I have to disagree with your review of the Christian-Sayed Storyline. I think it's been badly told and badly acted. I do not believe the show's writers have at all made me believe why the pair is attracted to one another. What I do see are plenty of snarky comments and zingers thrown at each other. This is a profoundly lame gay storyline courtesy of Eastenders and the BBC!!!
Eastender's is decidedly a mixed bag for me. I do think that Syed's fear due to family and religion is an important and rarely addressed topic. So much for the good. However, I am finding Christian so weak in this relationship as he is playing the basic "abused wife" character, willing to take any kind of mistreatment to be with his "love". I am finding him less and less appealing. Get a spine and some self-respect, Christian... and a hot alternative boyfriend!
Also, the lack of physicality in their relationship makes it hard to take the melodrama seriously. Has gay love always been this boring? I wonder... what American soap does that remind me of?
Your excitement over the gay storylines on some of the foreign soaps this week finally convinced me to check a few of them out. I liked The Ran Quadruplet and think I'll track down the full episodes online--I'm interested in learning more about Etyan and seeing more interaction between him and his siblings. I loved All That Matters and will definitely have to catch up on those episodes (plus, I realized that my German isn't nearly as bad as I thought).
I'm looking forward to hearing Brett Claywell's entire interview with Brandon later tonight. He's such a thoughtful guy and his portrayal of Kyle has been great thus far.
As for the cancellation talk, ABC couldn't even be bothered to put out a legitimate denial of the rumors. Nowhere in their statement did they say that OLTL wasn't on the chopping block nor did they bother to say that the move to a new studio is proof of a recommitment to the show. I don't see how anyone can read that statement and feel confident that OLTL has a long future (if the brass have their way).
As other soap junkies have taken to doing, I just encourage everyone to watch OLTL. Watch it live on ABC, TiVo it, watch it on Soapnet...whatever you have to do to help this show's ratings, please do it.
---
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught inan inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment ofdestiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." - MLK
How dare you express genuine appreciation for talented actors featured in well-crafted stories! That is such a slap in the face to all the other gay soap couples that used to be praise worthy but have since gone off the rails. There's a name for people like you who would rush to abandon a sinking ship. FICKLE!!!
I would go with he's gay. There are some very steamy clips of him cheating on his bf with another guy... sound effects and all
http://www.youtube.com/user/Yehonathanmusic
(some videos are very NSFW) There are some videos labeled as 'Reviat Ran'
Hi Anothy, just wanted to say another good job. I do look forward to your column even thou sometimes I don't agree with you. I'm fan of Eastenders and I like the Christian and Syed storyline. It's true it's not physical as some of the other shows but I still like it.
I agree with many of your views on the shows.
The triangle is great on OLTL, Lenny and Carsten have amazing chemistry, and the Syed/Christian story ALMOST makes up for the lack of physical intimacy. But doesn't quite.
The problem is that I do think that the Syed/Christian story makes a lot of sense, but it often feels disjointed and senseless because we don't ever SEE what's really going on between these guys. In many ways, it resembles John Paul and Craig, but on Hollyoaks, we SAW how Craig used physical desire to keep John Paul, and how Craig was unable to resist his own physical desire. On Eastenders, it's like the same story is being told, but we don't see it, so the characters' actions don't quite make sense.
Why is it that Eastenders is being such a stick in the mud??? Do we know? I know Y&R and ATWT have the apparently conservative CBS to deal with, but I don't fully understand UK soaps. Is it because Eastenders has a different time slot than Hollyoaks? Is it the Muslim issue? Or is Eastenders, like CBS, simply too conservative for their own storylines?
The lack of physical affection doesn't make sense to me in terms of the show's history. EastEnders has had gay characters and told gay love stories in the past and there was onscreen physical affection. I just think it's odd we're not seeing it now, especially when you have other BBC shows, such as Doctors, which air during the day (EE airs at night) where their gay character kisses other guys and has bedroom scenes. It doesn't make sense on that level alone. And it is distracting from the story, no matter how good the acting might be.
eastenders has atleast twice the audience of doctors n if you check the boards, forums and chatrooms most seem homophobic. unlike hollyoaks or coronation street.
most ppl are at work or school during daytime so less ppl care and actually like sexy midday entertainment.
UK isn't wired like the US so if your thinking in terms of prudishness, homophobia or conservetism it wouldn't make sense.
The gap between the US and the UK is infinitely wider than the Atlantic when it comes to what's allowed on TV. Apart from anything gay, I just can't imagine an American channel being as prepared to face down critics as Channel 4 was earlier this year.
Just after the midday news, at 12.30pm they ran a week-long series of programmes in which leading artists gave a masterclass in drawing nudes. Peope hadn't even had their egg and cress sandwich for lunch and they were confronted with full-on public nudity - genital and everything - and intellectual talk about how you don't draw the model, you draw the space around the model.
When a couple of newspapers started to wax outraged, Channel 4 pointed out that it wasn't porn and it wasn't smutty, instead it was educational and it was art and the people criticising the programme clearly weren't very evolved. They also said that if any kids were watching, then if they were mature enough to watch the horrors on the news, then they were obviously mature enough to appreciate the human body. And anyway - why weren't those kids at school at that time of day?
So the outrage fizzled away and the channel continued running the programmes and said they'd probably do a new series next year.
I've tried to imagine that happening in the US and just face a conceptual blue screen of death. ABC or CBS or Fox or anyone else? Nope, does not compute, Captain.
With EastEnders in general (looking at the other couples on the show) a lot of relationship stuff happens off screen. It's weird.
There are very few sex scenes or even passionate make out scenes on the show overall. Entire conversations and plot points happen off screen and you often feel like you missed something.
Seriously I could make a long list of pivotal scenes from other storylines that never happened on screen and only get referred to and you're like "What? When?"
Some of the couples who are madly in barely touch each other and kiss like once per month even though they are on screen regularly. Others (where the sexual aspect of the relationship IS the plot point) are more demonstrative but not even close to what happens on Hollyoaks or Coronation Street or on a US Soap.
But regarding this storyline, I think that folks are not really embracing the empact that Syed being an unmarried Muslim man is having on the writing for the character.
He's supposed to be chaste and he is definitely supposed to be straight and he is neither. Both of those things alone are an afront to what a lot of religious folks believe. But on top of that, he's not just a Muslim by birth, he's a believer. He's not orthodox by any stretch but he respects his religion and wants to be a good Muslim.
So viewers can't just write him off as Muslim in name only. That huge.
Unlike Shameless's gay Muslim character (who was corrupt man in every possible way having nothing to do with religion or being gay) Syed is a PRACTICING Muslim who believes in Islam.
He's struggling and I think the lack of on-screen sexuality (for better or worse) makes that message accessible to viewers who might not be open to the idea of a gay Muslim character at all.
I can't say if it's right or wrong. On the one hand, I just want to see it all on screen and ignore the homophobic viewers and religious concerns.
On the other hand, I think this story is so important that however they get to tell it, if it's done well, BBC should make the compromises necessary to keep the story going.
But the eroticism is definitely present and I think it's clear they have a very sexual relationship and I think that because the story is well written I don't notice the lack of on-screen sex scenes as much as I might normally.
The show has to take into account the sensibilities of the Muslim communities of the UK. That kind of thing is true in every country and how you handle it can make or break your ability to follow through with the storyline (particularly on a long running show like EastEnders. It seems like viewer response is very postive overall so they must be doing something right.
It feels like the writers have been easing viewers into the idea of the love and struggle between the characters to make them care about and believe Syed's torment and unless they planning on killing one of the character or having them leave Walford it seems like there is room for Christian and Syed's onscreen resense to increase as time goes on.
While I would love to see it, I think if Syed was just happily shagging Christian on screen every week (even within the normal modesty standards of EastEnders) it might make it a lot harder for some viewers to accept that he’s struggling.
I'm not saying I agree with that or that I've done a study or anything but it makes sense given how viewers are about soaps.
Interestingly we’ve also had two difference scenes of Syed happily in Christian’s bed (something I’ve yet to see on any US soap) and even those scenes I think convey the care with which BBC is dealing with the sexual nature of Christian and Syed. We’ve never seen the two of them together in bed. It could just be a storytelling choice or it could be out of deference to Muslim communities and/or viewers. Who knows, but it's interesting.
Obviously some of us will find stuff like that offensive and intolerable but to me it's just part of what makes this story so difficult to tell and necessary.
I don't know if I'd be willing to accuse BBC of cowardice or homophobia. I think the fact that Doctors and other BBC shows have shown gay characters kissing and in bed (regardless whether it is daytime or evening programming) proves that it’s not about the BBC not wanting to show gay loves scenes or gay men kissing and obviously there are other considerations and influences here even if they aren’t explicitly stated by the writers and execs of EastEnders.
There is definitely an interesting juxtaposition between the physical passion of Syed’s relationship with Christian and his relationship with Amira. He’s been able to compartmentalize the two because he wasn’t having the emotional connection with Christian before Christian was hurt but since then, they are spending so much time together (to the point of Amira and his family constantly wondering where he is), Syed’s realizing his relationship with Christian is NOT just about sex which makes it a lot harder to separate it in his head an heart.
When he was sitting in the café this past week he was staring longingly and lovingly at Christian despite the fact that anyone could have noticed and he seemed oblivious to the fact (something that would never have happened before). He was clearly not even aware that he was doing it which made the scene all the more significant.
The religious aspects have ALWAYS been a big part of Syed's behavior and I don't think that needed to be spelled out because it was obvious. It has always been there right after he and Christian slept together after their first kiss.
When he and Christian had that conversation in the kitchen he talked about his shame and how important Islam is to him and how he could not reconcile the two. He also talked about the fact that he already brought “shame” to his family once and was banished and he's terrified of having it happen again.
The BBC IS pushing the envelope with this story but it seems like they are also to be sensitive to the fact that the real life Muslim communities have the show on their radar and if they want to get to tell the story, they have to be more careful than they might be if religion wasn’t a factor.
I know some viewers think writers and directors should NEVER compromise but I think this story is a first and firsts have to be handled with care.
I don't think that means it has to always be this way but it seems to be working for the BBC in terms of winning viewers over and having the storyline continue and be popular.
I don't think it's wrong for a network to handle things delicately and respectfully while still challenging bigotry. I think the difference here is that while ATWT had a "kissing ban" (alledgedly) there was no indication that Luke and Noah had a sexual relationship and I don't think that anyone could watch this show and think that and I feel the actors portray the passion of the characters for each other very, very well.
To me it feels like the BBC and writers of EastEnders have made great efforts to show both the tender, carrying and nurturing side of Christian and Syed but also make it expressly clear that they are having sex regularly and sex is a big part of their relationship.
But, it's not going to be to everyone's taste. I'd like to think that maybe presenting the story the way they have, the writers will be able to write for these characters for a much longer time and more viewers will grow to care about the characters and be open to seeing their struggle and become invested in their love story.
The writing and directing and acting make me feel something for these characters and their story so that's all I can really ask from a soap.
Those Israeli men are freakin' smokin', man. Big time. I've seen the protagonist before in one of Eytan Fox's films but I just don't remember which one right now. I'm very curious to see how this story develops between Eytan and Erez.
I have a very difficult time liking Lucas in the Dutch Good Times, Bad Times. Must be a cultural thing because that shit just doesn't fly with the way I was raised. It's too off-putting for me to see a child be such a megabitch to his mother, and I can't relate. I would so slap that kid in a hot second if I were the mom. End result is that I just can't empathize with Lucas, and it makes it difficult for me to care for the character let alone watch him continue his nasty routine.
On the other hand, while it's nothing we haven't seen before, Germany's version has Lenny and Carsten's tentative "friendship" developing nicely with both men always flashing back to erotic situations they have found themselves in. Where in Germany is this set anyway? And there's a very rough and tumble aspect to this relationship as both men hang out with a bunch of thugs who have a penchant for creating trouble and engaging in fisticuffs. Very butch but in an extremely dysfunctional way. I'm keeping my eye out for these two.
I can't bear the thought of OLTL's cancellation. Not now when the show is really on a creative high compared to its sister ABC soaps, which are rubbish. I'll just have to keep a positive attitude. Oh, and thanks for the preview of Brett Claywell's interview at Brandon's Buzz tomorrow. It already sounds like an exponentially better interview than the last one Brett did in June (before he was allowed to disclose the then-upcoming reveal that Oliver and Kyle played hide the salami during their college days).
Finally, I LOVE ADRIAN RODRIGUEZ and his character DAVID from FOQ. I am so late in the game FOQ-wise, but this guy is so freaking beautiful, and so hot. Fer's a lucky bitch!
That's why I said I have a love, hate relationship with Lucas because sometimes I just cannot stand the character and I wish he'd go away. The other times I think he's fun. I do think the show is going to have to tone down the bratiness at some point or the character will lose his appeal. But the reason the mother doesn't put the smackdown on him is because she feels guilty. She needs to get over that and show the kid who's boss, IMO.
I'm not even going there with OLTL. Just not gonna go there. But in all honesty, I've always been one to not deal with something until it happens. I'm a realist of course, but I don't believe in fretting about something I have no control over. So I'll just hope for the best and keep supporting the show any way I know how.
BTW, speaking of One Life, that scene today where John dialed the number and Jared's phone started ringing. I loved it. It was brilliant as was the gay marriage subplot. The one thing that gets me about this show is how they pack so many different stories in an episode. I think today's show had about 5 stories going on. But, it doesn't feel stuffed or rushed. There's always something interesting going on. Love it.
And the Brett interview.... I can't wait to hear the rest of myself. He's one of my favorite actors that I've interviewed over the past year, I gotta say.
About the German GTBT, it's the rough and tumble aspect to the relationship and their personas that make it interesting because it's going to be extremely difficult for them to have a relationship, assuming that's what's going to happen, the world they live in.
And yeah, FOQ's David is great. Not just because he's adorable, but his character is just so appealing. Love that kid.
Lucas isn't being a "megabitch" just for the sake of being a megabitch. There's an undercurrent that is causing Lucas to act out like this (like Anthony mentioned in his review as well). While Lucas was living in New York his mother never took a real interest in his life. I'm sure she didn't mean to do that, but she apparently never asked him if he was seeing someone and he had to hear from Nina what what going on in Meerdijk.
So now he comes back and all she basically does is telling him how disappointed she is in him. She's more talking at him than talking to him. Janine means well, but she makes mistakes. And her blurting out all the gay stereotypes she knew must've hurt.
I'm not excusing Lucas' behavior here. I don't think it's the best possible way to deal with it. But it's realistic. I know a lot of 18-year olds who are like him. There's no "villain" in this storyline. Lucas isn't 100% right or wrong (one look at the Lucas/Nina relationship should tell you that) and neither is Janine. What we have is a well-written character based storyline. Just my opinion. You can like it or you can dislike it (like with every show) but this is the way I see it.
ETA: I don't think Lucas will always be acting out like this. At some point I'm sure Lucas and Janine's relationship will be "fixed". But I'm enjoying the ride until that happens a lot.
I don't think there is any chance of Kish going over to AMC if the show is cancelled. That was just wishful thinking on Nelson Branco's part. Even if they did go over to AMC, I wouldn't watch, not with that hack Chuck Pratt writing the show.
I don't know if there's a chance or not. On the plus side, they seem to have a good combo of being new enough to not be expensive, but also having buzz and their own fanbase. So it might be more likely than it appears at first glance.
But I agree it probably would be better for them not to. I like both actors that I'll give their next projects a shot, but I'd rather that project be something other than the dishwater dull AMC. Still, I'd give them a chance if that was what their next thing turned out to be.
Pine Valley and Llanview are both suburbs of Philly and dozens of characters have crossed between the shows over the years. There's no reason Fish can't be transferred to the PV Police Squad for a promotion to detective or whatever. Kyle can get a job at a PV hospital, etc. It would help to appease some seriously angry fans.
I think that if OLTL were cancelled Frank Valentini and Ron Carvalati would cross over to AMC as well, with Chuck Pratt out of a job. No way Pratt could handle the cross-over characters in terms of tone and story. Pratt can go then back to Melrose Place, where he spent much of the 80's, and write for Heather again.
I would think the biggest cross-over concern would be whether the actors would want to move to LA. Scott may want to stay in New York to pursue theater, for instance.
I'd rather wait and see than get upset over possible futures.
I’m new to this series and perhaps a regular viewer can answer a question for me. Did we know before this episode that Carsten has had sex with men in the past?
Yeah - he told Lucy so in a previous episode (on Sept. 24th, actually).
Carsten: That never happened before...
Lucy: That you fell in love with a guy?
Carsten: I'm not gay. When I've been with a guy before, it was just on a whim.
Lucy: Wait a moment. You had sex with men before? But you aren't gay?
Carsten: Yes, but also with women. And with men there never were any feelings involved until now. Shit, man. I don't get it.
Yeah, sure. Straight guys often have sex with guys just on a whim. *wry grin*
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
Yeah, although there were some hints before when Lenny asked him if he was the first guy he came on to, and Carsten can't look him straight in the eye but looks away - as if guilty as charged. Also, at the end of the heated conversation Carsten says, "You can't fight against something like this all the time," (paraphrased) which could also be another hint.
Later, when Lenny confronts him again and accuses him of having had sex with men, Carsten doesn't deny that and only repeats that he isn't gay.
So you could reasonably assume before that Carsten wasn't entirely a stranger to homosexuality - but to what extent he 'dabbled' in it was unknown until he told Lucy that he had had sex with men.
This has been discussed in depth on the TGODT's GZSZ board, too - let's gimme a shoutout to the awesome folks on there! :-)
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
Well, not much has happened last week with Santi and Diego, I don't even think they've had any scenes together.. Well, Veronica (Santi's mom) is a witch. She's trying to de-gay her son. First she said to Santi that he wasn't normal, and that he had to change, then she went to Diego's house and she said Diego infected her son and that she wanted him to stay away from Santiago. Roberto (Santi's dad) talked with Diego though and said that it is not how he feel, and he accepts their relationship, and accepts the fact that Santi is gay. The last episode we had Veronica at a psychiatrist to try and get her to de-gay Santi. The psychiatrist said that's impossible of course, because it's who he is, that he was born that way. Veronica got furious and said she would destroy her. Then we had a scene at the hospital where Veronica is being the homophobic idiot she usually is, saying to Santiago that he can change, Santi said of course that he can't, it's who he is and then he threw her out.
As I said, not much SanDiego the past week.. I do hope we get to see more of them in the upcoming episodes, but I kinda doubt it. They are focusing on the lesbian storyline these days.
For those who are interested you can watch Niños Ricos Pobres Padres on Telemundo, it airs every day.
About Brett Claywell's radio interview – I hope we'll have a transcript! And is there any chance, we from outside the US can listen to it too? Can I login on www.blogtalkradio.com/brandonsbuzz and just liste to it too? What EU time would that be? Four in the morning… ? Shoot! I'm really trying to go to bed earlier, but I don't see that happening tonight..
Brett really does 'sound' different from his last interview. He sounds a bit 'pissed off' really. But he seems really passionate about the whole issue, standing up for it.
The bit about being Brett between 'cut' and 'action' and being Kyle between 'action' and 'cut' and being able to turn it on and off, puzzles me a bit. It sounds as if he's angry about something. But then he says that you have to be either Kyle or Brett at that moment where nothing else exists'. Sounds like the guy is 100% committed to what he does and his own self. If that makes sense. Anyay, it feels right he says, and I like that.
And he's got a degree in architecture! I like that too! I started out with studying architecture. Stopped it for a number of reasons, but my interest in architecture's still very much there. Cool!
Is there any chance one day to have an interview with Brett Claywell or Scott Evans, where we AE readers, can submit questions? We had that for the guys on Verbotene Liebe. I would love that! Even if only to tell them that they have both so damn sexy voices! ;o)
You can listen to the interview "live" from blogtalkradio.com at 10 PM (ET) or you can just check the website anytime after that to stream the interview or download the podcast.
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"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught inan inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment ofdestiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." - MLK
Rereading the quote, I would imagine it was the bit about Mark Twain being pissed off that led to to think that. But I think he was just saying that every creative person thinks their work is imperfect.
Brett does not come off as angry or "pissed off" at all in the interview. I found him to be a charming, funny, profoundly convicted young man who is extremely passionate about what he does, and who is inexpressibly grateful for the opportunity that "One Life" has offered him to shine.
I doubt there will be a transcript, as I have been swamped lately with my day job, but my show is available in a multitude of ways: you can listen to it at the show's website, http://www.blogtalkradio.com/brandonsbuzz, where it (and all of my other episodes) is archived forever. There is also a full radio archive at my blog, http://brandonsbuzz.com. (Just click on the blue "radio" button at the top of the page.) The show is also available as a podcast from the iTunes music store. (Type "Brandon's Buzz" in the store's search box and scroll down to the podcast section.)
Thank you pecola. Thank you Brandon! I will check out the interview on your blog or in iTunes!
I didn't mean to offend Brett or you, but reading the excerpts on AE, just as a text, made me wonder. I guess I tried to read something between the lines, that wasn't there.. I'm pretty sure that listening to him talk will be an altogether different matter. A while ago I listened to him in a short interview on YouTube (DayTime Emmy Awards) and he seems to be extremely and honestly invested in this storyline and issue.
This is the problem with transcripts- you can't read anything between any lines when somethings not actually meant to be read. People express themselves completely differently if they're being listened to- when writing people tend to make more effort to put their tone in the words (which is a hard skill), but from a transcript you can't use the words to find the tone.
I didn't think it was spoilery at all. He really doesn't reveal anything, more like 'the story gets better from here' and he says he and Scott have scenes coming up that he's very proud of. Stuff like that. But no actual spoilers.
it doesn't go into any explicit spoilers from what I can remember. You should be safe to hear it. Altho someone else can back me up on the spoiler claim to be safe. It was a great interview.
Anthony, thanks for another great column. And kudos for plugging the Broadway Flea Market, which benefits Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Just for the record, this year's amount wasn't a record. Last year's market raised more ($496,380), but because of the threat of rain, it had to be moved indoors to Roseland, a giant dance club, so raising over $400,000 was still a triumph. And thanks to everyone who came by to pick up ''The Leading Men IV'' DVD, featuring Nicholas Rodriguez & lotsa Broadway boys singing; the DVDs of BC/EFA benefits, which included the sizzling Broadway Bares, raised over $12,000 alone (www.broadwaybeat.com).
Before I even got through the first paragraph of GOOL I wanted to comment on the picture of Brett Claywell for the GOOL link on the AE homepage. Very intense, sort of a blue steel look. LOL Me likee!
Yes, he is bratty, spoiled, irritanting and a total slut, but he is very funny, i can't help but like him
And the german version of good times, bad times is great. Yes, the story is not exactly surprising, but it's full of angst and i love it, it reminds me a little of McDean
thanks Anthony for another wonderful column, i'm very exciting to looking forward for Lenny and Carsten upcoming romance,very good story and very nice acting from both actors,sexual tension between the boys just incredible,i really can feel it,just wow!
Gosh!i'm really really hope that all those rumors around OLTL cancellation will never turn to reality ,i've never watch 'All my children' opera,but what i heard about it doesn't give me a big hope they would ever treat gay story as good as OLTL does.
Dennis Grabosch's husband looks not bad,but to be honest he looks more like his father than his husband,i mean isn't he is a bit old for Dennis?how old is he?
and VL is still dull and annoying,all those stupid plots around that stupid chick Rebbecca just bored me to death,she is a bad actress and it looks like she steal the story from boys,i can't stand it anymore,bring the story for boys already!the writers just screwed up the most amazing gay story ever on TV,what a shame! huh?
Lucas is more than "spoiled" or a "brat". His feelings about Janine are have a basis and he's clearly very hurt and feels that she abandoned him (not literally but emotionally). He's trying to prove a point which Janine is refusing to get. Janine failed on the mothering front long before Lucas got home (at maybe the most crucial time for a teen) and now she's got to deal with the consequences.
There are definitely some cultural differences between the way European kids and parents interact and I don't think we should overlay American "standards" onto a show that isn't American.
A big part of the tension between Janine and Lucas has to do with their history and their relationship and the issues are universal I think.
Lucas is is like a walking, talking reminder of a huge scandal in Janine's past (of the Saunders family in general). The circumstances of his birth cleary are a factor in how Janine relates to him (guilt, denial, etc) and how he feels about her.
I think Lucas is giving Janine a wake up call she NEEDS to have.
Randomly laying down the law with an almost adult child you basically ignored and spent no time getting to know is never going to work. It's clear from Lucas' relationship with other characters that he's actually very loving and kind and vulnerable (and fiercely protective of his family) and not just badass.
He wants desperately to have a relationship with his mother (which in an of itself is a different for an 18-year-old boy).
Lucas wants it enough to try to force her to engage with him (with questionable tactics yes but the underlying feelings are what matters)
Carsten and Lenny (Gute Zeiten Schlechte Zeiten)
Regarding Lenny, I think folks would benefit from watching the clips of Lenny's past on the Youtube channel. He is definitely a character where you NEED to see where he has come from in order to understand how he got to where he is now.
There is nothing "typical" about his back story or the relationship he has with Carsten (beyond just their belonging to a fight club) and I find that so refreshing.
Comparing the Shows
Obviously you could simply like one show better than the other but I think the voting above reflects how people feel about the characters not the shows. GTST has a gay character, not a gay storyline. Right now his storyline IS about him and his mother and his coming home and their relationship. That's the story they are telling vis a vis Lucas. His being gay is a factor but it's not even the most important thing going on. I love that.
Having said that, I don't even know how I could compare the shows. The cultural and contextual differences are so great.
Verbotene Liebe and Goede Tijden Slechte Tijden seem even more similar to each other than GZSZ and GTST are to each other.
I think some soaps are so similar that comparing them is inevitable but these two shows (and the gay characters portrayed) are just coming from such different places emotionally and situationally, it feels impossible to compare.
I love them both for completely different reasons and I'm enjoying the story lines immensely.
Shout Out
Just want to show my appreciation to for Markdutchviewer / GTSTfanMark, Isakja and Neenski from The Gays of Daytime message board for their Youtube/Dailymotion Channels, transcriptions and subtitles.
Without them I would never have known about or been able to understand these great shows.
You're welcome! *smiles* It's a pleasure to do the translation for GZSZ
and I hope that we'll enjoy the storyline for a long time to come! :-)
Quote:
There are definitely some cultural differences between the way European
kids and parents interact and I don't think we should overlay American
"standards" onto a show that isn't American.
This, so much. *nods*
Quote:
Regarding Lenny, I think folks would benefit from watching the clips of
Lenny's past on the Youtube channel. He is definitely a character where
you NEED to see where he has come from in order to understand how he
got to where he is now.
There is nothing "typical" about his back story or the relationship he
has with Carsten (beyond just their belonging to a fight club) and I
find that so refreshing.
I agree! Lenny's backstory does explain a lot about why he's
behaving in such a shitty way. Most importantly, he's got major issues with being
perceived as weak and gay, and these two are
connected for him in a negative way due to his father who couldn't
accept the 'old' Lenny who was sensitive and a bit of a loner and loved
to draw, and also to his time at the military service (Bundeswehr)
where he was constantly bullied because of the same reason. Also, his father and his comrades at the Bundeswehr strongly believed him to be gay (although at the time, Lenny didn't identify as such nor was he interested in guys but had a major crush on a girl).
This is discussed more in-depth on the TGODT GZSZ board, in case you're interested. :)
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
I really like Riley last season of Degrassi, i think he is a character with a lot of potential, but i don't like the spoilers at all. The angst and the struggle is ok, but he needs to move on, he tried with a girl last season, i think there's no reason to repeat storylines, he needs to advance at leas a little, because at this rythm, he'll turn 25 and he will be stuck at the same point
by 
Your Eastender's Review
Eastender's is decidedly a
Eastender's is decidedly a mixed bag for me. I do think that Syed's fear due to family and religion is an important and rarely addressed topic. So much for the good. However, I am finding Christian so weak in this relationship as he is playing the basic "abused wife" character, willing to take any kind of mistreatment to be with his "love". I am finding him less and less appealing. Get a spine and some self-respect, Christian... and a hot alternative boyfriend!
Also, the lack of physicality in their relationship makes it hard to take the melodrama seriously. Has gay love always been this boring? I wonder... what American soap does that remind me of?
GOOL
Great column this week, Anthony.
Your excitement over the gay storylines on some of the foreign soaps this week finally convinced me to check a few of them out. I liked The Ran Quadruplet and think I'll track down the full episodes online--I'm interested in learning more about Etyan and seeing more interaction between him and his siblings. I loved All That Matters and will definitely have to catch up on those episodes (plus, I realized that my German isn't nearly as bad as I thought).
I'm looking forward to hearing Brett Claywell's entire interview with Brandon later tonight. He's such a thoughtful guy and his portrayal of Kyle has been great thus far.
As for the cancellation talk, ABC couldn't even be bothered to put out a legitimate denial of the rumors. Nowhere in their statement did they say that OLTL wasn't on the chopping block nor did they bother to say that the move to a new studio is proof of a recommitment to the show. I don't see how anyone can read that statement and feel confident that OLTL has a long future (if the brass have their way).
As other soap junkies have taken to doing, I just encourage everyone to watch OLTL. Watch it live on ABC, TiVo it, watch it on Soapnet...whatever you have to do to help this show's ratings, please do it.
---
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught inan inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment ofdestiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." - MLK
How dare you, Anthony!
How dare you express genuine appreciation for talented actors featured in well-crafted stories! That is such a slap in the face to all the other gay soap couples that used to be praise worthy but have since gone off the rails. There's a name for people like you who would rush to abandon a sinking ship. FICKLE!!!
Have you no decency, man? ;Þ
Of course, I kid. You rock, Anthony!
Ran Quadruplet
GOOL
I agree with many of your
It Doesn't Make Sense....
I agree
Maybe Marc Elliott has a problem with the physical affection and he told whomevers in charge.
There are a lot of straight actors out there that will play gay if there isn't a lot of physical affection required.
eastenders has atleast twice
eastenders has atleast twice the audience of doctors n if you check the boards, forums and chatrooms most seem homophobic. unlike hollyoaks or coronation street.
most ppl are at work or school during daytime so less ppl care and actually like sexy midday entertainment.
UK isn't wired like the US so if your thinking in terms of prudishness, homophobia or conservetism it wouldn't make sense.
True enough
The gap between the US and the UK is infinitely wider than the Atlantic when it comes to what's allowed on TV. Apart from anything gay, I just can't imagine an American channel being as prepared to face down critics as Channel 4 was earlier this year.
Just after the midday news, at 12.30pm they ran a week-long series of programmes in which leading artists gave a masterclass in drawing nudes. Peope hadn't even had their egg and cress sandwich for lunch and they were confronted with full-on public nudity - genital and everything - and intellectual talk about how you don't draw the model, you draw the space around the model.
When a couple of newspapers started to wax outraged, Channel 4 pointed out that it wasn't porn and it wasn't smutty, instead it was educational and it was art and the people criticising the programme clearly weren't very evolved. They also said that if any kids were watching, then if they were mature enough to watch the horrors on the news, then they were obviously mature enough to appreciate the human body. And anyway - why weren't those kids at school at that time of day?
So the outrage fizzled away and the channel continued running the programmes and said they'd probably do a new series next year.
I've tried to imagine that happening in the US and just face a conceptual blue screen of death. ABC or CBS or Fox or anyone else? Nope, does not compute, Captain.
EastEnders
With EastEnders in general (looking at the other couples on the show) a lot of relationship stuff happens off screen. It's weird.
There are very few sex scenes or even passionate make out scenes on the show overall. Entire conversations and plot points happen off screen and you often feel like you missed something.
Seriously I could make a long list of pivotal scenes from other storylines that never happened on screen and only get referred to and you're like "What? When?"
Some of the couples who are madly in barely touch each other and kiss like once per month even though they are on screen regularly. Others (where the sexual aspect of the relationship IS the plot point) are more demonstrative but not even close to what happens on Hollyoaks or Coronation Street or on a US Soap.
But regarding this storyline, I think that folks are not really embracing the empact that Syed being an unmarried Muslim man is having on the writing for the character.
He's supposed to be chaste and he is definitely supposed to be straight and he is neither. Both of those things alone are an afront to what a lot of religious folks believe. But on top of that, he's not just a Muslim by birth, he's a believer. He's not orthodox by any stretch but he respects his religion and wants to be a good Muslim.
So viewers can't just write him off as Muslim in name only. That huge.
Unlike Shameless's gay Muslim character (who was corrupt man in every possible way having nothing to do with religion or being gay) Syed is a PRACTICING Muslim who believes in Islam.
He's struggling and I think the lack of on-screen sexuality (for better or worse) makes that message accessible to viewers who might not be open to the idea of a gay Muslim character at all.
I can't say if it's right or wrong. On the one hand, I just want to see it all on screen and ignore the homophobic viewers and religious concerns.
On the other hand, I think this story is so important that however they get to tell it, if it's done well, BBC should make the compromises necessary to keep the story going.
But the eroticism is definitely present and I think it's clear they have a very sexual relationship and I think that because the story is well written I don't notice the lack of on-screen sex scenes as much as I might normally.
The show has to take into account the sensibilities of the Muslim communities of the UK. That kind of thing is true in every country and how you handle it can make or break your ability to follow through with the storyline (particularly on a long running show like EastEnders. It seems like viewer response is very postive overall so they must be doing something right.
It feels like the writers have been easing viewers into the idea of the love and struggle between the characters to make them care about and believe Syed's torment and unless they planning on killing one of the character or having them leave Walford it seems like there is room for Christian and Syed's onscreen resense to increase as time goes on.
While I would love to see it, I think if Syed was just happily shagging Christian on screen every week (even within the normal modesty standards of EastEnders) it might make it a lot harder for some viewers to accept that he’s struggling.
I'm not saying I agree with that or that I've done a study or anything but it makes sense given how viewers are about soaps.
Interestingly we’ve also had two difference scenes of Syed happily in Christian’s bed (something I’ve yet to see on any US soap) and even those scenes I think convey the care with which BBC is dealing with the sexual nature of Christian and Syed. We’ve never seen the two of them together in bed. It could just be a storytelling choice or it could be out of deference to Muslim communities and/or viewers. Who knows, but it's interesting.
Obviously some of us will find stuff like that offensive and intolerable but to me it's just part of what makes this story so difficult to tell and necessary.
I don't know if I'd be willing to accuse BBC of cowardice or homophobia. I think the fact that Doctors and other BBC shows have shown gay characters kissing and in bed (regardless whether it is daytime or evening programming) proves that it’s not about the BBC not wanting to show gay loves scenes or gay men kissing and obviously there are other considerations and influences here even if they aren’t explicitly stated by the writers and execs of EastEnders.
There is definitely an interesting juxtaposition between the physical passion of Syed’s relationship with Christian and his relationship with Amira. He’s been able to compartmentalize the two because he wasn’t having the emotional connection with Christian before Christian was hurt but since then, they are spending so much time together (to the point of Amira and his family constantly wondering where he is), Syed’s realizing his relationship with Christian is NOT just about sex which makes it a lot harder to separate it in his head an heart.
When he was sitting in the café this past week he was staring longingly and lovingly at Christian despite the fact that anyone could have noticed and he seemed oblivious to the fact (something that would never have happened before). He was clearly not even aware that he was doing it which made the scene all the more significant.
The religious aspects have ALWAYS been a big part of Syed's behavior and I don't think that needed to be spelled out because it was obvious. It has always been there right after he and Christian slept together after their first kiss.
When he and Christian had that conversation in the kitchen he talked about his shame and how important Islam is to him and how he could not reconcile the two. He also talked about the fact that he already brought “shame” to his family once and was banished and he's terrified of having it happen again.
The BBC IS pushing the envelope with this story but it seems like they are also to be sensitive to the fact that the real life Muslim communities have the show on their radar and if they want to get to tell the story, they have to be more careful than they might be if religion wasn’t a factor.
I know some viewers think writers and directors should NEVER compromise but I think this story is a first and firsts have to be handled with care.
I don't think that means it has to always be this way but it seems to be working for the BBC in terms of winning viewers over and having the storyline continue and be popular.
I don't think it's wrong for a network to handle things delicately and respectfully while still challenging bigotry. I think the difference here is that while ATWT had a "kissing ban" (alledgedly) there was no indication that Luke and Noah had a sexual relationship and I don't think that anyone could watch this show and think that and I feel the actors portray the passion of the characters for each other very, very well.
To me it feels like the BBC and writers of EastEnders have made great efforts to show both the tender, carrying and nurturing side of Christian and Syed but also make it expressly clear that they are having sex regularly and sex is a big part of their relationship.
But, it's not going to be to everyone's taste. I'd like to think that maybe presenting the story the way they have, the writers will be able to write for these characters for a much longer time and more viewers will grow to care about the characters and be open to seeing their struggle and become invested in their love story.
The writing and directing and acting make me feel something for these characters and their story so that's all I can really ask from a soap.
Ran Quadruplets and Good Times, Bad Times Etc.
Those Israeli men are freakin' smokin', man. Big time. I've seen the protagonist before in one of Eytan Fox's films but I just don't remember which one right now. I'm very curious to see how this story develops between Eytan and Erez.
I have a very difficult time liking Lucas in the Dutch Good Times, Bad Times. Must be a cultural thing because that shit just doesn't fly with the way I was raised. It's too off-putting for me to see a child be such a megabitch to his mother, and I can't relate. I would so slap that kid in a hot second if I were the mom. End result is that I just can't empathize with Lucas, and it makes it difficult for me to care for the character let alone watch him continue his nasty routine.
On the other hand, while it's nothing we haven't seen before, Germany's version has Lenny and Carsten's tentative "friendship" developing nicely with both men always flashing back to erotic situations they have found themselves in. Where in Germany is this set anyway? And there's a very rough and tumble aspect to this relationship as both men hang out with a bunch of thugs who have a penchant for creating trouble and engaging in fisticuffs. Very butch but in an extremely dysfunctional way. I'm keeping my eye out for these two.
I can't bear the thought of OLTL's cancellation. Not now when the show is really on a creative high compared to its sister ABC soaps, which are rubbish. I'll just have to keep a positive attitude. Oh, and thanks for the preview of Brett Claywell's interview at Brandon's Buzz tomorrow. It already sounds like an exponentially better interview than the last one Brett did in June (before he was allowed to disclose the then-upcoming reveal that Oliver and Kyle played hide the salami during their college days).
Finally, I LOVE ADRIAN RODRIGUEZ and his character DAVID from FOQ. I am so late in the game FOQ-wise, but this guy is so freaking beautiful, and so hot. Fer's a lucky bitch!
Lucas and Stuff...
That's why I said I have a love, hate relationship with Lucas because sometimes I just cannot stand the character and I wish he'd go away. The other times I think he's fun. I do think the show is going to have to tone down the bratiness at some point or the character will lose his appeal. But the reason the mother doesn't put the smackdown on him is because she feels guilty. She needs to get over that and show the kid who's boss, IMO.
I'm not even going there with OLTL. Just not gonna go there. But in all honesty, I've always been one to not deal with something until it happens. I'm a realist of course, but I don't believe in fretting about something I have no control over. So I'll just hope for the best and keep supporting the show any way I know how.
BTW, speaking of One Life, that scene today where John dialed the number and Jared's phone started ringing. I loved it. It was brilliant as was the gay marriage subplot. The one thing that gets me about this show is how they pack so many different stories in an episode. I think today's show had about 5 stories going on. But, it doesn't feel stuffed or rushed. There's always something interesting going on. Love it.
And the Brett interview.... I can't wait to hear the rest of myself. He's one of my favorite actors that I've interviewed over the past year, I gotta say.
About the German GTBT, it's the rough and tumble aspect to the relationship and their personas that make it interesting because it's going to be extremely difficult for them to have a relationship, assuming that's what's going to happen, the world they live in.
And yeah, FOQ's David is great. Not just because he's adorable, but his character is just so appealing. Love that kid.
I can empathize with Lucas
Lucas isn't being a "megabitch" just for the sake of being a megabitch. There's an undercurrent that is causing Lucas to act out like this (like Anthony mentioned in his review as well). While Lucas was living in New York his mother never took a real interest in his life. I'm sure she didn't mean to do that, but she apparently never asked him if he was seeing someone and he had to hear from Nina what what going on in Meerdijk.
So now he comes back and all she basically does is telling him how disappointed she is in him. She's more talking at him than talking to him. Janine means well, but she makes mistakes. And her blurting out all the gay stereotypes she knew must've hurt.
I'm not excusing Lucas' behavior here. I don't think it's the best possible way to deal with it. But it's realistic. I know a lot of 18-year olds who are like him. There's no "villain" in this storyline. Lucas isn't 100% right or wrong (one look at the Lucas/Nina relationship should tell you that) and neither is Janine. What we have is a well-written character based storyline. Just my opinion. You can like it or you can dislike it (like with every show) but this is the way I see it.
ETA: I don't think Lucas will always be acting out like this. At some point I'm sure Lucas and Janine's relationship will be "fixed". But I'm enjoying the ride until that happens a lot.
Quote:Where in Germany is
In Berlin. :-)
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
I don't think there is any
Possible AMC Transfers
I don't know if there's a chance or not. On the plus side, they seem to have a good combo of being new enough to not be expensive, but also having buzz and their own fanbase. So it might be more likely than it appears at first glance.
But I agree it probably would be better for them not to. I like both actors that I'll give their next projects a shot, but I'd rather that project be something other than the dishwater dull AMC. Still, I'd give them a chance if that was what their next thing turned out to be.
Don't despair
Pine Valley and Llanview are both suburbs of Philly and dozens of characters have crossed between the shows over the years. There's no reason Fish can't be transferred to the PV Police Squad for a promotion to detective or whatever. Kyle can get a job at a PV hospital, etc. It would help to appease some seriously angry fans.
I think that if OLTL were cancelled Frank Valentini and Ron Carvalati would cross over to AMC as well, with Chuck Pratt out of a job. No way Pratt could handle the cross-over characters in terms of tone and story. Pratt can go then back to Melrose Place, where he spent much of the 80's, and write for Heather again.
I would think the biggest cross-over concern would be whether the actors would want to move to LA. Scott may want to stay in New York to pursue theater, for instance.
I'd rather wait and see than get upset over possible futures.
It's Eytan, not Etyan, by
It's Eytan, not Etyan, by the way.
I’m new to this series and perhaps a regular viewer can answer a question for me. Did we know before this episode that Carsten has had sex with men in the past?
Yeah - he told Lucy so in a previous episode (on Sept. 24th, actually).
Carsten: That never happened before...
Lucy: That you fell in love with a guy?
Carsten: I'm not gay. When I've been with a guy before, it was just on a whim.
Lucy: Wait a moment. You had sex with men before? But you aren't gay?
Carsten: Yes, but also with women. And with men there never were any feelings involved until now. Shit, man. I don't get it.
Yeah, sure. Straight guys often have sex with guys just on a whim. *wry grin*
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
Thanks!
Based on the subbed clips...
Yeah, although there were
Yeah, although there were some hints before when Lenny asked him if he was the first guy he came on to, and Carsten can't look him straight in the eye but looks away - as if guilty as charged. Also, at the end of the heated conversation Carsten says, "You can't fight against something like this all the time," (paraphrased) which could also be another hint.
Later, when Lenny confronts him again and accuses him of having had sex with men, Carsten doesn't deny that and only repeats that he isn't gay.
So you could reasonably assume before that Carsten wasn't entirely a stranger to homosexuality - but to what extent he 'dabbled' in it was unknown until he told Lucy that he had had sex with men.
This has been discussed in depth on the TGODT's GZSZ board, too - let's gimme a shoutout to the awesome folks on there! :-)
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
NRPP Santi and Diego
Well, not much has happened last week with Santi and Diego, I don't even think they've had any scenes together.. Well, Veronica (Santi's mom) is a witch. She's trying to de-gay her son. First she said to Santi that he wasn't normal, and that he had to change, then she went to Diego's house and she said Diego infected her son and that she wanted him to stay away from Santiago. Roberto (Santi's dad) talked with Diego though and said that it is not how he feel, and he accepts their relationship, and accepts the fact that Santi is gay. The last episode we had Veronica at a psychiatrist to try and get her to de-gay Santi. The psychiatrist said that's impossible of course, because it's who he is, that he was born that way. Veronica got furious and said she would destroy her. Then we had a scene at the hospital where Veronica is being the homophobic idiot she usually is, saying to Santiago that he can change, Santi said of course that he can't, it's who he is and then he threw her out.
As I said, not much SanDiego the past week.. I do hope we get to see more of them in the upcoming episodes, but I kinda doubt it. They are focusing on the lesbian storyline these days.
For those who are interested you can watch Niños Ricos Pobres Padres on Telemundo, it airs every day.
Also check out these channels:
http://www.youtube.com/user/homonikum
http://www.youtube.com/user/SanDiegoSubs
Harvey Milk: You gotta give 'em hope.
Brett Claywell, who else?
About Brett Claywell's radio interview – I hope we'll have a transcript! And is there any chance, we from outside the US can listen to it too? Can I login on www.blogtalkradio.com/brandonsbuzz and just liste to it too? What EU time would that be? Four in the morning… ? Shoot! I'm really trying to go to bed earlier, but I don't see that happening tonight..
Brett really does 'sound' different from his last interview. He sounds a bit 'pissed off' really. But he seems really passionate about the whole issue, standing up for it.
The bit about being Brett between 'cut' and 'action' and being Kyle between 'action' and 'cut' and being able to turn it on and off, puzzles me a bit. It sounds as if he's angry about something. But then he says that you have to be either Kyle or Brett at that moment where nothing else exists'. Sounds like the guy is 100% committed to what he does and his own self. If that makes sense. Anyay, it feels right he says, and I like that.
And he's got a degree in architecture! I like that too! I started out with studying architecture. Stopped it for a number of reasons, but my interest in architecture's still very much there. Cool!
Is there any chance one day to have an interview with Brett Claywell or Scott Evans, where we AE readers, can submit questions? We had that for the guys on Verbotene Liebe. I would love that! Even if only to tell them that they have both so damn sexy voices! ;o)
Podcast
You can listen to the interview "live" from blogtalkradio.com at 10 PM (ET) or you can just check the website anytime after that to stream the interview or download the podcast.
---
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught inan inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment ofdestiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." - MLK
Claywell's Comments
That's precisely what I took
Okay okay! ;o)
I will listen to his interview as soon as it's up!
Can't wait!
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Would somebody hug OLIVER, already!?
I can assure you
Brett does not come off as angry or "pissed off" at all in the interview. I found him to be a charming, funny, profoundly convicted young man who is extremely passionate about what he does, and who is inexpressibly grateful for the opportunity that "One Life" has offered him to shine.
I doubt there will be a transcript, as I have been swamped lately with my day job, but my show is available in a multitude of ways: you can listen to it at the show's website, http://www.blogtalkradio.com/brandonsbuzz, where it (and all of my other episodes) is archived forever. There is also a full radio archive at my blog, http://brandonsbuzz.com. (Just click on the blue "radio" button at the top of the page.) The show is also available as a podcast from the iTunes music store. (Type "Brandon's Buzz" in the store's search box and scroll down to the podcast section.)
Brett Claywell interview
Thank you pecola. Thank you Brandon! I will check out the interview on your blog or in iTunes!
I didn't mean to offend Brett or you, but reading the excerpts on AE, just as a text, made me wonder. I guess I tried to read something between the lines, that wasn't there.. I'm pretty sure that listening to him talk will be an altogether different matter. A while ago I listened to him in a short interview on YouTube (DayTime Emmy Awards) and he seems to be extremely and honestly invested in this storyline and issue.
In any case, thank you for the feedback.
--------------------------------
Would somebody hug OLIVER, already!?
This is the problem with
This is the problem with transcripts- you can't read anything between any lines when somethings not actually meant to be read. People express themselves completely differently if they're being listened to- when writing people tend to make more effort to put their tone in the words (which is a hard skill), but from a transcript you can't use the words to find the tone.
Sorry I've just been reading an essay on this.
Brandonsbuzz
Cool stuff! I'm actually listening to Nicholas Rodriguez interview (of September 9th) as I'm writing!
Can't wait for Brett Claywell's interview! Before it's up, I'll listen to his interview from June.
THANKS!
[Happened before, but I just can't give out stars for comments of other commentators. What's up with that?]
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Would somebody hug OLIVER, already!?
Brett Claywell's interview!
I should be in bed for hours now, but I can't help I'm listening to it now and I love it! LOVE HOW MUCH FUN YOU SEEM TO HAVE.
Some hickup with the sound though from time to time..
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Would somebody hug OLIVER, already!?
Brett's Interview
Not At All...
brett's interview
Thanks
Broadway Flea Market
Nice pic of Brett
I can't..
..give out stars anymore, but I wanted to agree with you about Brett's picture! Very intense!
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Would somebody hug OLIVER, already!?
Thank you! I can barely
Thank you! I can barely get my boyfriend to agree with me so it always great to read that. LOL
Are you kidding?
Your boyfriend doesn't agree with this? That picture of Brett is hot and deep and oooozes intensity!
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Would somebody hug OLIVER, already!?
I really like Lucas
Great GOOL!
thanks Anthony for another wonderful column, i'm very exciting to looking forward for Lenny and Carsten upcoming romance,very good story and very nice acting from both actors,sexual tension between the boys just incredible,i really can feel it,just wow!
Gosh!i'm really really hope that all those rumors around OLTL cancellation will never turn to reality ,i've never watch 'All my children' opera,but what i heard about it doesn't give me a big hope they would ever treat gay story as good as OLTL does.
Dennis Grabosch's husband looks not bad,but to be honest he looks more like his father than his husband,i mean isn't he is a bit old for Dennis?how old is he?
and VL is still dull and annoying,all those stupid plots around that stupid chick Rebbecca just bored me to death,she is a bad actress and it looks like she steal the story from boys,i can't stand it anymore,bring the story for boys already!the writers just screwed up the most amazing gay story ever on TV,what a shame! huh?
GTST and GZSZ
Lucas ( Goede Tijden Slechte Tijden)
Lucas is more than "spoiled" or a "brat". His feelings about Janine are have a basis and he's clearly very hurt and feels that she abandoned him (not literally but emotionally). He's trying to prove a point which Janine is refusing to get. Janine failed on the mothering front long before Lucas got home (at maybe the most crucial time for a teen) and now she's got to deal with the consequences.
There are definitely some cultural differences between the way European kids and parents interact and I don't think we should overlay American "standards" onto a show that isn't American.
A big part of the tension between Janine and Lucas has to do with their history and their relationship and the issues are universal I think.
Lucas is is like a walking, talking reminder of a huge scandal in Janine's past (of the Saunders family in general). The circumstances of his birth cleary are a factor in how Janine relates to him (guilt, denial, etc) and how he feels about her.
I think Lucas is giving Janine a wake up call she NEEDS to have.
Randomly laying down the law with an almost adult child you basically ignored and spent no time getting to know is never going to work. It's clear from Lucas' relationship with other characters that he's actually very loving and kind and vulnerable (and fiercely protective of his family) and not just badass.
He wants desperately to have a relationship with his mother (which in an of itself is a different for an 18-year-old boy).
Lucas wants it enough to try to force her to engage with him (with questionable tactics yes but the underlying feelings are what matters)
Carsten and Lenny (Gute Zeiten Schlechte Zeiten)
Regarding Lenny, I think folks would benefit from watching the clips of Lenny's past on the Youtube channel. He is definitely a character where you NEED to see where he has come from in order to understand how he got to where he is now.
There is nothing "typical" about his back story or the relationship he has with Carsten (beyond just their belonging to a fight club) and I find that so refreshing.
Comparing the Shows
Obviously you could simply like one show better than the other but I think the voting above reflects how people feel about the characters not the shows. GTST has a gay character, not a gay storyline. Right now his storyline IS about him and his mother and his coming home and their relationship. That's the story they are telling vis a vis Lucas. His being gay is a factor but it's not even the most important thing going on. I love that.
Having said that, I don't even know how I could compare the shows. The cultural and contextual differences are so great.
Verbotene Liebe and Goede Tijden Slechte Tijden seem even more similar to each other than GZSZ and GTST are to each other.
I think some soaps are so similar that comparing them is inevitable but these two shows (and the gay characters portrayed) are just coming from such different places emotionally and situationally, it feels impossible to compare.
I love them both for completely different reasons and I'm enjoying the story lines immensely.
Shout Out
Just want to show my appreciation to for Markdutchviewer / GTSTfanMark, Isakja and Neenski from The Gays of Daytime message board for their Youtube/Dailymotion Channels, transcriptions and subtitles.
Without them I would never have known about or been able to understand these great shows.
Kudos to them.
You're welcome! *smiles*
You're welcome! *smiles* It's a pleasure to do the translation for GZSZ and I hope that we'll enjoy the storyline for a long time to come! :-)
This, so much. *nods*
There is nothing "typical" about his back story or the relationship he has with Carsten (beyond just their belonging to a fight club) and I find that so refreshing.
I agree! Lenny's backstory does explain a lot about why he's behaving in such a shitty way. Most importantly, he's got major issues with being perceived as weak and gay, and these two are connected for him in a negative way due to his father who couldn't accept the 'old' Lenny who was sensitive and a bit of a loner and loved to draw, and also to his time at the military service (Bundeswehr) where he was constantly bullied because of the same reason. Also, his father and his comrades at the Bundeswehr strongly believed him to be gay (although at the time, Lenny didn't identify as such nor was he interested in guys but had a major crush on a girl).
This is discussed more in-depth on the TGODT GZSZ board, in case you're interested. :)
"Heterosexuality isn't normal, it's just common." - Dorothy Parker
Riley