I'm siding with y'all, seems like a last ditch effort to get The View back from the brink. I think Nicolle Wallace and Rosie Perez found their footing by the end of their run and really fit well with Raven, Michelle and Whoopi (it would have been a great panel had they all continued into the new tv season together) but unfortunately for them ABC News has other plans. I think Nicolle would have been a great asset this season, with all the political issues from both domestic and international going about, it's a real pity -- just check out The View's social media and see how much support she has had from both liberals and conservatives. It was nice to see someone who wasn't a comedian or in showbiz, she just seemed more relatable to the regular viewer. Bad call from out-of-touch tv execs.
I would say that the new cast will most likely be a joy to watch though. Glad Joy is back, she should have never left. Candace seems to be feeling the void left by Elisabeth, the conservative Christian; which will probably bring back the Evangelical audience and the religious perspective that the show has been lacking and vitally needed. I would say that Candace will most likely not be as political as people may think, unless she plans to study talking points more closely and do research ahead of time, she had difficulty articulating which Republican candidates she'd vote for and doubt she wants to be known as a Fox News wannabe. Paula I'm curious about, cause she hasn't done anything interesting when she has guest hosted on The View, but with her prior sports anchoring experiences and journalistic expertise, she'll hopefully make the show more rounded since she's also a mother and she has brought her own Christian experiences to the table too.
A couple articles I've read makes me ponder where the fate of the show will land. According to the Daily Mail, Whoopi was left in the dark about Joy's return and that a feud might be boiling between the two. In her contract which ends this season, Whoopi contractually works Mon.-Thurs. and has strongly decided she will not work Fridays. ABC News has assigned Joy as the head host on Fridays. The interesting tidbit from the Daily Mail was that ABC has been testing a replacement show with two males hosts and to females. And according to Radar, Rosie O'Donnell is planning to appear again on the show...so perhaps this might be Whoopi's last season if the show survives since I doubt she would want to work with her again. I do remember Rosie said on-air that she'll leave the door open to come back, so perhaps third times a charm? haha
Overall, seems like the revamp would work on paper, but I find it really disjointed with the unknown factors of Candace and Paula mixed in, with Whoopi wanting out, and ambiguity of how effective the part-time contributors will come about -- I'm just very skeptical about the execution. They needed stability and would have preferred Nicolle and Rosie Perez continuing. Will be interesting to see how this one will turnout by Spring.