Watching Beyond The Gates: CBS's new soap

[Monzo]

Has anyone here stuck with it? Has it developed into something a bit different over the last 12 months?

I'm a regular viewer, and I think the strongest thing about BTG is the dialogue, although dialogue is definitely a matter of taste. In no other US soap do you see a character comparing another character to Rico Suave like what happened recently. Otherwise, I like that the newest additions to the cast (Greg Vaughan and Jordi Vilasuso), even though they're already well-known in the daytime genre, don't get a lot of screen time like it is common (and often annoying) in other soaps.

I thought BTG was over the top at the beginning, but now it's flying under the radar. Unfortunately, nothing interesting happens these days, or even weeks I should say. They're not taking any risks with plots or twists. It's as if the fear of losing viewers is ruling the writing for the show.

They constantly point out how much the main family has achieved, whether in politics, the music scene, the model business, the influencer business, or as a doctor, but you never actually see anyone accomplish anything remarkable. It's all tell, but never shows, which is getting more and more annoying.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

I thought BTG was over the top at the beginning, but now it's flying under the radar. Unfortunately, nothing interesting happens these days, or even weeks I should say. They're not taking any risks with plots or twists. It's as if the fear of losing viewers is ruling the writing for the show.

That’s a shame, as I was hopeful for something different. However, as you said, there is a fear of losing viewers, which I imagine was extra strong in the case of this show because it was such a gamble to launch a new soap after all of these years.

They constantly point out how much the main family has achieved, whether in politics, the music scene, the model business, the influencer business, or as a doctor, but you never actually see anyone accomplish anything remarkable. It's all tell, but never shows, which is getting more and more annoying.

The ill fated British soap Eldorado had the same issue when it launched in the 90’s. Arguably, its biggest character was Marcus Tandy, the show’s central villain. Aside from a bit of exposition at the beginning about him fleeing to Spain, after embezzling people back in the UK, we never knew the ongoing source of his ill gotten gains.

Characters would talk about him being a bad boy, you’d see him take suspicious phone calls and meet dodgy looking men in dark sunglasses but the viewer was never told what his line of business was. This wasn’t some ploy to build up suspense. It was just a sign of the show’s awful writing where they’d decided that they needed a villain but wouldn’t commit to what his villainy was about. Anyway, about six months into the show, with a new producer at the helm, they fleshed him out and revealed that he was involved in prostitution and people trafficking, with a bigger criminal kingpin (played by the recently deceased Derek Martin) giving him his orders.

 

[Daniel Avery]

General Hospital also has had this issue with its Sonny Corinthos character for decades. He's described as running "the largest criminal enterprise on the [US] East Coast," but they use clever writing tricks to keep the viewer from knowing just what illegal activities he is involved in. They stress that he is not involved in prostitution/human trafficking, protection scams/racketeering, or the drug trade. It leads the fans to make joke-y suggestions like he imports counterfeit designer handbags or cut-rate gummi bears from overseas.

Why not just spell it out, like your Eldorado example? Because GH has always wanted to have its cake and eat it too. Sonny was brought on as the town gangster and has always been surrounded by gunfire, crime, and chaos.....but they also chose to make him a sort of "heroic mobster" who kept other, more lethal criminals out of their town and protected everyone in his orbit from them (usually). He is also depicted as a "family man" who has "a code" (of what he will or won't do to his enemies). In short, the show can't say "Sonny kills innocent people (including cops) who get the way of his moneymaking enterprises" because it would mean admitting that he is an evil character and not worthy of the adulation they give him via sympathetic writing.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

'Beyond The Gates' Renewed For Seasons 3 & 4 At CBS

'Beyond the Gates' isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

deadline.com

Good news for BTG fans and the soap genre in general.

 

[Emelee]

Excitied for the big BTG/Y&R crossover that's coming. A big event and a tornado hits the city. Can it get soapier? Love it.

 

[Monzo]

Someone at Variety magazine seems to really like BTG, as articles about it appear there every now and then, whereas mainstream magazines hardly ever write about the other soaps. The crossover with Y&R is being described as a ratings success, but the reality looks different: a mere 10 percent increase compared to the previous week isn't a huge gain given the amount of advance promotion. The numbers look particularly poor when you consider that Y&R had over three million same-day viewers at the time. So why weren't 1.3 million Y&R viewers interested in seeing their favorites on BTG? I wonder if all the expense was worth it, because the BTG set isn't positioned directly opposite like it used to be with all the BB crossovers.

‘The Young and the Restless’ Crossover Gives ‘Beyond the Gates’ Its Third-Best Week of Ratings Ever (EXCLUSIVE)

'The Young and the Restless' crossover gives a ratings boost to 'Beyond the Gates.'

variety.com

As for the crossover itself, as a viewer of both soaps, I noticed inconsistencies with the current Y&R storyline—most notably the happy married couple, Jack and Diane.

On BTG, the Duprees have often been thrilled whenever something from the Y&R or B&B worlds came their way. A dress from Forrester Creations would be praised to the skies, or a call from Devon would be treated like a call from the Pope—even though, strictly speaking, the Duprees are more prominent as any clan on Y&R or B&B. Vernon—who I had always assumed was first elected to the Senate in the 70s (though the new backstory involving Victor Newman supporting him from the start now makes me doubt that)—married Anita (a BTG answer to Diana Ross) and was presumably constantly in the headlines. Then came a nepo baby, Dani, who actually became a star in her own right as a supermodel, followed by a nepo-grandbaby, Martin, who went into politics. I don't understand why the script always diminishes the Duprees whenever Y&R and B&B characters show up.

I’m happy to see Ashley Jones; she’s doing a great job. However, I hope she doesn't stay on the show too long, as there are already too many baddies being dragged along (Leslie, Joey, Hayley). It’s nice that there was some drama recently and Derek died—even though I liked him—but simply more needs to happen in the show.

 

[Emelee]

Curious to see how the relationship between Eva and Kat will develop after the transplant.

Loving Ashley Jones playing a villain!!

 

[Daniel Avery]

I noticed the timelines of the two shows did not line up with regard to the crossover events. Diane's timeline from Y&R was especially mishandled. Victor from Y&R just casually walked into a scene on his show and mumbled something about having narrowly missed the tornado then went right back into hectoring everyone around him as if nothing had happened. I know BTG films much further ahead than Y&R, but it would not be hard for the Y&R people to sync up with the BTG people to make sure the stories fit together for their airing on the same days.

 

[ChrisSumner]

I noticed the timelines of the two shows did not line up with regard to the crossover events. Diane's timeline from Y&R was especially mishandled. Victor from Y&R just casually walked into a scene on his show and mumbled something about having narrowly missed the tornado then went right back into hectoring everyone around him as if nothing had happened. I know BTG films much further ahead than Y&R, but it would not be hard for the Y&R people to sync up with the BTG people to make sure the stories fit together for their airing on the same days.

What kills me is that because this was filmed so far in advance, it should've been easy to setup on Y&R which could've also driven more viewers. Devon, Kyle and Abby aren't involved in a major story so they could've had a conversation about going to the event. Then with Jack and Diane, they could say that even though they broke up, the committed to going and were going to put on a brave face to support the cause. Then, since we know they split up, say they left separately and that's when she got kidnapped. Josh Griffith is just a lazy hack. I'm thrilled he's finally gone.

To answer @Carrie Fairchild question about the show, I feel like they've been on a roll since May when they had the cotillion episodes and Derek's death. It felt like they were playing it safe for a while. I'm not sure if it was due to uncertainty about the shows renewal chances but since then things have really been moving. The tornado was well produced and it feels like the stories are finally starting to move. I hope they're able to keep the momentum going for the rest of the year.

I don't think the show is bad but the pacing is the one thing they need to work on. One story in particular, the Bill and Hayley saga, has been going on far too long without more movement. On the plus side, I like that they're expanding their sets and the new cast additions have been strong. I am particularly impressed with Vanessa's twins Donnell and Deanna. Deanna in particular is a STAR and they need to lock her into a contract ASAP. I'm also intrigued by Joey's sister. They're moving slow with her so far but I know she's still filming which suggests she'll eventually become a bigger character. They're already filming the end of the year by now.

Two things that don't really work for me are the Tomas and Ashley characters. The actor who plays Tomas is just dreadful and shows no emotion or growth since day one. The actor who played Derek was dreadful at first but you can tell he took the feedback to heart and by the time he was killed off, I loved him. I would've much rather he stuck around instead of Tomas. With Ashley, the actress is good but they can't find the right story for her. I think they need to stop pushing her as a romantic heroine. She works really well as a friend but neither of her love interests have clicked. I know the writers love her so they'll keep trying until they get it right but I'm done waiting.