Deep Soap: The Insider’s Guide To Daytime Drama (Column #1: Falling In And Out of Love)

By Sara A. Bibel

It started, like most addictions do, with a pusher. I was in junior high. My best friend encouraged me to check out a show called All My Children. After a couple episodes not only was I hooked, but my life was forever changed. I had fallen in love with soap operas. At first they loved me back. In the 1980s, they provided me with romance, glamour and awesome female role models. During high school, the couple of hours I spent watching the goings on in Genoa City and Santa Barbara were often the highlight of my day. I still want to be a hybrid of Julia Wainwright and Erica Kane when and if I grow up.
As an adult, our flirtation became a long term relationship. I got my dream job at The Young & The Restless. Eventually, I joined the writing staff for several happy years. Then I wrote for All My Children for several not-so-happy weeks. Next came the writers’ strike. And here I am, soap writer turned soap blogger.

But over the years, my TV boyfriend had changed. Romance was often replaced by violence. Nuanced characterization turned into sensationalistic plots. The fans grew frustrated. Many left. Those of us on the inside grew resigned and fearful. Instead of writing from the heart, stories were told from fear. Fear of doing something that the network wouldn’t like. Fear that a controversial story might drive away a few more viewers. Fear that the show would be canceled. Above all, a fear of losing our jobs.

As a result, soaps are no longer the most daring, envelope pushing shows on television (once upon a time, they were; One Life To Live did an interracial love story in 1968.) They’ve become stodgy and old-fashioned . Compare the timid, chaste way As The World Turns treats the gay romance between Luke and Noah, with the matter-of-fact portrayal of Kevin and Scotty’s relationship on Brothers & Sisters. The American television audience is no longer homophobic. But daytime thinks it is. It’s like my sexy lover packed on 50 pounds, developed an anger management problem, and wonders why I’m no longer attracted to him.

Despite all his problems, I just can’t quit daytime. We’ve been through too much together. There are still plenty of moments that remind me of why I fell for him in the first place. So I’m going to do everything I can to get the magic back. I intend to use this little slice of the internet to gently nudge soap operas to reach their full potential. I encourage you to post comments and questions about everything from how a soap writing staff works to why Sharon Collins Newman Abbott needs a new hairstyle. There will be interviews, critiques, and the occasional piece of juicy gossip. Together we can be a force for positive change in the industry. Think of it as couples counseling.


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