You've Gotten Under Our Skin
I think a soap canvas should have at least one annoying character on the canvas, not necessarily to fellow characters on the show, but to viewers. Characters that get on a town's and sometimes the viewers' nerves can be a good idea. It all goes back to the importance of having balance and variety on soaps. A character that initially seems to be useless or just annoying often is filling a purpose we aren't aware of at the time or may be there to illicit a specific emotion from viewers. So many shows clearly want to mix things up, have a character bring another element to the canvas. And that's fine, I think there should always be a person that adds a little bit of conflict in some way. In the beginning, they may be incredibly annoying and they may in fact always be annoying to an extent. But over time, more often than not they still find a place in your heart because they add an element to the show no other character can and when it is gone, so is a little piece of what the town has become.
But while many soap writers today no doubt are trying to create characters like that, their lack of talent results in characters that should have never shown up in the first place. The reason it is so complicated is because far too many characters today really are dead weight. Writers come up with these concepts, ideas, and they bring in someone new to say them, but don't think much farther than that. So when do we know that a character serves a purpose and when a character really is someone the writers should drop? After all, there is being annoying because that is the definition of the character and then there is being annoying because the character shouldn't exist. Here are few characters that I think are supposed to be adding to the canvas, but may just be bringing the show they are on, down.
Take for example Guiding Light's Jeffrey. Clearly there were two major objectives to Bradley Cole taking this role; creating an obstacle to the ridiculous Cassie and Edmund pairing and breathing a little controversy and antagonism into Springfield. After all, every other male troublemaker has either suddenly turned into a saint or is being treated like one even though they are clearly still jerks. Who else do they have to be annoying and contrary? Conboy and Weston's solution seemed so simple; hire back Cole whose exit had made many fans outraged and have him become the town's most annoying character. But it is that simplistic planning that has created the problem, there is nothing more to Jeffrey than an unclear career past, that horrible beard, and being annoying. Why, besides the obvious poor attempt at a triangle for Cassie's affection does he constantly bug her? Ed seemed disgusted to hear Mel was considering working with him when he'd barely even met him! Jeffrey's just instantly become the thorn in the town's side. And yet, keeping the character of Jeffrey wouldn't be a bad idea. Now before you throw things at your monitors, let me explain.
Latest Articles