GH In The News: The PC Press Club

[Tiger]

On 12/1/2016 at 10:58 AM, tvgoddess said:

That definitely makes sense bout Michael Strahan. If this is the case, I hope that they throw out all the current storylines and just go back to the way things used to be to close it out. Hell, even Ron wrote good farewells to shows.

GH is definitely done come next fall.  The Affiliate Board of Govenors wants it dead and gone.  

[Oracle42]

Well, they chose the right team for the job!

[stlbf]

16 hours ago, jsbt said:

 

 

16 hours ago, jsbt said:

Honestly, I'd consider redoing something in the vein of Laura, Lesley and David Hamilton - Jake or a teenaged Cameron kills Franco, and Liz (and presumably some other characters) try to cover it up.

The only thing is this: Hasn't TFGH already done this fairly recently?  The entire stupid Michael killed Claudia crapfest. His moronic family stupidly convinced him to allow them to do a shitty cover-up.  In the end it just hurt Michael and he ended up in prison.  Plus the stupid Laura/Scotty/Rick murder cover-up was on a similar vein of stupidity. 

[HeatLifer]

3 hours ago, Tiger said:

GH is definitely done come next fall.

*crosses fingers and numerous other body parts*

[Oracle42]

Or Franco-like murders kill off some of the dead weight ( LeftPhalange has the list) and Franco investigates because he's determined to prove his innocence!   except he's had another psychotic break, he's totally guilty and has to spend the rest of his life as Heather's roomate

Edited December 5, 2016 by Oracle42

[Sake614]

Why would you wish that on Heather? 

[LeftPhalange]

29 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

Why would you wish that on Heather? 

She gave birth to Freako. She deserves nothing but pain and misery until she finally dies. 

[Darklazr]

7 hours ago, Tiger said:

GH is definitely done come next fall.  The Affiliate Board of Govenors wants it dead and gone.  

If true, this would explain why FV, JP and SA all received new contracts in order to close out the show.

Heather's only child is Steven Lars Webber, period!

[Tiger]

9 minutes ago, Darklazr said:

If true, this would explain why FV, JP and SA all received new contracts in order to close out the show.

They've very craftily extended and signed new contracts with "key personnel" that would allow them to produce shows until at least the thirs week of August 2017.

[Oracle42]

12 minutes ago, Darklazr said:

Heather's only child is Steven Lars Webber, period!

 I don't mind the idea of Heather having a child with Scotty. That's actually a good use of history and it could have been a good use of RoHo, but that their child would be Franco? Nope.

[Ambrosefolly]

3 hours ago, Oracle42 said:

 I don't mind the idea of Heather having a child with Scotty. That's actually a good use of history and it could have been a good use of RoHo, but that their child would be Franco? Nope.

Should have been Logan. Josh Duhon actually looks like both Kin Shriner and Robin Matteson.

[WendyCR72]

9 hours ago, Tiger said:

GH is definitely done come next fall.  The Affiliate Board of Govenors wants it dead and gone.  

@Tiger, I don't mean this as doubting you, but I'm skeptical. This show has sucked for so damned long, yet still has hung on like a Zombie Apocalypse. I think it's time. I just am not sure if GH is down and out yet or will live to bore for another few years.

But if you're right, this crew already has this show as dead soap walking, so it may be hard to tell the difference, anyway!

[RedRockRosie]

11 hours ago, Tiger said:

GH is definitely done come next fall.  The Affiliate Board of Govenors wants it dead and gone.  

 

7 hours ago, HeatLifer said:

*crosses fingers and numerous other body parts*

This makes me so sad...I've watched GH since 1963...15 min B&W (yes, I'm that old). I do not want to see the last ABC soap die. True, it is not great right now, but my theory is, as long as it still exists on the air...there is hope.

They should have kept all 3 soaps but no one gave a shit & I am sorry to see this happen to GH. Too much history to waste. Too many soaps are gone...and once they're gone all  we get is hideously stupid crap to replace them. I'd much rather have GH , no matter how bad the writing is at the moment, than another Chew or whatever other stupid crap they put on the air. If British soaps can thrive, our American ones can too.

Just an old lady's 2¢, FWIW.

[Badsamaritan]

The problem is, there is no next gen soap writers & show runners. That's why they pretty much keep recycling through the same 5-10 people. Now, YR went in a new/old direction - they hired a former British soap showrunner and then brought back 2 old school writers who learned at the feet of Bill Bell. But their show is also still number 1 in the ratings and its sister show, B&B, is a huge hit overseas. So the network had incentive to try to right their soap ship. With GH, which hovers between 3rd and 4th out of 4 in the ratings, I could see it no longer being profitable to try to fix it. But I lay the blame of that squarely at FV and RC's feet. They mucked shit up so very badly, and even after RC got canned, Uncle Frank continues to treat the show like it's his personal collection of Pokemon and he keeps stacking the deck in the form of actors but nobody wants the lame ass Freaco card even though he's got like eleventy thousand copies and keeps shoving them in randomly.

[Tiger]

8 hours ago, WendyCR72 said:

@Tiger, I don't mean this as doubting you, but I'm skeptical. This show has sucked for so damned long, yet still has hung on like a Zombie Apocalypse. I think it's time. I just am not sure if GH is down and out yet or will live to bore for another few years.

But if you're right, this crew already has this show as dead soap walking, so it may be hard to tell the difference, anyway!

They would have to extend/renew a lot of actors and production contracts, and convince the Affiliates to stick it out a bit longer; I don't see any legitimate path forward after next Sep.  

I watched this show from 92 to this past Jan, and I genuinly loved many years, characters, and stories.  So i'll definitely tune in for the last few weeks and hope I recognize it.

Edited December 6, 2016 by Tiger

[TeeVee329]

1 hour ago, Badsamaritan said:

The problem is, there is no next gen soap writers & show runners. That's why they pretty much keep recycling through the same 5-10 people. Now, YR went in a new/old direction - they hired a former British soap showrunner and then brought back 2 old school writers who learned at the feet of Bill Bell. But their show is also still number 1 in the ratings and its sister show, B&B, is a huge hit overseas. So the network had incentive to try to right their soap ship. With GH, which hovers between 3rd and 4th out of 4 in the ratings, I could see it no longer being profitable to try to fix it. But I lay the blame of that squarely at FV and RC's feet. They mucked shit up so very badly, and even after RC got canned, Uncle Frank continues to treat the show like it's his personal collection of Pokemon and he keeps stacking the deck in the form of actors but nobody wants the lame ass Freaco card even though he's got like eleventy thousand copies and keeps shoving them in randomly.

I definitely agree with your point about the same 5-10 writers/show runners being cycled through the remaining soaps and that it's exciting that Y&R is making a real attempt at something different.  I also agree that Frank and Ron have made some mistakes over the years.

But there does some to be some rose-colored glasses going on regarding the state of the show before Frank and Ron took over.  Guza and JFP were driving the show into the ground too, just in a different way.

[peachmangosteen]

40 minutes ago, TeeVee329 said:

But there does some to be some rose-colored glasses going on regarding the state of the show before Frank and Ron took over.  Guza and JFP were driving the show into the ground too, just in a different way.

+1

Has stuff from the new Y&R writers started airing yet? I have never been able to get into that show, but I'm curious about the new writers.

[LeftPhalange]

25 minutes ago, peachmangosteen said:

Has stuff from the new Y&R writers started airing yet? I have never been able to get into that show, but I'm curious about the new writers.

I think it starts airing tomorrow. Unless something drastic happens I expect it to be awhile before there's any serious improvement. Show is really bad right now. 

[HeatLifer]

9 hours ago, RedRockRosie said:

. I do not want to see the last ABC soap die.

I respect your opinion, totally. I get it. I'm sure a lot of people feel the way you do. 

I've also watched this show live since the '80s. The show has already died to me. I don't know these characters. And I believe that everything should come to an end at a certain point. Or, you know, before Franco and Dr. O officially run this show. Wait, that's already happened. :/

[ulkis]

I think soaps may revive, but with new shows.

3 hours ago, TeeVee329 said:

But there does some to be some rose-colored glasses going on regarding the state of the show before Frank and Ron took over.  Guza and JFP were driving the show into the ground too, just in a different way.

Yes and no. I think OLTL and GH had pretty different styles during OLTL's later years, so when Ron took over with his style I think it makes sense people were/are like "GH was better before." I know when they announced Ron was taking over I was instantly wary, because from what I had seen of it, because I had only heard stuff about Fords, etc etc.

[HeatLifer]

2 minutes ago, ulkis said:

I think soaps may revive, but with new shows.

I don't think soaps should be on every day anymore. They should do 13-20 episodes in a seasonal format like the rest of the shows. Maybe even put it online only. The fact is, things have changed. There are too many options these days. Soaps worked back in the day bc there was never anything to watch  during the afternoon (and even at night). Also, they were popular, so everyone, actors and writers, were always trying to be on their A-game. Now it's all about using the least amount of money and memorizing lines as quickly as possible. There's no passion there unless it's an actor's specified Emmy-reel time. There used to be a time when EVERY EPISODE was good. EVERY performance. That's an effort and talent thing that's been lacking since 1999.

[Tiger]

3 hours ago, TeeVee329 said:

I definitely agree with your point about the same 5-10 writers/show runners being cycled through the remaining soaps and that it's exciting that Y&R is making a real attempt at something different.  I also agree that Frank and Ron have made some mistakes over the years.

But there does some to be some rose-colored glasses going on regarding the state of the show before Frank and Ron took over.  Guza and JFP were driving the show into the ground too, just in a different way.

As bad as Phelps/Guza were at times, particularly from the summer of 2005 onward, there was always something to cling to, I recognized the characters, and at times the show on the whole truly was fantastic.  

While Ron & Frank's GH was also fantastic at times, notably the summer/fall of 2012 and fall/winter of 2013, for me starting in Mar 2014 it become unrecognizable, incredibly cheap looking and outright bad tv.  I think Robin's horrible exit right into Sonny murdering AJ right into Dark Lewq is what did it.   

And then, again for me, by July 2015 I was done.  There it was Michael instantly forgiving Sonny, right into a few episodes later than "well ya see, Helena . . . [commercial break] . . . and thats the whole story" right into Luke's awful exit that did it.  It Jason hadnt announced his exit shortly thereafter, I wouldnt have even made it to Scrubs' departure.  

Maybe things have changed since Jan, but for me there wasnt any recognizable element left of the show I would race home from the bus after school to watch.

[ulkis]

32 minutes ago, HeatLifer said:

IThere used to be a time when EVERY EPISODE was good. EVERY performance. That's an effort and talent thing that's been lacking since 1999.

Oh, not every episode. And after all, Antonio Sabatino* I mean, Sabato was on this show, not every performance was good.

I think if they come back online they could do 5 days a week, it could be less than that, but I think if they only did 13-20 episodes it wouldn't be a soap. Maybe an episode each week throughout the year.

*I conflated his last name with that of one of my favorite authors, oops. Sorry, one of my favorite authors! Everyone should go read Scaramouche, now that book is soapy.

[HeatLifer]

7 minutes ago, ulkis said:

I think if they come back online they could do 5 days a week, it could be less than that, but I think if they only did 13-20 episodes it wouldn't be a soap. Maybe an episode each week throughout the year.

But that's kinda my point. The soap formula (in terms of how many episodes it airs) should be done with. It doesn't work anymore. The quality is zero. 

[ulkis]

Just now, HeatLifer said:

But that's kinda my point. The soap formula (in terms of how many episodes it airs) should be done with. It doesn't work anymore. The quality is zero. 

Oh well, in that case, soaps have already been revived. Everything is a soap nowadays except for crime procedural. I was watching a rerun of the Golden Girls the other day (I know) and I saw the "to be continued" at the end and I only just then realized that no show uses that anymore, because now it just goes with the territory.

I think once a week, or even three days a week, would be small enough to be able to give a show quality. I think the audience is there too, to delve into the nitty gritty that you can't get with 13-20 episodes a season. If soaps are revived, they just have to wait long enough to make it seem like a new and shiny concept again.

[HeatLifer]

6 minutes ago, ulkis said:

I think once a week, or even three days a week, would be small enough to be able to give a show quality. I think the audience is there too, to delve into the nitty gritty that you can't get with 13-20 episodes a season. If soaps are revived, they just have to wait long enough to make it seem like a new and shiny concept again.

I just disagree. I don't think an everyday or even a 3-day a week concept will work anymore. Like I said, I think there are too many options. People want quality now...and are getting it on cable and Netflix, etc. They're not wanting to see something frequently anymore, especially if it's filled with mediocre actors and scripts.

[ulkis]

Yes, but if they revived soaps "don't fill it with mediocre actors and scripts" would go without saying.

My original point is, I do think they might come back one day, just not still as GH and DAYS.* Y&R and B&B I don't know about.

*Or who knows about DAYS. It just keeps on trucking.

[tvfanatic13]

14 hours ago, RedRockRosie said:

 

This makes me so sad...I've watched GH since 1963...15 min B&W (yes, I'm that old). I do not want to see the last ABC soap die. True, it is not great right now, but my theory is, as long as it still exists on the air...there is hope.

They should have kept all 3 soaps but no one gave a shit & I am sorry to see this happen to GH. Too much history to waste. Too many soaps are gone...and once they're gone all  we get is hideously stupid crap to replace them. I'd much rather have GH , no matter how bad the writing is at the moment, than another Chew or whatever other stupid crap they put on the air. If British soaps can thrive, our American ones can too.

Just an old lady's 2¢, FWIW.

Me too RRR. I have missed maybe 10 episodes in total since 1979. It has been awesome at times, so so at times and downright sucked at times. But this is like family to me. And the day it goes off the air, I will mourn it. Ducking back into my corner.....

[WendyCR72]

Actually, I think soaps are still viable. In prime time fare, and I don't mean nighttime soaps. Even many procedurals with ostensibly standalone episodes often have a part of a continuing thread via their characters. See all 3 L&O shows, CSI, etc.

Even sitcoms like How I Met Your Mother (ruined by its end, IMO), Frasier, Cheers, and Friends had soapy elements. And all had better production values, better writing (for a while, anyway), and on the whole, compared to now, better acting in that at least it seemed like the actors cared (and for the money they are paid, they should!).

The point is, I think it became difficult - if not impossible - for daytime soaps to compete once prime time started serializing and beat daytime at its own game.

And now with new options in the world of streaming via Netflix shows and Hulu, it's basically "game over" for stale, antiquated daytime soaps that have used the same plots for 60+ years, subpar recycled writers, and the true writing greats gone.

As a George Harrison song says, "All things must pass." And in its current daytime form, I think the sun is setting on soaps and GH - in this form - will soon be a memory like the rest.

[HeatLifer]

3 minutes ago, WendyCR72 said:

As a George Harrison song says, "All things must pass."

Yup. 

[Oracle42]

Y&R still has a pretty big audience and B&B is internationally popular. Spanish telenovelas and Korean soaps still have an audience. I think soaps are viable but I believe ABC has made a choice about their priorities. 

I don't watch daytime TV because there aren't other options. it's a choice. I'll be incredibly disappointed if GH is run into the ground by FV/Jelly but I won't stop watching soaps, I'll just watch a soap on a different channel.

[HeatLifer]

7 minutes ago, Oracle42 said:

I don't watch daytime TV because there aren't other options. it's a choice.

Of course it's a choice. But are you still watching bc it's good quality TV or because of what it was in the past and what it meant to you? For me, it's the latter. I watch and analyze more past episodes of GH, for example, than anything going on today. I may be in the minority with this.

[Oracle42]

I've been watching B&B and Y&R for the most part. I like soap operas; I like the format and the character types and the stories that soaps are capable of telling. I used to watch as many of the soaps as I could so I could jump into another one when my primary soaps were boring or crappy.

Admittedly, I haven't bothered watching GH regularly in a pretty long time.  I tend to check recaps to see whether it's still terrible (it is!) and I check clips of  scenes recommended by the board but I'm not sitting down to watch the cheap, shoddy product FV has been offering on a daily basis. I tend to watch more pre-FV GH online than GH on TV

Edited December 8, 2016 by Oracle42

[jsbt]

I have always said and always will that the PP revivals of AMC and OLTL are a monument to the potential future for soap operas. The productions were fine (I think AMC 2.0 is the best soap of the 2010s so far), they just needed better management and funding. If those shows were on Netflix or even Hulu again today with proper sponsorship, they'd still be running strong.

If it was up to me? Dole them out in 40-60 episode blocks (with 30-minute episodes), each block being a 'season' of the show, and release them either daily or in a binge that way, with some key storylines wrapping in each block and others laying groundwork or being left hanging til the next block. That's the way to make it manageable. It may not be running 365 days a year but it's daily soap opera.

Do I think any of the existing soaps will adopt such a model? Maybe Y&R or B&B someday. And I think the ABC soaps could do it easily, but I doubt they will. I don't think ABC has any interest in saving GH or seriously considering how to monetize or save the daytime soap medium. It's just going to wither and die, and that's a waste.

Edited December 6, 2016 by jsbt

[HeatLifer]

2 minutes ago, jsbt said:

release them either daily or in a binge that way

I'm all for a binge-type format. I've always wanted to see what a soap looks like without automatic audience and media input that can alter storylines and characters. Audience reaction can help in some cases, but it can also hurt bc most people are only focused on what they specifically like, not the entire show as a whole.

[dubbel zout]

The spinoff of The Good Wife will be shown on the CBS app, and I think if that works, other networks will look seriously at that as an outlet for original programming. Why not soaps?

[Oracle42]

2 hours ago, jsbt said:

Dole them out in 40-60 episode blocks (with 30-minute episodes), each block being a 'season' of the show, and release them either daily or in a binge that way, with some key storylines wrapping in each block and others laying groundwork or being left hanging til the next block. 

That would also provide the opportunity to really sit down and map out the story arcs. One of the things that's bothered me most with RC/JP/SA/FV has been the incredibly sloppy, lazy storytelling

Edited December 7, 2016 by Oracle42

[HeatLifer]

2 minutes ago, Oracle42 said:

That would also provide the opportunity to really sit down and map out the story arcs. One of the things that's bothered me most with RC/JP/SA/FV has been the incredibly sloppy, lazy storytelling

It's not only lazy, but they have the inability to write romantic relationships and friendships. The thing that was supposed to be fixed after Ron was never accomplished. If anything, it got worse, bc Jelly thinks just marrying every couple (in the same way) is enough.

[jsbt]

It would almost be an iteration of what was attempted early on in the Linda Gottlieb era at OLTL around 1991, but they abandoned that quickly. It can be done with more care and less newbies.

Looking back, how long was the B.J./heart transplant story, from Maxie's illness or even Damian and Lucy's bet to the transplant? 3-4 months of 5 episodes a week, maybe less? Arcs can be done, interwoven with each other, some running longer, others running only the length of a block. Romances, triangles, secrets can carry over, other stories resolve. PC used to experiment with this as well, with good and bad results.

Edited December 6, 2016 by jsbt

[dubbel zout]

36 minutes ago, jsbt said:

Arcs can be done, interwoven with each other, some running longer, others running only the length of a block. Romances, triangles, secrets can carry over, other stories resolve. 

We discuss a lot about how there's never any fallout or followthrough with stories. The main event ends, and then everyone acts as if it never happened, when there should be permanent changes, grudges held, etc. Instead, we get nothing.

[Darklazr]

If FV would stop hiring every fucking actor he knows and we actually had writers that knew GH history, it would go a long way in making the show viable and watchable.   I don't have a problem with new characters, but under FV's tenure we have seen so many undefined or just dumped on us actors/characters that the show is a freaking sloppy mess.  Dr. O made perfect sense as this wacko villain with the fierce hats!... and then RC had to give her Britt and Nathan.  However, I loved the dynamic between Dr. O and Britt with Faison as the father, but we did not need "mutter" on all of the time and we definitely did not need Nathan, Nina and Madeline crap.

[TeeVee329]

10 hours ago, Darklazr said:

Dr. O made perfect sense as this wacko villain with the fierce hats!... and then RC had to give her Britt and Nathan.  However, I loved the dynamic between Dr. O and Britt with Faison as the father, but we did not need "mutter" on all of the time and we definitely did not need Nathan, Nina and Madeline crap.

You are me.  Dr. O as the fierce hat wearing villainess who would pop up every few weeks in a cliffhanger, making me clap my hands with glee, was fun.  But she's dessert and, instead of leaving her as dessert, Ron tried making her breakfast, lunch, and dinner and gave us all a stomachache.  And the less said about this bestie of Franco version, the better.

[dubbel zout]

They just can't help "falling in love" with a character/actor and ruining the original appeal by having them stay on. And on. And on.

[KerleyQ]

On 12/6/2016 at 2:52 PM, tvfanatic13 said:

Me too RRR. I have missed maybe 10 episodes in total since 1979. It has been awesome at times, so so at times and downright sucked at times. But this is like family to me. And the day it goes off the air, I will mourn it. Ducking back into my corner.....

GH is a big part of so many people's TV viewing history.  Hell, it's a part of TV history, period.  And as the last ABC soap standing, even when the show isn't actively entertaining for me, it's comforting to know that it still exists out there.  And, with so many other viewing options these days, both on TV/cable and on streaming services, it's not like that hour of ABC's afternoon programming being taken by GH is somehow limiting our viewing options.  

To me, personally, I don't want to see it end for a variety of reasons.  And I say this as someone whose viewing habit has definitely decreased in recent years. (I watch the first half hour live if I happen to be home when it airs, then I miss the second half hour doing the school pick up run.  If there was something in the first half hour that I was particularly interested in and want to see what else happened with it later, or if I check in here and it sounds like something good happened in the second half hour, I'll go back and watch the second half later. ) For one, I know that, despite the fact that the bulk of us here seem to range from being disappointed in to disgusted with the show, there are still viewers out there who are enjoying it.  Why should they have to lose a show they're enjoying just because other viewers aren't enjoying it?  Then, of course, there are the actors and crew. I can't root for people to be out of work.  And, at this point in the show's run, I also feel like whatever the wrap up would be, it would be disappointing.  I don't think the existing PTB would do it right.  

I've lost AMC (which was always "my" soap) and OLTL.  I don't want to permanently lose GH, too.  And I know that, for others, GH is to them what AMC was for me.  For them alone, I can't bring myself to hope for cancellation.  

[dubbel zout]

3 minutes ago, KerleyQ said:

I don't think the existing PTB would do it right.  

I don't, either. It would be great if they could bring back someone like Sri Rao to write the final episodes. If ABCD is going to can GH, the least it can do is give it the sendoff it deserves.

[HeatLifer]

8 minutes ago, KerleyQ said:

Why should they have to lose a show they're enjoying just because other viewers aren't enjoying it?

Because they have actively ruined, destroyed, and set fire to characters I've loved and grew up with and I don't want to see the day Liz marries Franco. Just because people out there enjoy this show, which is their right, doesn't mean it's good TV or should continue to air for eternity.

As far as people losing their jobs, that's the entertainment business. If anything, they have been lucky. Shows are not supposed to last 40 to 50 years. It's cool that some soaps lasted. It really is. But everything comes to an end. That's what life is to me. A beginning, a middle, and an end. 

/my minority opinion ;)

[ulkis]

I agree with you and I don't Heatlifer. I think what's cool about soaps is they show new beginnings for different characters, new generations. I don't necessarily think the show has to go but characters should more often.

But I agree with you that I don't think someone else's enjoyment of the show matters more than my own. To continue your example of Liz, I would enjoy her being sent off with Lucky instead of continuing on as Crazed Liz or Franco's girlfriend.

The day GH is actually cancelled though I will probably be very bummed though, even though I think, if it is going to continue like this, it's probably for the best.

[HeatLifer]

47 minutes ago, ulkis said:

if it is going to continue like this, it's probably for the best.

This is where I'm at. They're not even trying anymore unless you count Frank "trying" by cutting costs and filming next to a fence outside.

[jsbt]

This is tangential at best, but all I will say is that Y&R's much-hailed reset today shows how easy it can be to redirect things firmly and directly as quickly as possible. All it takes is getting a family or friends together in a room and focusing on their history and their connection. If the messy Y&R that Chuck Pratt left behind could refocus overnight, GH could easily do it. It would be part of a longer, larger process as I'm sure it will be at Y&R, but the immediate initiative is deceptively simple to introduce if the creative will is there. It's just a shame it isn't at GH, because watching the competition all I could think of was how to do it at this show in one fell swoop.

Edited December 8, 2016 by jsbt

[ulkis]

1 hour ago, ulkis said:

I agree with you and I don't Heatlifer. I think what's cool about soaps is they show new beginnings for different characters, new generations. I don't necessarily think the show has to go but characters should more often.

The day GH is actually cancelled though I will probably be very bummed though, even though I think, if it is going to continue like this, it's probably for the best.