It is Soap Dish time again and this week I am going to take a look at what went down in the soap opera world in 2011. Quite the interesting year that has everyone asking one major question, what does the future hold for daytime soap operas?
Obviously the biggest thing to happen in 2011 was the cancellation of All My Children and One Life To Life. It goes without saying that ABC axing these two shows was the lowest point of the year. Of course there was the short-lived hope for fans that the shows would be revived online, as you know those plans have been scrapped. Along the same lines there is now the question of the fate of General Hospital. It was announced that Katie Couric was getting her own talk show in the fall of 2012 and that leaves many fans fearful that the last ABC soap will soon fade to black as well.
The Young and The Restless was on top as always but it wasn’t free from scandal and I am not talking about on screen. Melody Thomas Scott was missing from the show for months and that left a big hole in the canvas. Even though her absence was explained on screen, off screen things were tense. Negotiations got nasty and fans wondered if the woman who has been a staple in the hit soap was ever coming back. Thankfully it all worked out and Melody as well as Nicki are back where they belong.
Ok enough of that bad talk lets talk about what a good year 2011 was for soaps. Let me start with the launch of the reality TV show Dirty Soap. It brought a whole new awareness to the soap opera world when it featured the lives of some of the biggest names in the industry. For me it reminded me just how much I love Brandon Beemer and Nadia Bjorlin. I also learned from the show that I am so not a big fan of Farah Fath and that Kirsten Storms and Kelly Monaco rock!
Beyond that there was the newly revamped Days Of Our Lives that now has me once again watching daily the show that originally got me hooked on soap operas in the first place. The vets are back, the teens are gone and the cast was trimmed down to tell compelling stories like a little déjà vu involving Will catching Sami having sex with EJ. Nice throwback to the story where Sami caught her mom and John getting it on all those years ago. Yep the good old days are back.
I don’t want to leave out General Hospital and The Bold & The Beautiful they each had some good and bad things happen this year. Especially GH with all the writing changes but I don’t want to make this column be a rehash of the year just a couple of things that made 2011 stand out.
That being said be sure to tune in next week when I talk about my hopes and dreams for the remaining four shows in 2012.
Photos: www.wenn.comJudy Eddy
