Days of our Lives' Salem has gone dark and will remain so for the next five weeks. Thankfully, that's dark as in not taping rather than dark as in more depressing storyline content.
In one of the longest hiatuses the show has experienced in its 50-year history, cast and crew exited Burbank studios on Friday and won't return until early April.
With the NBC soap's half-year-ahead production schedule, there are plenty of episodes already in the bag. Add to that the fact that the series is likely facing a two-week pre-emption for the Olympics this August, and it's easy to see why the show was able to take an extended vacation, despite just being renewed for a 51st season.
"Last day together for 5 weeks! I'm already in pal withdrawal," Deidre Hall (Marlena Evans) posted before taking off for the long break.
As fans of the show already know, DAYS was forced to replace co-head writer Josh Griffith earlier this year after the scribe decided to pursue other projects. Former staff writer Ryan Quan has taken over Griffith's duties as co-writer with Dena Higley, who joined the soap last year to help revamp it for its Golden Anniversary. Fans are hoping DAYS' extended break will facilitate the fresh start many viewers think both the new writing regime and the show need.
What do you think about DAYS taking a five-week vacation? What kind of changes, if any, are you hoping the new writing regime will bring? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
