February Sweeps Preview

"It's a huge month," says head writer Reilly James. "The good news is there will be no more death and things will be slowing down a little. I don't think we could ever have another month like January where so many stories were starting and converging. February is more about moving on and looking forward. Characters will deal with the aftermath of the recent tragedies and there will be guest appearances by several former Salem residents. Stay tuned to see which one sticks around. There will be a few more comebacks as well."

Funerals: Mickey and Shawn Sr's double funeral will be action-packed. There will be several huge confrontations and some huge secrets will be revealed. The Brady family, in particular, will be in disarray after this event. The guest appearances will be refreshing and the door will indeed be left open for some future returns of some of these characters but, as I said, one of the returnees will be sticking around long after. Meanwhile, a memorial service is given for Chelsea and Patrick but let's just say you won't have to leave early to get a seat.

Bo/Hope/Billie:Bo and Hope's marriage crumbles at a time when they should be there for each other. Bo comforts Billie and Hope will reach her breaking point. Even Zach and JT might not be enough to keep these two together as their fate in each other is shattered. Look for a huge faceoff between them at the funeral and the tension will continue to build between Billie, Kate and the Brady/Horton clan. Bo will also be rocked by the reveal of a huge secret.

Maggie/Doug/Julie/Alice: The Horton's worry about Maggie and will stage a intervention. Lucas and Maggie continue to keep the truth about the night Zach was run down and both will continue to have issues with the bottle. Expect several family members to get involved in this story and for Maggie to be comforted by one person you would least expect. Maggie will also have to deal with a certain someone who discovers her secret and that may be way too much for her.

Jen/Frankie/Abby/Max: These two couplings parallel each other given all the history involved. Both couples will grow closer due to their shared grief. "This is a slow moving story that will continue to build and be huge come Spring", says James.

Jack/Greta: We will see them once in awhile but this story is building for Spring as well. They are searching for a cure for his illness but as this progresses it will become about more then that. Some long buried secrets will be unearthed and the bond these two characters share will continue to grow. Might Jack fall for Greta? "Could be," teases James.

Abe/Lexie/Celeste: Abe and Celeste grow closer as she is there for him during this difficult time. Lexie gets re-aquainted with life again in the Dimera mansion but is still content with being only a little edgier and not a full fledged Dimera again in order to get back what she wants. Some things will happen to change that. Abe and Celeste will also learn she is back at the mansion and Celeste will begin to worry that her vision about Lexie is true. Celeste will be forced to take sides between Abe and her daughter.

Sami/Austin/Carrie/Lucas: Austin and Sami will finally learn why Carrie has been acting so strange. Carrie will focus on her new job and being independent. Austin will eventually realize he needs to move on and pursues Sami since Nicole is out of the question (see below). Meanwhile, Sami will learn about Lucas' fall off the wagon and everything that occured with it. She decides to help Lucas cover this up for their son's sake but there is more to it. Sami and Lucas's feelings begin to boil to the surface and this time Sami will have to choose whether to take her chance and make her dreams come true with a ready to move on Austin or work to make things work again with Lucas. This story is about LUMI and Sami being there when Lucas needs her most. We will see a different side to Sami along with Lucas and Sami will shock Lucas and fans alike with her actions. There will also be a surprise in this story with these four that kicks off at the end of the funeral and will throw a huge monkey wrench into all this. Hint: Its something, or someone, from the past that has come back to haunt specifically two of these four characters and its HUGE!!!

Nicole: Nicole returns from LA and will be the one to blow the lid off the Highstyle secret. She decides to no longer pursue Austin after something really dramatic happens in her life that sends her in a new, or is it old, direction.

Bonnie/Roman: Roman will finally break down and let his emotions out. Some big things happen to shake up his family and Bonnie is there for him at every turn. The end of the month will bring yet another huge reveal but this one won't be as public. In fact, it will be something Roman keeps to himself and will kick off a huge story.

Will/Chelsea She recovers slowly and they will embark on an adventure. They will get closer and we will begin to understand what makes these two tick and why they are what they are as characters. Bart will be keeping an eye on them too.

Kate: She is close to a mental breakdown and has finally realized her mistakes. She will leave town for awhile, against Victor's wishes, and will come face to face with her past and this will be the start of a huge story for her.

Victor/Caroline: Their secret comes out at the funeral, which is the big blow to the Brady family discussed above. Caroline will be devestated and will push Victor away and this will send Victor in a shocking direction. Victor will also use his underground contacts to find Phillip, who will be MIA for the month.

Shawn/Belle/Mimi: As I said, Phillip is MIA and that leaves Belle in limbo since she wants a annullment. She tries to keep her distance from Shawn but they are mourning Claire and that draws them together. Bonnie continues to play a part in this and will pressure Mimi to convince Shawn to take their relationship to the next level. We will also ignite a real rivalry between Bonnie/Belle and Bonnie/Marlena.

John/Marlena: Someone is stalking them as John takes Marlena on a trip down memory lane to recover her memories of him. This story will really explode come the end of the month and could lead to even more problems for these two. John will also have a huge issue himself to deal with at the end of the month. Both will also be involved with Belle's story too.

Patrick/Alex/Tony: Patrick is MIA for now and will return in the Spring. He will appear once or twice this month with Bart as the "big boss" will be revealed. As for Alex, its wait and see but his recent exit was left open-ended for a reason. Tony will be back later this month and we will see him interact with Salemites from jail. He will reveal 3 major secrets that will affect the whole canvas. One of the secrets concerns Tony himself and the two others should be very satisfying to the fans.

I am trying to keep up but its been very hard so please bare with me as everything I worked on concerning this was erased and I am retyping everything that was erased that I created ahead. Please continue to read and comment on what you like and don't like. I will hopefully have everything up to date by Sunday episode-wise so that everything will be current in time for the big funeral next week. Thanks for reading and hope you all enjoy!!