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From: moriarty@uw-june (Jeff Meyer)
Newsgroups: net.tv
Subject: Re: RE: St. Elsewhere -- Not a soap
Message-ID: <1072@uw-june>
Date: Sun, 4-Mar-84 17:17:55 EST
Article-I.D.: uw-june.1072
Posted: Sun Mar  4 17:17:55 1984
Date-Received: Mon, 5-Mar-84 01:13:46 EST
References: <314@trwspp.UUCP>
Organization: U. Washington, Computer Sci
Lines: 33

Not a huge amount of difference between my view and Bruce's, as I feel St.
Elsewhere has changed some (as has HSB), but to append the term Soapish to
St. Elsewhere is absolutely inappropriate.  It brings up a larger question,
though: what is the difference between a soap (either afternoon or
DYNASTY-clone) and a show like Hill Street or St. Elsewhere?  Basically, I'd
put it at this:  Both the aforementioned shows deal with problems faced by
people in extremely trying professions; it deals with these problems
realistically, and gives the stories realistic conclusions (many times there
are no "nice" solutions for problems).  For instance, Westphall's overworked
schedule (and the excellent shows dealing with his autistic son); the rapes
(I found these not soapish at all, and frightening as HELL!), Pressure on
Frank in HSB, etc.  Also, the characters (except for a few eccentrics like
Ehlrich and Belker (and even they have very realistic sides)) are well
characterized and not mono-emotional... I mean, no one plays "the seductive
women who screws everybody up (no pun intended).  Soaps (again I go by only
a few of the ones I've seen are either about people with problems blown out
of proportion (who is stealing whose guy/girl/wife/husband/daughter..... ad
nauseum), and/or has totally unrealistic problems (I understand from friends
that General Hospital is turning into The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (Hee hee ...
in joke for frequent net readers)).  

Good point about Cathy Martin, Bruce.... I tend to think something really
nasty (i.e. permanent) has happened to her.  She was one of the few
one-dimensional characters on the show.

Actually, I prefer St. Elsewhere over the Blues.  Any comments?

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