DC #397: CBS and DAYS Jump the Pond

Very interesting stuff involving GL. I've read some people claim the production change is why the show tanked. Yeah, I don't dig the production model either. The thing is though, it seems all the soaps dropped with GL. I suppose it could be a domino affect with loyal GL people that quit, quitting all the other soaps they watch. That could be the case, but if it is the case, I'm thinking wriitng did the damage more than production. People don't care that much about production. Why do you think reality shows survive? They are consistant in their writing they have (which is very little and it is stupid, but...).

Also, no actor can just jump from show to show without some serious press building them into more than they are-just one performer. Crystal Chappell didn't have a place on OLTL. She was once just as hotpular back in the day with Carly and really, she's a better actor than Tom could ever be. He just had a role that really fit him.

Otalia is about love. The Frank non-wedding didn't make the drama better for me though. I think they could of been doing laundry and confessed to each other just as well. Frank's talk with Natalia after the wedding made the non-wedding work. I would say Olivia and Buzz and Frank and Buzz worked too, but we didn't need an almost wedding for that stuff. Olivia could of been yelling at dead people anytime. The non-wedding was a non-issue when it comes to loving Otalia's deep feelings. We need more Olivia and Buzz talks just as a weekly or biweekly thing and not for a non-issue non-wedding. Keep the Otalia coming. Drop Frank like a hot potato.

The character Melanie gets on my last nerve. And now they are casting a new love interest just for her. She should make her exit the same day Max does or just vanish without a trace period.
And at this point I really don't care if the baby switch is ever revealed or if Sami tells Ej that he fathered another one of her kids.
When will Lucas ever get a decent s/l and love interest? He's not really involved in any s/l not even his own. The fact that Rafe and Will have more scenes then Will and Lucas is really ridiculous. I'd rather see other characters as apposed to seeing one person talk to them selves about what they are going to do or why they have done the things they have done. It makes no sense to have Nicole and Sami constantly talk to them selves repeatably and what's with all the flashbacks? I've watched the show I do not need a weekly flashback to fill me in on what I've missed. The writers responsible for this silliness need to be fired.

Instead of Nicole having another conversation with herself they can give Lucas a scene with his kids. Instead of Flashbacks they can have the characters actually do something new. JMO

I don´t understand why you even comment on DAYS anymore. It´s so hatefull and untrue and full of bias of someone who is not even bothering to watch the show. The neverending bash fest of Molly, who doesn´t even have a storyline at the moment and wasn´t on for more then 15 minutes in the last 2 weeks is both tired and stupid. For someone who makes their living by bashing professional writers how uninspired and repeating they are you sure could try to find some new material. Anyone who bothers to watch the show knows there is no attempt to pair Brady and Melanie, she just kissed him as a friend because she felt he needed it. But whatever, I´m sure you will continue to spread the lies and not bother to verify the facts because it supports your view like with the news about poor Deidre Hall and her small salary, or most recently, about Rachel Melvin refusing to return to tape a few another episodes when in fact she agreed to do the exact opposite.

Of course, you top it off with totally unsupported lie about JKJ being not happy with his storyline. Who cares the actor is both on and off record saying the exact opposite and fully supports Gary Tomlin´s vision of the show. Who cares Tomlin is the one who finally gave him an "A" storyline and made him a leading star of the show and paired him with an actress who he reportingly wished to work with for years. All your DAYS reporting is just lies, bias and more lies, done by bitter ex-fans for another bitter ex-fans and based on reading few lines of spoilers instead of watching the show.

It´s your site and your right of course, but maybe it would be smarter try to report things more professional for the almost 3 milions of viewers like me who are still watching, instead for the few thousands of jaded and resentfull ex-watchers who I´m sure are cheering you up because you feed their hate and resentment.

@tws1978-- Okay I dont have a lot of time (I am supposed to be out the door and headed to soccer now lol) so keeping this short and sweet The host of this podcast do watch the show, they love DAYS, and if you actually listen to the podcast (Not commenting on this episode because i haven't listened yet, i was going to last night but ended up watching YR instead lol) they have actually praised this show post - all the exits. They do watch the show, they make blog post about Melanie / Brady kissing, and yes it might have just been as a 'friendly' kiss that time, but two characters don't just kiss, it was more then likely a chem test for something coming up. Anyways all i am trying to say is that these people really do love the industry and DAYS, they just don't agree with everything that is going on, and that is just their opinion. If you like what is going on then just keep talking about the 'good' and what you are enjoying.

TW-Whoever-You-R. I watch this damn show every week, don't tell me what I don't do. Contrary to YOUR erroneous statements we don't "make our living" doing this. We all have dayjobs, yet still do this site, for the fans. Fans who yes, are pissed off—the ones who actually care about the show at least.Were you listening when Luke and I actually praised the show as improving for several weeks? Huh? Were ya? Huh? We caught hell for that, but stood our ground, because we don't jump on bandwagons, we call it like we see it. If you want someone to tuck you in and sing Kumba Salem, go read Digest. Oh and forgive us if we thought a character kissing another character meant the show was toying with pairing them. I mean seriously, how could we ever even think such a concept was on their minds?  One more thing, "hateful and untrue" was how Ken Corday treated his veteran actors and fans, why don't you muster up some of this righteous indigestion for him? We care about this show a lot more than TPTB.

It was good to have Darren on the podcast.

I don't love Melanie, but if I got to choose who would leave Salem she wouldn't be my first choice.

The biggest joke of this podcast was Darren talking in that British accent. Come on! We all know you're from New Jersey!

I'm so sick of Sarah Brown and her endless talk of Tom Pelphrey on GH. Just because she wants something doesn't she should get it. Look at the mess with Sonny. God, her character is such a failure. And the NB interview had so much ass kissing. I prefer what Laura Wright said in the Sara Bibel's interview about Tom Pelphrey and GH...Maybe going back to a soap is not in his cards. She certainly seems to respect him more than SB. And didn't he say at his play reading last March that he was coming back to the east coast after pilot season?? I hope he does so I won't have to hear SB talk about him again.

And why should TP give 6 months to GL? He was on the show, did his job, quite well I might add, even extended his stay and left. Just like any other actor. And honestly, I would prefer Jonathan to never come back. As far as I'm concerned, Jonathan's character was completely destroyed with that damn baby storyline with Lizzie. And people complained that he had lost his edge because of Tammy...AH!!! He lost everything with Lizzie and that idiot Reva. And now he is stuck with a baby that not even her mother wants. And for what? They could have done so much with Jammy without Lizzie. And why did they kill Tammy again? Or Gus for that matter? Or Coop? They might as well killed Harley too because she's pretty much dead. So no thank you to TP coming back to GL.

I don't care how anyone spins this, GL is not good as a show. It has its moments but that's about it. And the ratings show it.

Your podcast was quite enjoyable though... You guys do a wonderful job!!

Great podcast DC!!!

You all have me wanting to tune back into B&B. I am trying to hold out until that Rick/Steffy mess is finished but I can fast forward through that so i might try and see if I can catch this past weeks episodes on youtube.

OH Clementine OH Clementine...I understand the sighs Jamey and Melodie! I have a friend that hates her as Mac. Initially I thought there was something awkward about her. I just couldn't put my finger on it. I don't see any chemistry with her and Billy Miller. I hope Y&R doesn't try and force it. She is an okay actress though. I do feel like they are trying to have her imitate Ashley Bashioum's portrayal of Mac and I want them to move away from that. Overrall I say give her a few more weeks. She needs a makeover too because she does look older than she is supposed to be.

The Kevin storyline just makes me laugh out loud everytime that Chipmunk pops up. It's so bad that all you can do is laugh at it. It's too silly but I think I read somewhere that it is ending very soon.

Love crazy Phyliss!!!

@tws1978, in defense of DC, I listen to the DAYS podcast and have picked up on the fact that the staff is volunteer. I can't imagine doing a full time job, watching seven and a half hours of soaps a day, keeping up with the 20+ actors on each show, and all the behind the scenes network info going on. I always appreciate the commentary. I think DC is right on about DAYS departure from it's own history and that criticism itself is a large part of what I think you're picking up on as negative from the podcasts, which I don't consider negative, rather constructive criticism that is well merited.
JKJ, he could agree with the vision and not agree with the writing. I want to see more out of him as well, he is a good actor. They may have asked Rachel for a second additional and Deidre may be having a minor setback, but I don't see that lasting for long.
Melanie is Dena's character and she'll figure out what to do with Miss Layton. Brady is a character with a rich show history and is floating and that's sad.
I have seen DC celebrate the good and point out the bad, not out of ugliness, but looking for something better the next time around.

It was a blast having Darren on the podcast!
 
As Jamey mentioned I've been saying for a while now that I'm enjoying Days both on the podcast and on the blog. Check out the link from earlier this month when I ranked it my third favorite show...I caught hell for that one, but it's what I think. lol

http://daytimeconfidential.com/2009/04/days-of-our-lives-the-enjoyment-f...

Jamey and Mel, do you guys like Clementine better than the other two Macs after Ashley?

I wonder if the writers are going to address the fact that Mac also had a realationship with JT and miscarried his kid? I don't think they are, because it looks like there is going to be a JT/Victoria/Collen triangle.

Jamey and diplomatic?? Odd. It's not suprising that Jamey has an unpopular opinion about the "wonder twins".

For what it's worth Darren, Seasons may not believe your british but I do.

ATWT has many boring couples I can think of. Noah/Luke isn't one of them though I think they get some of the DUMBEST storylines to play out. I don't have a lot of hope for the return of Col Psycho. And now we'll have Damian/Meg coming up to contend for title of most dull/excrutiating pairing on the show.
.

I don't hate Zac & Zoe but I just don't see the point of them. (And Noah totally gave Zac's chest a good look before he asked him to put his shirt on ). Anyhoo, it drives me crazy that JP/CG keep bringing on these short term characters that no one gives a shit about to drive these 1 month long stories they're churning out. What do the fans have to do to get a regime change on ATWT? It's ludicrous that CG/JP are still in charge when they haven't done anything good in years and totally lack imagination. And the writing... it is marginally better than AMC at this point and you know how damning that is.
.

I don't agree with everything TWS1978 wrote but I do think that Melanie is not on all the time anymore. She was on too much for too long and it was not enjoyable but TPTB have lessened her screentime considerably in the last couple of months. It does seem as if the character, and to a lesser extent the actress, is being beat up on when the reasons are considerably less valid about her eating up the show since she's not on nearly as much. Does the character seem campy? Totally. Could the actress use some acting lessons? Definitely. Is Melanie taking over the show? No. The last couple of months has been a lot of Nicole & Sami but I think the show is more balanced overall and not under the thumb of one character. The only thing I want from Days now is for Nicole to get hers.
.

As for Y & R, Sharon is too "Smallville's Lana Lang" for me to ever support (those who watch the show know the character type I am talking about) but ultimately I don't get why she or Phyllis want Nick. He must wield some mighty dynamite in his pants cause I don't see the appeal otherwise. I can't take the Chipmunk seriously. Also, this could be an unpopular opinion but while I think the actress is good, I don't care for the character of Chloe at all.
.

I've started watching GL for Otalia. It is a good storyline and I've liked CC since she was on Days. I like Bill/Lizzie.

I also admit to having a bit of a crush on "James". I better check to see the actor is over 18!

Thank you Luke, Melodie, Jamey and Darren for the great podcast!! I know some folks, umm, can get a little tiny bit sensitive about their favorite soap or actor, but I personally like the kitchen table-feel of your discussions. Come-on! When you're among friends you dish about everything, and it has that feel, and I enjoy it - so don't edit yourself, its great.

A special shout-out for bringing attention to how great GL, and especially the Otalia storyline is right now. Even though the show is "cancelled" it truly is so incredibly good right now, and has been bringing in new viewers in droves (its the ones that tuned out that need to tune back in to see how good its gotten!). No one should miss a beat of these next 5 months. Its going to be stellar. And of course, keep hope alive!!!

Okay i listened to the podcast (on the ride to/back) and i really saw nothing wrong about the way the people on the episode talked  about DAYS, and i actually enjoyed that part of the conversation.

Now I have to talk to Jamey though, because can i please have some of the kool-aid you are drinking that makes this Mac seem like a good actor? I think the actress is very pretty, I think she has some signs of talent every now and again, but most of the time she has this look on her face that just screams "Where am i?" 

I really want to like Mac, I have heard nothing but good things about how amazing Mac is, but really I am not seeing ANYTHING here this time.

Now I really REALLY hope she grows as an actress and improves, and while she may be on the list of people i want off my screen right now she is close to the bottom at the moment lol.

Also I have to say something aboug Gloria, seriously what is up with her? I like Gloria, i loved the whole take over Jabot plot and Gloria was actually one of the reasons why i tuned into YR, but since the whole Bomb thing the writing and acting for Gloria is just insane, its over the top, its just out of place and not something I enjoy or will watch (Thank god for FF buttons) anyways good episode guys and i can't wait until the next one.

Johnathon, I don't drink koolaid, I drink VODKA! It's the only way I can watch these soap operas everyday.

*LMAO* Seasons about Darren being from Jersey. As for comment made by tws1978..... Look we comment on the show as WE feel it is. We're not going to just praise it to keep some fans happy. That's not our style and it will NEVER be our thing. We do it across the board for ALL the shows. We praise and rip em to bits even the ones that we love. Bias would be hyping up everything that DAYS does, BIAS would be us loving ALL the storylines and the hiring and firing that goes down. Just because we're not drinking the kool-aid you sip from on loving everything about DAYS including Ms. Melanie doesn't mean we're bias.

@Jamey--

Dang it Jamey, why couldn't it be kool-aid!? Now i know i can't take a sip and enjoy Mac.

*sigh* Being under 21 sucks, i mean you can't even take a drink to make Molly Burnett watchable....hummm actually i have a question, how many drinks does it take to make a Melanie watchable? (That sounds like those old 'how many licks does it take to get to a center of a tootsie pop ad's lol)

Oh I couldn't watch Molly Burnett without benefit of spirits.

Great podcast guys. I think the production model was a positive change for GL it does give the show a more intimate feel ,in hindsight I think maybe some real in house training would have been a good idea as some of the mistakes with sound and camera could have been avoided .
However you are so right about the characters it did take too long to shift some of the storylines which were floundering but they have now hit their stride we have come back to great couples and great storytelling. I think all daytime soaps will continue to struggle especially with ratings if you look worldwide most soap operas air in the 5pm to 7 pm time slot and do really well with excellent ratings ,maybe a change is needed not only in scheduling but in the outdated nielsen system that does not reflect peoples ever busy lives ..

I have so many things to comment on now lol (Nibbs just gave me sooo much to think about lol), but lets just focus on the ratings thing right now (because the other stuff i think would be better as its own blog post lol), I totally agree that the neilsens need a overhall, but I think i am starting to understand why they don't count DVR +5 +7, etc.

When you have a DVR what is the likely hood of you watching ad's? (insert your number of ad's you watch here)

Okay now if you have five episodes (a weeks worth) what are the chances of you watching ad's? (Insert the number here) 

Did that number grow or shrink? 

I think there are still some 'viewers' out there not being counted, but if they are not 'paying the bills' then they don't really matter anyways do they?

Now there are still loads of problems with nielsens, but that one alone kinda makes sense to me.

And also yea the other soaps do really well in their timeslots (H&A is almost always in the top 5-10 for the day), But i also think that has to do with the quality of the writing as well as the time slot.

I have to agree with Johnathon about the character of Mac. I have only been watching Y&R for a couple of months now (thanks to the guys at DC recommending it) so I never saw the original or have any type of history with the character. But from what I have seen so far I have no interest what so ever to look up the history of the character. I don't know if it is the writing of the character, if this is how the character always was or if it is the actress. Mac just comes off as a so blah, disinterested with a deer in headlights look. I don't get it at all.

Love the Podcasts.

I know, I have heard so much about Mac from the podcast i was expecting this AMAZING character yet all i get is 'meh?' lol

Also can someone explain this to me, Katherin dies, Mac cannot be 'bothered' to come home for the funeral, Katherin returns from the dead and she has a 'oh crap i better get there this time' moment? It just seems all kinda weird, I mean at the point that Brock would have supposedly told her that "The Dutches" was 'alive' they didn't have the d.n.a. test results back yet, so its just all really weird.

Jamey, you can so drink on those days for the both of us! LOL

Thanks for the podcast, good to have you back Jamie. I thoroughly enjoyed Darrens comments about B&B.

I understand Jamey's hesitation regarding Mac. I don't know if it is the fact that she still has to adjust to daytime's pace or what, but she just seems lost. If she hasn't improved in a month, rip her a new one Jamey!

They also really need to do something with her appearance, she is a pretty girl but they have styled her in a way where she just looks plain and old.

I just wish the Writing for ATWT was whole lot better. I so glad that they are flush out Noah right now.

Thanks for taking the time to do so many podcasts. They are a great break from the things I should be doing.
Michelle Stafford was definitely fantastic as psycho-Phyllis last week, and I don't like the Z twins on ATWT or whatever they're called, but I don't much care since I know they're on that cyclical story arc thing where I won't have to bother with them sooner than later.
As for the character of Melanie on Days, she's not my favorite, and I definitely agree that if they wanted to create a stronger younger cast, they could have drawn from history. However, I am not as interested in faulting the actress' performance. She's on Days, not Y&R or even B&B, so really, for me her performances are not as glaringly atrocious as other actors opposite Susan Flannery on B&B are. Thus, I'm going to give her a pass and hope she'll get better eventually---I think they really want to create the next generation's Sami Brady, but oh well....
As for Clementine's portayal of Mac...I too, sigh.
But here I'm a bit more critical because it is Y&R. That being said, I read an interview where she admitted her first few weeks weren't good, and it will take me time to adjust to the direction of this Mac, so I'm also going to withhold my final verdict on this one.