In my opinion, Soapnet, the 24 hour all soap channel has officially jumped the shark. In fact, I'd say this happened several years ago when Soap Talk, the gabfest starring Lisa Rinna and Ty Treadway was cancelled. This was a show for soap fans, 
starring soap stars. That along with Soapography and One Day With..., which have also disappeared, were what I believed a soap channel should focus on.
But after those shows left the air (granted you can see Soapography and One Day With... reruns in the middle of the night or in the wee hours of the morning if you're so inclined. But no new shows have been made) Soapnet went further and further away from it's soapy roots as they took on Lifetime movies, bumping some of the soap marathons that soap fans had come to rely on. Then it got worse and worse, as Soapnet then delved into reality shows. Sure, I Want to be a Soap Star makes sense. And I'll even give them their own soap, Being Erica. But when things like Southern Belles: Louisville started to crop up, my ire at the network grew. Yet another show about spoiled rich women??? Does the world need this? Doesn't Bravo have enough of those inane shows to sate people's need to know how the other half lives?
My disgust reached a fever pitch when Soapnet would not pick up the broadcast of this years Daytime Emmy's while the show floundered looking for a network to show it. How is it possible that the only soap channel on cable would not pick up the broadcast! Seriously, I'm flummoxed by this!
Today, a new press release came out announcing two new shows for Soapnet. One is Holidate. It was originally supposed to only be a one-hour special, but now has been expanded to a 10 episode series. Each episode will highlight two women who switch lives and date men in each other's towns. The women will communicate with each other as they hunt for true love. I'm going to be sick. Next up is Bank of Mom and Dad. This show, based on a BBC series, shows what happens when mom and dad move in with their twentyish and thirtyish daughters who are not making ends meet on their own. Financial expert Farnoosh Torabi chimes in with help. I'm talking serious disgust here now.
Thank you Mr. Brian Frons. Thank you for changing a once great channel into yet another cesspool of reality nonsense. Thank you for removing shows that interest soap fans and replacing them with inane crap. Thank you for contributing to the downfall of soaps. This soap fan would much prefer to see classic episodes of my favorite soaps over this drivel. Where did Ryan's Hope go (oh wait I know, it's shown at 5 am now)? Why aren't you showing Another World, Edge of Night, Dark Shadows, Somerset and other soaps that are gone but not forgotten? Why are poorly made Lifetime movies on in place of classic soaps? Why all these new far from reality television shows? Am I really off the mark here? Do people... do soap fans who are supposedly the bread and butter of Soapnet, really want to see pseudo reality shows about snotty rich people and their catty arguments with other snotty rich people or their spoiled kids. Maybe I'm out of the loop. Maybe this is what soap fans want these days. All I know, this soap fan does not.
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