B&B kicks off murder mystery storyline

[Rove]

If it was Katie why would she be killed? Has there been something in the last few months which leads us to this dramatic end of a character? Generally a soap will slow walk us to a characters death, especially if it's a legacy character. This is then followed by a drawn out, "Who did it?" When the killer is finally revealed there is generally a satisfying pay off for the viewer. Which also leads us to the killer vanishing from B&B.

None of Bell's murder mystery sounds like it was well thought out.

 

[Daniel Avery]

Directing or not, if Heather Tom were to leave B&B, Amelia Heinle over at Y&R would be wise to meet with her agent to bone up on the fine print of her contract. Yes, she's been playing Victoria for 15 years, but that's a heartbeat in soap opera time, and there are still plenty of people clamoring for HT to come back.

 

[Monzo]

None of Bell's murder mystery sounds like it was well thought out.

I remember Taylor shot Bill, but since she wasn't on air for years she was no current core character who did it, so even though I was surprised I wasn't impressed. All that stuff which ended in Storm's death wasn't bad, but I doubt Bell is able to deliever something like that once again.

 

[Emelee]

I would be fine with anyone being killed off except another Forrester. It's really no surprise that few things keep me interested in reading spoilers and recaps when so few of my favourites are on the show. I don't like any of the Logans or the current Spencers. I liked Bill Sr, but they killed him off when they introduced his never before heard of son Bill Jr. And while I appreciate them trying to write stories for people of colour, they haven't really found the perfect fit yet. Zoe has potential when she's being a vixen. I liked the old Zende (Rome Flynn) and the illegit Avant child Sasha. Dayzee and Nicole were nice too. As was Gaby. But many of these were not on at the same time. Had they been, I think B&B would have really had something.

Now, we instead have an overload of Logans and some Buckinhams and Carter being more front and center at Forrester Creations than any of the actual Forresters. What happened?

 

[DallasFanForever]

It’s like a totally different show now than what I remember. And I guess this happens over time. I still check in from time to time to see what’s going on but I just really can’t get into it anymore.

 

[Rove]

What happened?

Since the departure of Stephanie (Susan Flannery) in 2012 I've found the rhythm in story-telling on B&B difficult and with Covid-19 during the last 12 months it has amplified those weaknesses in B&B. Brad Bell appears to concentrate on certain characters for a number of months at the cost of others when suddenly those stories are shafted and we shift gear to another boring and repetitive story. Has anyone else noticed there is less focus on the fashion side of things? I suspect this is more to do with budget restraints. But for a series which was based on the fashion industry B&B is now far removed from it.

Could the fall in ratings for most daytime serials (when the opposite should be happening with lockdowns) be because viewers no longer feel connected to characters. Am I the only person that notices the likes of Steffy, Liam and Hope have a lot of spare time gazing into each others eyes, talking about their pains, yet none of them seem to work for a living. Who is running Forrester Creations? Does it still exist?

This could explain in part why viewers no longer care. There use to be a running joke you only had to watch 1 episode a month of DOOL or Y&R to keep up with what's happening. B&B use to have a slightly faster pace. However when I caught up with an episode last week prior to the afternoon NEWS airing it felt like I was watching a repeat of the same conversation Liam and Hope had 3 weeks prior.

My aunt was a huge fan of B&B back in the day. She no longer watches. Susan Flannery leaving along with Ron Moss and the constant recasts killed it for her.

 

[DallasFanForever]

I couldn’t agree more @Rove. I think you summed it up perfectly. Stephanie versus Brooke, the Brooke/Ridge/Taylor triangle, Eric, the fashion shows, Sheila’s sporadic returns and the havoc she would wreak, Sally Spectra, Macy and Thorne, it felt like must see tv back then. And I just don’t feel that now. It’s a totally different vibe. And like you said, when I do watch now I feel like I’m watching the same scenes I saw weeks or even months ago.

 

[Daniel Avery]

I know that when the cast and crew of the three soaps first returned to work after their "time off for Covid," plots had to be very malleable--that is, nothing set in stone or too complicated/long-term. This was because they did not know who would be returning, who would 'sit things out' until the situation improved, and of course they had to be prepared to recast (or write out) any character at any moment due to a possible positive test result. Heck, there were contingencies being made in case there was a full-blown Covid breakout that would force a show to close down production again. (I can only speak to General Hospital but it was likely the same at the others.) The writers had to be prepared to ditch a story (or seriously rewrite it) at a moment's notice. It's gotten better, of course--a murder mystery sounds like a great umbrella story for a half-hour soap--but they still have to take baby steps, plot-wise as they try to get back into "regular scheduling". I'm sure it is taking longer to produce the individual episodes (and more expensive to accomplish those goals). They've had to experiment with radically different methods of blocking scenes, and of course the virtual stoppage of love scenes (soaps' bread and butter).

 

[Rove]

plots had to be very malleable

Would B&B have been better off acknowledging Covid-19 in their stories rather than completely ignoring it? I'm not sure why they made that decision because sometimes when I catch an episode I laugh hysterically at the social distancing rule playing out onscreen. I mean we all sit here knowing what's going on but the fact the producers have chosen to ignore it was a mistake in my opinion. Why not embrace the pandemic?

Imagine Eric calling a general staff meeting at Forrester Creations and telling people he has been left with the difficult decision to shut down the business. We then see sheets being placed over sewing machines, and the desks of the designers and CEO. I would go so far as killing off Pam or Eric from Covid-19 just to reinforce the effect it's having. Okay, there will be some saying a daytime soap shouldn't make light of this situation but I thought that's what soaps were designed for, reflecting back onto society what happens within it.

 

[Monzo]

Maybe I'm the only one who thinks B&B got better after Stephanie and Ridge were gone. Bell was forced to write something different and he delievered for awhile, but it only happened because he had to do it. Bell doesn't like changes, so as long as no current lead actor leaves the show B&B will stay the same. If John McCook would retire it wouldn't change the show, because Eric got nothing to do, even Brooke being gone wouldn't have a big impact. I think only Liam or Steffy leaving would change the show, if Hope would quit they'd just hire another recast.

 

[Emelee]

Unless something happened to make a dazed/already dead Vinny end up on the road before Liam drove into him, this was the biggest letdown. There was no "murder" if it was just Liam hitting him with the car, just an accident. There's no "mystery" if something didn't happen to Vinny before the collision. And there's no way the Forresters or Logans will feel a thing about Vinny dying.

It is weird that Vinny is just walking along the road at night, not being careful of passing cars. Was he suicidal? Or was he already dead? Someone killing Vinny and letting Liam take the blame would work if the killer turns out to be a main character.

 

[DallasFanForever]

Maybe Liam was aiming for the writers and missed?

 

[Daniel Avery]

Would B&B have been better off acknowledging Covid-19 in their stories rather than completely ignoring it?

Others might disagree, but I think it was the best decision NOT to acknowledge the pandemic on any of the American daytime soaps. The pandemic forced everyone to be mindful of every move they made/make, and of course it was topic #1 on the news most of the time. There was no escaping it. Having it "invade" the escapist world of soaps would have made the soaps just as depressing as real life was.

Keep in mind that soap fans often think of these characters as if they're real members of the family, that all those adventures that played out on screen seem like a shared adventure with old friends. Seeing those 'old friends' going on with their (extraordinary) lives without Covid-19 causing havoc could give home viewers hope that their own lives will get back to normal eventually. For that half-hour (or hour), they can feel like things are normal again---or as normal as a soap can be.

 

[Emelee]

I quote Bradley Bell on this storyline that began today:

"We're jumping into a murder mystery storyline, which I'm very excited about. I love murder mysteries, but it will turn into a very complex mystery, so there will be twists and there will be surprises."

"It will turn into a very complex mystery as the facts of the incident are unraveled and discovered throughout the course of the upcoming weeks ahead. There will be surprises. Not everything is what it seems."

 

[DallasFanForever]

Well I hope it will be more than what it just appears to be so far. I think it needs a serious twist to get people interested.

 

[Rove]

but it will turn into a very complex mystery

I wonder if he has watched "Who Killed Sara?" on Netflix because there is good murder mystery. I cannot wait for season 2.

 

[DallasFanForever]

I guess I knew Vinny was in trouble when you figure there’s gotta be three cell phones at the scene and halfway through the episode no one had even called 9-1-1 yet.

 

[DallasFanForever]

There’s no way Liam listens to Bill and keeps this quiet. I just can’t see it. I mean the guy looked like he was ready to rent a billboard and inform the entire city that he had slept with Steffy a few months ago so how does his conscience allow him to keep this a secret? He’s gonna make the mistake of telling the wrong person.

 

[Monzo]

Will we ever get a major storyline NOT including Liam? I'm already tired of it.

 

[Emelee]

Still no major shocker in sight. A minor character died. So far it appears to have been an accident, not murder. So far, no mystery about who and how. Vinny is dead. Finn has identified him. No mystery there. Bell sure exaggerated this story and we're all feeling the letdown. Nothing is worse than always creating a hype and never living up to it.