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Death of Daytime Soaps

posted 11 years ago by RyanCShowers
9 replies | jump to latest

http://feelthefilms.wordpress.com/2013/08/03/the-death-of-daytime-dram as/

I know they're cheesy. I know the plots are outrageous. I know the acting isn't as high quality as you'd find in any feature film released in December. But Soap Operas don't get enough credit. They are really hard-working people, they produce an hour show every single day of the week. Compare that to taking eight days to film one show per week or months to complete a feature film. One thing that can never be said about the world of Daytime is that they're lazy, they're always on the move. I've been a rabid Soap fan for the past thirteen years and I have them to thank for my interest in film, art, and human emotions. Daytime fans can agree that characters on a Soap Opera become a part of your friends and family, you see them live their lives every day as you live yours. Soap Opera is a special genre that hopefully it cherished by the watchers the rest of their lives.

Unfortunately, in the last five years the world of Daytime television has evolved from Soap-oriented to talk/reality/game show-orientented. Soap Operas were targeted at women when they first began and were ideal for stay-home moms. Now that women have utilized the workplace just as much as men, Soaps don't really have an audience anymore. To add to that growing problem, there's also the poor financial state our country is meddled in. Budget cuts are required for the studios to stay afloat, and Soaps have to be the first to go. One by one we've said goodbye to our favorite towns, characters, and shows, with only four Soap Operas remaining on the air. Climates at the sets of these shows are different than they used to be. New people are brought on board, stories have become redundant, and everyone knows in their heart that it's just not the same.

DAYS OF OUR LIVES: I watched Days from 2002-2009. Though, I was a fan of Guiding Light before it, Days will be the show that really hooked me into this alternate universe. My favorite plot, and the storyline that solidified these shows in my life was the Salem Stalker. I love a murder mystery (I'm a Scream trilogy fan), I was never more taken aback that a show would a) kill off ten of the most popular characters b) make the masked killer the heroine of the show and c) show that none of the characters were ever really dead and killer never did the deed. So many risks involved and the twists were more frequent than if you were playing with a hulahoop. The MVP for me was Allison Sweeney playing Sami Brady. She was spunky, flawed, and lovable through every wrong thing she did.

GUIDING LIGHT: My favorite Soap, where it all began for me, and where it all began to end , unwilling. I watched from 2000-2009, '09 the show was axed from the air. Guiding Light was paced faster than lightening, that's why it's so hard to narrow down one favorite, defining storyline. The storyline which introduced me to the show was Blake and Eden locking one another in a cage in a church basement, fighting over the love of Blake's husband, Russ. A second memorable story is Harley and Gus being established as a super-couple and Harley fighting with Phillip over the custody their son. Reva pulling the plug on her sister's husband, Richard was also a highlight, which lead to Reva's trial and her eventual stalker. The big mystery over Phillip's murder was also a storyline that is now legend.

The show's prime was 2006-2007, beginning with Reva's heart-wrenching cancer storyline, followed by the death of Tammy and Jonathan's exit from Springfield, which concluded with "Who Shot Alan Spaulding?" Those three story lines are what defines the show for me, besides the eventual conclusion. Fans got word that Guiding Light would be the first Soap Opera to be struck down from the air, after 72 years, Springfield would be abandoned. The last months of the show were magnificent. We felt the eventual demise of the show as the hero, Phillip, was diagnosed with a fatal disease. As he lived the final days, we knew we were living ours. Guiding Light even tackled a lesbian-romance in this time period, between Olivia and Natalia. The final show is something to be treasured. The day ended 2/3 of the way through the hour, then brilliantly fast-frowared a year to see where the characters ended up and to see the iconic couple, Josh and Reva, riding past the lighthouse, finally together. Though it was hard to move on, we left everyone we loved in the best places they could've been in. My favorite performance from Guiding Light is obviously, the queen of daytime: Kim Zimmer as the sassy, charming, and dramatically intense Reva Shayne, the slut of springfield.

YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS: Already being associated with two popular Daytime shows, I wasn't looking to get hooked on any others. One day I was home from school for the summer, eating lunch, looking for something to watch. I settled on the CBS channel, and starting watching Young and the Restless. I watched Young and the Restless since that day in 2007 until yesterday, 2013. Young and the Restless has a maturity and grace, GL & DOOL, didn't quite have. I became a fan, easily. My favorite storyline is awarded to three months of last summer: July, August, and September, told in two story lines. The first: The hit and run trial which lead into the darkly hilarious body dumping tale featuring Phyllis and Kevin. The second: Victor married Sharon, then disappeared from town lost his memory and was even assumed dead. Sharon rose to power of Newman enterprises and held an inappropriately brief funeral for him. That show, the funeral show was hands down the best hour Y&R ever broadcasted. The characters were either comedic gold or in heartbreaking crisis. Melody Thomas Scott crying at the gravesite, looking up to see Eric Braden will forever be engraved in my memory. The MVP here is quite obvious too: Michelle Stafford as Phyllis Summers, who made every minute of every show engrossing, fun, and dramatic.

BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: A nice little, frisky time-passer that proved to be quite entertaining. Watching from 2007-2011, Bold and the Beautiful was the most frustrating to watch because of the story lines living on the repeat button and the amount of time B&B developed a story in a year is what YR or GL could've summed up in a month. I still loved the hip approach to the show, but I mostly watched for Katherine Kelly Lang's heroine in Brooke. She always drew to me and no matter what the storyline was, all eyes were on her. My favorite storyline was the gripping tale of Brooke being raped by Andy. My eyes were plastered to the screen, jaw-dropped, in fear of what was coming next. Lang did an remarkable job acting through those shows and was cheated out of an Emmy nomination and win for that time.

As I said earlier, Michelle Stafford's portrayal of Phyllis was the strongest asset Young and the Restless had on its side. The character was always so catchy, mixed with Stafford's energy and beauty, no wonder she was the fan favorite since her arrival. Stafford in my opinion gave the defining performance in Daytime history in the summer of 2010 as Phyllis struggled through Nick's loyalty to Sharon and their collapsing marriage. The next year when the envelope was opened for Lead Actress at the Emmys and Stafford's name wasn't called, it was a slap in the face to anything of a reputation the Daytime Emmys held prior to that moment. The Soap World has been slipping through my fingers since the epic peak of Y&R's Victor "dead" storyline in the fall, but sadly a new head writer took hold of the reigns at Y&R and destroyed the quality show it had been for years. This past May Michelle Stafford announced she was leaving the show, which meant for me that the final nail in the coffin was about to be pounded into my Soap Opera career.

Losing Stafford is going to be a huge dent in the show's success if you ask me. Phyllis became one of the most memorable characters in Daytime history and Stafford was everyone's favorite actress. I really loved the storyline in which her character sailed out of Geona City, however (the Phyllis/Sharon scene in the stairwell was phenomenal), except for the disappointment I feel Satfford will never get to say goodbye to everyone as Phyllis, since the character has been in a coma for the past two weeks. Phyllis left Geona City for good yesterday, August 2nd. Stafford reported to Soap Opera Digest she will never be returning to the show or character. Though there's a possibility of recasting the character in the future, I'm not looking back either. Michelle Stafford has left the building, so has Ryan C. Showers. Congratulations to Michelle Stafford on her exceptional career, creating an unforgettable character, and good luck with the new webshow "The Stafford Project". I'll be watching.

Soaps are a great way to start out in the world of entertainment, for actors, fans, directors, writers, and media journalists. My favorite actress, Sarah Michelle Gellar, began her career on a Soap Opera, All My Children. But, it's not a medium that is going to live on forever. Soap Operas aren't as well made as motion pictures or primetime TVs, they have cheap photography, sometimes sloppy directing, frequently rushed and unrealistic writing, and acting that doesn't compare to that in other forms of entertainment. Soap Operas are practically un-rewatchable. The way you can sit and rewatch your favorite shows and movies isn't the same with Soaps; you notice the obvious flaws on repeated viewings. It's funny that we don't notice them the first time through, I guess we're just so involved in the story and the characters, we look at them with our heart and not our brains. With so much disappointment, my career watching Soaps has now dwindled to goodbye. It's bittersweet because I've been involved in this aspect of entertainment for such a big portion of my life, but I know what's coming next will be wonderful.

My grandma used to subscribe to Soap Opera Digest for me, I got the Weekly issue as a birthday present from her. My Grandma watched Days of our Lives, passed that onto my mother. My mother watched Days of our Lives and Guiding Light, she passed those both onto me. I opened myself up to Guiding Light, Days of our Lives, Young and the Restless, Bold and the Beautiful, As the World Turns, Passions, Soap Opera Digest, CBS Soaps in Depth, and a became faithful follower of the Daytime Emmys. I'll never forget the twists, the story lines, the suspense, the mystery, the heartbreak, the colorful characters, and the huge imprint it left on my life. Goodbye, everyone, I will miss you so, but you'll live forever in my creative mind and soul.

Feel the Films: A Blog by R.C.S. -> http://feelthefilms.wordpress.com/

[–] onwardsandupwards 11 years ago

The major difference with American soaps (when compared to others from Britain and Australia for example) is that all attempts to keep these programs grounded in reality went right out the window in the 1980's.

Suddenly daytime writers started going over the top in their storyline ideas and viewers were being treated to plots straight out of a B grade sci-fi movie. With villains holding the world to ransom and threatening to freeze everything if their demands were not met ("General Hospital"), characters possessed by the devil ("Days Of Our Lives"), travelling back into the past ("One Life To Live") and cloned doubles showing up wanting to murder their original counterparts ("Guilding Light").

Were these plots entertaining and fun to watch?. Yes. But any credibility these shows once had were now gone because the more viewers tuned in, the more these storylines became increasingly ridiculous and nonsensical. And when you stretch the proverbal rubber band as far as it can go, eventually the whole thing is going to snap which is what happened. The suspension of disbelief reached breaking point and audiences not surprisingly switched off in droves.

British soaps like "Coronation Street" & "Eastenders" and even Australian ones like "Neighbours" & "Home & Away" have never attempted any outrageous storylines like their American counterparts. They've kept within the bounds of reality (if sometimes becoming melodramatic) but these shows have never had to resort to extreme plots in order to keep their viewers tuned in.

The point of soaps is that they're meant to reflect the human condition. Love, loss, anger, grief, revenge, desire, betrayal and shock. When you start getting away from that and begin telling tales that lack logic and believability and you end up losing audiences because of it, then you only have yourself to blame. American daytime drama is in the biggest danger it's ever face and honestly I don't see things changing for the better unless there is a major reversal in fortune.

US daytime writers may want to look at how things are being done elsewhere if they have a hope of keeping these shows on the air but the damage maybe too much to repair. The ship is sinking. How long it stays afloat is anyones guess......

[–] Xerces88 11 years ago

The British and Australian soaps are more middle-class but the plot-lines are just as absurd as any American daytime soap.

If soaps still had the over-the-top vibe they had in the 80s and 90s they might still have some interest. They've been dull and lifeless for so long now.

[–] onwardsandupwards 11 years ago

Melodramatic yes (these are soaps after all), but neither British and/or Australian soaps have attempted ridiculous sci fi plots to keep their audiences tuned in. Last time I checked there weren't any stories involving Satan possessing any characters, or villains holding the world to ransom by threatening to freeze it or clones on the loose or anything else of that nature.

This is where American soaps have failed. The credibilty factor has been stretched beyong breaking point. Viewer haven't tuned out because the shows have become boring (they're are still doing over the top plots) with "General Hospital" recently embarking on a vampire storyline (are you kidding me!).

Soap operas are suppose to be a heighten form of reality not science fiction fantasy nonsense which is what American daytime soaps have fallen into. Australian and British soaps have avoided that trap which is why most of them are still performing well in terms of longevity and ratings plus they have remain consistent in terms of plots. The moment these shows descend into that kind of storytelling, it will spell the end of these programs because British and Australian audiences like their soaps to bear some resemblance (however melodramtic) to real life.......

[–] rodcenray 11 years ago

Great topic! I think everyone that's posted has valid points too. American soaps are flatlining--there are only four left!--and it's just looking bleaker by the minute. I live in Salt Lake City and recently our NBC affiliate, KSL, moved Days of Our Lives off of it's daytime lineup and now it airs at 1:05 AM! Not a very good sign. But, honestly, I believe it's been moved only because of the gay romance storyline playing out. KSL is owned by the Mormon church and they have refused to air many NBC shows such as The New Normal and Hannibal. I, personally, commend Days as they're the first American soap to feature a wedding between two men. I believe All My Children was the first to feature a lesbian wedding. Passions was also the first soap to show two women in bed together--Simone and Rae. I think they may have been the first to show two men in bed together, too--Chad and Vincent.
So, anyway, I agree with what one of the posters said about British and Aussie soaps doing better more because they're grounded in more realistic-type storylines. I recently started watching British soap Hollyoaks and have become extremely addicted. The writers at Hollyoaks have something golden figured out--the pacing of their storylines! American soaps really drag out stories and try to milk them for all their worth--oftentimes to the point where you just get tired and exhausted by the whole thing. Americans are notoriously impatient people. We like the big payoff and we don't want to have to wait for it forever. Unfortunately, American soaps haven't caught on for some reason. The Brits have, though. Hollyoaks is fast paced. Things fly right at you and no storyline drags.
Besides the bad pacing, I feel like American soaps aren't as daring as their counterparts. For the longest time it was hard to find a gay/lesbian character. Many shows had fans actually boycott because they didn't want gay characters on the show, it was One Life to Live I believe. So, what did the writers at OLTL do? Appease the few boycotters and write off the gay characters. Many American soap operas are trapped in the dark age and afraid to tap into LGBT characters, even though LGBT viewers of soaps love being represented. Brits and Aussies beat us again! On Hollyoaks they currently have three gay characters and a lesbian character and one of the ongoing plots has Ste and his dad, Danny, having feelings for the same man--John Paul. The twist? Danny is married to police officer Sam (a female). I don't think you'd see that kind of plot on an American soap! It doesn't even have to be stories about LGBT characters, the Brits and Aussies are just more risqué in the plots they handle. It's hotter, sexier and entertaining.
American soaps lost their progressive nature, which I believe at one point they used to have. Taboo topics aren't as prevalent as they once were. If you're afraid to push boundaries then how can you continue to grow? I do, however, have to commend Passions. It was almost, in a since, ahead of its time. They knew soaps had clichés and didn't mind making fun of them. It wasn't afraid to push boundaries--come on, a half/man-half/woman who slept with its uncle and father and then wound up pregnant with daddy's baby! I've NEVER seen a show do that kind of extravagant plot before--not in America, Britain or Australia. Plus, closets to hell. Granted, it played into the supernatural world and wasn't really grounded on realistic-type storytelling but I don't think that was to Passions detriment. Passions came out flamboyantly declaring they weren't your Grandma's soap and they weren't lying! The show worked because its foundation was built solidly on absurdity and JER let fans know nothing was off limits. Other American soaps, other than Port Charles, really didn't have that foundation so the absurdity tends to sometimes take away from the show instead of adding to it. Granted, Port Charles was just a spin-off of General Hospital and it wasn't anywhere near as good.
So, can American soaps be saved? As things are currently...nope. There's no hope. It's a shame too because, as previously mentioned, soaps have been launching pads for stars--Sarah Michelle Gellar, Natalie Zea, Jesse Metcalf, Ryan Phillipe, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, etc.
I have a theory that the beginning of the end for soaps began with the cancellation of Passions--actress McKenzie Westmore (Sheridan Crane) even stated this same theory too. Upon NBC's announcement of Passions' cancellation, many soap fans who despised Passions since its inception took to the Internet to praise the head honchos for ending "this mockery of a soap opera."
These supposed soap fans believed Passions should've been cancelled long before many other soaps (we're not gonna get into that). So, when DirecTV came in and saved the day they began fuming again! How could Passions be saved from biting the dust?! They complained and complained instead of saying, "hey, I don't particularly care for Passions but at least a soap opera actually got saved!" Soap fans honestly should've been rejoicing and coming together. Passions was the first soap to be resurrected! If we would've united who knows what could've happened?! I feel like the soap community would be much stronger today. But this didn't happen. When DirecTV cancelled the show and it became clear it was really over it made me sick to read comments from people who deemed themselves "true soap fans." They were bullies. It was predicted with Passions' demise others would follow. Those predictions were scoffed at. Now, here we are in 2014 and now there is no more Guiding Light, As the World Turns, All My Children and One Life to Live. Granted, AMC and OLTL made brief revivals online but the support wasn't really there. The soap community reached too much of a divide. Suddenly it was more about my soap versus your soap instead of standing up for each other. Had people come together for Passions I think it, along with the other cancelled soaps, could possibly still be around. So, maybe you could say the "soap purists" were the ones who helped the demise? You gotta think, Passions was the last "new" soap opera created. Before that it was Sunset Beach--which was a wonderful soap! Sunset Beach was everything a soap opera could hope to be but it only lasted three years! NBC decided to put Passions and Sunset Beach against each other to see who would win out. Again, soaps were pitted against each other. The more stabilized soaps didn't really care because it was two newbie soaps. They only paid attention when more stabilized soap, (I can't remember it's name, Santa Barbara?), was cancelled leaving Sunset and Passions to battle it out. Again, Brits and Aussie soaps embrace each other. They wish success for one another. Unity is essential and American soaps have become dog-eat-dog thanks to the crooked Daytime executives and the fans not standing up and calling bull!
I feel like I could go on and on but I've already said way too much and I've jumped all over the place but if you read all of this I thank you and ask you, in return, if you agree or disagree on anything I've said.

[–] thunderokc 11 years ago

Michelle Stafford is on GH now. I'm sure she will return to Y&R after completion of GH. She's is definitely thinking that route now.

(I can not release any more info as not allowed.)

[–] adster81-1 10 years ago

The biggets problem is, dragging out storylines that are the same boring storyinlines we see over and over again, how many times do we have to see about who's the daddy that lasts years.

yes it was about the mid 80s when shows like days of our lives really took it to that sci fi level, it pretty much all started when Stefano died the first time and came back to life, it was at that point they started to go overboard and just about any character on that show had died, and found out a ridiculous way to bring them back to life... take a look at the Tony Andre thing it was pathetic, it was like they were writing up a dream they had and re writing history every single time so they could have a exuse for making Tony a nice then evil, then nice then evil way. and killed him off a good 4 or 5 times.

[–] thunderokc 10 years ago

The thing is that all those past deaths, no one really died. It wasn't a Sci-Fi level. The deaths were faked using medical technology and Stefano had/have many resources to fool the people. There is one method that people can use to fake their death, but I don't remember the name of that injection.

The death of Lexi, it may be real or not. At this time, her death is real. If they want to bring back Lexi (and hopefully the same actress is up for the role again), it can be changed that she never died and that Stefano staged the whole thing to have her relocated far away where she gets breakthrough, aggressive, whatever kind of treatment to eliminate her cancer, which was in her brain, would include a very long recovery due to complication of the brain (example, people in coma for many years actually mean that the body shuts down to very minimal for healijg process in which the brain are very, very, very to regrow and heal). I will always believe that Lexi is alive.

[–] adster81-1 10 years ago

[–] kurt7825 10 years ago

i'll take any crazy soap storyline over all these terrible talk shows any day