Stella/Melina #7 'Cause everything sounds better in Greek

[PerfectAnomaly]

don't have to be a mind reader when there are people in this thread who have out and out stated what I've said they've stated

You indeed are "wondrous", maybe you need to create your own thread this one is already taken.:lol:.....Ahem back to Melina

Last time I checked this was an open forum and people could post wherever they choose as long as it was on topic. I'm talking about having respect for Melina so I'm on topic.

 

[Lori K.]

What do you mean?

Kind of like a "plan B". Have two different endings in case something happened to one of the main Characters over the summer and they could not or would not return to the show. Kind of like an "exit" strategy. Lets say they knew Melinas contract was up and the possibility of her not returning was known ahead of time. Then they could be prepared if that was the case. I dont know have any inside information it is total speculation on my part. I kind of wondered what would happen with all of Garys traveling over seas for the troops if he got hurt or anything what they would do Geesh I hate even writing that!

 

[Andromeda]

ballettmaus--->

I thought they had dropped the issue when they didn't do the cliffhanger they announced. Because wasn't CSI NY originally scheduled for only 22 episodes? It was all over the place that in the finale episode Mac would have to chose between Aubrey and Peyton, so when that didn't happen I thought they had dropped it due to the response. Which wouldn't be the first time they did that.
Besides, Peyton went back to England, didn't she?

(Isn't it enough that MK is leaving already? Besides, the love triangle was anything but popular, wasn't it? Wouldn't they shoot themselves in the foot if they continued that as well? New character, new time slot, MK leaving and Mac's love life? Talk about suicide )

Well, I can only refer to an interview of TPTB where they said they´d use the summerbreak to think it over how they´ll continue with the story, but that Claire Forlani is back on board and that they are happy to work with her again. Maybe this has already changed again, since Mädchen Aubrick and Claire have joined other shows.

Wouldn't they have made a cliffhanger on her part though if they had thought she wouldn't be back? Season 7 from CSI Miami ended with a cliffhanger for Eric, so why didn't season 6 end with a cliffhanger for Stella but for Danny if both were a questionmark and not sure to return?

I don´t know, but it would have been only fair enough to give her the cliffhanger, if they knew early that MK would leave.
But I cling to a tiny hope that maybe Melina shot some extra scenes right after shooting the S6 finale, that will be incorporated into the S7 premiere.

Lori K.--->

HERE! HERE!! :beer:

Cheers! :lol:

That makes sense. Also do you ever wonder if they shoot extra scenes in case someone doesnt come back? Then they would have a second option ending to go with?

That´s what I mean, even though we know Melina won´t return for the premiere, maybe they could convice her to shoot some sequences before she left, so that they can show in flashbacks what happened, why Stella left etc..
Stella Bonasera simply deserves a proper farewell, and I don´t think Melina would deny her alter ego this.

 

[Axatullux]

My theory is that perhaps Stella returned to Greece for reasons we don't know after suffering a nervous breakdown which made her decide to hang up the badge......I don't know.

Still, this is so deeply upsetting for me. She is my favorite character on the show and now the whole ship sudden capsized at the news of her departure. Then again, maybe we'll see a boomerang effect in the future perhaps.

I'm already writing totally AU stories that pretty much discard a good chunk of the episodes for fanfiction. I just pray that it's Stella resigning or transfering somewhere else rather than dying. It was horrible enough to see her in near-death events, aka Frankie, the pool, and nearly going over the edge before grabbing the ladder. Let's have a good closure for her character.

 

[Ballettmaus]

Well, I can only refer to an interview of TPTB where they said they´d use the summerbreak to think it over how they´ll continue with the story, but that Claire Forlani is back on board and that they are happy to work with her again. Maybe this has already changed again, since Mädchen Aubrick and Claire have joined other shows.

Great. I'm thrilled So not!! I certainly hope that they decided to throw that out.
Aubrick is a nice combination though :lol: Isn't her last name Amick and her character's name Aubrey?

Besides, paying SW and CF and MA but throwing out MK? I think that wouldn't sit well with fans. They're upset anyway and no matter what CBS is saying and/or denying... the contract is likely to have factored into MK's decision.

Wouldn't they have made a cliffhanger on her part though if they had thought she wouldn't be back? Season 7 from CSI Miami ended with a cliffhanger for Eric, so why didn't season 6 end with a cliffhanger for Stella but for Danny if both were a questionmark and not sure to return?

I don´t know, but it would have been only fair enough to give her the cliffhanger, if they knew early that MK would leave.
But I cling to a tiny hope that maybe Melina shot some extra scenes right after shooting the S6 finale, that will be incorporated into the S7 premiere.

I doubt they do that. They didn't do it with Riley on CSI. It was just mentioned that she left... not that I noticed that she wasn't there until it was mentioned that she wasn't there anymore...
However, I think normally they are aware of who might or might not leave. Like someone mentioned before, they probably gambled with MK and lost. Shooting scenes just in case and then not needing them costs precious money and since they don't have that... Not that I think they would do that if they had. It's just too expensive for the studios to waste hours, staff etc. Because it wouldn't be only MK who would have to be in those scenes, she'd need to interact. They'd have to pay the actors, the writers... (how do you write something you don't know what it is? I mean, they can't really know what they need, can they?), the camera man, the costumes, you'd have to pay everything. And imagine they'd do that for everyone? I don't think so.
All the flashbacks we got from Flack and Angell were what they had used in the show before.

That´s what I mean, even though we know Melina won´t return for the premiere, maybe they could convice her to shoot some sequences before she left, so that they can show in flashbacks what happened, why Stella left etc..
Stella Bonasera simply deserves a proper farewell, and I don´t think Melina would deny her alter ego this.

I agree. Which is why I hope the petitions will show some success and result at least in Stella not being killed so she could be back at one point.

And as far as her going to Greece is concerned... I think her leaving NY is very hard to imagine, not matter what the cause. They set Stella up to be a character who loves NY, wasn't she said to be refered to as Lady Liberty in a way? Stella is NY. Which makes it so difficult to get her out. Because she's also anything but fragile, devoted and dedicated to her job. I mean, I would have a few ideas but so far the writers haven't been very creative and very disappointing in their non-character fitting storylines last season.
So, as sad as it is, I'm not getting my hopes up that it's going to make much sense

 

[meggzie]

I still can't believe melina is leaving, the line up of the show wont be the same and i cannot see csi ny continuing much longer without her and i dont think sela ward will be a good enough replacement you can't just take away one of the main characters and replace them just like that. i hope it will be better than i think it will be but im not holding out any hope

will miss you dearly melina

 

[Andromeda]

My theory is that perhaps Stella returned to Greece for reasons we don't know after suffering a nervous breakdown which made her decide to hang up the badge......I don't know

. Well, even though I agree that Stella probably left NY and perhaps NY state for whatever reason, I don´t think she left the states and went to Greece, because despite having Greek origins, she doesn´t really have any links there since her Mum is dead and she doesn´t know who her Dad is. I think Stella is very much like Melina: proud of her Greek origins, but her home are the USA .

ballettmaus--->

Great. I'm thrilled So not!! I certainly hope that they decided to throw that out.
Aubrick is a nice combination though Isn't her last name Amick and her character's name Aubrey?

Besides, paying SW and CF and MA but throwing out MK? I think that wouldn't sit well with fans. They're upset anyway and no matter what CBS is saying and/or denying... the contract is likely to have factored into MK's decision.

Maybe with the new situation of Stella gone they dropped this storyline, because they sense that this is the least thing that fans want to see now .
Yes, nice wordplay, Aubrick :lol:.

I doubt they do that. They didn't do it with Riley on CSI. It was just mentioned that she left... not that I noticed that she wasn't there until it was mentioned that she wasn't there anymore...
However, I think normally they are aware of who might or might not leave. Like someone mentioned before, they probably gambled with MK and lost. Shooting scenes just in case and then not needing them costs precious money and since they don't have that... Not that I think they would do that if they had. It's just too expensive for the studios to waste hours, staff etc. Because it wouldn't be only MK who would have to be in those scenes, she'd need to interact. They'd have to pay the actors, the writers... (how do you write something you don't know what it is? I mean, they can't really know what they need, can they?), the camera man, the costumes, you'd have to pay everything. And imagine they'd do that for everyone? I don't think so.
All the flashbacks we got from Flack and Angell were what they had used in the show before.

It would be a shame if professional TV folks would have gambled on their luck and bet that MK would stay anyway, "don´t you worry, peeps, haha"- and suddenly- ooops- MK did the pokerface and their cards were worth nil . As I said before, usually negotiations should have begun right in time to be prepared for the worst case scenario and since they conjured Sela Ward out of the hat it looks like they were.
But I agree, shooting alternative scenes is also a matter of cost, unless they do it in a very simple way: not much interactions, no special effects, rather just Stella how she packs her bags and leaves, etc. and in the background we hear a narrator- maybe Mac ?- who explains and tells what happened months or even a year before and why she left.
If they bother about costs, they should ask themselves if such a fine character like Stella Bonasera, who was after all the co-lead, isn´t worth the expense- and it would certainly help the premiere getting high rankings on its new timeslot, because the fans would be curious to watch.

I agree. Which is why I hope the petitions will show some success and result at least in Stella not being killed so she could be back at one point.

Yes, I very much hope they won´t kill Stella, not only because it would leave the tiny hope that she could return some day, but it would be stupid to kill off another character after Ayden and Angel.

 

[Ballettmaus]

My theory is that perhaps Stella returned to Greece for reasons we don't know after suffering a nervous breakdown which made her decide to hang up the badge......I don't know

. Well, even though I agree that Stella probably left NY and perhaps NY state for whatever reason, I don´t think she left the states and went to Greece, because despite having Greek origins, she doesn´t really have any links there since her Mum is dead and she doesn´t know who her Dad is. I think Stella is very much like Melina: proud of her Greek origins, but her home are the USA .

And according to her last name, her father would be her Italian half anyway... which doesn't really make sense to me because it would mean her mother would have to have been married to her father yet her father seemed to have disappeared by the time her mother died in the car accident in the states...

Maybe with the new situation of Stella gone they dropped this storyline, because they sense that this is the least thing that fans want to see now .
Yes, nice wordplay, Aubrick :lol:.

Although it wouldn't be the first time they did what they wanted

It would be a shame if professional TV folks would have gambled on their luck and bet that MK would stay anyway, "don´t you worry, peeps, haha"- and suddenly- ooops- MK did the pokerface and their cards were worth nil . As I said before, usually negotiations should have begun right in time to be prepared for the worst case scenario and since they conjured Sela Ward out of the hat it looks like they were.

Given the cliffhanger it does seem like they did gamble though, didn't it? If you think a character is likely to leave you set up an exit. Unless they tried to do it with episodes like Second Chances, Death House and The Formula and just put in Aubrey and Peyton for fun but actually wanted to suggest there is a relationship between Mac and Stella which would lead to one of them probably having to leave because their situation is different than Danny and Lindsay. But I highly doubt that, so, back to the issue, in season 7 the cliffhanger was made out for Eric Delko, from what someone quoted, MK's and GS's contracts were up after season 3, at least it was when Sinise got a raise and signed a new one and MK was in negotiations and both could have left the show after Snow Day, Mac especially but Stella as well, after what they had been through.
CBS seemed pretty sure that MK would sign, after all they made the cliffhanger for Danny (and Lindsay). Which suggests gambling to me. Or at least assuming and having assumed wrongly - and not willing to make good enough an offer as well.

But I agree, shooting alternative scenes is also a matter of cost, unless they do it in a very simple way: not much interactions, no special effects, rather just Stella how she packs her bags and leaves, etc. and in the background we hear a narrator- maybe Mac ?- who explains and tells what happened months or even a year before and why she left.

But imagine they do that for every character who was not in the cliffhanger. I think that goes a little over their already tight budget
As sad as it is, it's not a big screen production we're talking about here and lately it's become quite cheap in the way of writing anyway...

If they bother about costs, they should ask themselves if such a fine character like Stella Bonasera, who was after all the co-lead, isn´t worth the expense- and it would certainly help the premiere getting high rankings on its new timeslot, because the fans would be curious to watch.

Obviously she wasn't worth it. Money wise or effort wise.
I might be paranoid but from the way Stella's character was treated and substitued by Aubrey in some of the episodes (which was completely unnecessary, Aubrey, I mean) and how she's been pushed into the background, I have been wondering if there might have been differences between the producers (Veasey especially) and her. Who knows, maybe someone of the production was rather glad to let her go. In which case I hope the show gets what it deserves.

I agree. Which is why I hope the petitions will show some success and result at least in Stella not being killed so she could be back at one point.

Yes, I very much hope they won´t kill Stella, not only because it would leave the tiny hope that she could return some day, but it would be stupid to kill off another character after Ayden and Angel.

I'm so with you on that; they've killed enough characters. Besides, the decision to kill Angell (because of budget cuts and then bring in Haylen and later Aubrey) didn't go over too well with fans. So, if they killed Stella... well...
So, I guess we all need to promote the twitter and facebook links and get as many people as possible on there
I think that even though it seems to ultimately have been MK's decision to leave, it also shows how well she was liked and how well she played her character, having made such an impact on so many people. It's why I signed; because Stella Bonasera was such a great character, rather because I won't watch the show anymore.

 

[Andromeda]

And according to her last name, her father would be her Italian half anyway... which doesn't really make sense to me because it would mean her mother would have to have been married to her father yet her father seemed to have disappeared by the time her mother died in the car accident in the states...

Well, that´s another mystery of Stella´s life that will probably never be solved: who was her Dad, was he Italian, was her Mum married to him, what happened to him after her Mum had died? With Stella´s exit this part of her family tree will remain in darkness .

Although it wouldn't be the first time they did what they wanted

Yes, unfortunately , hopefully this time they listen carefully to what the fans want.

Given the cliffhanger it does seem like they did gamble though, didn't it? If you think a character is likely to leave you set up an exit. Unless they tried to do it with episodes like Second Chances, Death House and The Formula and just put in Aubrey and Peyton for fun but actually wanted to suggest there is a relationship between Mac and Stella which would lead to one of them probably having to leave because their situation is different than Danny and Lindsay. But I highly doubt that, so, back to the issue, in season 7 the cliffhanger was made out for Eric Delko, from what someone quoted, MK's and GS's contracts were up after season 3, at least it was when Sinise got a raise and signed a new one and MK was in negotiations and both could have left the show after Snow Day, Mac especially but Stella as well, after what they had been through.
CBS seemed pretty sure that MK would sign, after all they made the cliffhanger for Danny (and Lindsay). Which suggests gambling to me. Or at least assuming and having assumed wrongly - and not willing to make good enough an offer as well.

Yes, from the outside it looks as if they were gambling and lost. But still I can´t believe that negotiations began just after S6 and ended with MK´s exit now shortly before shooting of S7 begins, because only then could they have been hit hard by her leaving. Every other option should mean that they should have been prepared for a possible "No" of MK, so that they could have thought out an emergency plan for that case. And though I tend to think they couldn´t have been so naive as to just expect another easy "Yes" from Melina, I´m not so sure anymore. But if they gambled it serves them well to have a mess left now.

But imagine they do that for every character who was not in the cliffhanger. I think that goes a little over their already tight budget
As sad as it is, it's not a big screen production we're talking about here and lately it's become quite cheap in the way of writing anyway...

I agree, but still it´s annoying to think that they could have managed this better had they prepared themselves for all options, so the cliffhanger could have had a different story, incorporating Stella´s exit. But as you said, their writing has become cheap lately anyway.

Obviously she wasn't worth it. Money wise or effort wise.
I might be paranoid but from the way Stella's character was treated and substitued by Aubrey in some of the episodes (which was completely unnecessary, Aubrey, I mean) and how she's been pushed into the background, I have been wondering if there might have been differences between the producers (Veasey especially) and her. Who knows, maybe someone of the production was rather glad to let her go. In which case I hope the show gets what it deserves.

Maybe both, and somehow it´s a shame, budget troubles or not, they could and should have done something to give Stella a dignified exit.
Good point, and I said it before that IMO not money was the problem, but the majority of bad episodes of S6, Melina cannot have been happy the way Stella was pushed into the background, especially in much of the first half of the season. For a co-lead character it was just disappointing, and I do not accept the excuse that Stella was obviously promoted and therefore delegated the others from her desk rather than investigating the crime scenes herself. So you may be right and it´s not really that unlikely that Melina had some arguments or differences with the producers and demanded better stories or new and fresh authors from outside.

I'm so with you on that; they've killed enough characters. Besides, the decision to kill Angell (because of budget cuts and then bring in Haylen and later Aubrey) didn't go over too well with fans. So, if they killed Stella... well...

Exactly, killing Stella would be the end of CSI:NY, because they would be unforgiven for doing this.

 

[Ballettmaus]

Well, that´s another mystery of Stella´s life that will probably never be solved: who was her Dad, was he Italian, was her Mum married to him, what happened to him after her Mum had died? With Stella´s exit this part of her family tree will remain in darkness .

Which is why it is such a pity that she's leaving... while I really like the facet of CSI NY having developed the characters the way they have, I now find myself thinking that they shouldn't have because of the situation we're having right now. They shouldn't develope a character like Stella and then never give all the answers. They should have done it only if they could have given the answers. I think the problem is that by making her such an intricate character they not only made this CSI but also about her, in a way. They opened the can of worms (her past) and they're never going to fully reveal what's in it.
With the other characters it's not as bad, they are detailed characters, however, we sort of do know their story and there's not something that is unfinished. Except for Sheldon maybe and Adam though both have not been getting a lot of screen time so it wouldn't matter if they dropped out.

Though her mother would have to have been married to him, how else would Stella have his last name? Because Bonasera obviously isn't Greek (and in the character descriptions she's said to be Italian and Greek)

Yes, unfortunately , hopefully this time they listen carefully to what the fans want.

Well, there's always hope... though I don't like to be too optimistic. Didn't get my hopes up after Second Chances either - and I was right not to do so. Expecting the worst makes everything that's not the worst a treat

Yes, from the outside it looks as if they were gambling and lost. But still I can´t believe that negotiations began just after S6 and ended with MK´s exit now shortly before shooting of S7 begins, because only then could they have been hit hard by her leaving. Every other option should mean that they should have been prepared for a possible "No" of MK, so that they could have thought out an emergency plan for that case. And though I tend to think they couldn´t have been so naive as to just expect another easy "Yes" from Melina, I´m not so sure anymore. But if they gambled it serves them well to have a mess left now.

Agreed.
However, if you think about the exists we've seen so far - Aiden returned for two episodes in season 2 to write her character out, Warrick Brown from CSI was shot and then was in the first episode of season 9 (I think), Eric Delko disappeared at the end of season 7, Grissom even got his replacement hired. I'm not sure about Sara, I wasn't watching CSI closely at that time.
Characters like Sophia and Riley just disappeared from the face of Earth though.
And the articles about MK's departure stated that it doesn't appear that she's going to return for a few episodes to give her character closure. That tells me that there was nothing set up for her exit and that it caught CBS completely by surprise.
Why else would they need her back?

I agree, but still it´s annoying to think that they could have managed this better had they prepared themselves for all options, so the cliffhanger could have had a different story, incorporating Stella´s exit. But as you said, their writing has become cheap lately anyway.

Well, if it hadn't been for Mac and Stella and writing fanfiction and my obsession for getting details right, I wouldn't have been watching CSI NY anymore. There were so many episodes I got annoyed with, so many things that weren't logical, didn't make sense, didn't respect the characters and their relationships... so I truly expect something every cheap and easy as a departure for Stella. And I also and very sadly don't expect that we'll be shown much about how the team was affected by her departure if at all.

Maybe both, and somehow it´s a shame, budget troubles or not, they could and should have done something to give Stella a dignified exit.

As I said, they seemed to have wanted. After all it was mentioned that she wouldn't return so that suggests, they tried. Though I might be mistaken on that.

Good point, and I said it before that IMO not money was the problem, but the majority of bad episodes of S6, Melina cannot have been happy the way Stella was pushed into the background, especially in much of the first half of the season.

The second half as well. It was sort of - she got the crap with Adam and was pushed into the background then around episode 9 or so she got more to do again, the peak was Second Chances, then it declined again with a little light with The Formula then declined until RIP MG then almost crashed until the finale. It was like they were playing yo-yo with her like they are doing/ were doing with her and Mac's relationship. In whatever way.
They didn't have a thread running through, continuity was lacking... Big time!!

I remember reading somewhere that someone said how MK would always say that fans would pick up on this or that mistake. So I wouldn't be surprised if she was bothered by bad writing (and knowing what it did to the show).

For a co-lead character it was just disappointing, and I do not accept the excuse that Stella was obviously promoted and therefore delegated the others from her desk rather than investigating the crime scenes herself. So you may be right and it´s not really that unlikely that Melina had some arguments or differences with the producers and demanded better stories or new and fresh authors from outside.

Stella was promoted? When did that happen?
Well, Mac's been running around, so Stella should have run around as well. As long as she's a detective and CSI...

Exactly, killing Stella would be the end of CSI:NY, because they would be unforgiven for doing this.

I think so as well, at least that it wouldn't be forgiven and would hurt fans even more than her sudden departure already did.

 

[Andromeda]

Which is why it is such a pity that she's leaving... while I really like the facet of CSI NY having developed the characters the way they have, I now find myself thinking that they shouldn't have because of the situation we're having right now. They shouldn't develope a character like Stella and then never give all the answers. They should have done it only if they could have given the answers. I think the problem is that by making her such an intricate character they not only made this CSI but also about her, in a way. They opened the can of worms (her past) and they're never going to fully reveal what's in it.
With the other characters it's not as bad, they are detailed characters, however, we sort of do know their story and there's not something that is unfinished. Except for Sheldon maybe and Adam though both have not been getting a lot of screen time so it wouldn't matter if they dropped out.

Though her mother would have to have been married to him, how else would Stella have his last name? Because Bonasera obviously isn't Greek (and in the character descriptions she's said to be Italian and Greek)

Well, obviously their original plan was to build up Stella´s character from season to season and reveal bits and pieces of her mysterious past and childhood from time to time. Apparently it never occured to them that MK might not stay until the end of the show, or at least as long as it takes to give away all of her secrets. Even months ago TPTB talked of "we´ll find out a lot more about Stella". They shouldn´t have promised what they couldn´t keep; it would have been better to tell the story of her family background earlier, or at least most of it, so there wouldn´t be such a big gap left.
Nonetheless I like detailed, in-depth characters rather than surfacial, dull characters where you wonder if there´s a personality behind them at all. But it´s true, if the character leaves with an unfinished story, then it leaves a bad taste.

I dunno, maybe Stella didn´t only live in orphanages and foster homes, but was once adopted by a family with the name of Bonasera, but they turned out to be horrible and she ran away. Ah, had Melina known then what she knows now, she would have asked Professor P. in "GfD" about her Dad :lol:.

Well, there's always hope... though I don't like to be too optimistic. Didn't get my hopes up after Second Chances either - and I was right not to do so. Expecting the worst makes everything that's not the worst a treat

After S6 I can´t have much hope either, unless they bring in some new great authors; after all Peter Lenkov left, there´s a job left .

Agreed.
However, if you think about the exists we've seen so far - Aiden returned for two episodes in season 2 to write her character out, Warrick Brown from CSI was shot and then was in the first episode of season 9 (I think), Eric Delko disappeared at the end of season 7, Grissom even got his replacement hired. I'm not sure about Sara, I wasn't watching CSI closely at that time.
Characters like Sophia and Riley just disappeared from the face of Earth though.
And the articles about MK's departure stated that it doesn't appear that she's going to return for a few episodes to give her character closure. That tells me that there was nothing set up for her exit and that it caught CBS completely by surprise.
Why else would they need her back?

Yes, Aiden´s exit was well worked out, and that´s why I can´t see why it´s not possible to give Stella one or two episodes, too, in S7 to write her out properly (of course, not killing her ).
I must admit I don´t really follow the other CSI´s, so I can´t comment on their leaving characters, but looks like most of them got a proper exit.
Well, even if they were caught by surprise by MK´s departure, I think there would have still been enough time to work a story out and show Stella´s exit in the beginning of S7.

Well, if it hadn't been for Mac and Stella and writing fanfiction and my obsession for getting details right, I wouldn't have been watching CSI NY anymore. There were so many episodes I got annoyed with, so many things that weren't logical, didn't make sense, didn't respect the characters and their relationships... so I truly expect something every cheap and easy as a departure for Stella. And I also and very sadly don't expect that we'll be shown much about how the team was affected by her departure if at all.

I agree, I don´t dare to expect anything well worked out and thought out concerning Stella´s departure, let alone that she will still be mentioned for long and we´ll see the team´s reaction on her exit. Maybe the first two or three episodes will have her mentioned and then it´s over .

As I said, they seemed to have wanted. After all it was mentioned that she wouldn't return so that suggests, they tried. Though I might be mistaken on that.

I don´t know if they wanted- what they really wanted was MK to play another full season at least, or maybe they even wanted to bind her for more seasons and she declined it because she didn´t want to be bound to one show for such a long time. But what they didn´t try IMO was to convince her to come back for one or two episodes to close Stella´s story properly, because I´m sure MK wouldn´t have declined that.

The second half as well. It was sort of - she got the crap with Adam and was pushed into the background then around episode 9 or so she got more to do again, the peak was Second Chances, then it declined again with a little light with The Formula then declined until RIP MG then almost crashed until the finale. It was like they were playing yo-yo with her like they are doing/ were doing with her and Mac's relationship. In whatever way.
They didn't have a thread running through, continuity was lacking... Big time!!

I remember reading somewhere that someone said how MK would always say that fans would pick up on this or that mistake. So I wouldn't be surprised if she was bothered by bad writing (and knowing what it did to the show).

Well, yes, summoned up the second half wasn´t much better. Oh, GOD, don´t remind me of that Adam-mess :lol:, that was the icing on the rotten cake and another of them many stories of S6 that went to nowhere or didn´t even start off properly. I´m 1000%ly sure that the original idea of TPTB was to do something very controversial and daring and write in an Adam/Stella relationship, and both AJ´s and MK´s interviews of that time indicated this, too. But then their courage left them and they changed it into a silly, useless, obsolete, stupid one-night-stand that had only one sad effect: The sweet and funny chemistry between the two which I loved so much in S4 and 5 was gone; they had to act as if they were strangers for fear that someone might find out about what happened .
I fully agree, this season had a great lack of continuity, too many breaks, too much stuff that went nowhere and Stella was in most of the shows rather an extra than a co-leading actress.
I agree, like a yo-yo she was treated, more down than up. My personal highlight was "Criminal Justice", even more than "RIP MG", because it was an unexpected Stella-episode and it was one of the few really well written ones, from first to last minute. It was Stella at her best, but whenever such an epi built up new hopes, they were shattered in the next ones.
Yes, I read that interview where MK said that and I guess it didn´t escape her that there were a lot more complaints of fans this season than ever before and it must have bothered her.

Stella was promoted? When did that happen?
Well, Mac's been running around, so Stella should have run around as well. As long as she's a detective and CSI...

Well, it was never officially mentioned that Stella was promoted, but it was speculated because she´s got her own office now, while before she shared one with Lindsay. And you know, Mac is the leading man, so they will let him run around at the CSI´s, boss or not, but it´s not the same with Stella, she is "only" the co-boss and they let her feel it a lot this time.

I think so as well, at least that it wouldn't be forgiven and would hurt fans even more than her sudden departure already did.

I agree, we´re suffering enough with her sudden departure, so it´s not necessary to torture us even more .

 

[Ghawazee]

Ah Nut beloved Nut. I can't add anything else.You have summed up most of my thoughts

Did i mention you are my fav Nut in the world?

well, as long as they keep Stella alive, i think there is a chance she will receive the great exist she deserves

(I cannot type anymore for today but i am glad of watching you here more often

Hugs to Balletmaus and you, my dear Nut

 

[Andromeda]

Hey, my favourite LAMM ,

Ah Nut beloved Nut. I can't add anything else.You have summed up most of my thoughts

Did i mention you are my fav Nut in the world?

well, as long as they keep Stella alive, i think there is a chance she will receive the great exist she deserves

(I cannot type anymore for today but i am glad of watching you here more often

Hugs to Balletmaus and you, my dear Nut

Oh, thank you for making me your favourite Nut, my pleasure .

Yes, they MUST keep Stella alive, everything else would be not acceptable. But I think if they don´t give her a proper exit in the beginning of the show, then never, because it wouldn´t make sense to do a flashback about what happened to her later .

Hugs to you, too, my Dear

 

[Ballettmaus]

Well, obviously their original plan was to build up Stella´s character from season to season and reveal bits and pieces of her mysterious past and childhood from time to time. Apparently it never occured to them that MK might not stay until the end of the show, or at least as long as it takes to give away all of her secrets. Even months ago TPTB talked of "we´ll find out a lot more about Stella".

Which sort of also confirms the "they gambled and lost".

They shouldn´t have promised what they couldn´t keep; it would have been better to tell the story of her family background earlier, or at least most of it, so there wouldn´t be such a big gap left.
Nonetheless I like detailed, in-depth characters rather than surfacial, dull characters where you wonder if there´s a personality behind them at all. But it´s true, if the character leaves with an unfinished story, then it leaves a bad taste.

I agree. And they went into so much detail with Stella, more, I feel than with any of the others.

I dunno, maybe Stella didn´t only live in orphanages and foster homes, but was once adopted by a family with the name of Bonasera, but they turned out to be horrible and she ran away. Ah, had Melina known then what she knows now, she would have asked Professor P. in "GfD" about her Dad :lol:.

You bet
But Stella said in episode 15 in the first season that she lived in the orphanage ever since she could remember. They adjusted that bit in season 3 when she apparently had lived in foster care as well. However, if they would have added an adoption things would have gotten really weird.

After S6 I can´t have much hope either, unless they bring in some new great authors; after all Peter Lenkov left, there´s a job left .

I doubt they plan on filling it. Though the "guest writers" they've had - the non-regular ones, they sometimes did better jobs on the characters and such as the regulars, like Veasey and someone else.
Forgot who though.

Yes, Aiden´s exit was well worked out, and that´s why I can´t see why it´s not possible to give Stella one or two episodes, too, in S7 to write her out properly (of course, not killing her ).

Because from how it sounded Stella would not return. At least not at the time MK left CSI NY officially. It was stated that the last episode with Stella had already aired.

I must admit I don´t really follow the other CSI´s, so I can´t comment on their leaving characters, but looks like most of them got a proper exit.
Well, even if they were caught by surprise by MK´s departure, I think there would have still been enough time to work a story out and show Stella´s exit in the beginning of S7.

But how?
As I said, in the articles it said that at this point the last episode with Stella had already aired and so far MK would not be back to give the character closure. Sort of tells me everything, I think. At least it tells me that they weren't prepared and would need MK back to give Stella a proper exit.

I agree, I don´t dare to expect anything well worked out and thought out concerning Stella´s departure, let alone that she will still be mentioned for long and we´ll see the team´s reaction on her exit. Maybe the first two or three episodes will have her mentioned and then it´s over .

So sad but true...

I don´t know if they wanted- what they really wanted was MK to play another full season at least, or maybe they even wanted to bind her for more seasons and she declined it because she didn´t want to be bound to one show for such a long time. But what they didn´t try IMO was to convince her to come back for one or two episodes to close Stella´s story properly, because I´m sure MK wouldn´t have declined that.

I'm sorry to burst your bubble but from the articles it really sounded like they did. The articles also stated that the network wanted her for one more season.
Which is one of the reasons why I said I don't believe the "spend more time with her family" thing. Which wasn't mentioned in any articles and never quoted by CBS or MK.
If that were the reason, I'm sure she would have come back for a final episode. I don't know if they offered her to be back for a final episode or two, however, she seems to have drawn a line and ended the negotiations.
But it sounds like the actors do know roughly what's planned for their characters. I wonder if MK didn't like what she heard and was fed up. I most certainly wouldn't blame her. Season 6 has hardly given her/her character any challenges to develop and go anywhere.

But then their courage left them and they changed it into a silly, useless, obsolete, stupid one-night-stand that had only one sad effect: The sweet and funny chemistry between the two which I loved so much in S4 and 5 was gone; they had to act as if they were strangers for fear that someone might find out about what happened .

I agree, I liked the two of them though I never saw them as anything more than brother and sister. Adam's goofy way was just a little bit too much in order to be a credible boyfriend for Stella. Also, the fact that he had a crush on her. It would have been really weird had they made a relationship out of that.

I fully agree, this season had a great lack of continuity, too many breaks, too much stuff that went nowhere and Stella was in most of the shows rather an extra than a co-leading actress.
I agree, like a yo-yo she was treated, more down than up. My personal highlight was "Criminal Justice", even more than "RIP MG", because it was an unexpected Stella-episode and it was one of the few really well written ones, from first to last minute. It was Stella at her best, but whenever such an epi built up new hopes, they were shattered in the next ones.

I'm not good with titles. Was that the Aubrey-episode? Epispde 21?

Well, it was never officially mentioned that Stella was promoted, but it was speculated because she´s got her own office now, while before she shared one with Lindsay. And you know, Mac is the leading man, so they will let him run around at the CSI´s, boss or not, but it´s not the same with Stella, she is "only" the co-boss and they let her feel it a lot this time.

Well, that entire office thing really confused me because at one point it looked like it was still the shared office, at other points it didn't and twice before in other episodes it already looked like the desks were positioned differently.
However, wasn't she already second in command? So what would she have been promoted to?
And yes; she wasn't only second as the actress behind the male part but also very much in the show. I would have loved if GS had actually left the show earlier and she'd have run the lab. Because CSI is doing such a poor job with Catherine, she's not really feeling like the supervisor. I also would have liked to see more of Stella in authority position because she's got the character to it.
It would have been interesting if they had dared to make NY different by putting Stella in the lead, actually. Because it's everything the male guy who's got a female co-lead.

 

[Andromeda]

Which sort of also confirms the "they gambled and lost".

Looks like, but it´s really confusing and getting harder to know what to think.

I agree. And they went into so much detail with Stella, more, I feel than with any of the others.

I agree, they made a lot of efforts with Stella´s character; I hope they feel at least very bad and guilty about how badly an ending this is :devil:.

You bet
But Stella said in episode 15 in the first season that she lived in the orphanage ever since she could remember. They adjusted that bit in season 3 when she apparently had lived in foster care as well. However, if they would have added an adoption things would have gotten really weird.

:lol:, yes, they twisted Stella´s biography quite a few times, so that somehow it wouldn´t be surprising if they added an adoption.
But MK´s departure saved them from having to write a logical explanation for her surname .

I doubt they plan on filling it. Though the "guest writers" they've had - the non-regular ones, they sometimes did better jobs on the characters and such as the regulars, like Veasey and someone else.
Forgot who though.

Yes, I agree, some of the guest writers wrote very good scripts; maybe they should get involved more often to bring in new inspiration.

Because from how it sounded Stella would not return. At least not at the time MK left CSI NY officially. It was stated that the last episode with Stella had already aired.

Well, meanwhile we know that Stella really won´t return. So that was it .

But how?
As I said, in the articles it said that at this point the last episode with Stella had already aired and so far MK would not be back to give the character closure. Sort of tells me everything, I think. At least it tells me that they weren't prepared and would need MK back to give Stella a proper exit.

It really gets more and more difficult to think about what really happened, because as I said, it´s all somehow confusing, On one hand I agree with you that it appears as if they weren´t prepared for MK´s departure at all and she hit them with surprise. On the other hand I find this so unbelievable; one would think they´d start early enough with negotiations to be prepared for every possibility and be able to react appropriately to it. On the other hand, the way it went, without even a short return of Stella, suggests that it was either a sudden exit or the negotiations were difficult and went on for long with the final result of Melina saying "No"- but still they should have been prepared for a No.

I'm sorry to burst your bubble but from the articles it really sounded like they did. The articles also stated that the network wanted her for one more season.
Which is one of the reasons why I said I don't believe the "spend more time with her family" thing. Which wasn't mentioned in any articles and never quoted by CBS or MK.
If that were the reason, I'm sure she would have come back for a final episode. I don't know if they offered her to be back for a final episode or two, however, she seems to have drawn a line and ended the negotiations.
But it sounds like the actors do know roughly what's planned for their characters. I wonder if MK didn't like what she heard and was fed up. I most certainly wouldn't blame her. Season 6 has hardly given her/her character any challenges to develop and go anywhere.

Yes, they wanted her back for at least another season, that´s what they offered her for sure, but everything else is still in the darkness. Did they want to convince her to even sign for more seasons which she didn´t want, or did she maybe want an option to leave during the season, because maybe she didn´t want to play another full season, but just one half or so, so they should write her out at one point, which they declined?
But why ever she left in the end, it surely wasn´t because she wants more time for her daughters, I agree with you. The girls were at the set whenever possible, they had their own trailers, so despite of many hours shooting per day, she had her girls with her and they aren´t little babies anymore who need full time care. So I don´t think that was a point of discussion at the negotiations; she could have lived for another season with this arrangement.
Rather I think she wasn´t happy with the prospects they offered her on Stella´s development and so she didn´t want to waste another year.

I agree, I liked the two of them though I never saw them as anything more than brother and sister. Adam's goofy way was just a little bit too much in order to be a credible boyfriend for Stella. Also, the fact that he had a crush on her. It would have been really weird had they made a relationship out of that.

They should have kept it as it once was: here and there a flirtatious and funny scene between them, that was lovely and innocent. But TPTB got some ideas in their minds and then maybe they thought the same as you, that it would be a bit too strange and incredible to make them a couple :lol:. But then they could also have left the one-night-stand away, that was utterly ridiculous, too.

I'm not good with titles. Was that the Aubrey-episode? Epispde 21?

No, it was earlier, around epi 15, I´m bad with titles, too . It was about this detective who faked evidence at a crime scene to make the CSI´s believe the lover of his wife was the murderer.

Well, that entire office thing really confused me because at one point it looked like it was still the shared office, at other points it didn't and twice before in other episodes it already looked like the desks were positioned differently.
However, wasn't she already second in command? So what would she have been promoted to?
And yes; she wasn't only second as the actress behind the male part but also very much in the show. I would have loved if GS had actually left the show earlier and she'd have run the lab. Because CSI is doing such a poor job with Catherine, she's not really feeling like the supervisor. I also would have liked to see more of Stella in authority position because she's got the character to it.
It would have been interesting if they had dared to make NY different by putting Stella in the lead, actually. Because it's everything the male guy who's got a female co-lead.

:lol:, you know TPTB and logic don´t really fit together very well. Suddenly she seemed to have an office of her own.
And what kind of promotion she could have had? I dunno, but it seemed she was more in command than before.
Oh yeah, I fully agree, if GS had left the show, Stella would have been great in leading the lab. She wasn´t only a great leading lady, but generally a great leading character who left her special mark on the show.
You´re right, it would have been nice if they had dared to make NY different and give Stella the leading part. But unfortunately they chose not be progressive.