My View From Beyond the Gates: Shaking the Whole Damn Family Tree

Shaking the Whole Damn Family Tree: A Beyond the Gates commentary by Soap Central founder Dan J Kroll for the week ending January 16, 2026.

There’s quite a bit to get into in this week’s Beyond the Gates commentary, but I want to take a minor detour before diving in because I think it’s important to let you get a peek at how my mind works and what I think about when I type out one of these columns.

I’ve always believed that the key to compelling soap opera storytelling is making sure that stories being told involve characters that the viewers care about. There is nothing worse than a new character coming onto a show and hogging screen time from characters that viewers know, love, and want to see.

Seems kind of obvious, right? But what if a show is brand new and viewers haven’t had the chance to care about any of the characters?

That’s why I was particularly anxious to see how viewers would react to Beyond the Gates, the first new soap opera in a quarter century. How do you make viewers care about all the new faces they were going to see on their screens? We didn’t know these people. We hadn’t seen years of their actions to know if we liked or disliked them.

Beyond the Gates isn’t even a year old, but I think it’s safe to say that viewers have become invested in the characters on the show. So how did it happen? I think it happened by allowing characters to breath and be themselves — flaws and all.

After Mardi Gras Has Faded

Anita’s battle with cancer is, above all things, a story about Anita’s journey. The show has done a really good job with that. Even though we’ve known Anita for only about eleven months, we’re invested and we’re pulling for her to win this toughest fight of her life.

But Anita’s story is not its own island. It has had impact on nearly every other character on the canvas, even if the impact has not been direct.

The Girl From Cabrini-Green

For most of Beyond the Gates‘ run, we’ve gotten to known Anita Williams Dupree as a famous singer, EGOT winner, and philanthropist. We’ve seen her as a doting mother and grandmother and a devoted wife. That might be why the cancer story hits so hard. Anita Dupree is every woman. She is our wife, grandmother, mother, sister, aunt, teacher, neighbor, or celebrity whose career we love to follow. Even though Anita is a fictional character, her story still resonates as something that could impact our very real lives.

Through Anita’s journey we’ve gotten to learn things about her that we might otherwise not have known. We’ve seen how Anita chose not to tell anyone about needing a biopsy. We got a little more insight into how Anita thinks when she chose to call her Articulettes sisters before telling her family about her health crisis. And we’ve seen how even in one of her weakest moments, she chose to put the needs of her grand- and great-grand children ahead of her own.

I mentioned last week that one of the biggest questions looming over Anita’s diagnosis is how it will all ultimately play out. Earlier in the week, the American Cancer Society reported that for the first time ever, seven in ten people live for five years after their cancer diagnosis. While that’s a statistic to celebrate, it’s also incredibly sobering.

Is there a possibility that Anita might not see that milestone? I certainly hope that she will, but… I can’t say that with the same certainty that I could if this were another soap. That is probably a question that looms large for Anita’s loved ones and it’s certainly influenced their behavior over the past couple of weeks.

Nicole

I am in the minority here, but I didn’t enjoy Nicole’s drunken date with Carlton — and for once it had nothing to do with Carlton. A lot of the comments that I saw on social media seemed to be from people who liked seeing Nicole let her proverbial hair down and allow herself to be less than perfect. Me? I saw someone with a lot of horrible things happening in her life drowning her sorrows in booze.

I am thankful that Carlton was there to watch over her. There are a lot of men in the world who would not have acted the same way. That might make me chauvinistic, but I’ve seen the reality of the world and certain things just make me uneasy.

There was a moment in Nicole’s inebriation that did make me chuckle. When Carlton escorted Nicole back to her house, Nicole made a shady remark that she likes her home bar better because she only carries “the highest quality liquor.”

From the files of an only child, I got a little sad when Nicole wrapped her arm around Dani and the two reminisced about growing up together. When Nicole broke her arm as a child, she made a cardboard cast for Dani so that her “Sissy” wouldn’t feel left out.

If I am delving in on the psychoanalysis, it shows that Dani couldn’t stand to share the spotlight with anyone else – even in injury. If I am being more generous, it’s cute that Dani didn’t want her sister to be the only one going through a hard time.

When Dani needed comforting after learning the results of her genetic testing, there was no one better to be the one to console her than Nicole.

You Down With OPP? Yeah, You Naomi

I am worried about Naomi. She is not handling things well. She is so worried about other people’s problems that she’s bottled up her own emotions. Plus, she isn’t really communicating with anyone, and when she does speak it’s to say something incredibly dark and twisted. I don’t think she’s fully gotten past the torrent of emotions caused by her pregnancy scare. Add in Anita’s cancer diagnosis and the genetic testing and… I am worried that it will not end well for her.

It wouldn’t be a soap opera if we weren’t left with a cliffhanger and some questions. The general consensus seems to be that Naomi lied about her test results. I think that’s the case, too, based solely on her tepid celebration upon seeing her test results. What I can’t figure out yet is why Naomi would lie.

Does she not want to place an additional burden of worry on her already taxed family? That honestly sounds like something I would do. I know that it’s not the right way to think in that situation, but I understand the selflessness (and selfishness). Is there some other explanation? Maybe her results came back negative, but she felt bad celebrating a good result when her mom and grandmother weren’t as lucky.

I don’t know all the intricacies of a doctor-given pregnancy test, so I don’t know if they only look for pregnancy hormones or also other things. What if the false pregnancy on the at-home test was caused by a form of cancer? I don’t know that any soap would dare to give two main characters cancer at the same time, but it was a thought that crossed my mind.

The Counsellor and the Playboy

I absolutely love the scene where Andre confronted Bill for being in Dani’s bedroom. I know Bill doesn’t worry about such things, but it was wholly inappropriate for him to be in Dani’s bedroom even if he used to call the bedroom his own. Those days have come and gone.

I think much of what makes the Bill versus Andre scenes fun is the height disparity between the two men.  For me, I don’t see Andre as an aggressive or confrontational type, so I think Andre feels a little out of sorts when he has to do all of this chest puffing. My favorite line of the exchange was when Andre snapped, “I don’t think I stuttered, counsellor.”

Make Room For Dani

Of course, Dani made all of Andre’s posturing moot when she scurried over to Bill’s office and gave him a hug. Dani’s argument that Bill has to be in her life because he is the father of her two daughters don’t fly for me. Yes, Bill will be in her life, but it should be tangentially at best. Bill being Chelsea and Naomi’s father doesn’t come with an obligation to be hugged.

Speaking of Dani, I thought her daymare (daytime nightmare) about Hayley was deliciously twisted. It took me a few moments to realize that the country club confrontation wasn’t real. I think the daydream showed a lot of Dani’s innermost fears. While her subconscious opinions of Hayley might have been over the top, it turns out that they weren’t that far off from reality.

Brat Kat and Evil Eva

I love good passionate fan base and, obviously, you need people to like your show if you have any hope of staying on the air. That said, it’s more than a little disturbing to me to see how some fans react to certain characters that they may or may not like. While there are quite a few characters I could be talking about, in the case of this paragraph I’m talking about Eva and Kat.

As I have said in previous columns, I like both Eva and Kat. If you go by what social media says, though, I am doing something that is impossible – you have to like one and hate the other. I don’t necessarily approve of Kat and Eva’s behavior at all times, but that can be said of just about anyone.

Eva tried to extend an olive branch to Kat and I appreciate that. I don’t believe that Eva likes Kat – though I agree with Izaiah’s assessment that Eva wants to like Kat. I do believe that Eva sympathizes with what the Dupree family is going through. You’d have to be a horrible person to find amusement in someone having cancer. Hey, Hayley! I see you girl!

On the other hand, I know that Kat also doesn’t like Eva and she has every reason not to. That said, I don’t think her reaction to Eva expressing concern was warranted. Kat easily could have said, “Thank you for your concern” and walked away.

Likewise, Eva’s reaction to what Kat said was also not cool. I don’t think that it means that Eva’s concern was insincere. Eva said that the only reason she gave the fence-mending a shot was because Ted had asked her to. I think the sentiment is real, it was just that Eva would have kept it to herself had it not been for Ted. Regardless, Eva slipping back into familiar territory of lashing out wasn’t the best look.

I’ve given up on Kat and Eva ever being friends. I just don’t want a full-blown spectacle every time they are in the same room together. I think Ash Dupree summed it up best in a tweet this week when she said, “I just want them to get to a place where they have a cordial contempt for oner another.” That. Exactly that.

There was something that Eva said while sniping at Kat that got me thinking. She made a comment that Kat will someday need her. I can’t help but wonder if that is some sort of foreshadowing. Let the Internet speculation begin!

Life Sex Is Like A Bowl of Ice Cream

I don’t know that I fully understood the whole ice cream euphemism scene between Ashley, Naomi, and Shanice. If I am being honest, I always assumed Derek was going to be compared to vanilla ice cream. According to Ashley, though, he’s more of a mint chocolate chip. I don’t know how the I scream, er, ice cream scale works, but I’d have to imagine that mint chocolate chip is in the top half of the scale, right?

Then Ashley compared Grayson to raspberry sorbet. I love sorbet and even took a sorbet making class (that will be a random story in the memoir that I will never write). Sorbet is not ice cream because there is no dairy in sorbet. Is Ashley saying that her relationship with Derek made her lactose intolerant? Is she saying that Grayson is smoother in her mouth? Were the writers afraid to pick Rocky Road out of fear that they couldn’t avoid the nut jokes?

Before I say more and end up getting banned from my local ice cream parlor, I’ll just say that there is a flavor for everyone. After all the hype, I was expecting something a little more impressive. Plus, am I to assume that Grayson didn’t even know Ashley’s name?!

That said, I did enjoy the rom com aspect of Ashley and Grayson’s first date. I am guessing that Beyond the Gates sees Ashley as their version of Grey’s Anatomy’s Meredith Grey. The highlight was the kiss that wasn’t. As the sexual tension grew between Ashley and Grayson and talk turned to using one’s mouth to tie cherry stems into knots, the pair slowly moved in for their first kiss. But when Ashley remembered that Naomi and Jacob were looking on from across the restaurant, she quickly turned her head to the side to call off the kiss.

I Know Who You Did Last Summer

It was something more of a horror film than a rom com when Derek creepily watched as Ashley and Grayson chitchatted at the nurses’ station. Derek is a big old doofus – and I mean that in a kind and loving way. The idea of him going dark is wildly fascinating to me because it would go against character. Imagine Derek slashing Grayson’s tires. There have also been recent real-world cases where firefighters have actually committed arson for various reasons, one of which was revenge. Since Ben Gavin is no longer on contract, Derek spinning out of control could facilitate his exit from the canvas.

Then I went on to social media and saw what might be my favorite tweet of the entire year. Yes, the year has just started, but don’t let the brevity of time fool you. Karen BTG-Nicole’s Ride Or Die wrote that she’d like to see Derek hook up with Jan. Yes, Jan as in Ashley’s mother Jan. I need this in my life right now. Immediately! Please make it happen.

Why You Mad, Bro?

I cannot for the life of me figure out what goes on in Hayley’s mind. You know, past her having to count to three on her fingers to know how many drops of poison to put into Bill’s tea.

Let’s do a Reader’s Digest condensed version of the story so that we can all be on the same page. Young floozy Hayley apparently fell in love with Bill, her best friend’s dad, and ended up becoming his wife. That tore apart Bill’s family. Hayley dodged strays at her wedding when Dani Oakley decided to shoot up the place. Hayley learned she was pregnant, though many doubted she was really with child, only to have a very public miscarriage. Later, it was revealed that Hayley, whose real name is Val, was a professional con artist who wanted to swindle Bill out of his fortune. Moments later, Hayley decided that she wanted to retire and upped her plan to include murdering Bill.

If Hayley wants Bill dead and is only interested in his cash, why is she so upset about whether or not Bill still has feelings for Dani? Is Hayley worried that Bill might dump her before she has a chance to finish him off? Is her pride bruised that her hot, young, and thotfull game might not be as strong as she thinks? Might Hayley actually have some feelings for Bill?

Whatever the case, I need Hayley to pick a lane and stay in it. She looks like an absolute psychopath with her back-and-forth magical mystery tour of emotions. Ma’am you sound crazy.

Speaking of the weird tea concoction that Hayley has been plying to Bill, I can tell you right now that I would be suspicious if someone chased me around every day to make sure that I drink something. I don’t care if it is a parent, a neighbor, a partner, my rabbit, or even the Pope. There is absolutely no one that I would trust popping up around every corner on a daily basis with something that they tell me I have to eat or drink. Questions would be asked.

Tea For Two

I was shocked when Tomas stood outside of Bill’s office and heard Hayley talking to Randy on the phone. We have no idea how much of the conversation he heard, but it has suddenly made Tomas much more interesting.

My first thought was that Tomas probably isn’t bright enough to connect the dots and figure out what’s going on. As my Nana used to say, “A degree doesn’t mean you’re smart.” My second thought was that Tomas might not have heard enough of the conversation to know what Hayley was talking about.

If Tomas did hear Hayley badmouthing Bill, I can’t imagine that he’d run and tell his boss. Tomas is driven by his desire to make partner at the firm and trash talking the boss’s wife probably wouldn’t help with that. The only way it would help is if Tomas had irrefutable evidence and potentially helped save Bill’s life/bank account.

Where things could get really juicy is if Tomas confronts Hayley with what he heard. I’m pretty sure Hayley could talk her way out of things because, one, she’s a con artist, and two, Tomas isn’t the brightest bulb. Fearing that she could still be exposed, maybe Hayley starts to poison Tomas. I suspect Hayley would give Tomas a supersized dose and I could see Tomas being Beyond the Gates’ second shocking murder. Okay, third if you count KKKenneth, but that was more of a public service than a shocking murder.

Ticking Gene Bomb

As much as I am enjoying – and I hate using that word in this instance – the cancer storyline and its fallout, there is something that has really bothered me about the dialogue. Everyone in Anita’s family keeps talking about having or not having the BRCA gene. That’s a complete misrepresentation of exactly what’s going on.

Every living person has the BRCA gene – in fact, we have more than one. We each inherit a copy of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene from each parent. So, that means there are two pairs of – or four total — BRCA genes in our body. Their purpose is to help repair DNA and prevent the type of unregulated cell growth that leads to cancer.

So having characters say that that they don’t have the BRCA gene is not only wrong, but that would actually be worse than having the gene. It would mean no regulation and cells running amok in our bodies.

What the Dupree family is really talking about is having a mutation of one of the BRCA genes. If the gene is damaged in some way, it doesn’t do all of its security guard and repair work, which can lead to cancer occurring. And as I mentioned last week and again earlier in this column, a damaged BRCA gene can be inherited from either your mother or your father.

That would mean that Nicole’s kids could still have inherited a genetic mutation from Ted, and therefore they could still have a higher risk of developing cancer. Men tend to be what is referred to as “silent” carriers of the gene because we don’t often have noticeable symptoms. It doesn’t mean that everyone should run out and be tested immediately, but it is a bit misleading to say that people are in the clear just because one parent was found not to carry a BRCA mutation.

I understand that there might be a need to “dumb it down” for a mass audience, but in an era of at-home DNA test kits, I do think it’s important to have a clear, concise, and correct information. I can imagine someone looking at their DNA tests, seeing that they have BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes and thinking that because they have the genes it means that they have cancer.

Before you start WebMDing your symptoms and doing random Google searches, here are two trusted sources of information that you can read about this topic: Johns Hopkins and the American Cancer Society.

I somehow made it through that entire medical lesson without mentioning that I was almost a doctor. D’oh!

Beyond, Behind, and Beside The Gates: Speed Round

Here are some of the thoughts and observations about other things happening on Beyond the Gates

Spill the Tea — No, Really. Get Rid Of It.

I think by now we all know that the alcoholic drinks on television programs aren’t really alcohol. What I can’t figure out is what in the world Kat’s “sweet tea” was. I could see completely through the pitchers and glasses. That has to be the weakest tea ever served in the DMV.

Deserted Dessert

I talked about how I thought the Ashley/Grayson kiss was funny, but I didn’t get a chance to talk about Shanice revisiting the ice cream euphemism with Ted. “You like chocolate, right?” Shanice asked suggestively. Seconds after tasting the ice cream, the cup was tossed to the side and Ted and Shanice were eating each other’s faces. That poor little Dixie cup of ice cream was cast aside to melt all along on Ted’s books.

Boy, Two Men

Speaking of Ted, I thought his sit-down at the bar with Carlton was a nice, unexpected twist. I cannot imagine what it would feel like to have your best friend playing doctor with your brand-new ex-wife. Still, that honest and heartfelt conversation between two grown, professional men was a breath of fresh air in a genre where catfights dominate.

In the same vein, I liked seeing Elon and Jacob in a legitimately tender moment. I think what made it a more special moment to me is that Elon had initially come in hot and was ready to let Jacob have it for being distracted at work. When Elon learned why Jacob was distracted, he immediately went into parent mode. As weird as this may sound, we don’t really see a lot of good fathering on the soaps. With the lack of diversity across the genre, we see even fewer examples of Black men being dads.

Where Are You From?

I didn’t think it was possible, but I think that Pamela’s accent has gotten even worse than it was before. In my Worst of Beyond the Gates 2025 column, I said that I hoped Pamela’s accent would disappear in the New Year. Clearly it did not. Maybe she has some kind of genetic vocal mutation.

Ordering Off the Menu

I love how blissfully unaware June is. “Finally, some good-looking customers today. Some of these people who’ve come in have been enough to take your appetite away,” June commented as she stepped over to take Tyrell and Jessica’s order. I’m sure part of her comments were her way of being a doting mom.

When Tyrell tried to hush June by saying other customers might hear her, June kept going. “Maybe that will encourage them to get in front of a mirror before they get in front of folks.” It wasn’t until cotillion-hating Jessica pointed out that June might lose out on tips if other customers heard what she was saying that June finally hushed.

Speaking of Jessica, I am anxiously looking forward to seeing if she and Tyrell cause trouble at the cotillion. Is Samantha’s coming out celebration going to end with a bucket of blood being dumped on her?

A Special Episode of Beyond the Gates

Beyond the Gates will be airing a special episode on Monday, January 19. In lieu of airing a repeat episode on Martin Luther King Day, BTG will be airing a clip show with cast interviews. The actors will talk about their experiences from the first season of the show and give insight into what they were thinking during key moments on the show.

Beyond the Gates: Lines of the Week

The Beyond the Gates writing team seems to be having a little too much fun. Here are some of the lines of dialogue that tickled my funny bone or that I found memorable over the past week (and haven’t already mentioned in this column).

“I brought that child into this world. You think I haven’t seen her naked behind?” – Anita’s response to being told not to barge in on Dani because Dani might not have any clothes on.

---

“You are as stubborn as the day I met you.”
“More!” – Vernon gently scolding his wife and Anita’s quippy response.

---

“Life is too short to stay mad at people you love.” – Andre

---

“Not my vine, not my grapes.” — Shanice when Ashley implied that she was the grapevine Jan said she’d learned about Ashley’s dating a new man.

---

“We get to play genetic roulette and find out if we inherited the family’s least favorite heirloom.” – One of Naomi’s dark comments about her current situation.

---

While how she says it might be annoying, Pamela Curtis had some great lines this week. As a reward, she gets her own little mini-section here in the Lines of the Week. All of these lines were delivered in her country club catch-up with Dani.

“You’re miles away from normal, Dani. The light from that star’s not gonna hit you for a million years. Dani Dupree normal? Ha! In my nightmares!”

“You want to vomit on your ex? I won’t stop you.”

“What you don’t do is have a BRCA gene reveal at a country club where everyone knows your name.”

“Anything is possible when you have friend and family and a mind-blowing imagination.”

---

“I should have warned you, I’m packing… heat.” — Marcel Malone in a spicy hotel room exchange when Leslie look at his netherregion and spotted his service revolver.

Gatecrashers: Reader and Viewer Feedback

I love interacting with other Beyond the Gates fans. So I thought I’d create a section to share some of the comments I’ve received on my columns and social media posts. If you’d like to see your comments shared here, you can scroll down to the Comments section below this column and post away. You can also chat with me on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, Facebook, and/or TwitterX.

---

While not calling for the “cordial contempt” mentioned earlier in the column, SoapFairy is also wanting less of the Kat and Eva bickering.

Like I said, I know I am in the minority about Drunk Nicole — and DemetriTheeAndroid and Christina prove it!

Piggybacking off of the previous comment, Peggy Salitros noted that the Marcel/LSD (that’s Leslie/Sherry/Dana) situationship is weirdly fascinating!

Kim_Possible shares what many fans suspect: Naomi is lying about her genetic test results.

A lot of viewers have been critical of Ted’s parenting choices. Footballlady24 thinks Ted needs to remember that he has two daughters. I’d thought that Ted acknowledged the Eva/Tomas incident, but I could be wrong.

Damon Jacobs echoed my enjoyment about the Andre/Bill square off, but had a really insightful comparison to why Bill needs to stay away from ex-wife Dani.

While some folks are spending time discussing world peace or space travel, a BTG fan known as Lorrae79 is asking the question that really matters.

I know the question was probably rhetorical, but I’d suspect that sorbet being dairy-free and primarily fruit forward is a big reason that people choose it as a dessert option. Now why sorbet is ranked above ice cream in the realm of innuendo, I have absolutely no idea, Lori!

Follow my Random Acts of Dan

That’s all I have for this week’s My View From Beyond the Gates column. Thank you for reading and, as always, please feel free to share your thoughts on my column or Beyond the Gates in the Comments section below.

If you’ve enjoyed my column this week and want to see what I have written about Beyond the Gates in previous weeks, you can check those out in the My View From Beyond the Gates archive.

Have a penchant for gardening, interior design, or fixing up old houses? Check out my Manor Makeover series where I write about all of the things I’ve been up to here at Kroll Manor in Allentown, PA, over the past decade.

To keep up with all of the shenanigans I engage in on social media, please consider giving me a follow on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, Facebook, and TwitterX.

Life outside the gates

Two of my former Two Scoops columnists from Soap Central, Liz Masters and Tamilu, have joined me here on my personal web site — and they are still writing about General Hospital. Tamilu is on deck with week with a new column called, The Spy Who Shagged Me.

To read more thoughts, opinions, rants, and raves about daytime television, be sure to check out our Editorial section.

dan