I (and most of you) have been unsatisfied with Y&R for the last three and a half years.  I am never surprised that TPTB don’t give a rip that viewers are unhappy, but it always shocks me when I find fans who tell me I should be enjoying what is clearly inferior daytime drama.  Would you like an example?  The following was one of the comments after last week’s poll.

“wow all this articles and posts are so hateful..it is scary and creepy (even more than the so called soap 'villians' at least they are fictional, them ! ha)
I don't know people if you don't like it why watch it ? I don't get it, maybe you could write or/and watch something that makes you happy or at least entertain you..all this whining about a freaking soap opera seems so pathetic to me. And it stays the soap the most viewed by the way..
The treatment of women..i don't know you have as much women characters who does ****ty things to male characters, it has always been like that on soaps..but now it seems internet boards are here for double standards. AND by the way i am a woman and proud of it but as a woman with a brain i don't use double standards, fair is fair.
No disrespect of course just my opinion.”

Need I point out the irony of the poster taking time to read an article about a daytime drama and then comment on it…to tell me my “whining” about a “freaking soap opera” seems pathetic?  And then claiming to not mean any “disrespect.”  I also will be kind and not critique the English, the sentence structure, or punctuation.  Regardless, let me just say I will not settle for slop when I could and should be having steak.  Soaps used to be focused on enjoyable, often romantic, escapism.  It appealed to the demographic of women (still, by far, the larger percentage of viewers) by including at least some depictions of strong, intelligent female characters.  I don’t understand how someone (in this case the author of the post) who claims to BE a “woman with a brain” can be remotely satisfied with these linguine-spined, thinking-impaired, sluts that now populate Genoa City.  There is not one woman on this show that I would want to emulate in any way, nor do I find them to be entertaining.  It’s just sad that some people apparently enjoy such cheap and stupid writing.

Oh…and the numbers?  Have PLUMMETED in the last few years.  That Y&R still tops the ever-shrinking list is nothing to brag about, as ALL of the soaps have lost sight of who their audiences are.

Another poster tells me I should be lobbying for a Victoria recast, specifically for Gina Tognoni. 

“Ms Kitty I hate to point out the obvious once again, but you seem to forget what person who comment below me is saying and oh how true it is. : )

Also why don't you ever take any advice and think Vikki needs to be recast with Gina Tognoni as she was suppose to 2 1/2 years 3 years ago?

She was and is the perfect choice. Heather Tom has outgrown for the role and no offense to the Actress she doesn't appeal to me at all especially in the role of Vikki Newman Abbott.

I even watched an episode of The Bold and the Beautiful and she still looks like a little girl in my eyes.

The character of Steffy looks more like a woman then Katie portrays then again I cannot talk about their personalities because that I do not know.

I only watched to see Don Diamont since he is very missed on the Y&R.

This is not meant to be offensive she just is very sour looking and too young for the part of Vikki. I remember years back when I did what that show Katie was also a older.

The reason I stopped watching that show was the disgusting Brooke and Ridge and haven't gone back since.

Also where is Jill why the heck make her Lauren's if she is not going to be shown another stupid blunder?

We finally see Jeff after all this, good to see Ted, because Kin Shriner is just not Jeff.

Must we have characters such as Deacon, Patty, Adam, Cane, Angelo, Angelina and Daisy on?

Paul has become so boring I don't know what the heck his purpose is? To be Nina's shoulder to cry on whenever she freakin' whines, Ugggh. His son seems like a vicious vindictive little peckerhead

Don't even get me started on Phyllis' obsession with butting into peoples lives that nobody invited her in, she needs to mind her freakin' business. Pronto.”

Gosh, thanks for telling me what my opinions should be, because I have trouble forming them on my own.  Seriously, though, it would be foolish to recast Victoria with anyone at this point, since the actress currently playing her (Amelia Heinle) makes up one half of virtually the only “romantic” (and I use the term loosely) couple the show currently has, and TPTB have invested two years in building Billy and Victoria.  Incidentally, I do like Heinle.  I’ve been a fan of hers since her role in the movie Purgatory.  Do I always enjoy how her character is written?  Nope, but that can be said of most of the people on the show at the moment.  Don’t blame the actress for the poor writing.  Heinle is playing Victoria true to how she was originally conceived: a Daddy’s Girl who consistently picks men of whom Daddy does not approve.  The only husband Victoria has ever had to whom Victor gave his reluctant approval was JT…because JT was easily cowed and manipulated. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I don’t mind when readers disagree with me.  In fact, it’s expected that we won’t always agree.  But I’m not too fond of non-facts being thrown about.  I am not aware that Tognoni was ever “supposed to” take over for Heinle.  And Heather Tom has been firmly ensconced at B&B for years.  It was only the dream of her fans that she would return to Y&R.

On the other hand, this writer makes some excellent points.  There has still been zero payoff from making Jill a Fenmore.  Paul (whose portrayer Doug Davidson was nominated for an EMMY just a few years ago) is being alternately misused and ignored.  Ted Shackleford is back on our screen as Jeff, and will hopefully give Gloria a story again.  As much as I adore Kin Shriner, he didn’t fit the role as the smarmy conman…and I am still holding hope he will return to GH with Genie Francis to the characters they created in the late 70s…and be reunited on screen.  (Luke no longer deserves Laura on that show.)

I also agree whole-heartedly that Don Diamont as Brad is sorely missed.  He was written as strong enough and reckless enough to take on Victor…and occasionally win.  NO ONE is allowed to that anymore.  And the author’s distaste for Deacon, Patty, Adam, Cane, Angelo, Angelina and Daisy?  Just…WORD.

Quick Shots

Melody Thomas Scott’s time away was good for her.  She looks great.

Sharon will have Big Mean Victor to defend her now.  Vomit.  But if she’s supposed to vote Victor’s proxy, shouldn’t she be AT THE MEETING?  They’re calling for a vote and she’s still at the prison.  Ah, but I’m sure she’ll use the teleporter to make it to the meeting on time.

Nothing Nikki says about the night Diane died is worth squat.  She’s a drunk with memories that come and go.

Jack is going to screw around until he loses Jabot again.

The D.A. doesn’t hire and fire police detectives.  At least not in any world on Earth.

Nick says to Victor, “Mom killed Diane for you.”  Well, now we know what to get for the man who has everything.

I immediately loathed Mumbling Sun Glasses Boy talking to Neil and Devon.  He better be just a one day-player.

So now Adam is outsmarting Tucker, too?  C’mon.  Tucker used to be a STRONG business man.  I want to see him crush Adam.  Oh…now we get it.  Tucker (as a sloppy out for his never addressed issues with the SEC) is in on the plot with Victor to set Adam up.  What a crock.

evin is still stuck with Angelina?  Can’t we kill her off already?  There is nothing funny, charming, or remotely interesting about that character or this storyline.

Eden never has interaction with her family, therefore seems completely extraneous, especially with a new actress playing her.  Same with Ricky.  If they disappeared tomorrow, it would take a months to notice.

The writers on this show treat annulments like some sort of magic wand.  There are very few instances in which a person can obtain a LEGAL annulment (and even fewer instances for a religious annulment.)  Just as Sharon and Adam’s marital union wasn’t eligible for an annulment, neither is Nikki and Deacon.  The writers need to dip their proverbial big toe into the river of reality.  Please.  Even just once in a while.  The bad writing on this show is intolerable.

Sharon to Victor, “I told him I would follow your instructions.”  Just what Victor always wanted.  A living Barbie.

If the writers are aiming to make the audience pine for a reunion between Kevin and Chloe, sorry…it isn’t working.  They never appealed to me as a couple, and I’m glad they didn’t waste a wedding.

“Patience is a virtue,” says Victor.  He’s punishing Nikki.  Again.  Or, if he means they will eventually be together, then he is punishing us.

Katherine sat in front of Victor’s glass visiting window and told him he has to “answer for what he did to Billy.”  Presumably she means setting him up for fake drug charges in a dangerous foreign country and trying to blackmail Billy into staying away from Victoria.  Victor started to defend himself by hurling one of his usual insults at Billy…and Katherine did NOTHING to defend her grandson.  Because her loyalty is with Victor.  What a great grandma.

Sharon divorced Jack because he “kept secrets” from her.   If that’s her big thing, being married to The Mustache will be a very unpleasant experience for her.

Nick doesn’t want to date anyone.  He just wants to sleep around.  Did I miss him dumping Avery?

From what I hear backlash from the fans has caused the writers to rethink the Sharon/Victor debacle, and they will be parted far sooner than originally planned.  I tend to believe the whispers…otherwise what was the point of having Victor and Sharon wed?  Absolutely none.  The marriage came after Sharon got custody of Faith, and had no bearing on any other storyline.  At least they realized how disgusting it was sooner rather than later.

Adam is sooooo smart, but he is being duped by Victor again.

Did Victor spend any time in an actual cell, or was he just in the visiting room the whole time.

Jack is really Mr. Observant, not even recognizing Patty’s voice.  And why SHOULD Genevieve tell Jack about all of her bank accounts.  They barely know each other.

Now Tucker is using “punk.” 

Nikki sure returned to being Victor’s doormat quickly.

Victor was instantaneously processed out of prison.

Sooo tired of wedding vows being mocked on this show.

Genevieve was more fun when she was angry, snarky, and a little crazy.  But, gosh, all is well between her and Cane now.  Whatever drove him away from his family for years is all forgiven and forgotten.

There’s Sharon, crawling all over the man who ruined her life…several times.  And they’re having sex on THE DESK…in spite of the fact that there’s a couch in the office.  Oh…wait…there going from surface to surface, like they’re marking territory in Victor’s office.   I hope the Newman Enterprises cleaning staff is paid well.

At least Victor and Nikki are in a bed for a change.  And it’s not even in a hotel room.  I don’t remember the last time that happened.

Why did Michael go to Tucker and Ashley’s to announce Victor is out of prison?  Why should they care?

Genevieve’s wedding dress is inappropriate for someone her age, and also for the time of year in Wisconsin.

I used to love Nick and Phyllis together.  Now seeing them all flirty makes me ill.

Abby’s been back for five minutes and already I want to slap her…demanding an apology from the D.A. for her family for all they “went through.”  Please.  If they didn’t all threaten people at the drop of a hat, and then lie as easily as they breathe, perhaps the D.A. wouldn’t arrest them so often.  Add to that they’re often guilty, but get off because of who they are (and crappy writing.)  Shut up, Abby.

Adam was upset…Sharon couldn’t “just leave.”  Gee…it makes perfect sense that to comfort him, she had sex with him all over the office.  TPTB couldn’t debase her character anymore.

Ronan is making big speeches about how all these people tried to get in the way of the investigation…but nothing will come of it.  A night in the interrogation room and they will all walk free.  Again.

Nikki’s grateful for Victor’s protection…but not Deacon’s.  However, I see very little difference in how Deacon and Victor behave.  The only difference is the bank account.

And…The Ranch security staff let Crazy Patty right back on the grounds again, too.

Phyllis should report that Ronan was sleeping with her while she was a suspect. 

E-Mail

I got some interesting responses to last week’s column.

“I have to say I wholeheartedly disagree with your assessment that Chris Engen as Adam Newman is "greatly missed". Michael Muhney is a fantastic recast and has done so much more than Chris Engen could have ever done. More and more viewers have come to Young and Restless for his Adam portrayal. I for one am so happy Chris is gone. Actors should never dictate a storyline. It is more important to tell the story than to be liked. But if you do a fantastic job like Michael Muhney you will have both. Dede”

I respectfully maintain my original assertion, Dede, but that doesn’t mean I necessarily disagree with you.  I named Michael Muhney as Best Actor for 2011, so I obviously concur that he is doing a great job with Adam AS HE IS WRITTEN NOW.  What I believe Chris Engen was striving for, and what I appreciated about his portrayal, was a more realistic character…one who was believable as having been raised by Hope.  We’ll never know what he could have achieved in his characterization because he was not allowed to contine.  But everything I saw of him leads me to believe he could have been an EMMY winner. 

It’s funny to me that Chris spoke out about the sinister direction of his character and there are folks like you who think that’s wrong…yet I’ve received other letters (like one I included last week) from fans who think Sharon Case and Michelle Stafford (among others) should voice their complaints about what has become of their characters.  However, I will always believe Engen had a legitimate complaint, primarily because I agree with what he was saying, and I miss his intelligent interpretation.  When Adam was originally introduced, he was poised to be a business rival to Nick, and by the time Engen left, Adam was turning into the proverbial mustache-twirling, cartoon villain…which is essentially what he remains today.

But Michael Muhney has not drawn new viewers, at least not fast enough to replace the fans who continue to desert the show.  The numbers are still trending down, and that’s due to the writing…including the destruction of the character of Adam and what he, as a legacy character, should have been.

“I would like to start out by saying I am not accusing you of being a racist Miss Kitty. I don't think you are in any way shape or form. I want to make that clear before I get to my point.

Please lay off of Harmony's slang. You always (rightly) point out how completely off-the-rails the show is in comparison to real life. The fact that you think Harmony the former crackhead should talk like international businessman Neil is completely less realistic than her speaking the way she does now. I would also like to point out that there is not one thing that Harmony says that is unintelligble. She uses phrases you can find in most movies, tv shows, and songs these days. She is supposed to be a former crack addict who we know has lived on the streets, (and now apparently was heavily involved in the music scene, but that's another story). I very much doubt the other crackheads or groupies she was doing drugs with were routinely correcting her about the proper usage of who and whom.

I have always assumed your beef with Malcolm was with the mumbling of his delivery, not his slang. (Although I remember you were not a fan of the term dog.) He didn't rub me the wrong way, he just certainly didn't have the sex appeal of his predecessor, and that made the character different. Yolanda/Harmony is different now too. I don't really remember the old Yolanda(s) other than her character making my ultimate super couple Drew and Neil upset. However, the back story of Yolanda, (minus the groupie part) hasn't changed. I doubt previous actresses played her that much differently. What they have changed this time is that Harmony is clean(?) I guess, and she's actually trying to be a good parent. I am more upset that they will obviously white-wash the YEARS of fueding Neil had with her to make her a love interest for him. He's already pretty cool with a woman he usually wanted to choke out back in the day.

Maybe it's strage to see Angie Hubbard not speaking like an educated doctor, but I don't think the way Debbie is playing Harmony is detrimental to her character at all. I wasn't sure how well she'd fit into the role either. But how amazing was she when she watched her estranged daughter sing, with tears shining in her eyes at Christmas? In a few silent, subtle moments you saw all of her inner turmoil as she struggled with taking pride in the daughter she didn't raise. Debbie is an incredible actress who could kill this part. Which means the show will probably kill her off in a Victor-baby-swap-gone-wrong-Patty-Adam-identical-twin-Daisy-murder-myste ry in 13 weeks.  Maggie”

Meggie…I can certainly can see your point of view.  My biggest problem with Yolanda (and one of the bigger problems I had with Darius McCray’s version of Malcolm) is how completely different they are from the original incarnations.  And I don’t mean the performance.  I mean HOW the character is being written.  If the writers want to create a new character, fine and dandy.  But if a character I saw as recently as three years ago was able to speak proper English, and now they aren’t, one has to wonder what happened.  It frustrates me the writers keep drastically changing characters until they are unrecognizable.  Yolanda now bears very little resemblance to the woman we were introduced to. Even her name is different.  Malcolm went from a suave, charismatic photographer to a incomprehensible thug.  But they aren’t alone in their bizarre rapid “evolutions.”  Abby went from 15 to 25…even though Kyle (born at the same time) is still 12.  The poor continuity is just one symptom of the disease slowing eating away at the show.

I have NO problem with Debbi Morgan.  I have loved her for decades, and remember fondly her Angie and the young romance with Jesse on AMC.  They were juxtaposed with Jenny and Greg, and it was several years of very sweet, innocent love.  (You never see THAT anymore.)  Morgan took her character and allowed her to mature into a multi-layers icon.  Unfortunately that will never happen with Yolanda.

“Hello, I had to write after screaming and yelling at the character Sharon on Y&R. She is officially my love to hate and oh how I want to strangle her character.

Kindest
regards, Veronica”

I do not have the energy to even begin to figure out why Sharon would waste one breath on Adam, much less her life. She is a complete idiot.

But the Beauty of nature question is interesting.  Does Genevieve want to be Jack’s equal in business?  Be his partner as they merge the companies?  Or is it intended to be loving surprise.  Won’t matter.  If they kill her off, it’s his anyway…and just more fuel for Victor to come after Jack.  Again.

“Hello Kitty,

I realize there are many inaccuracies in the scripts regarding Wisconsin geography, but this one continues to be on our screens almost everyday.

The writers want us to believe that the state pen is so close to GC that Nikki and others are just a mere five minute ride from anywhere in town!  This prison must be located downtown, right in between GlowWorm and the Athletic Club for all this instant access

Plus the easy access to Victor at any time - day or night - lends new meaning to "Club Fed or State Spa."  I know this is just one detail that must make your Wisconsin blood boil. 

Please keep up this amazing column for all of us - it personally gives me hope that maybe one of the writers will read what we all write and actually take us seriously. Thanks for always listening even if it is minute trivia! Babs”

Babs…thank you for your kindness.  The layout of Genoa City is increasingly confusing.  Not only, as you so rightly point out, has the men’s prison been relocated to the center of town, so has the women’s where Daisy still resides.   Genevieve’s property is apparently right next to Victor’s Ranch, as Patty rushed right over to Victor’s potting shed to hide.  It takes only seconds to get from the prison, to Newman Towers, to the Ranch where the Tack house is, as evidenced by how quickly Sharon was getting around.  Of course, we already know the park where Diane was killed is the size of a postage stamp.

And yes, the daily slaughter of Wisconsin facts considers to astound me, and to annoy. Me.  It takes so little effort to get details right.  These people don’t even try because they simply do not care.  Even though the Bells (the founding ones, not the non-blood pretender to the throne in charge these days) specifically chose the location to be in the Dairy State, just a little north of Chicago, so the beautiful flora and fauna could lend its atmosphere to the scripts’ setting, the current idiots in charge consider anything other between the coasts as disposable.  It is more than offensive…and considering where the majority of the audience resides – between New York and California – it’s more than a little foolish.