Monday, April 19, 2010

WTH happened to Y&R?

It's no secret that I love soap operas. I have stayed faithful to the genre even when its viewership began to decline after the much-watched O.J. Simpson trial in the 1990s. But soaps are more vulnerable than ever with the recent cancellation of Guiding Light and the upcoming finale of As the World Turns in September, both shows I might add which have aired on CBS.

CBS still has a holding in the soap genre with their top-rated soap, The Young and the Restless, which has rated number one in the ratings since the mid-eighties. But even Y&R is beginning to show its wear and tear and it couldn't come at a worst time. With the ending of both GL and ATWT, Y&R remains one of the few soaps on CBS aside from its sister show, Bold and the Beautiful. But even faithful viewers of Y&R are being turned off by the show's recent stories, which have grown more lurid and bizarre in recent years.

Y&R has had some crazy storylines from time to time in the past (remember the Katherine Chancellor double storyline?) but somehow back in the day, the stories worked, thanks to strong writing, good storytelling and fine performances. Nowadays, the writers have come up with ridiculous and repetitive storylines: Nick jumping back and forth into bed between his wife Phyllis and ex-wife Sharon; the lurid and often off-putting story involving Victor Newman's alienated son, Adam; but the worst has to be the show's TWO recurring double storylines. Not only is Patty posing as Jack's wife Emily, but Lauren is now being impersonated by an imposter named "Sarah" (who may be Lauren's longtime nemesis Sheila with plastic surgery made to look like Lauren). Y&R nowadays seems like it's turned into Passions. What's next? Jill is a witch? Victor Newman is a wizard? Nikki Newman is a fortune teller? The stories have become outlandish and lack the motivation and classic storytelling that were Y&R's trademarks in the '80s and '90s under the guidance of the deceased (and much-missed) Bill Bell.

Visit any Y&R board online, and you will read comments from viewers - many of whom have watched the show for decades - lamenting the demise of the show's quality. Many soap journalists and viewers have predicted that soaps may no longer be on television in the future. With the way Y&R is heading in terms of its characters and stories, it has no one to blame but itself for its loss of viewers.

1 comment:

Beth said...

I thought it was a bit ridiculous when Sheila had plastic surgery to look like Phyllis in order to get near Lauren. But, like you say, to have TWO plastic surgery doubles at the same time (since you wrote this posting, it's been revealed that the Lauren double is Sheila's (never before mentioned) sister and two other characters are Sheila's (never before mentioned) children)... and now the TWO plastic surgery doubles are working together because, by sheer coincidence one double was the nurse at the other double's surgery! It's just too much. I mean, I generally am willing to suspend my disbelief when it comes to Y&R (you have to, really, to watch soap operas), but this is just going too far!

And I'm also sick of the Nick-Phyllis-Sharon thing. Ugh.