The Emmy Countdown
Last year, saying soaps were in trouble, was an incredible understatement. The only soaps with a ray of hope were All My Children with writing great Agnes Nixon and As the World Turns with writing novice Hogan Sheffer. It was no surprise then that both shows cleaned up in nominations and wins. But this year, while other soaps are beginning to improve, both of AMC and ATWT are growing lazy, resorting to cliches, silly scenes, and stories that spiral out of control.
Given that, when nominations came out this year, critics and fans expected a spreading of the wealth. Port Charles had done daring new storylines, Young and the Restless had seductive and talented actors playing delicious villains, One Life to Live showcased their talented young stars, Bold and the Beautiful had a new talented male protagonist, and even Passions gave some of their most campy characters three dimensions.
What happened was a curious at best, list of exclusions and inclusions, good and bad. And as we are only a week away from the awards, I thought I would shine the light on some of the people who shockingly ended off the ballot.
The Overlooked Ladies:
Terri Colombino (Katie Peretti Frasier) -- In Terri's last year eligible for younger actress, she faced the twice nominated Adrienne Frantz, which I believe is the main reason she didn't walk off with the statue. This year, she is in the big leagues and therefore her wonderfully savvy balance of humor and heart as Katie finally won the heart of rogue Simon Fraiser, got ignored. It is an even more painful exclusion since the people Terri worked most with, Paul Leyden and Hunt Block both got the recognition.
Sabryn Genet (Tricia Dennison) -- After years of The Young and the Restless getting the bulk of the nominations due to lack of better options, Sabryn's exclusion was shocking and perhaps one of the most egregious absences. The beauty of Sabryn's work as Tricia, is that it would have been easy for Sabryn to resort to easy cliches and ticks while trying to portray Tricia as off the deep end. Instead Sabryn relied on a consistently subtle smile that conveyed as much wickedness as it did sweetness.
Melissa Archer (Natalie Balsom)-- There are many reasons why the incredibly talented and complex work of Archer's should have been on the ballot. Probably the most obvious is the way she holds her own with soap veteran Erika Slezak, or perhaps the complete confidence of her performance and who her character is, despite the identity crisis she is faced with.
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