Beyond the Gates commentary: Run, run away from Fairmont Crest

The secrets, the scandals, the drama. It’s obvious those are three of the reasons we tune in to watch Beyond the Gates. But knowing there’s so much drama, you kind of have to wonder why anyone would want to live in Fairmont Crest?!

Just when things were starting to get good those pesky college athletes had to get in the way and preempt all the soapy goodness taking place on Beyond The Gates. March Madness? There seemed to be a lot of new soap viewers who were very mad about the preemption.

Let’s push that madness to the side because there is still a whole lot to talk about even in a short, three-day week. It occurred to me that some folks might not be familiar with me or my work, so I’ve included a little about me at the end of this column.

Why the hell would you want to live in Fairmont Crest?

In my last commentary, I mentioned that I thought that it wasn’t just Dani who had feelings for Bill. I am pretty sure that Bill feels… some type of way about Dani. Exactly what type of way that “what type of way” is, is very much to be determined.

It’s clear to me, with my masters in soap opera relationships from Pine Valley University, that Bill isn’t over Dani. I think he wants to be, but I also think he wants to have his cake and eat it too. And I bet Bill was eating them cakes in the back of the limousine, but I digress.

Why would you move you and your new wife (or then-wife-to-be) into the same gated community as your ex-wife? Because you can? Sure, I’ll buy that. Bill is a high-profile, high net worth individual who wants to be seen in the most prestigious zip code in the DMV. (D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. NO ONE wants to be in the department of motor vehicles.) However, Bill is also probably rich enough to live anywhere he wants. So living in Fairmont Crest was a conscious decision.

Now let’s ask ourselves, “Why?” If Dani had cheated on Bill, I could very well see him wanting to flaunt his new, younger woman in the face of the woman who had wronged him. That’s not the case here. Bill was the cheater — the reason for which doesn’t really matter. So either he is the “a-word” that got bleeped the other week and wants to rub salt into Dani’s wounds, or… Bill wants to be sure that he still gets to see his ex-wife and family.

It could also be a combination of any of the above reasons.

This woman’s work

I started off disliking Hayley. Not because she was the other woman… but because she was the other woman. Yes, that is a contradiction, but I also have a masters in soap opera contradictionology from Port Charles University.

I liked Hayley standing up to Bill and telling him to stop the back-and-forth nonsense with Dani and the Duprees. She is 100-percent right. His desire to keep that entanglement shows that he still wants that connection. I also liked Hayley stomping over to Dani’s house to let Dani know that her breaking and entering needed to stop. Good for her!

Side note: The fact that Hayley was able to tell in two-point-five seconds that things were not in the same place as when she and Bill left for Italy? She must be really good at those Where’s Waldo? books.

Side note seconda parte: If I was on a European vacation and my spouse had to head home after a day to “do work,” you can bet that my behind would have stayed in Italy. It might not have been as fun being their solo, but I’d at least want to be on the ground longer than it took to fly there in the first place.

Fancy shirt, fancy shoes, no service

In spite of now being amused by Hayley, I laughed and laughed at how she got no service at the country club. While we’ve never seen them do it, I would not be surprised if one or more Duprees told the staff to shun Hayley. Of course, it could also be that the staff took it upon themselves to shun her based on their loyalty to the Dupree family. Regardless of who ordered the shunning, I do not think that the Duprees even noticed Hayley sitting at her table waaaaaaaay in the back of the dining area.

All of this said, Hayley is clearly a smart woman. Why on Earth would she want to live at Fairmont Crest? She had to know that she wasn’t going to be given a warm welcome. If she thought she was, then maybe she isn’t as smart as I give her credit for. My recommendation? And yes, I have a degree in soap opera recommendatology from Salem University. Anyway, my advice is to pack it up and live your best life with your man somewhere else in the DMV. Tysons Corner has a great mall. Go spend Bill’s money and eat some of those delicious little desserts at the Seasons 52. I know for sure that they’ll be as attentive as you need them to be.

The boy is mine

In my last column I mentioned that I didn’t like folks comparing Dani Dupree to the iconic Erica Kane. So allow me to be hypocritical. No, I don’t have a degree in that, but if they offer an online course maybe I’ll check it out. The rivalry between Kat and Eva might be my favorite since Erica Kane and Brooke English repeatedly butted heads on All My Children.

Everything about their rivalry is perfection. The shade. The overblown reactions. The inherent jealously. And now there is a man involved? I am here for it. I am there for it. I’m everywhere for it.

In other potential love triangle news, the Derek/Ashley/Andre situation is interesting. Derek is a bit snoozy to me. I found him more interesting when he was having memory issues than I have at any other time. He is convinced that something is going on between Andre and Ashley and he’s not entirely wrong. Here’s the thing: I am not yet invested in Ashley and Derek as a couple. The minute Derek checked out of the hospital, I checked out of their relationship.

And I don’t want Andre with Ashley. I find him far more layered when he is with Dani. Now, that doesn’t mean that they are the best choice for a couple, but Andre and Dani are hot together. The way that Andre pushed aside his player ways to show genuine concern for Dani was also kind of hot. If he can cook, he would make an almost perfect partner!

The role of… will now be played by…

This next section is geared mostly towards the folks who are watching soap operas for the first time, but there are also some nuggets for long-time fans, too. Okay, here goes: soap opera roles are recast. Some are recast often. Some are recast way too many times because the show execs refuse to admit that a character is a dud.

Beyond The Gates is getting its first recast. The role of Dr. Ted Richardson will soon look a little different. Original cast member Maurice Johnson is out, according to Deadline. In May, Keith D. Robinson, who appeared on A Million Little Things and in the 2Pac biopic All Eyez on Me, will take over the role.

No reason was provided for the decision to recast the role.

I suspect the show wanted to make some changes as Ted’s storyline starts to heat up. The chemistry between Johnson’s Ted and Daphnée Duplaix’s Dr. Nicole Richardson… just missed the mark for me. Rather than two renowned doctors it somehow gave me celebrated psychiatrist and used car salesman. Still, I enjoyed Maurice Johnson’s work and I will definitely check out his next project.

As the show starts to really hit its stride, I would not be surprised if there were a couple of other casting changes. To date, though, this is the only one that has been publicly revealed.

Beyond the Gates

Here are some rapid fire thoughts on other recent action.

Security! Security!

What kind of security officer is George? He notices a broken gate latch… but also just gives out the door codes of Fairmont Crest residents?! When I lived in Philly, a guard for our HOA gave a resident’s front door key to someone claiming to be the sister of that resident. Surprise! She wasn’t the sister. She was the ex-girlfriend and she t-r-a-s-h-e-d her former boyfriend’s condo. So I am not saying George giving Dani access to Bill and Hayley’s house was unrealistic. What I thought was unrealistic was the way that George just happened to have memorized their access code.

Private eyes

I was convinced that Shanice was going to catch Andre and Ashley’s almost kiss. The way she seems to know everyone’s business? I’m actually a bit bummed that we didn’t get to hear her make some sort of comment about it.

New character. Who dis?

I’m not yet sure how I feel about Cady McClain’s Pamela. I giggled all the way through Dani and Pamela’s attempt to restore Chez Bill and Hayley (Bayley?) to its pre-drunken-Dani splendor.

There just hasn’t been enough meaty material to let me know exactly who Pamela is. I suspect that’s coming and I am ready for it because McClain is force to behold. Meanwhile, Karla Mosley and Cady McClain are wonderful together. They are a Girls Trip movie waiting to happen.

I’ll be watching you

I don’t trust Jacob’s new partner, Marcel. Something makes me think he is on the take. Of course, the writers might be doing that to intentionally throw me off the scent. If he isn’t on the take, I’m thinking he is being set up to be gunned down just weeks or days short of his retirement.

Lawyered up

I really, really hope that Naomi agrees to take up the case against her father’s law firm. I knew creepy guy was going to eventually get into some sort of trouble… but I didn’t expect it to happen so fast. The way he lecherously asked for details about sex with Hayley? Yuck. I don’t know the the scenic designers built a courtroom set, but if they did, I am ready to see it in action.

Fathers know best something slightly less than best

Smitty and Martin’s parenting skills are… interesting. I laughed when they referred to boys as “horny little bastards.” I don’t think banning Samantha from dating is the best decision, but it looks like they might relent a bit on that. Obviously something is troubling Tyrell and I want to know what it is. Is he being bullied for having two dads? We don’t really know the circumstances in which he and Samantha became Smitty and Martin’s kids. Does he want to know about the woman who carried him? If they were adopted, does he want to know his birth parents? Is Tyrell’s situation in some way related to Martin’s nightmares?

Who is this Dan J Kroll?

It occurred to me after last week’s column that a lot of readers might not be totally familiar with who I am. I was taught early on in my 30-plus year career covering all the soapy goodness of daytime television to never believe hat someone will remember who I am — even if I have interviewed them dozens of times.

Way back in the 1900s, a high school classmate landed a role on All My Children. I tuned in to support her, but unfortunately she exited the show after only a few months. I got hooked on a storyline of a woman named Natalie being tossed down an abandoned well by her sister, Janet. Janet dolled herself up to look like Natalie because she had the hots for Natalie’s man, Trevor.

That love of All My Children eventually led me to a place soaps had never been discussed before: the World Wide Web. I began posting daily recaps, news, character profiles, and other information about AMC. As I developed a following of AMC devotees, fans of other soaps reached out to me to ask if I could do for their soaps what I had done for All My Children.

The center of the soap universe

And so the “Soap Central” web site came to be. In the 30 years that followed, I interviewed countless daytime stars, broke daytime news, wrote thousands of recaps, appeared on more than 27 Daytime Emmys Red Carpets (and, according to some, saved the telecast the year that Vine Girls were hired to host the Red Carpet), hosted a chart-topping podcast, and even traveled with some of the shows when they filmed on location.

Last year, for a number of reasons that you can watch me try to explain here, I sold the site that I created and stepped away. If you love the site, that’s great and you should continue to support it. If you don’t like what it’s become, please know I have had nothing to do with anything on that site since the summer of 2024.

When Beyond the Gates was preparing to launch, the idea that I would not be a part of covering it didn’t feel right. And when I saw how some soap sites were covering the show, it left a bad taste in my mouth. So, I’ve stepped out of retirement to do what I can to celebrate a show that I feel very strongly about. Don’t expect the same level of coverage that I’ve done in the past, but in between gardening, chasing my bunny around the the house, baking, and taking care of Kroll Manor, I will be here to share my continued love of the soaps.

Thanks for reading and please, please do not tell anyone that I have found a way to sneak beyond the gates.

dan

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