH is not the only soap guilty of that though.  The real test will be where we are a month from now.

Edited Saturday at 07:23 PM by ShadowHunter

[dubbel zout]

10 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Part of me thinks starting the show with the wedding would have been a better kickoff and then fill in the who's who as the week goes on.

I agree; they could have shown the wedding on Monday, and the rest of the week could be a flashback to fill in the various stories. I think front-loading the show with a lot of exposition, while logical, also leads to all of the confusion we've been discussing: who's who, who's related to whom, what people's names are!

10 hours ago, ByaNose said:

I saw the Fairman interview and Karla said they are almost 3 months out. 

Wow, that's a long lead time, though I think it's DOOL that tapes 6 months in advance? I see the advantage, but it also means it's very difficult to make timely adjustments.

[Irlandesa]

28 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

Wow, that's a long lead time, though I think it's DOOL that tapes 6 months in advance? I see the advantage, but it also means it's very difficult to make timely adjustments.

DOOL is closer to 8-9 months in advance. 

There's an advantage to having a plan and sitcking with it, especially in the beginning.  But one of my favorite things about soaps is seeing what happens when different people interact and sometimes it's the audience that discovers surprising chemistry.  With DOOL, nothing happens if it wasn't the writers initial plan because by the time they get feedback, it's almost a year later.  They could still course correct but it usually doesn't make sense.

[Joimiaroxeu]

17 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

If I never hear Pachelbel's Canon in D again it will be too soon.

The thing is, Wagner's Wedding March is still considered problematic by many because Wagner was a known anti-Semite. His Bridal Chorus seems to go in and out of favor on daytime soaps. I know Y&R used it for a wedding a few years ago but they generally alternate it with other music.

20 hours ago, Crashcourse said:

This is too much for my feeble brain to process, so I'm out.  

Heh, I understand. They threw out way too much information to be absorbed so early. Did the producers not focus group this because it seems to me they should've known a lot if not most viewers were going to feel overwhelmed.

I'm mostly using this show as background noise now. I'll probably watch a full episode once a week but mainly I'll be keeping up via the soap forums and recap sites. I just can't do two hours of daytime soaps every day.

Edited Saturday at 06:43 PM by Joimiaroxeu

[AnimeMania]

It seems weird that Hayley is so insecure about the people who work in the law firm. How long has she been working there before she decided to marry the boss. It had to be several months since she started working there before the divorce. Hayley should know everybody and everybody should know her.

If that really happened, Dani will look good in a orange jumpsuit with black stripes. Her daughter was in the front row, filming the whole thing. I am guessing the Maid of Honor (Olivia?) jumped in front of the bullet, that should get her a week off with pay.

[Melgaypet]

I didn't occur to me that the ending could be a fantasy. I think (hope) the show is smarter than that. To do a fake-out for the very first Friday cliffhanger would squander the goodwill built up in the first week, and I personally have a lot of goodwill, even I'm still fuzzy on some characters. I doubt anyone is dead, but Dani could end up in jail/a mental ward. Very soapy! Think Cop Husband will be the one to arrest her?

The scene I did wonder might be a fantasy before it was clear it was real? When Dani went to Bill to ask him to come back home. Poor Dani - I kinda cringed for her, like @dubbel zout I wanted her to find her self-respect, but I do think it was sort of necessary. Like she told Hot Andre, she's raw. To set aside her pride - and the Duprees all clearly have a lot of pride - to try to get her life as she knew it back and be shut down so hard? That really contributed to get her into a lunatic enough state to get to that cliffhanger.

Edited Saturday at 08:46 PM by Melgaypet

[ByaNose]

So if Dani wedding is a dream then what about all the B plot lines going on at the wedding? Are they real or fake? I guess it’s just the wedding itself and Dani’s reaction that’s a dream. That could make sense.

I agree that this week there was a lot to take in. It was on steroids but I guess in the land of television it’s necessary. On a soap (especially its first week) it may too much. The first soap I saw from the beginning was Loving. They had a two hour nighttime movie and there was a story about some college murders or prostitution ring (it’s been a minute) but that alone was slow. The following day was a normal half hour episode where you were introduced to the families. Since there were only 2 main families (Aldan and Donavan) it was easy to keep track of. Beyond The Gates had triple that and some of the guys with their facial hair and ages looked the same. Hopefully, by next week it will calm down…...after the shooting/possible dream wedding. LOL!!!!!

Truthfully, I already watch Y&R, B&B and GH. so I might not be able to watch BTG full time. I will probably watch Monday but then maybe just on Fridays.