LANGFORDS PICKS AND PANS
Secret Lives
Now that was a nice little cliffhanger to end things on. I liked last week’s clips, mostly because it’s moving the story forward and getting Lari closer to being out of the closet. Something tells me those pictures are going to end up on a billboard or something for everyone to see. I’m not down with outing, but I totally get why Tale would take revenge on Lari and I can't say Lari doesn't have it coming. You can’t run around bullying people and not have it come back to bite you. I thought the scenes of Lari and Elias together were cute, especially in the photo booth. Still I find the acting on this show by the show's younger cast to be awkward and stilted. They clearly don’t have much experience and it shows.
Hollyoaks
Yuck. So murdering his father puts Brendan in the mood for sex? And Ste just drops trou without a second thought? I guess so when you have nothing better to do other than wait on Brendan 24/7. But I did think it was funny that Brendan whispered to Ste what he wanted, especially since they were alone in the club. As for Seamus’ return from the dead, I bet he knows that Brendan tried to kill him and it’s only a matter of time before he takes his revenge. Those scenes between Brendan and Seamus are terrific, full of tension and menace. I can’t wait until everything is out in the open between them and they have a final showdown. I actually like the war between Seamus and Brendan. Brendan is at his best when he has an enemy to match wits with. If only Ste weren’t part of the story. He’s just become an irritant to me.
I laughed when Ste said that he wasn’t stupid because the fact that he’s back with Brendan shows what an idiot he is. He should have never believed that Brendan had changed and after learning that Brendan tried to murder his father, Ste actually says ‘I thought you changed’. Well, except for punching me a couple of weeks ago and nearly hitting me again last week. But that’s all water under the bridge. As much as it was not a shock that Ste stayed with Brendan after learning about Brendan’s latest crime, it’s silly for Ste to tell Brendan that 'something like this can never happen again or it’s over' because we all know that isn’t the case. When a man has broken your ribs and given you more than one beat down and you still go back to him, your threats to leave are meaningless.
One thing I’m glad about is that the result of this storyline was Joel and Bart leaving town for good. I have never liked Joel. He was an ill-conceived, pointless character from the start. The show should have never brought him on as Warren’s son, especially with Warren leaving the show. I guess they had planned to make him a nemesis for Brendan, but the actor simply didn’t have what it took to go up against someone with the caliber of Emmett Scanlan. Moreover, Joel was always kind of wimpy and failed at every attempt to be a bad ass. And I hated the show’s effort to make Brendan a surrogate father to Joel. It never rang true, mostly because Brendan would never do such a thing. It was completely out of character. Joel should have been a gnat that Brendan squashed months ago. Goodbye and good riddance.
As for Bart, I only enjoyed him when he was dating Jasmine/Jason. He was a likeable kid back then. But his chemistry free relationship with that horrible Sinead was unwatchable and Bart turned into a mean, nasty, horrible character. I especially disliked when he let Myra take the rap for his crimes and his awful harassment of poor Esther. It’s as if he’s forgotten that he was driving the car that caused the accident that got people killed, a fact by the way that both Sinead and Ruby are aware of as well. So why are they blaming Esther for everything? Again, good bye and good riddance.
Thank God they’re gone!
I hate it when Hollyoaks (or any show) has something utterly implausible happen just to make the story work. I’ve complained before about the bullying storyline and the glaring absence of Tilly and George, but to have Esther talk to the school president only for him to basically blame Esther herself for being bullied is ludicrous. No school administrator would ever treat Esther like that, especially in this day and age of kids killing themselves for being picked on. The school could be sued and the administrator could lose his job for doing such a thing.
I though it was silly that Mercedes would have sex with Paul behind a door that has windows and no lock. I know it’s supposed to hot, but I thought it was just stupid. Speaking of stupid, I still can’t believe that Myra would go to Paul of all people for medical advice, but even dumber is that anyone could think that Myra is pregnant. The woman is well past her child bearing years. But the scenes between Myra and Dirk are kind of sweet and it’s nice to see the older characters on this show getting some airtime. And I did like the make-up scenes between Myra and Mercedes. I also loved Mercedes lamented that her mother would die only for Paul to tell her that she would live after all. I do like Mercedes and Paul together and I love their evil, wicked ways. If I could get past their litany of crimes from last year, which included murder, I could enjoy them more.
I like watching John Paul adjusting to playing daddy and it was interesting to find out that he’s been a teacher since leaving Chester. I guess he’ll get a gig at the local college soon enough. I’m glad the show hasn’t forgotten that he used to be a DJ, but what is the deal with those scenes with Leanne? John Paul is not stupid and it was obvious Leanne was romantically interested in him so why would he ask her out for a drink? There is no chance that JP is going straight as it was made clear later in the episode that he’s gay and Leanne is going to make a fool of herself, but why would JP encourage her to begin with?
I wish the show would pick a direction for Will. First he was the sweet nerdy guy in love with bubble headed Teresa. Then he became a stalker-ish nutcase who was secretly working with the town serial killer, a storyline that never made sense. However the actor was terrific as Silas’ off-kilter disciple. Now he’s the jealous brother so desperate and needy for attention that he sleeps with his sibling’s girlfriend then exposes the affair in a crowded room and when that goes bust he throws himself down a flight of stairs. I hate when Hollyoaks’ writing seems like they just make it up as they go along. But I think they should write him as a creepy weirdo and stick to it. It works best for the character and plays to the actor’s talents.
Days of Our Lives
Days wasn’t so bad last week. I still don’t like this storyline much and Will and Sonny bore the hell out of me, but there were plenty of enjoyable scenes and moments. I loved the comment about Sami’s multiple marriages in regards to Will and his tuxedo. Tee hee! But Sonny is a Kiriakis and his family is very wealthy. I find it hard to believe he doesn’t own a tux. And can’t the show foot the bill to have Gabi’s mom come for one day to her wedding? The way the show dealt with her absence is just dumb. Hiring a day player seems to make much more sense than creating all these silly plot contrivances. BTW, is it just me or did Galen Gering have trouble speaking Spanish in that scene on the phone? It certainly didn’t seem very natural, unlike with Camila Banus, who actually sounded like she’s spoken the language once or twice in her life.
Rafe looked awkward speaking what should be his native language…
BTW, how lame it is that they had Nick’s bachelor party at the coffee house. Young guys certainly would not do that. And if Nick got a bachelor party, why didn’t Gabi didn’t get a bridal shower? Surely Sami would have thrown her one. At least that would have been well attended. And they had the bachelor party and the rehearsal dinner in the same night? Come on, show! I did love Gabi’s asking about having a stripper and Nick saying ‘with those guys?' That was as hilarious as was his being a total douche regarding his comments to Sonny about getting married and having a baby. And while Will didn’t like Lucas’ comment about Gabi nearly being his daughter in law, I laughed myself silly. Though if I recall correctly, Lucas wasn’t even in town when Gabi and Will were dating. By the time Lucas came to town, Will and Gabi had already broken up and Will was spending most of his time flirting with EJ.
While I think it’s far too soon for Will and Sonny to be even thinking of living together, I guess the show did it because of the baby reveal being right around the corner. I did think the scene was very sweet and it’s great that Days does not hold back on the romantic scenes between them. It’s obvious that Sonny and Will are going to break up over this (as well they should), but my guess is that Sonny’s Valentine’s Day gift will lead to their reunion. It was also nice to get a scene between Sonny and Abigail, especially since they are supposed to be close. Hopefully we’ll get more of them. But could the show stop with these wedding anvils for Will and Sonny? Two boys (one still a teenager) getting married this quickly is a terrible idea and would make this couple more sleep inducing than they already are.
I usually haven’t felt sorry for Will in this storyline, but I did feel for him when Nick said no to his being the godfather to the baby. I felt sorry for Gabi too in that she’s really caught between her husband to be and her best friend Will. I think she wants to please them both when she really can’t. Nick is right in that it would make the situation even more complicated than it already is. Though in truth, he just doesn’t want a gay man near ‘his’ baby. I absolutely loved the expression on Will’s face when Nick showed ‘concern’ for him. Classic. I know I’m not supposed to like Nick or Gabi, but the truth is, both characters are more interesting than the ‘hero’ in this. Yes, I mean you Will. And they have more personality than boring old Sonny.
I think Chad is a total jerk for revealing that Nick wasn’t the baby’s father. It's hard for me to root for him and I find his railing against Gabi to be annoying. Gabi did what she did, but Melanie made peace with it and the reason why she left was because Chad beat up Nick. That’s on Chad not Gabi. So his anger towards Gabi is misplaced. He should be looking in the mirror as to why his life is a mess. He’s bad, but he’s bad for all the wrong reasons. And well, you can tell he’s an amateur at this. A true DiMera would have gotten all the facts before taking their next move. And for me it would have been more interesting if Chad did know Will was the father. Then he would be torn between his friendship with Will and getting revenge on Gabi. That would have made the story more complex and richer.
I do have to credit Days for one thing though. Soaps don’t really do weddings anymore with the shocking reveals and big moments. It’s nice that they took what has long been classic trope in soaps and put gay folks right in the middle of everything.
SCOOPS AND SPOILERS
Hollyoaks — John Paul is trying to get his life together now that he’s decided to stay in Chester and he’s making new friends, such as Leanne, who he makes a date with. Unfortunately, Leanne, who has no idea that John Paul is gay, had already planned a future for she and Mr. McQueen. How will she react when she finds out that John Paul is gay? Knowing Leanne, not well. Meanwhile, John Paul gets shocking news about his mother’s health.
Chad ruins the wedding of the year….
Days of Our Lives — The truth is out this week (finally) as all of Salem learns that Will is the father of Gabi’s baby. Chad interrupts Gabi and Nick’s wedding with the news that Nick isn’t the baby daddy. Rafe is furious that someone would impugn Gabi’s reputation (even though she is a kidnapper and a liar) and takes on Chad with his fists. Hope (who is about half the size of both of them) breaks up the fight. Gabi is upset, but she’s even moreso when Will steps forward and admits he’s the father.
Naturally everyone is shocked and Sonny’s reaction is to head for the door (to probably throw Will’s stuff out of his apartment). However, Lucas stops Will and demands to know how this all happened. Sami is furious, accusing Gabi and Nick of trying to steal Will’s child. As you would expect, with all this drama, the wedding is postponed. Nick, however, is determined not to lose Gabi or the baby and might have a way to accomplish that after he overhears a talk between Lucas and Will where they discuss Lucas going to prison for a crime that Will committed. Wheels turning, Nick goes to Gabi and thinks they can use this to keep Will out of their lives.
Meanwhile, Will connects with Sonny and tries to talk to him, but Sonny is upset that Will has been lying to him for months. Will says that he loves Sonny and Sonny returns the favor, but says that love might not be enough to save their relationship.
River City— Will’s father Edward has been staying with Will and Robbie for a few weeks now since he was attacked and the newlyweds are hoping the elderly man gets better soon so he can go back home and they get on with their lives. Things are going really well for Robbie and Will and Will is more than aware that having his father around could only complicate matters. Neither of them are happy to hear from Edward’s doctors that he isn’t healing as fast as they’d like so he can’t go home and take care of himself. And even more troubling is that Edward has no plans to leave Robbie and Will’s house anytime soon.
Chris kisses Aidan goodbye for good…
Neighbours— With Lucas at the hospital taking care of his critically-ill newborn son, Chris is left alone to run the garage and deal with his crumbling relationship with Aidan. Concerned that he and Aidan are miscommunicating, Chris makes a date to talk to Aidan about their problems. But Aidan isn’t interested and accuses Chris of ruining their evening, resulting in a huge fight. Later, the duo patch things up, but hit another roadblock when Chris finds out that Aidan has been keeping things from him again.
Chris is furious and when Aidan sees how upset Chris is, he tries to smooth things over by asking Chris to move in with him. Chris is torn about what to do and goes to his roommate Kyle for advice. After talking to Kyle, Chris realizes that he and Aidan are just too different and want different things. He makes the difficult decision to break things off with Aidan for good.
AND ALSO THIS WEEK….
Good Times, Bad Times— Lucas wants to get at the truth behind all the lies and secrets in his family….
Secret Lives— Tale shows the photos of Lari and Eliais to someone. The question is: who?
NEWSBEAT
Fans weren’t smiling upon hearing that Brendan Brady will soon be exiting Hollyoaks…
It’s been rumored for months, but now it’s been confirmed. Emmett Scanlan, who plays incredibly popular gay bad boy Brendan Brady is leaving Hollyoaks in March after two and a half years on the UK soap. Scanlan first hinted that he would be leaving the show late last year when he told fans the show was building to Brendan’s ‘final storyline’.
With Brendan dealing with the return of his father, who sexually abused him as a child, his reunion with his on again-off again love Ste and the impending return of his nemesis Walker, played by Neil Newbon, it would seem that the show is coming to a major climax in Brendan’s storyline. Scanlan promises that his exit will be memorable and that it will ‘do justice’ for his character.
"It's going to be an epic storyline, there's going to be a lot of twists and turns.” Scanlan told What’s On TV. "Since I joined in May 2010 I've been spoilt anyway with storylines and this is no different, it's an honor. I want to do it justice, not only for the characters and the Bradys, but I want it to ring home for the audience."
Will Brendan be killed off?
Scanlan says that while he’s loved his stint on the show, he does feel it’s time for him to exit.
“When I leave this world I want to leave characters behind who I am proud of. I have spent a good two and a half years inhabiting Brendan Brady.” Scanlan said. “There is a fear that staying too long you could start to repeat storylines — and that is not fair on yourself or the audience.”
Love him or hate him, there’s no denying that Brendan Brady has been one of Hollyoaks most popular characters ever and one of the most memorable gay characters the canon has ever seen. Dark, violent, ruthless, outrageous and passionate, Brendan took the show by storm and the fans along with him, mostly because of Scanlan’s intense and powerful performance of this unique character. And it’s because of Scanlan’s talent that he seeks to leave the soap that made him famous so he can seek new ventures. In fact, Scanlan plans to return to Los Angeles where he was working before he got the role on the soap.
What will happen to Ste when Brendan is gone? Or will Ste be going with him?
"I'm going over there to stay with my manager, I've got auditions and meetings and stuff like that,” Scanlan revealed. “They're already set up but predominantly I'm going over there to rekindle old friendships that I've kind of neglected over the last couple of years and to relax and take a break, and come back here as well.”
Scanlan, who will appear in the upcoming BBC mini-series The Fall,a serial killer drama starring The X-Files’ Gillian Anderson, says that he’s already negotiating with Lime Pictures, the company that produces Hollyoaks for a television show in which the actor would star.
“[They] have approached me with the possibility of working on another project, another drama, with me at the forefront of something like that.” Scanlan said. “The ideas they have are very ballsy and make me very excited."
Scanlan will finish taping his scenes on HO in a couple of weeks. Brendan’s exit will air around Easter. Of course, the show is keeping how Brendan leaves tightly underwraps, but this columnist thinks Brendan’s story will end with his death. We’ll see if I’m right.
One Life To Live has found their new writing team…
The good news keeps coming regarding the impending returns of All My Children and One Life To Live. One of the biggest obstacles to the show’s coming back was that they hadn’t made a deal with the Writers Guild of America, which had many soap insiders wondering how the shows would continue given they had no scripts or even a bible detailing their new stories and plotlines. But that’s no longer a problem as Prospect Park made a deal with the WGA last week. And as a result, both AMC and OLTL have begun to put together their writing teams.
Veteran soap writers Thom Racina and Susan Bedsow Horgan have been named as co-head writers for One Life To Live. Racina has written for many soaps including current soaps General Hospital, Days of Our Lives and The Young and The Restless. He also wrote for defunct dramasSearch for Tomorrow, Another World and Santa Barbara. Horgan wrote for Guiding Light and As The World Turns, but she spent most of her daytime career at OLTL, both writing for the show and serving as it’s executive producer.
AMC’s writing might seem very familiar…
As for All My Children, the folks at Daytime Confidential are reporting of rumors that Marlene McPherson has been approached to co-head write the new antics of Pine Valley while a search to find someone who work alongside her continues. Days fans will recall that McPherson headed Days’ heralded reboot last year, only to be fired after a year when the show’s ratings failed to respond. While her time on the show was widely considered a failure, she was responsible for the well received coming out saga of Will Horton, played by Chandler Massey.
Progress continues bringing AMC and OLTL back to our screens and we’ll have more updates for you in next week’s LOS.
There’s plenty of kissing ahead for Will and Sonny….
And finally this week, we told you last week that NBC Chairman Bob Greenblatt hinted that Days of Our Lives would be renewed for another year. Now it’s been confirmed. Days has been given another extension lasting until September 2014. That’s good news for Will and Sonny fans, though many are wondering how much longer Chandler Massey will be with the show as the actor’s contract is up at the end of the year…
That’s it for another edition of Langford on Soaps. See you next time!
