Recently in The Bold and the Beautiful Category

When a soap opera is written well, acted well, directed well, and has enough production values to effectively convey the story it tries to tell, it becomes a pleasure to watch. The Young and the Restless may have its flaws at times, but despite my misgivings about particular plots, I will still attempt to find myself in a position to watch the program at 12:30 p.m. every weekday. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for The Bold and the Beautiful when it airs an hour later.

To be fair, The Bold and the Beautiful (B&B, for short) has been compared unfavorably with The Young and the Restless (Y&R, for short) for a good portion of its existence. While the overall look of B&B is not that different from Y&R, B&B also has a style that is decidedly outlandish and over-the-top. Also, in spite of the soap opera receiving the lowest ratings as it has in its existence, it is still the second most watched soap opera in the United States, which is to say nothing of its popularity overseas. I can forgive the show for some of its more outrageous moments, such as when The Bikini (a bar, not an article of clothing) exploded or more recently, Pam pouring honey on Donna and setting a bear on her. I can also tolerate the discrete nature of the story arcs and character motivations -- i.e. for X period of time, Thorne is genuinely in love with Donna, then one day after the interrupted wedding he suddenly hates her for going after his father and wants nothing to do with her.

These traits, though, still do not excuse the show as it is today. This program is simply broken.

B&B is broken in the sense that the show was once an entertaining and cohesive experience that used elements of humor, drama, and sparingly, tragedy to tell stories. Along the way, the pieces that made up this whole separated were never restored or mended. This is particularly heartbreaking as there are many competent pieces to this puzzle that merely need a little pressure to stick together. The cast is as good as any you will find on daytime.

It is also broken in the sense used more informally among some of my peers -- the story structure and characters are poorly designed, leading unbalanced storytelling which pushes viewers away instead of keeping their minds focused. The Bold and the Beautiful only airs for thirty minutes, and as a consequence it must focus on a more limited cast of characters than that of all other soaps. Over the years, though, the cast has practically whittled down to the lineal descendants of Stephen Logan, Eric Forrester, and Massimo Marone.

This was not always the case. While at times the love triangles between family members abounded, it was balanced by the new blood that counterbalanced the near incestuous relationships among the Forresters and Logans. For every escapade involving Brooke Logan, there was a Keith, a Dylan, a Deacon, an Amber -- characters who were part of the main cast without being a part of the high-society life. Now, though, the show has become so insular with regard to its characters is that the only regular characters who are biologically unconnected with any other on-screen character by blood are Owen Knight and Bill Spencer, Jr. -- and the former has been sabotaged.

For instance, although Owen was immediately the third party who threatened the Donna/Eric marriage, after this situation was resolved he was relatively unattached. He could have, for instance, fallen for Bridget, a woman who has been heartbroken time and time again. This could have been an interesting story where Bridget falls in love with someone who is neither using her for status or as a surrogate for her mother. This would not necessarily have to be drama free, as Nick could still become jealous of Owen for going after Bridget. However, Owen has instead been paired with Jackie, and Bridget reunited with Nick. While this does bolster Jackie's presence (which is a plus, since the character has been problematic), it does so at the expense of Bridget who is in Nick's arms once more. It also makes Nick a bit possessively jealous over his mother.

None of the other stories have any appeal. Rick and Steffy are a completely unbelievable couple given the circumstances under which they fell in love, and that's discounting the fact that not only do both of them share the same last name, but they are named after their progenitors (Eric and Stephanie). While the triangle of Brooke/Ridge/Taylor does at least make better use of Phoebe's death, it can't be denied that this is a mere repeat of the same plot that has been recycled for a little less than 20 years. I still don't understand the appeal of Donna and Eric, while Thorne and Felicia have been underused for years, although I can understand why, given that most potential love interests are related to them. (My suggestion would be to put Felicia with Bill to see if any sparks happen; if not, at least there was an attempt.)

To the producers: The Bold and the Beautiful is broken. Fix it.