I just started rewatching these today. I didn't originally watch the show until Barnabas brought it to great popularity, but I had caught them on SciFi several years ago and loved them. I agree the pace, the outdoor shots, so many elements bring a grace not found later on. And you don't get the kitchen or dining area later on, for some reason I adore those sets. I guess it makes Collinwood a home instead of just a grand mansion.
What is REALLY striking me is the superb casting and interplay between the characters. The actors flow right into their parts from the first that they appear. Of course, we all know Joan Bennett WAS a grand lady and couldn't have been any more perfect, she is the consummate professional. But the young girls really are too, it seems a high standard given the taping conditions. Carolyn IS a spoiled brat of a rich girl who is lonely, but trapped there by her love for her mother. Her first scenes with Victoria ring so true. Nancy Barrett, Alexandra Moltke, Joan Bennett and Louis Edmonds all act so seemingly natural. If Alexandra was nervous it disappeared into the character's apprehension and worked beautifully. David Henesy just as much so as the others, and that is remarkable given his age and what I've seen of other child actors that make you spit up in your mouth a little.
This is the only soap opera I ever watched for myself. But I do remember my grandmother watching soaps and it would have been the same time period as the first DS episodes. I remember hokey overacting and even as a child it all seemed stupid and over the top. I'm not getting that here, at least not with the main characters.
