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Logan Riff: Don't Smite the Strike-busting Soaps
Days of Our Lives courtesy NBC
Days of Our Lives and All My Children are in hot water with the Writers Guild for barring certain scribes from returning to work after the strike and keeping their scab replacements. Not OK, says the union. But let's not get hasty here! Days went from tedious to terrific when the strike material started airing, and AMC has been slowly, surely recapturing its glory days. (Love that Sugar and Erica!) The dumped writers should of course be paid off per their contracts. But rehired after doing a crap job? No way! — Michael Logan
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Apr 21, 2008 4:09 PM
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Its unfortunate what they did or are doing to the writers, but you Mr. Logan are right on the money!!!
Both shows have improved in leaps and bounds. I'd hate to think we have to look forward to crap if the old writers come back. How can anyone not love NuJohn or Angie/Jessie reuniting!? Its magic and we have been blessed.
I just hope that both shows keep me entertained, they are my saving grace from this crazy world we live in.
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Apr 21, 2008 5:49 PM
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Actually I have to argue about Days being better than before strike.
The months of October-January were really really good on Days. Now the show is terrible where we are back to Month days (the show should be called Day of our lives) and the dialog is stilted and horrible. (If we did a drinking game everytime someone said the word "hot" to describe someone I would be drunk by 2 pm).
Storylines which do look good on paper (Bo's illness, Ava kidnapping Hope and Steve) are dragged out to the point by the time it comes to completion, we don't care anymore. Just wrap up the story!
So, I have to just say Days isn't doing better. I find it worse than it was in a long time to the point where I'm bored. I'm not saying Hogan was the greatest writer and there were problems with storylines, but I didn't FF hardly at all back then (and none at all at 2007 end). Now I can barely stand to watch the whole show all the way through.
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Apr 21, 2008 7:34 PM
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I agree with Shannon. In fact, I'm still trying to recover from the fact that Dena Higley is back at the healm of the show. After what she did the first time she took over and then what she did too OLTL.Heaven only knows what mess she's about to make now.
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Edited by justanobserver at 04/21/2008 8:28 PM
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Apr 21, 2008 11:28 PM
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I also have to agree with Shannon's post. The pacing during the strike with the replacement writers was fantastic. Things are back to the old way of dragging a story out for months. I've been fast forwarding through episodes and even skipped last week entirely.
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Apr 22, 2008 8:03 AM
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Me to RolltheBones days is barely watchable again. It was so good for a while I didn't miss a scene now I watch the whole show in 10 minutes.
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Apr 22, 2008 11:16 AM
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I guess I am a minority but I actually am really enjoying Days right now and think the writing switch was worth it.
This storyline for John/Drake Hogestyn ALMOST makes it worth it for them firing him last year. He is so great.
All My Children is taking forever to get good again. Too long in my opinion.
I don't know if Barbara Esensten and James Brown were the way to go when they fired Megan McTavish.
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Apr 22, 2008 11:47 AM
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Mr. Logan your comments on DAYS are right on. I really thought that Hogan Sheffer and his team would turn DAYS around. At least, it appeared he had started to do his magic, but it just seem to fizzle out too quickly.
It is quite funny how the new head writer (Dena Higley) could not do her magic for OLTL as Logan ranted in his 2007 year in review, but she is doing quite fabulous at DAYS. Go figure...
I am also glad that Ed Scott (previously from Y&R is on board) as co-executive producer. He will bring the magic back to the show. Just bring back more veterans and get rid of the teen set
All the actors/actresses involved in that sorority storyline cannot act and the story was quite dumb. If you get rid of all the teen characters involved in this plot, then you can bring back more vets full time (e.g. Doug Hayes, Susan Seaforth Hayes, Billy Warlock, find an actor to portray Bill Horton, bring back the original Melissa Horton, other characters like Pete Jannings, Dr. Neil and Liz Curtis, Alex Marshall, Gwen Davies. What about the old eatery Shenanigans with Pete and Melissa now running it?
Must I go on here...There is so much more I can say. I only wish I can now start my career in the daytime field. I am available producers and writers any time. See my email address below.
Now to another point I would like to address and ask for assistance from anyone out there who knows what to do that I am requesting. Read the below in italics.
To the TV Guide Staff and Soap Fans,
Is there anyone out there who knows how to post or a comment on this site that has not yet been reported on by a writer for TV Guide? Or for someone like me, who just wants to rant or rave about something in particular.
Maybe soap columnist Michael Logan will take notice to what I have to say and call it a "Logan Riff or Rant" in a future column.
Anyway, I am quite ticked off of at one daytime diva who is expecting too much from her show. I think the executives for her show should give her a good swift kick in the booty--the sooner the better.
Granted, she is a great actress when she has a storyline, but for to say she is being misused is misleading to a certain point. Allow me to explain.
Case in point:
Every year when the Daytime Emmys come around, this diva has gone on record saying that she wishes other actresses on her show would step up to the plate and consider being nominated as a lead actress.
Well, I think that is kind of hard to do when this diva literally runs the show and is angry because of lack of story. I don't get it, Ms. Diva.
If you want the other actress to step up to the plate for the Emmy nominating process, then you need to sit back and act in a supporting role so these other ladies can shine more.
How dare you say that your show's executives need to give you a new storyline each time you have one that has run its course.
If you step back for a few months or so, then you are giving your female co-stars a chance to shine with their own respective storylines. How can these other actresses step up to the plate if you constantly demand what you want.
I think it was very ungracious of you not to take a pay cut a few years back when the soap genre hard started to being hurt financially.
To that end, Ms. Diva, be reasonable to your cast mates, especially the females and give them that chance to be nominated for a Lead Actress. If you keep demanding more air time or more story, then how do you expect these other actress to compete for Lead Actress. You need to step back and let your female co-stars shine, too. It's not like you cannot afford it.
So, GET REAL AND GET A LIFE and STOP YOUR WHINING!!!.It is terribly annoying, especially for a woman of your caliber and age.
If anyone would like to email me more about this matter, please reply to the above or email me at
todd670929@msn.com
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Apr 22, 2008 3:38 PM
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Ok Todd I think I've narrowed it down to 3 Susan Lucci, Kim Zimmer or Susan Flannery?
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Apr 22, 2008 4:01 PM
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Just wondering Todd - what does your "Who is it?" rant have to do with the writing at Days and AMC?
I know who you're talking about and she isn't on either show.
I liken Dena Higley's tenure at OLTL as an example where it was the wrong writer at a show 110%.
Other examples - Michael Malone on Another World, Ellen Weston at Guiding Light, Lorraine Broderick at Days, Megan McTavish at General Hospital, etc.
I think Dena, Ed, and Ken are going to pound it at Days and hopefully beyond 2009.
And I just want to say Anna DiMera/Leann Hunley is fabulous!
I didn't see her on back in the 80s as I was like 9 then but I am loving her now!
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Apr 22, 2008 4:18 PM
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nyjoey77,
Send me a personal email and I will reveal who I am talking about since one of your choices is the actress I am talking about. The other two choices are dames in the making and I love them both professionally and personally (I do not know either of them personally, but what they do outside the walls of a soap studio is very kind and gracious and endearing. Their acting is also very superb and real as well as top notch in my book.
sharontatefan4ever,,
You seem to be a very wise woman who I would like to correspond with through emails from time time. You are very vocal on your opinions on many TV issues that I enjoy reading them immensely. Have you ever considered working in the field of television? I have and still very much want to. Maybe you and I can write a "Pro and Con" piece for this site if we ever come to disagree on something.
To clarify why I wrote that nasty message about the infamous soap diva, I just wanted to see if someone knew how one can post something on this web site that has not been discussed or written at all, either by the writers or the columnists of TV Guide. I just needed to vent my opinions about this so-called diva. Who knows maybe her "sob story" will spark a columnist or writer to look further into the matter?
Anyway, again I would like to hear from both of you (nyjoey77, and
sharontatefan4ever, in a more personal matter if you wish. My email address again is todd670929@msn.com
Take care.
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Apr 22, 2008 8:35 PM
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i think you guys need to get your heads check, the only good thing from hogan was that he killed John so your gonna say that the writing was better before strike just shows your NOT watching the show, DAYS has been it's best this past couple of months then what it was during JAN- OCT 07, TO say it's worst now is crazy it's taken more then half of last year to equal up to days past two months
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Apr 22, 2008 9:30 PM
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Oh Days...it's just all so sad...Hogan Sheffer took it to a great level and then too many chiefs with their fingers poised hurt it...honestly OLTL was not that good until this past summer when the new head scribe came aboard...Days is now too suffering from B-movie ill-educated dialogue and dumbed down storylines (reminiscent of pre-Sheffer and team shows)...the plane crash was very similar to OLTL about a year ago (Todd Manning and John)...I miss the Days of Sheffer because the men were sexy and intelligent and they were masculine while being gentle...he said he'd give the men their well...manly-ness back...guess Days is just going back to manly-ness envy pre-Sheffer and team...yeah the big name stars are great, but with a bad b-movie storyline and worse dialogue, who cares? Even Gossip Girl and other teen friendly shows have better dialogue and story-lines...just so sad...
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Apr 23, 2008 3:37 AM
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Bo 27 I think from Oct 07 -until March 08 Days was great but the past month I am not enjoying. I thought the Striking writers did great job but now that the writers are back I don't like what is happening.
I think it wa mistake getting rid of Belle & Shawn since they are connected to every family in Salem. I love Leann Hunley too think she is doing a great job.
I maybe in the minority but I enjoyed the Ireland storyline and the plane crash maybe because all my favorites were involved. Glad Victor is back and being used, happy they recast Mickey we are seeing a bit more Maggie & Lexi which I like.
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Apr 23, 2008 9:27 AM
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Days was great during the strike. It still has its moments, but a couple things need changing:
Stop trying to portray EJ as a saint. EJ is a rapist, stalker, murderer etc. Just because he did one good deed doesn't erase the fact that he hurt nearly everyone else in Salem. I don't for a second buy his "redemption", and the ever-blinking Brit just needs to go away.
Daniel & Chelsea? Someone explain to me what the point of it is? There's no chemistry, and because Daniel is Chelsea's doctor makes them almost as icky to watch as Sami & her rapist.
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Apr 23, 2008 6:13 PM
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