When "Days of Our Lives" took a five-week hiatus in order to accommodate the new head writers and give NBC what it wanted — a show that was not produced six months in advance — many wondered which characters would be axed in the transition. So far, four players have been marched to the "Days" guillotine: Belle, Shawn, Lani and Summer are exiting. While it's not official, it is likely that Claire will also exit. The Shawn-Belle-Phillip triangle had some possibilities. The plot in which Belle was left millions of dollars by Sami, who stole the money from the Dimeras, was ridiculous. Sadly the character of Lani, Abe's daughter, never worked. All the character did was skulk the in police department when she saw Hope and Rafe talking. As for Summer, Maggie's long-lost daughter, it was DOA.

When "Days" decided to make a head-writers switch I was confused. The show's ratings were up. Many of the stories were terrific. Then they did the "who's John's father?" plot. Over the years, John has discovered many men that could be his father. I thought John being raised by wolves was the low point. Then along came Yo Ling: John's father was a Korean War hero who took on the persona of the evil Ling. Ling tried to kill John. He had Rafe's mother hidden in a cellar for years and tried to brainwash John's son Paul. I hated the storyline that Chase raped Ciara. It killed the chances of one character to ever be sympathetic. It turned a once-strong teenage girl into a victim. The twist that Hope killed Stefano for a crime he did not commit was interesting. Hope's now feeling guilty for what she did is off-kilter. Stefano was responsible for the misery of her friends for decades. The show now has two murder cover-ups: Steve taking the fall for Ava's murder to protect Joey, who did the deed; and Andre in prison for his father's murder, as Rafe risks everything to protect Hope.

To be fair, Eric's drunk-driving storyline was brilliant; Greg Vaughn as Eric was also brilliant. His not getting an Emmy nomination this year is a head-scratcher.

Add Robert Adamson (Noah) to the list of "Young and Restless" actors going from contract to recurring status. Kristoff St. John (Neil), who is up for a Daytime Emmy acting award, tweeted fans that he has only taped four episodes in the past month.

Earl Hamner Jr., who created "The Waltons" and "Falcon Crest," died last week at 92. The writer also wrote nine episodes of the television classic "The Twilight Zone." Please go online and watch an episode of "The Waltons." Set in the Depression, it is a life-affirming salute to the power of love, family and doing the right thing.

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Michael Coghlan