Monday, July 21, 2008

Enjoy the Calm Before the Storm

Canadian Soap Opera guru Nelson Branco sheds some light on Pratt's upcoming plans for Pine Valley in his latest column. For an excerpt:
-Sources are telling me hot newcomer Yaya DaCosta is leaving the show as Cassandra mid-August. Also, spies claim new head writer Chuck Pratt Jr. is planning around “a tornado” as his big umbrella storyline. “Two characters die,” they report. No word if GH scribe Bob Guza is pulling Pratt’s puppet strings. Also, expect Pine Valley “to look very different come 2009,” says the snitch. ABC doesn’t comment on rumours.

-Whatever you do, don’t miss Beth Ehlers’ (Taylor) debut on July 24. Taylor is a relatable war hero from Iraq (is there any other kind?) and is connected to Frank. Taylor will butt heads with Jake immediately, but won’t be romantically linked to him for a while, maintains a show spy. AMC creator, Agnes Nixon reportedly loves the timely storyline, which reminds her of the Vietnam opus she told decades ago.

-Mario Van Peebles, who is recurring as Samuel, is said to be exiting the show. The big question is: will anyone notice he’s gone?

-Insiders insist Melissa Claire Egan isn’t leaving as the increasingly disturbed Annie, but as one reliable setsider pointed out, “we have a new head writer so most of us don’t know what he has planned, but from what I hear she is a goner.” More proof: a tornado is reportedly brewing… and it will hit Pine Valley (couldn’t it make a pit stop by Springfield, first?). Plus, how long can we have two Greenlees running around town chasing after Ryan? This soap needs more blondes!

-This just in: A major star has been fired! Unfortunately, the actor has not been informed yet and I’m sworn to secrecy. Expect a few more exits in the near future as AMC whittles down its cast.

I am already getting uneasy reading about his work. Another tornado to tarnish the legacy of the past? A big actor being let go? Releasing Melissa Egan in my opinion is a big mistake. She can very well become Pine Valley's answer to Sunset Beach's Annie Douglas (then Sarah Buxton), a scheming woman scorned who floats through the canvas seamlessly being a catalyst for various storylines.

Let's all take our guess as to what major star was just fired. I am guessing James Mitchell (Palmer Cortlandt). Jimmy has rarely been onscreen because of his health, and Pratt is not known for respecting this fact (ie: General Hospital's Anna Lee).

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

About Yaya's departure. It was announced by Broadwayworld.com that she will be joining the cast of “The First Breeze of Summer” presented by the historic Negro Ensemble Company (Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, Samuel L. Jackson, Phylicia Rashad, Esther Rolle, and Denzel Washington) for the 2008-2009 season (August 5- September 28th.) Yaya is a real authentic artist and wants to work where she can showcase that and not limit herself to just playing on soaps. But she is very grateful and thankful of the opportunity to have options and choices.