Bright Eyes

That's because he had Sheri Anderson to help keep him in line at the beginning of his tenure. Once she left, the craziness really set in.

I'm not a couple shipper by any means, but when I was watching during Mulcahey's all too brief stint, I though Jason and Elizabeth still had tons of chemistry, and if it was up to me, I would have put them together, and then brought Lucky back and dealt with all the drama and complications that could unfold both within the triangle and the children. But that's all moot now.

For those that want to rank characters/actors on their shows, without clogging up the main discussion thread. I'll start with my best and worst for Beyond the Gates ... Best Eva Bill Nicole Anita Kat Shanice Vanessa Leslie - As entertaining as she is I wish she were more threatening and less of a nuisance. More of a proper villainess. Jacob Vernon Worst Tomas Ashley Samantha Derek Martin Hayley - I don't dislike her, she's just not much of a character. Indifferent.

I haven't watched in years, but I would safely bet my life savings on Chas.

You're being extremely modest. He was absolutely abysmal. He sounded like a whimpering dog, and he needs to practice crying in a mirror or videotaping himself, because that squinty face he kept making made the scenes cringe and embarrassing to watch. At least Rachel Boyd, the alien from another planet, can do dramatics. Better than him anyway.

Happy to have Theo back. Let's hope he can act!

I can't even remember a time when the acting nominees gave me someone to truly root for. Probably the great Vanessa Marcil/Robin Christopher debate year. Beyond that, I can't think of when I actually cared.

No, they didn't. I wish they would do more with JJ, too, as I think Casey Moss is one of the best (and hottest) actors on the show. On the same token of recurring actors, I am officially back to hating JPL's hokey ass. I refuse to believe there aren't more suitable replacements for Philip out there. And for the record, I don't think Cherie Jimenez has any chemistry with either Kiriakis brother, but she did with JJ and Alex. Anyway, I thought the Gwen material was strong in today's episode. Played against the Hortons, Jack and JJ especially, where she clearly yearns for a relationship with them, but can't let herself admit it, is very watchable material to me. On the other side, I think Jennifer's grievances have been shown fairly, without ever villainizing her, however, I think it's more than time that Cat get some fight in her. She is far too passive in letting people demean her, deserved or not. I think a Gwen/Cat friendship could benefit in that respect, as they could balance each other out in how they deal with adversity. Steve joining the birthday "party" was a nice surprise, too. They should have him involved with Gwen on Jack's behalf when him and Jennifer leave again.

The last thing we want is the show connecting more people to Leo.

Some fresh interactions today between Cat/Brady, Maggie/Gabi, Ari/and the only guy she's not related to, and even Xander/Marlena, the latter two I'm expecting much more from in the future. Going on a tangent about friendships, I was hoping for a small Gabi/Cat scene, where they agree to get a drink/night out to catch up. Both of them need a girlfriend, and they should have been written as such ever since the Vancouver adventure. In fact, Belle needs a girlfriend, too, oddly enough. Stephanie has Jada and Sarah, but Jada and Sarah don't have any kind of friendship. On the male side, Alex has zero friends as well. And who the heck do Johnny and Chanel hang out with? It's all so disconnected, until the plot calls for it not to be. Of course, those are just a few instances, but you all get the point. On another note, I would definitely be stunt re-casting the Greene's mother with a classic soap star. Someone born in the late 1950s/early-to-mid 1960s, someone we haven't seen for awhile, but I haven't decided who yet.

Like most soap "stars" of today, this is a completely okay casting choice. Few rarely have any real spark.

I think the last great proper story DAYS ever did was the baby switch/Evil Lexie saga. There have certainly been great, even fantastic, moments since then, but I don't know if I can say that about any subsequent story as a whole.

I've decided that the music on this show is the worst thing about it. Forget about the pieces that are just downright awful, but even when they are decent they're played through every single second, sometimes going completely against the scene. It's jarring, and makes the show come off even cheaper than it needs. Noel Maxam is our last hope in this department, but I don't have any faith things will change.

I randomly found out about Pokémon Vortex existing yesterday. I already know this is going to be a problem for me. Gotta catch 'em all!

Happy to see that Mike, Marie, and Steven are all returning again amongst the usual suspects. Horton strong for November!

Good for her, but does anyone feel like the character's first and last names don't go together well?

I completely tune out whenever grandma Samantha is on the screen, but other than that, the rest of the episode being dedicated to one story worked well for me. Rhonni was pretty good in her biggest episode yet, but the psycho lesbian can't act worth shite. Also, the story is let down by the fact the build up has been nearly non-existent. Allison hasn't even been in ten episodes. I'm calling it now, the husband is totally dead. Most importantly, if Jacob and Kat aren't f*cking by Christmas, I'll be incredibly disappointed.

I thought the new? score at the end of today's episode was great for the moment of Kristen breaking down in her jail cell. This sort of material is what Stacy Haiduk excels best at. Brady going in on calling her a horrible mother and person was long awaited, but I fear the sacrifice Kristen made for Rachel could be what brings them back together, which I dread. Is the jail cell a new set, too?

Randomly walked past Al Calderon this afternoon. We were both with a friend of our own. I didn’t bother him, but he looked just as good in person.

I need to know who the hell the fine ass man is at 0:37. Damn!

Salem is a magical place!

I forgot to add, Tony only having scenes with the newbies is disappointing. I need to see him with Marlena and Kate, at the very least.

Please, the fact this show got a new set at all is a welcome dream and a prayer. This, plus the courtroom set, and hallway? Better than we could have ever expected with their dismal budget.

Sorry for bringing up a tired topic, though I'll always find it endlessly interesting, but has anyone ever pinpointed the last time Maggie/Marlena were treated as proper friends before their obvious falling out. Also, with the infamous stone cold hug during John's memorial, can anyone enlighten me on what issues may have occurred between Deidre Hall and Kristian Alfonso. Discussion surrounding those episodes was genuinely the first time I'd ever heard of anything. More on that, do you think politics could play a role? We know Deidre Hall is a democrat without question, so the rumoured non-Democrats in these very visceral political times with several actress Deidre Hall hasn't shared much screen-time with could play a part, or maybe I'm just bloviating.

Even if you don't like what DAYS has become , today's scenes with Julie and Marlena were wonderful for any longtime fan, and we even got an indirect Liz mention. Julie owning the bookstore will hopefully mean she'll get to interact with different characters and even insert herself in their business from time to time. The reveal I have been waiting for and it didn't disappoint. I, and I'm sure many others, guessed Rachel was the shooter, but that didn't and doesn't take away from how entertaining and watchable this story has been from start to finish. Even though I guessed from the outset, it didn't feel predictable. The journey was more than worth it. I think this story has done great things for Johnny, Chanel, Marlena, EJ, and Belle. I'm calling Who Shot EJ? a hit for this viewer. Let's hope we'll have many more to come. Billy Flynn again looked hot as hell. I thought him and Cat finally had chemistry again in this episode. Cat being fired let go from the hospital was a nice obstacle that I'm interested to see how she'll get herself out of. Looking at the guest credits, Philip we'll be seen again this week, but I want to add to wishing we saw more of him, a burgeoning Shawn/Jada relationship, and JJ, too. I think Philip/Gwen could be really interesting, personally. And I still want JJ involved with Gabi amidst her current story. However, I forget the exact scene and day, but I almost got the feeling they foreshadowed Gabi's death at one point. And don't worry about me, because I've absolutely been fast-forwarding those useless Leo scenes to maintain a seamless watch experience.