Khan

Frankly, I don't think it matters either way, lol.

IIRC, didn't the real Belle walk in on Shawn in bed with the fake Belle, who turned back into Jan moments later? If she did, then there was nothing that Shawn needed to confess to. He and Belle should have sensed immediately that something far more sinister was going on and that he wasn't entirely responsible for what had happened between him and "Belle." Ugh. I hate idiot plots, lol. Here's something that could salvage this whole mess: believing that he and Sami are finished, and guided by his newfound feelings for Belle, E.J. elects to romance Jan, who has been released from the mental institution, in order to keep her from wrecking Shawn and Belle's lives any further. As time goes on, E.J. develops genuine feelings toward Jan. However, E.J. and Jan's relationship is in jeopardy when Sami suddenly returns with the goal of reclaiming her husband.

A potential Sonny/Chad hookup would be like oxycontin: it's not necessarily good for you, but it sure-as-hell numbs the pain.

Agree. He aged them and forced them onto the front burner much too quickly, and he gave them (well, most of them) absolutely no depth whatsoever, too. Well, it'd be a lot easier to swallow than Brady resenting Marlena for no damn reason. (Seriously, Brady, you weren't even teething yet when your bio mom kicked the bucket. Doc's the only mom you've ever really known. So, what the [!@#$%^&*] is YOUR problem?) Knowing that Shawn was under the (false) impression that he was having sex with his own wife just makes it hard for me to understand where Belle is coming from atm. Pure, and simple.

Bingo.

I forgot to add that longer scenes would mean less scenes per episode, too.

Exactly. John and Marlena should have been over-indulgent with Belle out of guilt. Or, going in another direction, Belle COULD and SHOULD have been the Perfect Daughter, overachieving and overcompensating for the circumstances behind her conception, until she just couldn't take the pressure anymore and began "acting out," preferably when she was in college on her own for the first time. But it just seemed like DAYS have given us nothing where Belle's psychology is concerned.

Suddenly, Pamela "Is the Camera Still On, Tommy?" Anderson making her B'way debut as Roxie Hart in "Chicago" doesn't seem so ludicrous anymore.

I'm spending mine on a bodyguard for Jodie Foster. Anybody wanna chip in?

I...I just.... Jesus, take the wheel.

Sadly, I think Sonny would end up with Leo before ending up with Chad.

Frankly, I think it's tough, if not impossible, to save a show that's written 80 years ahead, BUT... I'd eliminate all public spaces that require extras that the show obviously can't afford anymore (Brady's Pub, HTS, UH, Julie's Place, etc.) and mandate that all scenes instead take place in private spaces (living rooms, kitchens, bedrooms, etc.) or settings that would require only 2-3 characters. I'd trim the size of the cast to 15-18 actors, tops. All off-contract and recurring actors would be written out; if you ain't got a contract, you ain't on the show. Moreover, I'd trim the average number of actors featured per episode, and I'd expand the average length of scenes as well to make up for the fact that you no longer have the larger cast to fill episodes. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, to quote Pamela K. Long, I'd "get real." What does that mean? Well, for one, it means no more demonic possessions. Those are real, but they're also hard to believe on a daytime soap opera that isn't DARK SHADOWS: THE NEXT GENERATION. No more supervillains. No more brainwashings, or characters believing they're dead-and-forgotten characters one week and literal toddlers the next. No more microchips, no more facial masks, no more serums. No more outrageous, OTT stories that depend on an actual budget in order for them to be even partially effective. Just get back to doing what this show (and this genre) used to do best: smaller, intimate, yet all-too-revealing examinations of the human condition and its' many quirks, with the underlying theme of family and love being the only things one can count on in this crazy, cuckoo, laugh-in kind of world.

And I think the fact that Belle thinks her conception ruined her mother's life should have influenced her own life more negatively than it has. No, really. Belle should have been a screw-up all along, making all the kinds of stupid, harmful, self-destructive mistakes you could think of and more; proving Sami was right about her and being just a general, hot, needy mess from day one. Instead, she's just so dull that even now, with her marriage imploding, she's putting everyone to sleep.

Not so fast. I predict that, by the end of the week, the media will dig up some heinous [!@#$%^&*] on him.

Yup. DAYS's entire legacy, from the very beginning until now, has been built on the concept of (true) love winning out in the end, but you're right, @carolineg, about how much that has f'ed up not only Belle, but Shawn as well. IMO, Shawn and Belle need to realize that maybe, despite their very best efforts, they're simply not "meant to be." (Of course, I also think Shawn actually WANTS to be with Jan but just can't bring himself to admit that he really loves her batshit crazy ass, lol.)

But they'd still have to figure out how to fill those sets with props, extras and other stuff for less than $1. DAYS should just do away with public settings altogether and have most scenes take place between 2-3 characters on smaller, more intimate sets (e.g., bedrooms, living rooms, kitchens and so forth). It might be too much of a throwback, but when you ain't got the dough anymore, what else can you do?

I still fear that there's gonna be a mix-up at the wedding and Leo's gonna end up being married to Gwen (and Xander married to Craig). Craig and Nancy discussing their issues in a pub with no other customers around is just so ridiculous. Come on, DAYS, I'm sure you could hock something to afford an extra or two.

Frankly, I don't see how anyone COULD get ecstatic about a gender reveal. I mean, it's either got a penis or it doesn't. I'm reminded of what Linda Dano (who, IMO, gave a master class on "playing drunk" on AW) said: don't "play drunk," just play the pain. At the very least, someone should have cut into the cake and found a severed body part or something.

I feel like Leo and Gwen should be calling each other "Mrs. Schmenkman." (If you know, then you know.)

I can't say that I blame most people for feeling the way they do. The GOP and MSM have gamed the system to the point that (IMO) it really doesn't matter anymore what the other side(s) do or don't do. Republicans have ensured they'll be in power long after they've become the minority in this country.

It hasn't been a good year for comedians.

Apparently, Sarah's Baby Snooks impression has everyone in stitches.

I'm presuming fireworks of the emotional kind? Because, Lord knows, DAYS can't afford actual fireworks anymore.

God bless Canada.

Same difference.