Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem

It started off slow for me....like watching grains of sand through an hourglass! John and his over-the-top dramatic grimaces were never a favorite of mine. So to have him open the show was a bit ho-hum, even if it did involve the great Maxwell Sheffield, I mean Charles Shaughnessy as Shane Donovan. And once you brought in the legendary Jackée Henry, The acid-tongued Leo Stark (Greg Rikaart) and my all-time personal favorite Leann Hunley, how could it not be a hoot?

No, this is not "The Crown" and I don't think that was it's purpose. It's a silly mystery with typical soap turns and false starts. But it brings back many Days alumni. Seeing Eileen Davidson back as Kristin DiMera brought a smile to my face. She IS Kristen. I enjoyed seeing Will and I was surprised that I actually preferred the new Sonny. Zack Tinker made the character more three dimensional. I thought the Will-Sonny chemistry was more believable. I also liked going back in time and seeing Carrie and Austin. (Why did they not get included in the beginning credits!??) Consider this a kind of reunion show and you'll enjoy it. The cheapo sets mixed are mixed with lots of stock glamor clips of the cities they are supposed to be in. The story line is cheesy and the "I gotcha scenes" are laughable. That's what makes soaps fun!

Really wished they stretched it out to 8 episodes or more. Days should really bring Will and new Sonny back to Salem. Chad really played his part well. If Days were smart, they would make sure Ben and Ciara sign on for another 3 to 5 years.

It would be fun to go Beyond Salem a few times a year. For Hallowe'en they could start out as the current characters, then change them to the stars that previously played them. Sean played by Jason Cook. Abby by Kate Mansi...etc. And bring back a few dead characters. Would love to see Nick, Jordan and others again.

Growing up, I was forced to watching DOOL with my mother after work (ya know, cuz she used to set the VCR to record it every weekday). I haven't watched DOOL since the 90s, and it's clear that a lot has transpired but yet, everything is still the same-except for maybe the confusion I'm having over Carrie calling someone other than Marlena "mom", but such is daytime soaps. They have to make up insanely unbelievable storylines to spice it up without changing actors. Lol

Okay so this Beyond Salem thing. IT IS BEYOND CHEESY. Like worse than the 90s DOOL cheesy. Yet, here I am watching it (or allowing it to play) because I don't know how to delete it from my history on Peacock. I don't want to see it constantly in my continue to watch, so I'm letting it play.

Listen, if you're a glutton for insanely cheesy, unbelievable, laughable shows-this is for you!

That said, there are a handful actors in this who have actually gone on to do other work and excel beyond that of the stereotypical daytime soap opera actor skills. (Charles Shaughnessy, Jackée Harry)

I'm dying inside as this is playing. D-Y-I-N-G!

I wasn't expecting to enjoy this as much as I did. It's a fun, tight little action-adventure series developed exclusively for Peacock bringing together some old and new faces. Peacock may have a hit on their hands. Hopefully it gets future seasons.

Drag queens & flaming! Leo is the funniest character on Days, though a bunch of others have better lines than they usually do. This show has been way more fun than real Days has been in a long time. No whining, a story line that's improbable but moves along fast, and maybe sex scenes that go on for a bit too long, but feature gay and straight. I'm sorry it's limited - I hate the thought of only having draggy Days to watch.