"Days" Corrects Its Mistake?

As you’ve no doubt figured out by now if you’re still watching “Days of Our Lives,” John Black is alive.

So what happened?

In this week’s “TV Guide,” Michael Logan calls John’s “death” a “pathetic attempt to boost ratings.” And Executive Producer Ken Corday seems to confirm that in this week’s “Soap Opera Digest” by saying it was his intention to bring John back all along.

However, in the same “SOD” article, Drake Hogestyn (John) said he was in the dark and was beginning to audition for other projects when Corday called. He says the cast was more optimistic about his return than he was.

So what’s the plan?

According to “SOD,” “Days” is taking John back to the beginning as he’ll once again become “The Pawn”—a man with no memories of who he really is.

To prepare for the new storyline, Hogestyn has been studying with an acting coach to help change John’s mannerisms. He promises that his speech patterns are different and so are his facial expressions—which means no more raised eyebrow.

John Black with no raised eyebrow? Are you kidding me?

Hogestyn says that John’s new story, which will involve most of the veteran characters, is the kind of story that will reenergize the show—if done correctly. And that’s why he came back.

I hope for his sake that the strike doesn’t make him regret that decision since completed scripts will soon run out and it’s hard to tell who will take over the writing when they do…

Personally, I’m with Logan. This was an EXTREMELY cheap trick to earn ratings—a trick that could result in the end of the show…