Wednesday, October 26, 2011

REVIEW: New Season of THE BAY Set to Beat Daytime Soaps at Their Own Game

Web Series: THE BAY

For fans of...: SANTA BARBARA, ANOTHER WORLD, GENERAL HOSPITAL, DYNASTY

What it is: The Garretts are beautiful and wealthy; and yet, happiness eludes them.

What's good: Filmed on location and written by a fan of soaps, THE BAY manages to look better than most daytime serials while honoring the genre's structure and history. And there's a brand new opening.

What's great: With ALL MY CHILDREN on hiatus, THE BAY may be the closest thing to a "sixth soap" this fall. Story lines and production values have matured significantly since the first season. Meanwhile, the talented parade of fan favorites, in all sorts of roles, continues to impress. For example, the Season 2 premiere maintains focus on our matriarch, played by Mary Beth Evans--but also spoils the audience with additional fascinating and dramatic moments, courtesy of her former GENERAL HOSPITAL co-star Jacklyn Zeman (wedding planner Sophia Madison and ANOTHER WORLD's Sandra Dee Robinson (the delicious Christine Nelson). Plus, casting SANTA BARBARA's Jed Allan as Harold Johnson, the father of Lane Davies' Mackenzie? Brilliant.

What could be better: THE BAY has improved significantly.  If the story holds together, and the quality is maintained, our only complaint is bound to be that this series really needs television-sized (40+ minute) episodes.

Addictive like...: your favorite daytime soap opera.

Grade: A

Review based on: Season 2, Episode 1

See for yourself when THE BAY premieres on Thursday, October 27 at 3:15 p.m. ET at thebaytheseries.com

RELATED:
- THE BAY Fan Event - November 5, 2011
- Mary Beth Evans: It's like a real group effort
- WE LOVE SOAPS TV 3.16 Jacklyn Zeman Talks THE BAY, Character Driven Drama & Zestra!


Kevin Mulcahy Jr. is a staff contributor at welovesoaps.com writing theater and web series reviews as well as other in-depth features on daytime and primetime television. To contact Kevin, email [email protected].

11 comments:

  1. I couldn't agree more. This is more than just a soap, and definitely needs to be on the TV screen. Network soaps need to stand up and pay attention. The Bay sets the bar.

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  2. Oh, this is so true! I'd LOVE to see The Bay on TV!!! They don't make great drama like this anymore. Gregori Martin is an expert of suspense and drama, and has had me glued to the screen since the first moment!

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  3. So true!!! And yeah ... longer episodes would be nice. You just can't cover that much in this short time.

    But "The Bay" is a great soap. I'm excited for season two.

    In the end, I also have to absolutely agree that the look of the show is fantastic. When I look at Y&R these days with all these fake woods and everything, this is really refreshing.

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  4. I don't know what all this Bay cheerleading is about. Each episode is six minutes along, making the "season" more like "moment". The production quality is not always up to professional standards

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  5. My issue isn't the time limit. That's pretty normal. This show is just plain dull. Kristos was TERRIBLE in Far From the Bay. What does it matter if the opening credits are new if everything after them stinks. Nice to see some old time soap stars though. Wish they were used better.

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  6. How can people comment on what they haven't watched yet? The reviewer saw the first episode of the new season already. Most web series continue improving season to season. I'm most looking forward to seeing Mary Beth and Paul Satterfield together.

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  7. The new episode that I saw an advance screening of (that's the one I based the new review on--it premieres tomorrow at 3:15 PM ET) was 12 minutes, it would be great if they maintained that length--which is pretty beefy for a web series.
    I'm curious what you all will think about the the continuity and cohesiveness of the SLs/characters? Looks like an improvement on that front, as well.

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  8. What's all the cheering about? Anticipation and the fact that I can watch a short web series and become more interested in its characters than I can in a week's worth of watching network soaps has me cheering. Don't understand the Kristos Andrews bashing. He sells the character to me. I'm cheering for season two because I enjoy good storytelling. The Bay delivers and after reading this review, I'm pumped.

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  9. I was at the Los Angeles screening of the Season 2 Premiere tonight and I can tell you that The Bay continues to improve on all levels - the writing, the acting, the story lines, the production quality - everything. No question: it is better than the higher budget network soaps!

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  10. Gregorgi Martin has poured his heart and soul into making The Bay the best ever. His team of talented actors and all of the behind the scenes team are right there with him. Having seen the first episode last night I am so excited for them and all the fans. Season 2 is going to be a wild ride. It may only be a few minutes each week but it will be packed with excitement, intrigue and leaving you wanting more. Sure we would all love to see it on TV on an every day basis but folks that costs money and lots of it. Would so love to see some big sponsors come in and give The Bay the financial support it's need. I am a devoted fan and supporter and proud of it. Thank you We Love Soaps for your kind words.

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  11. The Bay's Season 2 premiere is really good. I think everything from start to finish was really good. I'm intrigued by several of the stories...Whether Christine actually ran down Mac's daughter...Sara's reaction to Marly's affair, considering the way Marly's been hard on her for her past relationships...and Lee and Sara. What's Lee going to tell Sara?

    I also really enjoyed Jed Allan's arrival on the show.

    Thanks to all who work so hard on The Bay, from Gregori Martin, to the actors I've loved in daytime projects for years...Mary Beth, Matt, Lane, and Jed, Tristan, Jackie...so great to see all these folks, and so great to see how The Bay has really found its sea legs.

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