Chris B

I wonder if the Ted/June scenes were a true chemistry test or just a nod to the fact that they played lovers on Saints and Sinners. Honestly, I'd be open to either although I'd prefer he settle down with Leslie. Anything that keeps him away from Nicole (who deserves better) is fine by me.

They have that set so locked down that I have no idea if the twins are coming or not. We do know MVJ has been teasing a casting announcement since the 100th episode so it's possible that is one of the twins. I just hope that like you said, they use this to create another family unit. It would help beef up the younger set and seeing Vanessa as a mother will add more dimensions to the character.

No idea about Darnell but Debbi was offered a role and has to turn it down because of her Beauty In Black series. Victoria Rowell was asked to submit a tape for Anita but never heard back from them after she submitted it. I just finished binging the week and as usual, I enjoyed it. The weakest part of the week was Ashley/Derek as always. The two of them have no chemistry and he can't act so this is never going to be something that interests me. On paper maybe it could work with better actors but we're stuck with what we have unfortunately. nuTed doesn't have chemistry with Nicole so I'm glad they tested him with Leslie. I was worried seeing these scenes because twitter was making it seem like she had raped him. I didn't get that impression at all. Yes, he had been drinking but I didn't feel like he was too drunk to consent. He knew who she was and what he was doing from my perspective. I'm glad they're finally moving in a new direction with this story. Ending the week with the Anita/Leslie scenes about Barbara shows a glimpse into a future where Leslie could be softened up enough that maybe Ted will fall in love with her again. I hope they're working towards a place where Leslie can co-exist without being an out and out villain. Maybe a Dupree could be in danger and she saves them or something. Then you can bring in Dante Green and he can takeover as the lead villain while Dana tries to change. I just don't want her to be a one-note villain forever. The other highlight for me was the movement with the Doug/Vanessa/Joey story. This has long been a favorite of mine and I've been preparing for Doug's funeral for months. Unfortunately, I think we might have arrived at the time. I'm working on my outfit and deciding what to bring to the repass. I hope if my prediction is true that they give Vanessa a strong showcase for her grief. Just like she's supported the Duprees, I want to see them come through for her. She's such a strong character and they need to go ahead and elevate her to the main group. Another tease I liked was Randy's "source." I can't wait for them to drop that bomb. It's time!

Lucy's return was indeed a bust but the setup was perfect had the writers followed through. Lucy came back more mature, sexier and Charlene Tilton was a much better actress. They positioned her as an adult who could hold her own with JR and Bobby but they proceeded to do nothing with her. I don't understand it because they were bringing in a younger generation and she could've easily been apart of that with Michelle, April and Cally who I liked. Not sure if this return has been mentioned yet but I thought Gina Tognoni's return as Kelly on OLTL was a total bust. I know she originated the role but I feel like Heather Tom took that character to new heights and she just faded into the background.

Bravo had better deliver! The original series was fantastic and Real Housewives of London is better than most of the US franchises right now. They better hope they got it right.

I hadn't thought of Ashley/Smitty as siblings but I do think that would've been great! I also see the resemblance. Smitty is in dire need of a talk to and a sibling relationship amongst the two would definitely help both characters. I also strongly agree that Jen isn't the problem. The writers have failed her and need to own that and pivot to something new. You can't convince me that they have data anywhere stating that anybody cares about Derek and Ashley as a couple. And although the Derek actor has improved, I would cut my losses. He's a weak link and the character doesn't have connections to anybody.

Considering there are 50 million Duprees I'm shocked they didn't connect any of the contract white actors. Not just in terms of familial connections but just in general. Derek - He should at the very least be a cop especially with the friendship with Jacob. On a soap the chances of using him in a capacity of a firefighter is slim. Pamela - I 100% agree that she should be Smitty's mom. Ashley - I like the idea of Joey as her dad but I also think they've missed the mark on developing Jan. Doesn't she work for the rich families as a housekeeper? Why do we never see that or see her as a talk to in that capacity? Vanessa was the most successfully developed white character. She has a husband, close relationship with the Dupree daughters and as an extension of Doug, she has Randy. Not to mention the fact that she has kids waiting in the wings. She's the only one that feels as well thought out as the other characters.

I agree. It's a good size but from a design standpoint is very bland. What they should've done is establish that Andre, Ashley and Naomi/Jacob lived in the same building. Build one set and re-dress it to work as all three apartments. That way everybody could have a bedroom and living room set. We rarely see these sets at the same time so it would've been very doable.

I feel like MVJ has been so clear on social media about her love for Jen Jacob so she's going to make the character of Ashley work, come hell or high water. Since we're stuck with her, I hope there is a pivot in the story. I don't mind Ashley as a talk to but as a leading character she doesn't work either with Andre or Derek, especially Derek. But then the question becomes what to do with Derek. This is the one area of the show I feel needs a drastic overhaul. I may have some critiques about other characters/stories but for the most part I enjoy every story except this one.

I'm stunned B&B, the most logical soap to have a gay character, is finally adding a gay character! Now the question is who he will be playing.. RJ seems like the most logical choice but I long for them to bring Dino on the show. Jack would be an interesting choice but don't they act like he doesn't exist? I didn't watch Nick's return so I'm not sure if he was mentioned so I could be wrong.

I still don't see chemistry with Nicole but I was happy to finally see Ted standing up for himself. With that said, he does keep minimizing what he did due to the fact that it was so long ago. Still, it wasn't a one night stand, it was an ongoing affair and he also has acted a fool since the news came out. As much as he wants to compare himself to Bill, that's doesn't work because Nicole and Dani aren't the same person. For some people infidelity is a dealbreaker and it seems pretty clear that this is where Nicole stands. She has every right to feel the way she does. He needs to go ahead and move on. I loved the scenes with Alison at the police station. I'm glad they have a fun villain like this in their back pocket. I certainly didn't expect this so soon. I'm also finding that I really enjoy Madison with Chelsea. The actress is very natural and their chemistry is strong. It still feels so bizarre that a US soap would have a lesbian couple at the forefront of such a major story. Comparing it to what Y&R is doing with Mariah and Tessa is like night and day. The weakest part of the episode was Derek and Ashley. I don't understand why the show keeps pushing them as these fated lovers. They have no chemistry and absolutely do not work together. I'm open to both characters separately but nothing is going to make them work as a couple. If this is the long term plan, this will remain a miss for me. The Smitty/Martin scenes were surprising and very interesting! I love that once again the show is showing us the grey in each character and not making everything feel so one-sided. I've gone back in forth on both of these characters so many times and that's a credit to the writers.

One option would be to take Leslie's apartment and re-purpose that for Jacob and Naomi. I also don't understand why they didn't design Ashley's apartment where it could be easily re-dressed. They could've put them in the same building and used the same set for both couples.

Thank you to @Liberty Cityand @alexisfan07! I love looking at this each month. Credit to the writers because even when people have slower months in terms of episode counts, I feel like the show still uses the characters in a way that pushes their story forward so it doesn't feel like we're missing them or anything. This is something I wish other soaps did.

I hope he can act! The show is overdue for a strong male actor in this age range. Also excited to see Jacob’s family expanded.

We better enjoy her while we can't. No way she's re-signing that contract.

Guza may have helped shape Joey but considering how close MVJ is to Jon Lindstrom, I expect him to still have a solid future in Fairmont Crest. It's getting to the point where I feel he should be on contract by now. I'm ready to expand his character. Do you have any idea when Jamey will be in the credits? It seems like he was announced months ago. Also, I'm very curious if Thomson will have a noticeable impact on the show. I was shocked looking at her resume because I have no recollection of her or any idea if she's good or not.

The week off allowed me to catch up on Neighbours and Eastenders. Now I'm up to date on all my soaps and am going to try to keep it that way! Excited to go back to Fairmont Crest tomorrow!

Also, this is actually when I stopped watching, in August 97. I feel like it started strong but quickly became incredibly dull and I couldn't believe how slow the summer was. I haven't looked back sense. I know people have fond memories but I can't get through the dull part to make it there. Maybe one day.

It's crazy to see this coming from their website and yet the show isn't streaming anywhere. You'd think with all the obscure shows on the net it would be somewhere. They couldn't license it to tubi at least? Or pluto?

This show has been failing for so long that I wonder if they're secretly developing a replacement similar to how we didn't know BTG was in development. They've literally tried everything that you could do with GMA3 and nothing has worked. Side Note: This isn't me saying the replacement would be a soap but I do believe they're taking pitches for something. Whether that is a talk show, soap or game show, I have no idea.

This is all very odd to me. Typically when this happens I feel like we'd have a new HW but Josh appears so safe. For this casting in particular, it shows how short sighted JG is because he would've made sense as a Chance recast. Chance's death amounted to nothing and now they're bringing on a similar actor to play a detective, the role Chance filled.

The problem for me isn't the breaks, it's the lack of communication. I've complained before about their social media and I stand by that. When it comes to casting, they never announce things in advance to build anticipation. Granted it's just a recurring role but Robert Christopher Riley was on a popular show (Dynasty) with a big streaming fanbase, why not announce when he joined the cast? Why not announce the Articulettes? They've even teased a new cast member but again, no announcement. They also are very odd with what clips they choose to feature on their social media accounts and don't do a great job of highlighting buzzworthy moments which can drive viewership. Then when it comes to the two weeks we've taken off, the communication has been so sloppy and last minute which has led to endless speculation and people thinking CBS is out to cancel the show. How hard is it to let people know in advance and promote it as a "catch up" event? I don't mind the lower episode count for season two but they need to do a better job of planning these breaks. Let the viewers know in advance and allow the writers to craft cliffhangers to drive interest.

I feel like JG really struggles with younger characters in general. I know they're popular but I found Kyle and Summer to both be bland and boring under his tenure, Claire is no different and the list goes on. Overall he really seems to struggle with writing interesting characters and relationships. He is extremely plot driven and with most of the plots involving business/murder I can see how he struggles to keep the younger characters in the loop.

The problem with Noah is never the actor who plays him. I'm sure this'll be no different.

Chelsea isn't the best actress (and neither is Allison) but they do enough that I'm still entertained. I will say it's pretty shocking to see them give such a major storyline to a lesbian character. Same with the Martin stuff. I don't know if it'll last but at least for now I'm stunned CBS is allowing this. In regards to those who say it reminds them of Passions, Allison has been giving me the OG Jan Spears from Days.