In light of the end of Lusty, I wanted to say, I'm doing pretty well considering Lusty is being pretty much destroyed and were barely beginning to begin with.  Someone on the Romy board mentioned this:

"I think the soap operas and comics go on and on for so long that the writers seem like they're under no obligation to keeps couples together but in prime time, the show itself only lasts around 9 yrs so they reward viewers and put couples together. "

which makes so much sense in the primetime world.  I'm never as disappointed at primetime and just accept it..when the revelation is that couples are done very quickly and there's not that much sense to campaign especially when there's not that much time in 22 episodes to change stuff!  I've been so emotionally invested in ATWT that it really destroyed my soapwatching.  I hark back to the Days when on DOOL I couldn't care less who broke up with whom, who was getting recasted, I just simply watched.  And back then, the coupledoms were done so much better. 

These days it was too upsetting to see Justy fans hate on Lucy/Lusty, but when I was shipping during Mike and Carrie ten yrs ago on DOOL, I never felt that anger in the infamous Mike/Carrie/Austin wars.  There was no mudslinging towards posters, and back then there lines were more separate...there were more couples sites and boards rather than comingling on a general Days board.  And the anticipation/buildup appeal was there.  Mike and Carrie weren't over becuz Austin/Carrie married.  The writers knew they had a goldmine and allowed MC to have more scenes and as all triangles went, shared equal time.  Back then, we waited a whole YEAR for an MC kiss.  soaps these days wouldn't even dare to do that.  I hated the MC sex scene.  but back then, I remember how everyone was so psyched because the wanting/longing/desire was there for two yrs for us and that couple, and there was an actual payoff!   I think was very emotionally satisfied with their story 80 percent of the time.  How rare was it that Christie and Roark left at the same time...thus having MC set sail together on that white horse?  WOW.