j swift

BTW if anyone was wondering what Kimberly Foster (Michelle) was up to since Dallas was cancelled, she married a businessman who pioneered multi-spectrum internet for home usage. There were some financial setbacks, but this article sums it up best And she didn't keep her iconic haircut (they're the couple on the right)

Obviously, you can extort people for issues other than money. Kristen extorted Brady by threatening his mother with death unless he abided by her demands, which is illegal regardless of her ability to actually carry through on her threat. How Megan was able to be moved from isolation in federal detention to the general population in a local jail, and then was freed due to a plea bargain with a judge in Greece, is the real head scratcher.

Given that we've now spent more time thinking about this than the writers (lol), I would contend that Kristen was still guilty of extortion.

In the Salem timeline Nicole hasn't even missed her first period, so the idea that she feels the baby and can take a paternity test suggest that she's carrying some miraculous being.

I've read this critique in a few different spots, but I disagree. The fact that Kristen's victims lived doesn't negate her crime, which was withholding the cure in order to extort their family. While it is true that we never saw her charged with a crime, so we don't really know why she was in jail, the failure of crime does not absolve a person from liability. For example, if I attempt to rob a person on the street, and they have no money, it doesn't mean that I couldn't be charged for the attempt. That being said, I agree that her deranged energy is not intriguing enough for me to want to see much more of the character. Added with the fact that her presence makes EJ's SORASing even more obvious. I don't think both characters shouldn't exist in Salem at the same time.

I would nominate Erica Kane's friendship with Opal for helping her redeem the character during the kidnapping of Maria's baby. Erica could have come off very poorly, in fact, most of the soap press condemned the story as making her unlikable. However, Opal really grounded Erica and served as an audience surrogate to understand her motivations during a story which could have made her a pariah beyond redemption.

I feel as if Kristen lost a lot of the charm gained through her friendship with Lani. The actress plays manic better than malevolent, so I wish she was written as more erratic than scheming. Leave the diabolical plans to Megan, and allow Kristen to be a bit more sympathetic by writing how difficult it is for her to focus and follow through. Rather than using Rachel's love as a weapon against Brady, show her struggle with being a responsible parent given her mental struggles. Then, she can find a partner who understands her needs, rather than trying to rescue her.

PRO's of the episode: I like the Justin/Maggie Step-Aunt relationship, and I hope there's more antagonism between the two. The mention of Rex and Mimi's kid was a clever and unique method to involve Bonnie in the story. I liked Brady's insight to Alex about how Victor had enforced control over him in the past by dangling the prospect of more power at his company. It is always nice to see when a soap character has grown from their past. CONs Rex is a doctor, so his aversion to sunscreen is distracting Is the Johnson's living room set new? I don't recall seeing where they all lived.

I found this note from a December 1982 SOD that predicted a Scotty and Holly romance. However, Kin quit GH (for the second time) and went to Rituals in 1983. It makes for an interesting what-might-have-been scenario if Holly had a romance with Scotty rather than Robert. Although, it makes sense that the writers would have wanted to set up a Holly/Luke/Scotty triangle. But imagine, if Kin hadn't left, there would have been limited stories for Robert, which means that we might have never been introduced to Anna and Robin, and the entire history of GH would have been different, just due to that one decision.

I enjoy the Sloan/Eric story, even though it is so islanded that it seems like they are on a different show. I appreciate the occasional interaction with Paulina, but it seems odd that they aren't interacting with the Dimeras more often. I find myself missing the Eric and Brady banter from a few weeks ago. Side note: even I could see what an amazing figure Sloan has got, her body was remarkable today. It seemed odd that Johnny isn't part of the scenes at the house today. I enjoy his outsider perspective on his many bizarre relatives. Wendy telling Johnny that she's interested in Tripp was not organic. No woman her age would be so indiscreet. Sometimes DAYS is like The Sims, where you can't play too many characters on one lot. So, there isn't a lot of interaction, or even reaction to the events around town. Leo seems to be the only one who is up-to-date on everyone else's lives. I guess not having a date for more than a year gives a guy enough time to focus on others.

I've always assumed that was the sign of the mystery being written by inexperienced writers. The audience watched Rae shoot Michael. So, they wrote her into a corner. Then, they had to make up another shooter who got to Michael before Rae in order to resolve the issue. But, of course, it never absolved Rae of actually shooting Michael. IRL, if you intended to murder someone and by chance they were already dead before you shot them, it doesn't mean that you're still not guilty of at least manslaughter. However, given the inexperience of the writers, they hadn't planned the conclusion to the story in advance. I support the union, and I think scabs are immoral. However, it is hard not to be amused by the errors that they made in basic storytelling.

It's always amusing to me when I see a promo for a cliffhanger, but I can't recall the resolution. So, I have to ask, who killed Kyle? Heck, I don't even remember who was Kyle?

I don't understand why Kristen pledged her support within the company to Gabi and Stefon for a ride back to the mansion, versus supporting her nephew EJ?

I like the idea of Rachel being a brat. However, I think it is a missed opportunity to not only use Rachel as a source of conflict for her father's relationships, but to tell a story about how to socialize a child. There is a rich history of brats in Salem, from Sami and John's relationship, the rocky start of Marlena and Brady's relationship, and Hope and Julie's relationship. It would be a unique story in daytime, that is relatable to much of the audience, to only use a child as an object, but give them a story arc. In anticipation of the responses, I disagree that the creativity, talent, or sexuality of the writing staff negates the possibility of exploring issues related to child-rearing.

I enjoyed the magical Dimera family cocktail hour. It had all my favorite soap elements (1) people assuming inheritance rights despite not being in the will (2) a bar cart filled with chilled champagne and the perfect number of flutes (3) adult illegitimate children suddenly changing their last name and (4) former prisoners and returnees from the dead with complete wardrobes and no luggage. When EJ complained about Megan being dead for 30 years, I wanted her to remark that every Dimera in the room had been presumed dead at some point, it's a family tradition! BTW I just clocked Kristen's ankle tattoo, that's a choice...

Someone posted the scene on TikTok of Karen giving Val's eulogy, and the whole time Gary was looking back over his shoulder at Kate. My reaction was, dude, keep it in your trousers at the memorial for the mother of kids!

I wonder why Megan's first stop out of prison was the Brady Pub? Please don't tell me it was because she recalled her love of their chowder! I predict it won't happen, but I would love to see Megan renew her rivalry with Roman for telling Bo that she had an abortion, and her classic put down to Tony when she told him that he was always jealous of her because he knew she was Stefano's favorite, even before they found out she was a Dimera (Do we capitalize the M?). Also, @carolineg or @AbcNbc247 I totally missed the details on beard guy who wanted to put Dimitri back in jail (I skipped BS2). He's also a Von Leuschner? Are they related? And classic DAYS script, nobody takes the opportunity to get more information on Dimitri when they had the chance.

I guess a Y&R example would be Chelsea. Although she is played by an established soap actor, it would be difficult to predict that the one time foreign fling of Billy Abbott would get a whole family introduced and be a lead character for more than a decade. However, she breaks one of my cardinal soap rules. She's established as a world traveler, partying it up in Myanmar, but maintains none of those characteristics as she evolved. When she was with Adam, she never seemed like a woman who once made a living conning men in Asian poker rooms in comparison to a guy who grew up on a farm in Kansas. I get that she's reformed, but where's the knowledge and experience gained from being raised by two scam artists?

Malibu is famously restrictive about issuing permits for filming on private property, due to lack of parking and risk of disrupting the privacy of neighbors. In 2019, Malibu only allowed 19 permits for filming, permits in the area cost four times more than permits in LA, and no permits were allowed on Carbon Beach (where this house is located, because it is a gated community). So, it speaks to the influence of the Bells that they were allowed to shoot anything on site.

When I was growing up his book Hollywood Babylon was very influential Kenneth Anger, 96, Dies; Experimental Filmmaker Left a Pop Culture Legacy - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

For GL, I think AC Mallet was destined for main character status from the time he was introduced, given the exit of other stars and the amount of screen time he was given from the start. Josh may have been planned as more of an antagonist, and certainly, his character traits evolved into a romantic lead once Billy was introduced, but there were signs from his introduction that he was going to change the focus of the drama away from the hospital and the Bauers. On the other hand, I would have considered Harley to be a very minor character upon her introduction. One would certainly have predicted that Cam would have more of a lasting effect. But, she evolved, got a family, and slid right into the main character set.

OK, Kristen leaving prison in a catsuit was funny and damn entertaining. I was reminded that DAYS is not trying to be anything more than a silly distraction, and I have reset my expectations. There's plenty of other media that is much better equipped to comment on current events.

While nobody has earned extra credit so far for recalling how the character was introduced, Mimi is a perfect example. Yes, she was cast for the summer story with the other teens, but her family expanded and lives on in Salem to this day.

The creepiest room in the whole mansion was AJ's nursery in the attic with the killer skylight, no wonder that guy turned out to be a reprobate. Who paints a nursery grey?

I'd stay with DiMera over Kiriakis because I'd prefer to be transferred to the office in Rome rather than Athens in this economy.