DAYS OR OUR LIVES Thoughts and News Round-Up

Soap opera message boards and blogs are buzzing over the latest DAYS OF OUR LIVES news. Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn will be off the show in January. This is the latest real-life drama that has dominated soap news in 2008.

We started the year with the writers on strike, and have suffered through Hinsey-gate, Martha Byrne leaving ATWT, the ouster of Josh Griffith at Y&R and soap actors rewriting scripts. I'll post a complete timeline later this year, but with so much backstage drama, this latest news, while huge in the soap world, has left a lot of people a little numb, including myself.

First of all, this is DAYS we're talking about, where actors leave and come back constantly. They killed Alice by choking her on a donut then brought her back. Drake Hogestyn himself was "fired" from the show last year only to return a few months later.

Should John and Marlena fans start campaigning and raising hell? Would it matter? Is this just another lame PR trick and they'll be back before you know it? Does anyone still care?

Fans are already used to the annual "new way to save DAYS" story from Executive Producer Ken Corday which never pans out. When the backstage drama starts to become boring, you're in trouble.

I personally believe this soap needs to have a clear vision for the future, even if the show only lasts until September 2010. And that vision includes a smaller and more focused cast. If we knew DAYS would be off the air for sure in less than two years, I would be 100% behind focusing on the beloved characters and working towards giving them (and us) the happy ending they deserve.

But you can't run a business like that. The producers have to approach the future with a long-term strategy and that likely includes making some tough decisions. The best thing they could have done is to keep John dead last year, but that is water under the bridge now. So it's time to move forward. But who is going to be left when the bloodbath is over and the budget is made?

As with any soap, it boils down to the writing. Can Dena Higley consistently craft an entertaining show no matter who the characters are? I doubt it. But it is even harder when you can't plan long-term because you don't know who will be on the canvas. My recommendation to DAYS - make the cuts you need and make them now. Get it over with so three months down the road we start hearing news about the actual storylines instead of just who has been fired this week or who is rewriting Higley's scripts. There are still plenty of beloved characters left on this show (see Maggie, Abe, etc) and it's not too late to use them.

A number of people have spoken out about this latest twist. Here's a round-up:
TOM CASIELLO: I wish nothing but the best for Days. I grew up on this show, I was thrilled and inspired by so many of its stories. But this is like that insane ex whose antics you get wrapped up in for too many years, and one day you just realize, 'Enough. I have better things to do with my time.' It should make you sad. But it doesn't. You just don't care anymore."

MICHAEL FAIRMAN: "I know many are in shock, disbelief, digusted, and angry. There are those on the internet, and those who believe, that the announcement of John and Marlena riding off into the sunset and wrapping up there current story is all a hoax to get viewers to tune-in over the next few months, to drive up ratings. This time though, it is my belief it is for real. Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn will be exiting. Meantime, the show will try to get itself on some economic footing, within a daytime industry that has to cut back costs in so many ways to survive, and to deal with network executives who may want to kill off some of our most cherished pleasures -soap viewing."

SARA A. BIBEL: "Many people have compared this situation to ALL MY CHILDREN firing Susan Lucci or THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS deciding Eric Braeden is not worth the money. I am going to respectfully disagree. Erica Kane and Victor have always been at the center of their shows. They’ve had brilliant storylines and appalling storylines. There have been periods of time when they have been backburnered as all characters are, but they have consistently driven story. Even when the shows were at their creative nadirs, the headwriters had the common sense to know that they need to be on the TV screen on a consistent basis. They are also standalone characters who are not tied down to any particular romantic pairing. Yes, most fans would agree that Nikki is the love of Victor’s life and that Erica and Jackson belong together over the long haul. But viewers will accept and enjoy watching them with other people."

J BERNARD JONES: "The news that Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn have been fired from DAYS OF OUR LIVES pulled me out of my self-imposed moratorium on posting for the next few days, drowning as I am in work. However as I watched this news filter out over the internets and the intertubes, the completely understandable and justifiable reactions by fans of shock, anger, disbelief and inevitable doomsaying about the future of Days were leavened by my sense that something was amiss in my own reaction. At first I couldn't put my finger on it until it hit me out of the blue. My reaction was, 'Whatever.'"

SNARK: "The very wording of that quote [to Soap Opera Digest] tells me that Corday doesn't intend to keep them off the show forever. He's simply trying to save money until the show gets back on its feet. There's just one flaw in that strategy: The show will never get back on its feet, because it is managed by brain-damaged chimps, of which he is the chief."

BECCA THOMAS: "I must admit, this doesn't upset me. I liked them in the 80s and 90s (yes, even together -- I have not always been a hater), but Marlena in particular hasn't been an interesting character in about a decade. I've liked the latest incarnation of John Black a lot, but if these two bring in huge salaries and had to be cut to give the show one last shot at continuing, it's fine by me."

TV ADDICT: "The problem is that for fans, this is a lose/lose scenario. If the show — already struggling in the ratings thanks to an endless series of lackluster plots — has really gotten rid of Hogestyn and Hall, it may prove to be a crippling blow. And if this is yet another publicity stunt, fed-up fans may not stick around to see how it unfolds. Given the sad state of daytime affairs, this may not be the best time for so drastic a move."

PATRICK ERWIN: "This move also fits in with my contention that occasionally, we need to creatively prune the tree. (Or rotate the crops, take your pick of farming metaphors.) I’m a big believer in ROTATING stories, content and actors when possible. This is not only necessary financially but healthy for shows creatively, lest they send viewers away from the screens out of boredom or irritation."

DAYTIME CONFIDENTIAL PODCAST: Nelson Branco and Tom Casiello joined DC's Luke, Mike and Jamey for a comprehensive (and funny) look at what is going on at DAYS and what the future might hold.

Even Perez Hilton posted about this. Will the soaps ever again be more interesting than the backstage drama has been this year?