edgeofnik

The writers really gave us some great stuff with the Drew shooting S/L. The story lost so much momentum when they basically inserted the Ronnie nothingburger, but, I gotta say since the trial start, we've had numerous excellent and compelling scenes - Portia and Willow's scenes on the stand were riveting Since they've made Drew absolutely relentless in his jerkness, perhaps Drew return to just a cad, instead of a royal pain, happens after he discovers/remembers that Willow shot him. CM deserves a lot of credit for absolutely playing this to the hilt - especially against some of those sanctimonious hypocritical characters. And, damn, if he isn't approaching 57(!) with that kind body.

It's hilarious how Taylor, Deke and Hope accept that Deacon is a changed man even though he stalked/terrorized and shot at Quinn multiple times - his most recent crimes - and, yet, Sheila is nonredeemable. One of the most frustrating aspects of B&B is that it's good/evil - there's no gray. Hope was good, until she betrayed the Forresters (Thomas and the takeover) and then she was pure evil, but now she's back to good. B&B is like The Simpsons of soaps. B&B characters never grow, change or evolve - they are literally the same - even if there's a short-term diversion - they revert to form. It's unlike any other soap where we see characters evolve over time. Oh and I do think RB/SK have great chemistry. While I would've preferred they simply created 'Aunt Taylee' for RB, she's actually made Taylor viable again.

We never saw them do the deed. He may have been buying her time for other reasons. I'm just sayin' the way he was on the stand and then the carefully worded convo with Jacinda at the bar gave me strong vibes that the story shifted. I do think they're going to give Michael/Jacinda a shot, which is why they had Nina actually being sympathetic to her a few weeks ago, the Kristina interactions, vibes, etc. I'm not opposed to it, but it's definitely not what was initially planned.

Ezra is: Jacinda's father.

Ha! That was a highlight. Interestingly, when Ezra was on the stand I got different vibes when Ezra - he's normally quite crass and it was far more subdued. When Jacinda/Ezra were talking and he said he's constituents would get over their relationship, I think it's something completely different - and a very typical GH trope. Ezra may be one of those midstream character changes that got first got clued when Ezra was actually civil and almost sympathetic to Laura before he went on the stand. Just sayin' - he may not be the bad guy now.

And neither Ridge/Steffy saying the obvious: this happened during the takeover by brother Carter + sl*t Hope, which Brooke 'went along' with. Honestly, isn't there a part of Steffy that's glad that LOGAN is not a FC trademark? The writing for Deke is appalling! I get kissing up to Katie, but being all understanding to his father? C'mon. There is no way any working class kid who was booted for a nepo wouldn't have a few choice words to say, especially since he's Deacon's son + the way the Forrester have always looked down on his father and sister. Deke would be completely justified in ripping them to his father privately.

That runway fantasy was a complete miss. We all know what's really going to happen when LOGAN's line debuts on the runway - Katie will have that long foreshadowed heart attack after she sees Brill in a compromising position - hopefully livestreamed with little to the imagination. We're overdue for a Brooke scandal and the pieces are falling into place: LOGAN, dredging up Katie's resentment, showing those hot Brill flashbacks, the out-of-the-blue Xmas peace with Steffy, which opens the door to the next major piece: Ridge, with Steffy's blessing, hands Brooke the co-CEO position so he can focus exclusively on designing after Eric gives his new designs to Katie. I just hope this develops over several months and not weeks.

It's a blessing and a curse. Blessing: B&B's ability to wrap a S/L that isn't working, erase it from the canvas and pivot to the next story is unparalleled in the modern soap world - Brooke's alleged drinking problem, Nicole wanting custody, etc. Curse: Exactly your point - plot driven, no real character evolution that sticks, etc. That said, I'll take LOGAN v FC fashion battle over anything we've been dished during the past 4 years. It's been awful. KKL is criminally underrated as an actor. When she's part of theses Emmy-bait scenes, KKL has this ability to be equally effective and present without attempting to out-act, out voice or one-up her scene partner. It's a rare skill. I actually thought today's dialogue with Katie explaining why she suppressed her resentment during the past decade was quite good. It's not a stretch that Brooke forbidding Katie from using LOGAN would cause it all to surface. For years we've been hearing how the Logans are underappreciated at FC and that they'll never be equals, etc. On the surface, you'd think Brooke would be proud that to have a fashion house named LOGAN. However, this proves what I've always believed - Brooke doesn't want the Logan name out there as a public reminder of her roots. As Katie pointed out, she's Brooke Forrester, it's Brooke's Bedroom, it's BeLieF, etc. She had decades to incorporate the Logan name into one of her lines, but chose not to.

The networks are actively touting the L+35 ratings for PrimeTime. The numbers are enlightening - demos are 2-5x higher than the Live+SD. Viewership tends to double. Based on what we've seen with DAYS/GH, I'd be shocked in the three CBS soaps aren't doing solid numbers on streaming. Soaps also offer streamers 52-week original content - no other scripted shows can do that.

I'm glad I started recording the day $B gifted 'LOGAN' to Katie. Honestly, this is the most interesting story Brad has developed in years. It's definitely a nod to the BeLieF ownership, which is hands down, B&B best storyline. KKL and HT have absolutely nailed it. KKL's delivery has been superb - it's very Stephanie like - cool, condensing with a hint of superiority. I could totally envision SF delivering KKL's lines in a similar manner except to Brooke. (Stephanie telling Brooke she can't do this and that - like the old days.) And, kudos to Brad having Katie go there with $B in an absolutely cutting way, especially the part about $B having faith in Katie's business acumen - both at FC and LOGAN. Wow! Now that's history-based drama that needs no retcon. It's unfortunate today's episode was littered with those offensive PSA scenes. Thank goodness for FF.

I thought BM might return for Xmas. Needless to say, I was disappointed she didn't even call out TGVN to Lily. On the plus side, the Lily/Traci scenes were done well. OC Nikki slithers back to the Ranch to collect whatever rare, collectable toy$ Victor got her. Gross.

Merry Christmas @soapfan770 !

Oh, Portia. I'll say having her on the stand to reveal all her sins was satisfying. Now, Trina, if you had just told your parents the truth about the destroyed evidence, all of that could've been avoided. OC, the writers how to do it that way for maximum impact. Willow's horrified look when Drew told Alexis that she wouldn't see Scout for the holidays. The next scene should've been Willow convincing Drew to let Scout see her family. While I like the softer side of Ava with her besties, I'd love to find out Ava is secretly working with Sonny to take down Sidwell, who seems quite smitten with her. Ava definitely would have motivation to protect Lucas.

Since I've returned to GH, I've only skipped three scenes - Brad/Britt - those two are horrible together. GH spent the past 6-8 weeks doing a pretty great job course correcting Britt, and then they put her in this garbage? Oh, and I just saw the clip where Brad, who was on duty, tried to blackmail Michael into sex. What? Could Stone Cold Michael please take out this trash permanently? Based on what little I've seen, no one could possible miss that character.

I'm waiting for BM to return so Traci can remind Victor that he has an Abbott heart.