Small Town State of Mind
that the stories are all so character-driven, so action driven, or are grounded in reality, science fiction or the supernatural, that is the atmosphere. If that is what grabbed them, when you change that, there is a danger of alienating your entire audience.
For example, Days has nine times out of ten, remembered they are a small town, except now when it counts. A dozen people dead in a year's time, most of the very well known members of the community and the list of suspects are just as famous. In a town like Salem, wouldn't everyone be paralyzed with fear, and not just the residents Celeste marks for death? A young girl is beaten to death inside a piñata in the middle of town square and the town treats like that has happened before! It seems that now Reilly is counting on it being a bigger town. A town where maybe only news of Jack and Alice's death would be something that would cause a resident to read the full cover story on, but where that number of dead in a year is actually rather low considering or even not the only ones in town. It's like a serial killer is on the loose within a certain circle of people, not loose on the town. And that dramatically effects how people who have always been drawn to Salem's small town feel, react to the reactions (or lack thereof) of those in town.
And on the flip side, there is B&B, a soap that immediately set itself up in a large, real town and in the fashion business. Here is a place where there is no arguing that when Forrester has a major coup in the boardroom it effects what happens on the runways in Paris and Italy. The soap was set up this way and since then has had much smaller feel to it. It has the smallest cast of all of the soaps, it has the least amount of character turnover, no one comes into town without very quickly getting some connection to Brooke, Ridge, or Sally's family, and you'll see the same people over and over again. Theoretically that isn't a problem until you work too hard to maintain it. Samantha grew up with Ridge? Um, I don't think so. Brooke can't seem to find a single man that works outside of her business or family ties? Sure, you can buy
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