US soaps - a primetime spin off

[Pamela Barnes]

In another post I mentioned the idea of a decent soapy US daytime drama which is a spin off from a prime time show.

Just for fun, any suggestions of which primetime shows could have cheaper spin offs for a daytime slot ?

[JROG]

Desperate Housewives, The O.C., Grey's Anatomy, ER (which you mentioned), really all primetime soaps that are on air now would be easy to transfer (maybe not the medical ones). Ironically, SOAPnet is doing the opposite: They're making a spin-off prime-time show from daily "General Hospital": GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHTLY SHIFT.

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

Oh thats interesting and something which they have done here for a few years now with our soaps. Brookside was the first, it would be on like at 10pm and have violence and swearing instead of the 8pm slot.

A few of the soaps do it now here.

So what is GH night shift ?

[JROG]

It wil be this weekly show, that will be the first that SOAPnet produces. I think they said it will be broadcast on Saturdays? and will feature some of the younger cast from GENERAL HOSPITAL. I will give it a chance, although I did read that they are planning to make the episodes (the few first, perhaps) self-contained.... Sounds interesting, though, and it might work.

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

It will be cheap then on Soap Net, so not impressed.

Here is the nearest we have to daytime. Its a show I dont like but look at the production values (ignore the small woman, she is signing for deaf people on the repeat episode)

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Then I look at this crap, sorry guys but look at the difference.

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[i love abby]

Geez that woman in the corner is annoying. I couldnt watch a show like that.
Why dont they just use closed captioning? The production values are better though. It has a primetime feel to it.

[Pamela Barnes]

shes not always there LOL :D There is a repeat for deaf people, my boyfriend jokes that she is actually that small in real life and we imagine her walking down the street and going to the shop :D

Sad I know.

[JROG]

Crap? :sosad: :sosad: :sosad: I rest my case. Where the hell is Chris!!!????:D LoL

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

JR I can understand you get addicted to these things, I loved General Hospital and now I look back and see it was for the comedy value.

But nowadays I am used to much higher production values when I watch a show, looking at that clip of Y&R I posted, it would be laughed off UK TV for so many reasons. Poorly written, badly acted, and looks like it was filmed on a home video camera and so very 80s.

Is this not why the viewing figures are going down the tube ? I would find it really difficult to have something like 24 in the evening and then see this in the daytime. Maybe at one period in time it was not so noticable but nowadays there is no excuse.

[JROG]

OK, I guess that you are right. These things can be highly addictive, I can admit I'm really, really addicted. I can see what your point is. I guess the main problem is that you have grown accustomed to a more realistic approach to soaps while the way soaps are written here they go for campiness and cheesiness. However, I feel that there is good crap (i.e. DALLAS) and bad crap (i.e. DYNASTY). I think this applies to US soaps too. Maybe that's what you view as bad writing, I don't know.

Anyway, the acting on y&r has always been and is phenomenal, I absolutely disagree that it's the contrary. As for the way it looks, I assure you that it's the YouTube version. I saw the scene when it was first broadcasted, it was no where near as bad as it looks here.

Actually, Y&R's ratings are around to 5 million people a day, much more than GILMORE GIRLS, ONE TREE HILL, THE O.C. and stuff like that get in their weekly airings. I think that maybe you need to regularly watch Y&R (IF you can handle that ;)) to see what I mean.

Although my experience is British soaps is limited, I do like them and I enjoy the radical differences between the same genre.

Lastly, I couldn't agree more that things have to change, at least in production values. But I don't see that happening, unfortunately.

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

The actors are probably good but the dialogue is 'diabolical', how many people were at that death scene ? lol :D

I think a station with some intelligence could reinvent the wheel with a soap or an existing soap could go back to basics and change its format.

[JROG]

Well, the headwriter Latham wanted to kill a 30-year veteran so she had everyone that loved him over to say "goodbye." To be honest, after rewatching it, it's not as compelling but the first time around it was... not because of good writing, since I'm not THAT crazy about this particular scene, but because it carried a lot of emotional wait--it was truly the end of an era, if you know what I mean. But you have to know that to appreciate it, which is understandable.

The problem is that the networks heads are not INTERESTED in making it better. Unfortunately, for them, soaps should be like this: MINIMAL cost, with MAXIMUM earnings. So, in a sense, it's not really the fault of the crew and cast when the channels view them as "necessary only if we make more money." I guess they have the same attitude towards weekly shows too, but it is stronger and more evident in soaps.

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

The other aspect to this is that the whole media is changeing at a rapid speed.

With Video on demand and the internet, people will be able to decide what they watch in daytime. If I want I can watch Smallville, Desperate Housewives 24, or maybe a comedy or one of my nightime soaps when i want and I do watch them in the day.

The whole concept of cheap shows to hit a demographic in daytime is shifting and part of that is the way the networks get money from commercials. I flick past all the commercials on VOD.

The soaps are there basically as cheap ways to pull in revenue, but I really can't see that happening 5 years from now and would be surprised if many of the daytime cheapy soaps are still in production.

The idea of Soap net for this night shift is again a cheap move, one which will be short lived.

[JROG]

I think so too about GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHT SHIFT, but they have announced plans to make a second show. Don't know if it's going to be a soap, though, but it doesn't seem as it has much of a future either.

However, since The O.C. is being cancelled, it could be feasible that it is transferred to daytime, maybe it would work, although I doubt that the starts would follow it.

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

Yeah thats why it would need to be a spin off, perhaps with guest actors from night time.

Imagine the loss in pay ? lol :)

[JROG]

"WHAT? $2000 a week? for 5 eps? I used to make $45,000 for ONE episode. What's that you say? No I don't wanna be in your fucking show!"

I can imagine something in those lines lol.

To be honest, it would be nice if soaps started having a more telenovela-ish format (which is not that different from the British) just to ensure that the genre survives. I don't see it lasting much longer. PASSIONS is gone, GUIDING LIGHT is most likely to be cancelled too, DAYS OF OUR LIVES might end its run in 2009, which will prompt ABC to cancel
(AT LEAST) ONE LIFE TO LIVE (if they haven't done it by then). In the end, I only see THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, GENERAL HOSPITAL and maybe AS THE WORLD TURNS surviving.

Well, if you look at the bright side, maybe fans of the cancelled shows will settle for what's left and the viewership goes up enough to warrant positive changes.

Back to topic, though, I really don't think a prime-time show will be transferred to daytime, simply because networks are not looking for more soaps. There was this rumor a few years ago that FOX was planning on creating it's own daytime soap, I think the "American Coronation Street" but it never happened.

DDD

[Pamela Barnes]

Oh that was the American Eastenders, it was such a shame as I think its a genre of soap that people would watch.

[Garrison]

Wasn't it going to be set in New York? I remember that...

[ChrisSumnerMatheson]

Pamela, I can't believe you are slagging off that clip of Y&R! I thought that was excellent! Y&R's cast, writing and production values are top notch. And for the record, Y&R gets over 6 million viewers now and is higher rated that any show on primetime network CW and many shows on FOX, NBC and ABC in primetime. This is without ANY promotion.

Soaps today aren't what they were in the past, but I don't think you could watch something like Ryan's Hope and not see the brilliance. The soap opera genre was created in the US and was at it's best creatively here. I don't think the UK has gotten the great soaps that are taken seriously here. Y&R, Ryan's Hope, As the World Turns, etc.

US soaps may be a different format, but it's the most successful. Unlike UK soaps, American soaps are seen worldwide and are the reason primetime soaps were created, as well as the UK soaps. B&B is the most watched soap in the world with 35 million viewers last year.

IJust because the UK soaps are middle class and "realistic" doesn't mean they're better. I like a good down to earth soap like Ryan's Hope, but a more glamourous soap like Y&R is fab as well. The key is balance and in addition to Y&R's glamour they do great social issues, character driven drama, romance, etc.

[Pamela Barnes]

Im not being horrible, just that if that were shown in the UK it would be laughed off the TV. I guess its a matter of what you are used too.

[James]

I see both sides of this. It is unfair to say that all US soaps are crap and always have been -- they've changed tremendously since even the early 90s. The problem is that *now* they are outdated in many respects, particularly production values.

Sometimes the shows do attempt to tell good stories (I know Y&R does for the most part) but occasionally they lapse into this cloying sentimentality or nauseating candlelit "lovemaking" scenes with weird stares and OTT music. That's not just a cultural thing IMO...it doesn't fly on US primetime either which is al ot more intelligent these days.

If the show is camp then so be it. I dip in and out of B&B because it can be knowingly hilarious. Yet the only time it has good dialogue is when it's written by Patrick Mulcahey, it's not consistent.

I don't know...I think that there's too many holes in the US soaps to get past the good intentions. Corrie's done this with stupid conceits such as pretending Lloyd's been there for the past 6 months when we all know the actor was suspended. But they have enough consistency in production values and dialogue to paper over the cracks. Pun intended.