What's the Frequency?© Sarah Lee
Apr 23, 2004
Let's face it; gone are the writing staffs that know how to balance a canvas full of characters, stories, and romances (with the exception of The Young and the Restless). So let's look at this problem from another angle. If we were in control of soaps and were just as biased as today's producers and writers, who would we have constantly on screen? Which stories would dominate airtime? What kind of romances would be featured? Would the choices we made be acceptable to the viewing public? I tend to think we would all assume the answer is yes. We know what is missing from soaps right? We know what viewers want to see. We could all just say get rid of the driftwood and bring back veterans, families, and return the focus back on established couples and core characters. In a previous column I spent too much time focusing on how many people were on a canvas, how often they were used, and how many storylines were featured within a few weeks. But now I'd dare say that choosing which stories, couples, and characters to devote the most screen time to would barely even be half the battle. We assume it is the sheer redundancy of certain characters or storylines that wear viewers down, but what if it that has very little to do with it? I think the audience suffers far more often from an overload that has nothing to do with who is in the story, how good it is, and how often it has been played. Examine for a moment Phillip's mental breakdown story on Guiding Light. At the end of last year, the burgeoning story was hailed by many as one of the best things done all year long. But now many that still are impressed by the actors and intrigued by what everyone is up to are tiring of it. The simple reason for this would be to point fingers at the writers for dragging it out so long. But the truth is, they haven't, really. The story isn't on every day; the story hasn't had a natural ending and continued on regardless. It hasn't lasted for a year and it is being executed beautifully. So if that isn't the problem, what is it? See I'm working on a theory that lack of balance in storytelling actually has nothing to do with who is on screen and how often. The audience has varying likes and dislikes and may be thrilled to see the same people over and over. Writers can't help that; even if they were writing in a way that would ensure most characters got similar amounts of airtime over the year. The repetition of stories is not as chronic a problem as the repetition of rhythm and moods.
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