LANGFORD'S PICKS AND PANS
River City
I really enjoyed this past week’s River City. First of all, I have to admit that Robbie and Will are growing on me as a couple. No, you won’t see me going all fangirl on them, but I like them much more than I used to. I also think that the pairing has really suited Robbie as a character and has helped to ground and mature what used to be a really flighty and sometimes annoying character. He still can be flighty and annoying, but his relationship with Will has fleshed the character out and softened his more bothersome traits.
I continue to love that River City has this gay couple in lead stories that usually isn’t about them being gay. Yes, Will’s father disapproves of his son's relationship with Robbie, but their lives and stories are much bigger than their sexuality such as Will’s problems at work and his conflict with his boss. That is a storyline I’m really becoming intrigued by because it’s getting more tense for Will, especially now that he’s been told to butt out or else.
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I’m glad they haven’t forgotten Will’s anger issues. No, he’s not hitting Robbie anymore (for the moment), but this is the second time he’s taken his rage out on a criminal who escaped justice, though clearly Will’s need to please his father played into that. I can only imagine what’s going to happen now that Will’s dad is coming to live with he and Robbie. And how will that affect their plans to have a baby? What is Will’s dad going to think about that? So many interesting story elements to play out.
However, I had a problem with the way the case played out. I don’t know how things are in Scottish courts, but could someone really claim self defense if they broke into someone’s home and were attacked by the homeowner? We know here in this country, you break into someone’s house, they can shoot to kill in many states. Could someone more familiar with the laws in Scotland clue me in on if this is actually feasible? That whole thing was just strange.
And I loved the scenes with Hayley and Robbie, so real and warm. I wish she would come back to the show on a permanent basis.
Hollyoaks
You’d think that Cheryl would figure out that there’s something deeper going on with Seamus and Brendan. It’s so obvious there’s something big burning between them. Then again, Cheryl has always been oblivious and wrong-headed so it’s no surprise she can’t see what’s right in front of her. I mean, how she could believe Seamus' ridiculous story of how Brendan broke his arm when he was a kid? Anyone with a drop of common sense would see there’s more to this story than that. That was a really strong scene when Brendan told Ste part of the story of what happened on that trip. Brendan’s only giving half the tale of that event and how he talked about his dad shows how scared and frightened he is of his father, even though Brendan is now a grown man. Emmett Scanlan is a really wonderful actor who makes pretty much any scene work.
I totally disagree with Cheryl's threat to out Brendan if he doesn’t make peace with his father. That is really not her place or her decision to make. But I loved when Brendan was accidentally outed by Joel. It was a terrific, tense scene and Joel’s little grin at the end was a nice touch. Joel didn’t intend to out Brendan to his father, but it didn’t mean he didn’t enjoy doing it. Also, it’s too bad that Ste’s role on this show has been reduced to being Brendan’s talk to. But then Ste lost his voice and his persona the moment he went back to his abuser so it’s no surprise that everything in his life revolves around what Brendan wants and thinks and needs and feels.
Joel enjoyed outing Brendan, even if he didn’t intend to do it…
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I did like the scenes between John Paul and Frankie, though I hope that John Paul just doesn’t sit around moping about Craig and gets on with his life. There isn’t much point into bringing him back if he doesn’t have new relationships and find new loves. I know some fans say ‘why can’t he have stories that aren’t about his love life’, but that’s just ridiculous. Most soap stories are about romance and love and falling in and out love. So it should be the same here. It’s typical that Frankie would blame John Paul for the break up, however. She always thought her son Craig was perfect, even though he was one of the biggest jerks Chester has ever seen. I did love Darren telling Frankie off. She needed it. Oh and I almost didn’t recognize Callum about his facial hair. He should keep it shaved off. He’s cuter than ever.
When will Cheryl get a clue?
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I am really have a hard time with this bullying storyline. I know that HO is trying to be relevant and topical, but part of the problem with the story is that characters are acting stupid and wrongheaded to make it work. Frankie is usually all about family, but she’s ignoring her own granddaughter and taking the wrong side to make things worse for Esther. But a bigger flaw is that the story requires Esther’s friends, most notably Tilly and George, to be absent. There is no way this would be happening to Esther if those two were around. Tilly is Esther’s ex and you’d think Esther would turn to her at a time like this. And George has been bullied himself so he would understand. The fact that those characters are missing are glaring, but it’s obvious why they are off screen as it's the only way the story can work.
As for Brendan’s decision to murder his father, it’s pretty typical. Brendan has killed twice already so a third death means little. I’m also not surprised that his fans are okay with Brendan orchestrating his father’s murder. After all, these are folks who justified and overlooked Brendan beating the crap out of Ste for months and killing his grandmother. It’s a disturbing side of fandom that I have never understood. Folks want to get into that ‘whose crime is worse’ debate and for me there is none. Both Brendan and his father are both criminals and they should both be in jail. No one gets to decide who lives or dies or who should pay and who shouldn’t. Certainly not Brendan Brady.
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But why would Brendan ask Joel of all people to help him? Joel is a terrible criminal and always botches the job. Just look how he handled this. I don’t think neither Brendan nor Joel did a good job at covering their tracks. If Seamus is dead and his body was discovered, I don’t think it would be too long before the cops would come after both of them.
Days of Our Lives
It wasn’t a bad week on Days as there were a number of things that I liked and enjoyed in regards to the baby saga. Though my favorite moment was in one of the show’s other storylines, but I’ll get to that. I’ll just talk about the things I did like for the moment. I enjoyed seeing more of Adrienne. We don’t get nearly enough of Sonny’s parents and I really like his relationship with them. I also liked the snarky, bitchy scene between Adrienne and Kate.
But I could do without Adrienne still apologizing for having doubts about Will and Sonny’s relationship. She never did anything other than express those concerns (unlike Kate, who has tried to murder her son’s love interests) and furthermore, she was having a private conversation in her own home with the doors closed and Will was eavesdropping. If anything Will should be apologizing to her. And that’s all I’m going to say about that.
Can Adrienne stop apologizing?
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I did like Will’s scenes with Kate, they seem to have a nice chemistry and I always enjoy Lauren Koslo — more now that she has that blue stripe out of her beautiful hair. That was always ridiculous, especially for a classy mature woman like Kate. However, it only reminds me how long it’s been since we’ve had any scenes with Will and Marlena and it wasn’t that long ago when they were nearly inseparable. Of course, I think that’s because if Marlena were as heavily involved in Will’s life as she used to be, it wouldn’t be long before she’d figure out this silly baby secret and talk some sense into Will. And then we’d miss out on all these months of 'drama'!
I liked that Will finally called Nick out on his ‘gayboy’ comment, but it shouldn’t have taken him so long for that to happen. Will asked Nick what Gabi thought about it, but I don’t actually recall Nick and Gabi every discussing it, though I could have missed that scene. To that end, why didn’t Will ever discuss it with Gabi himself if it were such a big deal? Or did he and I missed that too?
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I wish though that we would have gotten more conviction from Will in that scene. I don’t know if it was the direction or how Chandler Massey played it, but he didn’t sound very threatening. No wonder Nick laughed it off. And I’m going to have to say that I agree with Nick here. It was Will’s decision to let Nick and Gabi raise the baby and Nick would play daddy. I know fans think that ‘poor Will’ was manipulated into the decision, but I disagree. Will was/is a wimp and a coward who is doing something stupid for stupid reasons. But they are his reasons. And it was his choice. Like Nick said, no one forced him into it so he can’t be the third wheel in their relationship, nor tell them how to raise the kid. Either man up and tell the truth or back off.
I’m glad this show continues to treat Will and Sonny like most couples in many respects, including the bedroom. Will and Sonny’s love scene wasn’t a one off and we’ve seen them in other romantic moments just like we would any other duo on the show (though certainly not as hot as Brady and Kristen, that’s for sure). I liked the scene with Will and Sonny in bed, though I gotta admit that I found that Sonny’s resolution kind of creepy.
Sonny’s resolution box was kind of weird…
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IIRC, this time last year, Will was still in the closet and had just broken up with Gabi. Now, I know Sonny says that he knew Will was gay when he met him (or something like that), but for Sonny to be planning to snare some guy messed up and closeted as Will was last year just seems sad for a guy like Sonny. I mean, exactly what was it that Sonny was so drawn to? I still don’t see the attraction, but it was even less clear a year ago.
The worst scenes of the week though, were the church sequences with Gabi hemming and hawing about telling Eric ‘the truth’ and Sami barging in and out of the church to interfere. Sami still seems really out of place so heavily involved in this storyline. She’s more involved than Rafe, who is Gabi’s brother. I usually love Sami’s bull-in-a-china-shop behavior, but this time it was just irritating. I’m glad Eric not so nicely kicked her out. Too bad he had to do it twice. And I think it would have been much more dramatic and compelling if Gabi had told Eric the truth about the baby as it would open up a Pandora’s box of interesting issues.
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How would Eric, as a Catholic priest, feel about a gay man raising a baby? Would he encourage Gabi to be honest about the baby’s father or would he think the child is better off raised by a straight couple? And it would be interesting to see Eric be conflicted about performing the wedding when he knows it’s based on a lie. That is some nice drama that was missed out on.
My favorite scenes of the week revolved around the reveal of Brady and Kristen’s affair. Brady and Kristen are a super hot, super sexy couple (and I can’t imagine why she’d want boring John after having his son). It’s fun watching Kristen plot and scheme and not only be a bitch, but enjoy being a bitch. I love a bad girl, especially when they embrace the fact that they are wicked. I literally laughed out loud at the joy on Kristen’s face when she saw John and Brady fighting over her. Some of the other stories could use some delicious moments like that.
SCOOPS AND SPOILERS
Sonny has something special for Will…
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Days of Our Lives —Despite Will keeping the secret of his being the father of Gabi’s baby, he and Sonny are happier than ever. In fact, Sonny has a surprise for Will when he gives him a key to his apartment and asks him to move in. But it looks like something might come along to ruin that happiness. Gabi has a discussion with Cameron that makes him realize that Nick can’t be the father of the baby. Gabi swears Cam to secrecy and he agrees. Unfortunately for Gabi, Chad has overheard the conversation and he plans to use this to get revenge on Gabi.
Meanwhile, Gabi wants to Will to be godfather to his own child and Nick makes it clear that he is against the idea, leading to another tense confrontation between Will and Nick. Still, despite this increasingly tense situation, Gabi and Nick head down the aisle to get married. But just as Father Eric is about to announce Gabi and Nick man and wife, Chad interrupts. And he’s got something to say. Uh oh!
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Hollyoaks — Brendan couldn’t be happier that Seamus is dead and celebrates orchestrating his father's timely demise by getting romantic with Ste. However while Brendan isn’t missing dear old Dad, Cheryl is upset by her father’s sudden vanishing act. Brendan has a cover story concocted to explain Seamus disappearing and assures Cheryl that he will always be there for her. Meanwhile, Joel struggles with the knowledge that he killed Seamus and wonders if he can live with what he’s done.
But his guilt doesn’t stop him from taking the money that Brendan offered to pay him for the murder. Brendan is more than glad to pay, but that changes when Seamus turns up alive and well. How does Seamus explain his absence and does he know what Brendan and Joel tried to do to him? That remains to be seen. Meanwhile, Joel realizes he has to leave town fast, but not until he gets the money that he feels Brendan owes him. Joel, with the help his pal Bart, tries to steal the cash, but Brendan catches him.
Brendan tells Joel he’s giving him ten minutes before calling the cops, forcing Joel to make a tough decision about his future.
AND ALSO THIS WEEK…
Chris loses one of his ‘Neighbours’
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Neighbours— Chris says goodbye to one of his closest friends…
Good Times, Bad Times— Lucas thinks Nina is handling her love life all wrong…
NEWSBEAT
Days fans don’t have to worry about the show’s future, for now…
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It’s no secret that the ratings for Days of Our Lives have been bad and getting worse. That’s why the show has changed head writers twice in the last two years. And the show’s latest reboot has done it little good. This prompted fears from fans that the show might be cancelled later this year when it’s up for renewal in September. But NBC Chairman Bob Greenblat told fans they can put those fears to rest, at least for now, insisting over the weekend that the 45 year old soap is not on the chopping block.
"I think DAYS is going to stick around," Greenblatt said at the Television Critics Association’sWinter Press Tour. “I don’t know that I’m at liberty to say that officially yet, but it’s not going anywhere.”
So that is good news and certainly better than hearing him hedge his bets, which is what TPTB usually do in situations like this.
One of All My Children’s most popular couples is joining the show’s reboot…
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And Days isn’t the only soap getting good news these days. We’ve told you in previous editions about the possible returns of ABC cancelled dramas All My Children and One Life To Live. But now those returns have been made official. PP confirmed earlier this week that both shows would live again as online soaps with production to begin next month. Agnes Nixon, who created the dramas will serve as a consultant to the revived dramas.
While PP have made deals with SAG and the Directors Guild as those unions are needed to help provide the actors, produce and direct the shows, they are still in negations with the Writers Guild Association so they can have folks to actually write the shows. Still, behind the scenes teams continue to be formed and PP have hired some of AMC’s and OLTL’s biggest stars to return to the dramas, such as Debbi Morgan and Darnell Williams, who played Angie and Jesse Hubbard on AMC. And other actors are have tweeted that they have been contacted by their respective shows to reprise their roles.
Will we see Kyle and Oliver (or other gays) in Llanview or Pine Valley?
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And we’re starting to learn a bit more about the format these shows will take. According to Soap Opera Digest, AMC and OLTL will reportedly be shot in a telenovela format with one show airing for five to six weeks, then taking a break while the other series airs for the same time period. And as we already told you, the shows will be share the same set in studios in Stanford, Connecticut and will air four days a week with a recap show on Fridays.
So what we thought was dead is now a reality. AMC and OLTL will live to see a new day. That’s great news. Let’s just hope that gay folks make it to the shows, shall we? We’ll have more news about the new lives of the citizens of Pine Valley and Llanview as it comes.
Look for Marcus to stick around Corrie…
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Remember the rumors that Charlie Condou, who plays gay nurse Marcus Dent on Coronation Street would be written out of the series upon the arrival of the show’s new executive producer Stuart Blackburn? Turns out those rumors are false as Condou was recently signed to a new two year deal.
“…they have big plans for his character,” a source for the show told The Mirror. “and Marcus will be at the heart of some explosive storylines.”
Condou confirmed the news as well, responding to his fans via Twitter.
"I'm obviously very pleased to have signed my new Corrie contract.” Condou posted. “Lots of stories planned."
As Corrie viewers know, Marcus is currently embroiled in a heterosexual romance with Maria Connor, even though he considers himself gay. No details on what stories are planned for Marcus.
Should Brendan be worried about Amy’s return?
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Hollyoaks duo Brendan and Ste, played by Emmett Scanlan and Keiron Richardson, have had a lot of problems during their messy, violent relationship and things look to get more complicated when Ste’s baby mama Amy shows up in town next month. Ashley Slanina-Davies, who played Amy returns to the show for a brief two episode return on episodes that will air on February 12th and 13th.
The show isn’t saying why Amy is back, but given that her scenes are with Ste and Brendan and the children she and Ste share, her return mostly like revolves around Brendan and Ste’s reunion, something that she would be very unhappy about given that Brendan threatened to kill her and the kids more than once. Me thinks Ste is going to have to say goodbye to his children.
Chris gives Aidan a kiss goodbye…
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And finally, Neighbours Chris, played by James Mason, is going to be single… again. As viewers know Chris has had an on again, off again relationship with nurse Aidan Foster for much of last year. The two hit a rough patch at the end of last season. But next week, the duo split when they realize they just want different things. The relationship comes to an end after Aidan asks Chris to move in with him and Chris feels he’s just not ready to make that sort of commitment. Bob Morely, who plays Aidan, will be leaving the show again, this time (presumably) for good.
As for what’s next for Chris, one wonders. With nearly all of Chris’ current pals and screen partners being written out and many new characters joining the show in the coming months, there’s been little said about future stories for Neighbors first regular gay character. Hopefully the writers have something in mind for him.
That’s it for another edition of Langford on Soaps. See you next time!
