Though message boards have been flooded with posts stating viewers' opposition to The Young and the Restless' twin twin storylines, the show's writing team is promising fans a "great payoff." Co-head writer Maria Arena Bell also states that it's sometimes good to get fans worked up.
While some fans of The Young and the Restless are having trouble -- make that double trouble -- with some of the show's storylines, the CBS soap's head honchos are urging fans to wait patiently for the payoff.
In an interview with TVGuide Canada's Nelson Branco, co-head writers Maria Arena Bell and Hogan Sheffer defend their decision to craft two simultaneous plots that involve look-alikes.
"It was intentional. The two stories are intertwined," Bell revealed. "The Sarah and Patty storylines will be a rapid-fire denouement. It gave us an opportunity to tell a fun, clever and interesting culmination of Patty's story and the pseudo reemergence of Sheila. It gave Tracey Bregman an opportunity to stretch herself as an actress and show a different side, a darker side, in this dual role. It's a very short arc. But what it gives the audience is a tour-de-force performance from Tracey. You'll see a very fun explosion this week. Tracey shouldn't just win an Emmy Award for this portrayal, she should win an Oscar! You'll see!"
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Bell cedes that she is aware that viewers have been less than thrilled with the doppelganger plots.
"As for viewer dissatisfaction, I want to say I do visit the message boards. I do listen to our fans and critics. Sometimes when you're watching a storyline unfold, you don't know where it's going and you get understandably frustrated. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. It means people are watching and talking about our show. I'd be more concerned if fans weren't talking about our show!" Bell added. "We always ensure there is a great payoff in all of our stories. Just trust us."
To see what fans think about the "twins" storylines, be sure to check out our Two Scoops section. Our columnists, Allison and Nita, have shared their thoughts over the past two weeks -- and they've included quite a few emails that readers have sent them!
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