j swift

Obviously, the Johnsons have no right to the house, except that Steve is Jack's brother, but, I'd like to see that big family have a space for breakfast scenes.  And Kayla could use Tom's old study.

I guess Gwen can't live there unless she reconciles with Jack&Jennifer, which doesn't seem likely (until the holidays).

Lucas could live there if/when he's ever released from prison.  Along the same lines, Will could live there but seems more reasonable to stay at the Dimera mansion since Arianna's mother lives there.  And I don't why Sarah chose to live in a rat-infested motel rather than live there.

It really highlights the lack of Hortons currently in Salem that it is such a stretch to think who should be living in one of the oldest sets on the show.

I'm happy they had Ava tell Carly why she's forgiven Nina for drugging her, kidnapping her, and inducing the birth of  Avery. I don't know that it exactly fits with the character of Ava to forgive and forget (eg Esme), but it made for an interesting contrast to see how Nina is unable to forgive Carly, which will obviously only hurt her relationship with Willow further.

It's kind of funny how people just drop into Wyndemere.  Isn't it on an island?  IIRC people used to have to take a ferry to get to the house.

A red flag that an episode was uninspiring is when all we can talk about are the sets and the wardrobe.

But, can we discuss the Horton House? Is it an Airbnb now?  Because Jack&Jennifer and Julie&Doug only seem to live there part-time when they are not off traveling the world (or at least Boston).  Not only is it odd that Doug&Julie don't seem to own a home in Salem, but Julie circa the 1980s would not be caught dead sleeping in her grandma's guestroom.  From Bob Anderson to her penthouse suite, Julie has lived in some of the most fashionable places in Salem.  So, I doubt she would choose to live out her golden years in the same house she lived in as a teenager.

The issue with Nicole's lie is similar to my criticism of Harris's lie, there is no other logic than they did it to advance the plot.

I mean why is Nicole living with EJ in the first place?  Her divorce from Rafe seems to have been settled in record time, but didn't she get a settlement?  I know there's a housing crisis in Salem, but why didn't she get their house?

Also, she's expressed hesitation about being with EJ, then they boffed once (while under the influence, so he would get the context of what happened with Eric), and suddenly they are committed.

Second season in a row that I didn't make it through the finale.

They need a new format to choose the winner.  If there's going to be Lipsync Lolla-pa-Ruza every season, then we don't need a lipsync smackdown for the crown as well.  I liked the performances from Jinx and Orville Peck (who I always confuse with Anderson Paak for no other reason than the number of syllables in their names), but the episode seems to take an eternity, and I don't need another RuPaul song after she's already done two this season.

I've been thinking about the lack of admission of guilt in the Dominion case and I've come to agree with their decision on a couple of levels.

A. Even if Dominion approved of the wording, we all know that the delivery would be weak.

B. Because Fox News won't cover it, audiences are forced to watch other channels, thus lowering Fox's ratings which is the true punishment.

C. There's no way that Fox News wouldn't frame itself as the victim of another entity trying to impinge on its first amendment rights. 

D. Fox News admitting that they lied in order to pander to their audience will do nothing to sway their support because they still push the bigger lie that culture war issues matter more than civil rights.

So, I think the admission of guilt is best left to MSNBC, CNN, and NYT in their scathing critiques of Fox management. 

On 4/1/2023 at 2:37 PM, DRW50 said:

The tabloids had lost some of their power by the time Kelly came along

Well, the Post is trying it this week.  They've chosen to highlight negative Twitter responses to her pairing with Mark for two days in a row (promulgating the fictional idea that Twitter has ever been an accurate gauge of mainstream audience response).  Including, a totally erroneous headline about Mark responding to the "backlash" which was really an EW interview about how much he enjoyed his first day on air.

As a sporadic viewer, Valentine's character development is bizarre to me.

We got that scene of Nina and Valentine checking in at the hospital.  She's saying how things were rough with Willow but she's hopeful, and he's looking supportive, but the whole time I'm thinking, isn't this the guy who hired Sasha to pretend to be her daughter? He was a reprehensible madman who shot Nikolas in cold blood, and now he's a romantic hero? Wasn't it just a year ago that Brook Lynn was involved in a baby switch story partially motivated by her dislike of Valentine?

Now, I enjoy the chemistry between the actors who play Valentine and Anna, and I think he's a huge bowl of charisma, but I seem to have missed any redemptive arc that would explain why Nina would want to reminisce with him in the hallway.

Sidenote: whether or not it was deliberate, I enjoyed the symbolism of Tracey, Holly, and Felicia as the respective white, red, and black queens from Alice in Wonderland saving Ethan from having his head chopped off.

According to the Times it is one of the largest defamation settlements in history.

I'm just glad it means the end to Giuliani's career as a political commentator. 

But, as always, it was never about informing the masses, or advancing a political cause, it was just about ratings

Also, where's the logic in Harris's lie?

Bo said that he doesn't want to reunite with Hope, so if Harris was insecure about their bond, wouldn't it be in his best interest for Bo to reject Hope so that she'll come running back to him?

I'm certain none of this will matter after tomorrow's episode.  But if we're getting a character's return, I'd like to be able to appreciate all of the things that made me a fan of them in the first place.

My second soap pet peeve happened in today's episode.

Hope is a cop, trained in interrogation.  But, when she asks Harris what's wrong and he pauses long enough to have a flashback of an entire scene, which is the most obvious tell in the world, she accepts his lie without question.  So, not only is she too stupid to insist that Harris (who was brainwashed until last week) stick by her side, (you only need to watch one episode of Law & Order to know that a cop always needs backup) but now she can't see through his lies - Hope should not be written as an imbecile.

Only on soaps do they rely on these juvenile tricks to demonstrate to the audience that someone is lying, yet nobody in the scene notices.  The classic is when two characters embrace, and the camera lingers on one of them with a cynically raised eyebrow.  It is so dumb.

45 minutes ago, Vee said:

Many times. They also went to the Ball together.

Oh good, I like them together

Has Ava had a scene with Austin since the day after Nikolas died?

It feels like that relationship was the focus of February sweeps, but now it has been forgotten.  It totally neuters the potential evil of Austin's cousin if he's only a threat every two months.  I get that Victor's story is the central drama, but there are a lot of loose threads.  Including why/where Blaze stayed in town after the ball, but nobody checked in on her.

6 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx11uCEhfbI

Sharon Wyatt could really break your heart. 

so good, thanks

I don't recall if Holly and Felicia have ever been on an adventure together. 

I know Luke returned briefly for the culmination of the Aztec Jewels storyline when Felicia was first introduced, but by then he had reunited with Laura.  Anna and Felicia were close when Frisco worked at the PCPD.  And Felicia has shared adventures with Lucy when they are paired with Mac and Kevin respectively.

But, can anyone fill me in if Holly and Felicia shared any significant interactions prior to this plot?

I'm on the other side of the fence about Nathan Parsons (he looked eternally in need of a bath and his accent work was not good).

But, there is something very Ali-McGraw-in-Love-Story that the actress who plays Willow is so beautiful that the only way that they can visually indicate that she's sick is by having her wear a blanket in every episode. 

I wasn't a fan of the character, backstory, or portrayal of Ethan, but I can always be swayed by a man with blond curly hair, so hope springs eternal.

20 minutes ago, Soapsuds said:

I don't think they went the imposter route because the producers knew fans wanted Bobby back.

Also Dynasty had already done an imposter story with Krystal the previous year.

Not to mention Wes Parmalee.  I mean how many imposters could one family take? 

5 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

At first, I thought he shot the bottle

That actually makes sense  - thanks

I was just reminded on Twitter that this is his penultimate week (4/17-4/20).  I recall that there was a report that CBS was going to replace him with a revival of @midnight, but I haven't heard anything since then.  Does anyone have info on what will be in that slot three weeks from now?

BTW - this is totally just an inquiry, I haven't watched late-night network TV regularly since Letterman ended.

A couple more lingering thoughts about today's episode.

I like John talking to Brady about Rachel because John has a better rapport with Rachel and can help modify her behavior.  But, I still wish John would reflect on his difficulties in raising Sami to help give Brady some perspective (alternatively it would nice to hear Brady reflect on what he learned from his difficulties accepting Marlena as a stepmother, I'm certain he wasn't her favorite after he threatened Belle with getting run over by a train or whatever he did back then).  For a writing staff that is so beholden to the past, this feels like a missed opportunity.  Just like it would be fun to explore how Brady's parenting style reflects some of the poor choices that he's made with women in his past (although it is admittedly bizarre to wish for character development on a soap that deals with age reversal serums and magic biscuits).

As for the Alex/Marlena scenes, I can't help but be a little excited at how Marlena's relationship with Alex will affect her relationship with Maggie, given the rumors of behind-the-scenes drama between the two actors.  It feels like DAYS is trying to recapture the dynamic that Marlena had with Will.  But, he is her grandson, not a client, so it can't really be duplicated.

I totally don't understand the gunshot/wine fake-out.  Are we meant to think that Bo shot his gun and threw wine at the same time, that seems difficult?  Or, in Greece does throwing wine sound the same as a gunshot?

I will withhold judgment on the Alex/Marlena relationship until they have more than one episode together (although she is terrible with confidentiality which is considered the cornerstone of the therapeutic relationship).

I like the Steve/Bo interactions and how they evoke memories of their friendship/rivalry.  It made me realize that since their initial time on the show, they've been like two ships passing in the night where one would return while the other was off-screen.  So, it is fun to watch them act together again.

The John/Brady scene represents my pet peeve about DAYS scripts.  Much like the Stephanie/Tripp scene last week, it involves two people talking about a crisis, but as soon as they are done, they begin talking about their romantic status.  It's like "my stepmom just returned from the dead (for the umpteenth time) and half of the town was just drugged by a biscuit, but what really bugs me is if I should kiss this girl that I knew in high school."  The tone is just weird. 

It would be awesome if Megan and Kristen exploit the EJ versus Stefan rivalry to gain control of the Dimera fortune.  I wouldn't mind whatever silly idea would get them out of prison in order to see the interplay of those four characters (ok, I would mind it if they repeated that idiotic thing where everyone was just pardoned without consequence, but if it was clever I would approve).

Talia seems to have synthesized a drug that makes women horny and men hallucinate.  I hope she gives Rolf a run for his money in the laboratory sciences.

This makes me wonder, have we ever seen Kayla in a lab?  Was there ever a story where she had to concoct some kind of antidote?  Because if Talia is making LSD in a one-bedroom apartment, maybe Bo should've kidnapped her.

Lastly, is it possible that the Beyond Salem crew is similar to us because they also don't seem to know what the Dimera and Kirakis family businesses produce?   Rolf worked for Dimera in creating the youth serum, but now Bo wants to steal it for Kirakis, but do Maggie and Xander even know that their company manufactures pharmaceuticals?  I think there's some irony, given the number of prescription drug ads on daytime, that they're even playing with this idea.