ATWT: Stormy Weather

Really? An ice storm in September?

My initial thoughts on this:

1) they are going the GH-Emmy route by using a "disaster" to have material to submit
2) they had a good story, but couldn't sit on it until it was actually somewhat plausible (like November sweeps)

I would buy this "ice storm in September" story, if they once commented on WHY there was an ice storm in the first days of Autumn. I would buy a story ala "The Day After Tomorrow" where ecological systems run amok. But, so far, no explanation. Which is just soooooo irritating.

Perhaps one good thing will come out of this and Jade will blow away in the storm.

BB: Am I the only one hating Thorne and Taylor

I am now starting to believe the only reason they killed of the quirky Darla is just to get these two together. I used to love Thorne "my wife isn't quite cold in the ground but I am hot for Taylor" Forrester. One of my favorite times on BB was when he and Brooke got together.

However, I am not getting this paring at all. Sure, there will be drama once Thorne find out his beloved Taylor killed Darla. But, Taylor and Hector made a more likely pairing and more compatible couple (two fallen "angels"). Now, Hector is just this caricature of his former self--always angry and always manipulative. Where is the sweet firefighter?

The other bad thing about no more Darla, is that we are not likely to see much of Sally or Clark. Both, characters from the early, early days. I guess now that there is no more Spectra House of Ripoffs, we have no more use for these characters.

All Shows: Rabbits are dying everywhere!

What a surprise that ATWT's Jade and BB's Bridget are pregnant! It amazes me that they write storylines like Katie trying to get pregnant and everyone else gets pregnant after one night of sex with someone that they shouldn't be having sex!

But, the fact that it is on almost every soap, shows how overused this plot device has become. Let's see we have Lizzie on GL. I will excuse Y&R and Phyllis since her and Nick were together more than once. Though, I wouldn't be surprised if Carmen ends up preggers after her night (day--really) with Jack.

Who others are offending us with this re-tread story?

ATWT: Carly and Simon

First, let me state (or remind you) that I love Carly and Jack. They are my all-time favorite soap couple, let alone my couple to watch on ATWT. This week their divorce was final.

However, they have moved toward pairing Carly and Simon together. The last we saw on Friday, the two were headed toward the bedroom.

When CBS began to hint about this in their promos (a month or two ago), I admit I was intrigued. Carly and Simon have the potential to be as bad (that's the good kind of bad) together that Carly and Craig had. This could make for an interesting pairing.

ATWT: Luke's Wardrobe

I've been wondering this for months. Does Luke share a wardrobe with Steve from Blue's Clues?

Back among the living

I can't believe I haven't posted for over two months! I posted more during my summer class than I did afterwards.
The Goddess got a bit distracted by swimming pools, golf, and some very interesting municipal government happening in my little burg. And, related to my city government chaos, I was setting up two related websites and blogs to that situation. Oy!

Now, on with the really important stuff....my soaps!

BB: Nice Day for a Black Wedding

I would feel a little more sympathy for Felicia's plight if she didn't look absolutely ridiculous.

So Many Soaps, So Little Time

I am so behind on my soaps. The Goddess is enrolled in a Chemistry cram course (regular 16-week class in 5 weeks). This means more time studying, less time watching the stories.

I am caught up on B&B. It is good right now, plus it is only 1/2 hour.
I am only a day behind on As the World Turns. The Carly storyline is great right now, so if I could only have stayed awake another hour last night I would be caught up.

I am two weeks behind on GL. It's not like it doesn't interest me, I just am more interested in the others.
I am a week behind on YR. Same story on more interest in others and little time.

This weekend, I shall have a soap watching marathon. With the help of SoapNet, I will be caught up on everything by Monday. That is my solemn vow.

BB: Brooke as majority shareholder of Forrester (again)

What is in the pipe that Nick is smoking?! Why would Brooke want to fire Eric and/or Ridge. Even Thorne for that matter.

This is no time to start from scratch, let alone take the Forrester out of Forrester Creations. And, as we have seen, your company is only as good as your latest designs--or designer.

Who's the Daddy Month!

Well, a month or so ago we had "Teen Marriage Month". Now, we are on "Who is the Daddy Month" which will lead to a battery of DNA tests (Daddy Not Aware).
We will abbreviate this soap phenom as WTD (who's the daddy).

Y&R: The big, decade long Neil/Dru/Malcolm WTD comes to a climax as Neil finds out that Lily is not his biological daughter. On the same episode, Phyllis finds out she is pregnant, leaving us with a Nick/Phyllis/Jack WTD.

B&B: Well, if Brooke is going to sleep with two men in less than 48 hours a Ridge/Brooke/Nick WTD is sure to follow.

GL: Lizzie's WTD has been discussed in prior posts. Soon to follow, the Gus/Harley/Mallet WTD (see B&B post above).

ATWT: I think folks would like to make Emily's a WTD pregnancy. Some will speculate that Em slept with Henry or molested Dusty. On soaps a woman will miscarry if she falls out of a chair. Yet, Emily jumps off a cliff, is not breathing/no pulse, yet fetus survives. Which only proves it has to be Paul's baby: only a STENBECK could survive the jump from the cliff!!!

AMC: Fans are speculating that given Dr. Greg's history, the true paternity of Kendall's baby could be up in the air.

OLTL: There is the Antonio/Jess-Tess/Nash WTD, though not a new development.

BB: SORECEOS--Nick as CEO of Maronne

Yes, you too, can be a CEO! First Harley on Guiding Light and now Nick?
Nick as CEO?! Please...
The only thing Nick can run is a boat aground.
I guess maybe he can get pointers from Brooke on how to run a company.

He has only been in the company offices for a few years. But, alas, maybe we are seeing a new soap phenomenon. It is similar to SORAS, except it is SORECEOS--Soap Opera Rapid Experience to CEO Syndrome!

ATWT: Luke comes out to Will

There have been many complaints that there are two teen storylines but they never intersect. Well, we got instant intersection yesterday with Luke and Will's conversation. Even though the writers reminded us how they used to hang out when they were younger, we haven't seen them interacting until yesterday.

And of course, that is the day/time Luke comes out of the closet.

That said, Will gave Luke very good advice. I hoep he has a heart-to-heart with Holden and Lily and kicks Jade to the curb.

BB: Stephanie has lost her mind

Whoa! Stephanie is out of her ever lovin' mind if she thinks she is being reasonable when asking Dante to sign over his child. There are so many holes in what she is saying.

Stephanie called Dante's actions untenable. Yet, her asking him to sign over his parental rights defies reason and logic.

Stephanie said that Dante should think about what is in the best interest of the child. Yet, how is not having a father not in his best interest.

Stephanie said it takes more than one night to make a father. Yet, from the time Dante has found out he was Dino's dad he has stepped up. And the "more than one night" thing could apply to Felecia, too.

Bridget was right. Stephanie needs to interfere in her children's lives and Felecia is handy and, for the moment, needy.

GL rocks the Emmys

Wow! Guiding Light really took over in the acting categories. They were represented as follows:

Female Lead: Kim Zimmer as Reva
Female Supporting: Gina Tognoni as Dinah
Male Supporting: Jordan Clarke
Male Younger Lead: Tom Pelphrey

CBS took 5 out of the 6 acting categories when Jennifer Landon won Younger Female Lead for her role of Gwen on ATWT.

Emmy Comment: Who picked the order

Well, I didn't completely hate that the Daytime Emmys were not in New York this year. I could have done without all of the fan stuff outside the ceremony. It was just fluff to fill the extended show (from 2 hours to 3 hours), which could have been better used to present additional award during the telecast.

Speaking of presenting awards, who picked this order. Did ABC know who the winners were and thus stacked to end the evening on a GH high? Leading Female is one of the biggest awards of the night (more so than Male lead) and was bumped up to the first half of the program.

Daytime Emmys: All the Experts

Now that I have finally finished posting my picks for tonight, I thought I would venture out and see what other experts are picking. We seem very agreed in some categories and not in others.

Here is a link to all the experts picks.

http://www.thesoapgoddess.com/Expertpicks.xls

2005 Daytime Emmys: Outstanding Series

The most exciting category of the night. Here are the nominees and the episodes they picked:

As the World Turns – Episode#1 Les terrorizes Lily and Carly and is revealed to be Julia's killer. Episode#2 Gwen and Jennifer go into labor at same time (beginning of baby switch).

General Hospital – Episode #1 Train crash Episode #2 More post-train crash drama, a few episodes after the first.

Guiding Light – Episode #1 Reveal of Alan as Philip's "killer". Episode#2 Sandy and Tammy's wedding.

Young and the Restless – Episode #1 Cassie dies. Episode #2 Lauren and Michael's wedding reception and the beginning of the Phyllis/Nick affair.


As the World Turns has a nice package in the first episode. There is no cliff-hanger and stands alone nicely. The beginning of the baby switch (as opposed to the conclusion) is quite a choice—but you see the beginning of the storm that is about to unfold and how it ties to many storylines.
General Hospital's episodes are heavy on special effects, which make for a win in directing but a crutch in series and maybe the reason why they are overlooked for writing. The good is that they use EVERYBODY in these episodes, which showcases some of the great acting talent that they have.
Guiding Light has a better second episode than first. This can work in their favor as it leaves the voter with a good "taste in their mouth."
Young and the Restless: pass the Kleenex, please.



Who will win: Young and the Restless
Who should win: Guiding Light


Guiding Light should win just on that beginning when the minister asks "does anyone object". The use of flashbacks from various characters' point-of-view is great. When this episode originally aired everyone was on the edge of their seat to see what would happen. And to eliminate the "Ew" factor, I don't believe it is mentioned that Tammy and Jon are cousins in that episode.
However, Young and the Restless has a killer first episode. The second episode is great in that it begins the Nick/Phyllis affair—however if voters are not full-time viewers and don't realize that impact….


Who could win: General Hospital could pull it off if there are a lot of male viewers who love the special effects that cloud over the actual story. If they do win, and after winning last year for the hotel fire, GH viewers should expect some major catastrophe each year, which will lessen their impact for viewers but be great Emmy bait.

2005 Daytime Emmys: Directing

Another category where I came in thinking Y&R was the definitive winner. They always have great camera angles, put together great shots for some of the great editing they do later. But, who knows….

Here are the nominees and the episodes they picked:

Bold and the Beautiful – Episode#1 Christmas episode where Felicia's baby is christened. Episode#2 Nick confronts Bridget on a bluff about her supposed abortion; Stephanie dares Brooke to shoot herself.

Days of Our Lives – Episode #1 Belle goes into labor, aftermath of Sammie and Lucas' interrupted wedding. Episode #2 Frankie returns, Mimi in Jail, Belle torn between Shawn and Philip.

General Hospital – Episode #1 Train crash Episode #2 More post-train crash drama

Young and the Restless – Episode #1 Cassie dies. Episode #2 Lauren and Michael's wedding.


Bold and Beautiful picked a location shoot—extra points for degree of difficulty.
General Hospital's episodes are heavy on special effects which make them more difficult to direct. Possible bonus points.



Who will win: General Hospital
Who should win: General Hospital

GH will probably win for special effects alone, something that should cause them to lose in the drama series category.

Who could win: Young and the Restless is consistently good, but the judging is just on the two episodes presented.

2005 Daytime Emmys: Writing

What makes good drama—good writing. It's the "if it's not on the page, it ain't on the stage" mantra. Oddly enough, two shows that are in contention for Outstanding Drama are NOT in the running for outstanding writing.

I came into this category thinking Y&R was the definitive winner. They always write stories that reach out across storylines. It is one of the things that make them a ratings leader. But, will it make them an Emmy winner? Again, they are judged on two episodes alone so it can be anyone's game.

Here are the nominees and the episodes they picked:

As the World Turns – Episode#1 Jennifer and Gwen go into labor at the same time; Episode#2 Dusty realizes Meg's role in the Jennifer/Gwen baby switch.

Bold and the Beautiful – Episode#1 Stephanie and Brooke gun episode; Episode #2 Christmas episode where Felicia's baby is christened.

One Life to Live – Episode#1 Rex finds Jennifer's body, Vikki tricks David and Dorian into getting together. Episode#2 Lindsey deals with Jen's death, Dorian and David start an anonymous online relationship.

Young and the Restless – Episode #1 Daniel is arrested as Cassie is barely hanging on to her life. Episode #2 Consecutive episode where Cassie dies.


One Life to Live should have picked the Daniel as killer and gay reveal. It was really strong and was the culmination of great story. The first episode was good, but the second was all over the place.
As the World Turns could have picked the baby switch culmination also, instead of the pseudo-culmination of the Meg/Dusty reveal. The former had strong acting which can only help their strong writing.
Bold and Beautiful should not have picked the Christmas episode. Those are always so contrived—although if you are looking for sappy, this is your episode.



Who will win: Young and the Restless
Who should win: Young and the Restless

I cry every time I watch the Cassie dies episode (and I had to watch four times for Emmy picks plus the original airing). Y&R picks two consecutive episodes that make it easy to follow the storyline. The second episode is stronger than the first, which is something the other shows did not accomplish. Like the other shows, Y&R start big. Unlike the others, they end strong.

Who could win: As the World Turns is a perennially favorite in this category. And, in the back of my heart, I would not mind if home-girl Jean Passanante brings home a win.

2005 Daytime Emmys: Younger Male Lead

Will the voters give Tom Pelphrey the Emmy he deserved to win last year? They have been known to try to make up for prior mistakes. Another strong contender is Jesse Soffer; his only negative is that one episode is almost entirely with Jennifer Landon who is so great she outshines him. Scott Clifton gives good blend of humor and drama but nothing overwhelming. He scores big on versatility, but low on strength of any one moment. Michael Graziadei's reel is too short for any type of lead consideration, even if it is younger lead.

Scott Clifton (Dillion, GH) - Dillion fights with Georgie and deals with Lucas admitting he's gay; Dillion blames himself for Michael's death.

Michael Graziadei (Daniel, Y&R) - Daniel reflects on Cassie's hospitalization and his role in it; Phyllis visits Daniel in jail and gives him new hope.

Bryton McClure (Devon, Y&R) - Devon worries about his dying mom; Devon catches his mom buying drugs in the park.

Tom Pelphrey (Jonathan, GL) - Jonathan lashes out at Reva, cuts his hair with a knife and realizing Dinah faking her pregnancy; Jonathan goes to see Tammy the night before her wedding to Sandy and pushes her to admit her true feelings for him.

Jesse Soffer (Will, ATWT) - Will blasts Gwen for having taken money from Paul; a jailed Will denies having poisoned Iris.

Who will win: Tom Pelphrey
Who should win: Tom Pelphrey

Tom Pelphrey can play Jonathan very strong sometimes and makes you wonder if it is overacting or just his take on Jonathan. It should not overshadow all the other great stuff on his reel. My only question on this is: will they play the theme song from Guiding Light he wins or will it be the overplayed Unbelievable when they call his name?

Who could win: Scott Clifton and Jesse Soffer also have good tapes.