I always marvel at the loss of memory when it comes to certain characters.   Sami is best in smaller doses, and I think having Sami coming and going is what is best for the show and for the character.

 

I’m still fully on board with the meshuggah brilliance of EJ acting as Johnny’s defense attorney. It’s a rich dramatic opportunity, and it’s been a pleasure to watch him take center stage in these cross-examinations.  EJ seems cool, composed, and absolutely in his element.

That said, the trial has been tilted entirely in EJ’s favor. During the presentation of the prosecution, he’s dismantled every witness: Chad, Jada, Roman, Paulina, and Gabi.  The dynamic has been so lopsided that Belle looks completely incompetent.

 

But, gird your loins.  Structurally, this all seems intentional.  We all know EJ is going to mess this up. The show is creating a sense that Johnny’s acquittal is inevitable. Which is why Rachel’s testimony is going to land as the first real disruption. Even if she didn’t see the shooting, Rachel saying she saw Johnny with the gun is enough to shift the tone of the trial. It finally gives Belle a day in court that feels like a win.

I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the moment EJ turns on Chanel, especially since he sent Belle the anonymous, doctored video of Chanel threatening to kill him—after he had already recovered from the shooting. I think he’s going to accuse Belle of withholding evidence just to force her to bring that video into the trial. If things start to go badly for Johnny, EJ’s going to make his next move.

Edited August 7Aug 7 by j swift

Welcome back, Anna!

It was nice seeing her interact with Tony, even though I'm not really a fan of this whole Stefano thing. But considering the way that Tony was written in those scenes, I can't help but think that the theory we've been speculating about is actually true. It doesn't seem very Tony-like.

The court scenes were once again the best part of today. I didn't expect Johnny to testify on his own behalf, or that Belle was going to get him to admit the truth about Sami's rape. As annoying and dumb as Belle gets sometimes, I do like seeing her in lawyer mode. To me, it shows that there's a lot more interest and a lot more depth being injected into her character. And now that EJ dropped the bomb about his and Belle's relationship, I wonder where they and everyone else are going to go from here. Hopefully, Belle finds a shoulder (Shawn's) to cry on.

The only thing that this storyline seems to be missing is Marlena's part in it. We should be seeing what the effect of her daughter prosecuting her grandson is doing to her a lot more than we have been. It could also be tied into the dreams that she's been having. 

And, Johnny looks good in a suit too 😂

I thought Steve was used very well today too. It's a welcome change because I felt like the new writers didn't have much of an interest in him. I like that he confronted Alex about his criminal past. Alex's explanation was a little stupid, but I hope that it leads to something interesting happening. Btw, I kind of like the idea of Steve using the Freedom of Information Act to learn more about the Dimera takeover. It feels more realistic than what we've seen before. 

And yeah, I still don't know why Chanel isn't in court to support Johnny. It doesn't make much sense to me.

6 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

The court scenes were once again the best part of today. I didn't expect Johnny to testify on his own behalf, or that Belle was going to get him to admit the truth about Sami's rape. As annoying and dumb as Belle gets sometimes, I do like seeing her in lawyer mode. To me, it shows that there's a lot more interest and a lot more depth being injected into her character. And now that EJ dropped the bomb about his and Belle's relationship, I wonder where they and everyone else are going to go from here. Hopefully, Belle finds a shoulder (Shawn's) to cry on.

Do we think it was EJ's plan all along to expose he and Belle's relationship to try to cause a mistrial?  Is that why he got her on the case to begin with?  Or did he just get mad at her today?  

It's all really silly honestly.  EJ/Belle being in a relationship is less of a conflict of interest than the fact Johnny is her nephew!

Great post, @AbcNbc247 as always. I especially agree about how much stronger Belle is when the show lets her operate in lawyer mode rather than just orbiting Marlena or EJ. And yes, Johnny does wear a suit well, credit where it’s due.

That said, this was another episode where I found myself quietly amused by the show’s understanding of real-world legal processes. Two things stood out to me:

1. First, the Freedom of Information Act doesn’t work that way. It’s a federal law that applies to government agencies, not private corporations. DiMera and Titan are not public entities—unless they’ve secretly merged with the U.S. Postal Service, Steve wouldn’t be FOIA-ing their merger filings. Meanwhile, he somehow gets Alex Kiriakis’s dismissed college arrest record, but not a basic corporate disclosure? Classic Salem logic: private records are easy to get, public ones are shrouded in mystery. But I get what they were going for: Steve uncovering secrets with a paper trail that will lead back to him.
2. Second, the Fifth Amendment. Johnny was called by the prosecution to testify against his own interest in a trial where he’s still a plausible suspect. That’s just not how court works. EJ is sleeping with the prosecutor, defending his own son, and calling her out for a conflict of interest—while he’s the victim. The show’s not even pretending this trial follows legal rules. But again, if the goal was to get emotional fireworks on the stand, it worked.

You also mentioned Marlena, and I think you’re onto something. My guess is she becomes central later in the trial, especially once Rachel is called to testify. That's her granddaughter, and there's no way they don’t give Marlena some kind of protective or emotional reaction beat when that happens.

As for Chanel, I’m guessing the writers kept her out of court so, in the near future, they can show the video while preserving her ignorance of it. Dramaturgically (a word I intend to use more frequently, just because I like saying it), they need her not to know it’s been doctored, because once she sees it, she’ll realize that her threat to EJ came after the shooting, not before. Also, she a perfect expo dump character for Johnny to recap the trial for the audience who went to get a snack.  

It’s a lot of narrative puzzle pieces, but to their credit, the show seems to be laying track pretty deliberately this time. We’ll see where it goes. One thing is for sure, no matter who’s writing, someone will find a reason to tell a story about Alex Kiriakis getting naked in public.

Edited August 7Aug 7 by j swift

I would imagine that if Alex tells Stephanie about "Daniel Lucas" she is going to know exactly who that is. For those not watching in 1989, that was Steve's undercover name when he was infiltrating the bible camp. 

Xander is not buying what Gabi is selling. He is onto her I think. I like him reminding her she is working against her own interests if she tanks the company.

Poor Belle. But I don't feel all that bad for her. She is literally making Johnny talk about her 'boyfriend' raping her sister and she is ok with the fact she just had sex with him.

Chanel and Paulina are a waste of time. Why isn't she in court?

Enjoyed Anna and Tony! I feel his frustration that his brothers don't care about the loss of the company.

 
Oh whoever had 'indecent exposure' as their guess for Alex's crime wins a prize!

5 hours ago, carolineg said:

Do we think it was EJ's plan all along to expose he and Belle's relationship to try to cause a mistrial?  Is that why he got her on the case to begin with?

I hope they take this route, or at least have Belle accuse EJ of doing that. The aftermath of that could be a nail in their coffin, as a couple. And the more that that's get it built up, it could lead to something explosive happening.

3 minutes ago, brisbydog said:

She is literally making Johnny talk about her 'boyfriend' raping her sister and she is ok with the fact she just had sex with him.

All the more reason that I want Marlena to flip out on her 😂

2 hours ago, j swift said:

Great post, @AbcNbc247 as always. I especially agree about how much stronger Belle is when the show lets her operate in lawyer mode rather than just orbiting Marlena or EJ. And yes, Johnny does wear a suit well, credit where it’s due.

That said, this was another episode where I found myself quietly amused by the show’s understanding of real-world legal processes. Two things stood out to me:

1. First, the Freedom of Information Act doesn’t work that way. It’s a federal law that applies to government agencies, not private corporations. DiMera and Titan are not public entities—unless they’ve secretly merged with the U.S. Postal Service, Steve wouldn’t be FOIA-ing their merger filings. Meanwhile, he somehow gets Alex Kiriakis’s dismissed college arrest record, but not a basic corporate disclosure? Classic Salem logic: private records are easy to get, public ones are shrouded in mystery. But I get what they were going for: Steve uncovering secrets with a paper trail that will lead back to him.

Thank you! 😊👍

But I guess I need to brush up on the FOIA 😂😂

As for Belle, MM said we were going to enjoy the writing for Belle, and I'm glad she was right. I did think Ron was interested in her character too. Fired Guy was the one who was responsible for Belle disappearing all the time, I think.

But it all just feel more mature now and layered. Instead of Belle being so subservient to EJ or getting into campy bitchfights defending him, she's holding her own, even though she can't stay away from him. I like the mess of it all. 

27 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

I hope they take this route, or at least have Belle accuse EJ of doing that. The aftermath of that could be a nail in their coffin, as a couple. And the more that that's get it built up, it could lead to something explosive happening.

It was hard for me to tell from today's scenes.  EJ had no hesitation revealing that information, so I was thinking it may have been his plan all along if the trial wasn't going Johnny's way.

Finally, Marlena's in court.

And now that Johnny filled her in about EJ and Belle, hopefully that leads to her having a bigger part in this part of the storyline. Her POV is needed a lot more. I liked how she comforted Johnny, and then Belle. This is such an effective way to use Marlena. IMO, this is exactly what she/DH needs in the aftermath of John's death.

I expected EJ's motion for a mistrial to be denied, especially because of all the other conflicts of interest in this case lol but I'm curious to see what happens next. Hopefully, his and Belle's confrontation at the end continues on Monday, or at some point next week. And now that Belle has declared that their relationship is over, I want to see if she's going to keep her word... or fall back into bed with him again... or with somebody else 😂😂

And I do like how Xander didn't have much time for Gabi's crap, but I enjoyed their conversation. They hit a lot of important beats about Xander's relationships with Victor, and with Sarah. And while I enjoyed the whole confrontation between them and Brady/Sarah, I felt like Lindsey Godfrey played it a little too silly at some points. Luckily, Xander/PT balanced it out.

And yeah, Chad/Cat still do nothing for me. 

Days is boring without Ron Carlivati. The new writers are terrible! Nothing happens. 

These new writers don't want anybody happy together, do they? I guess apart from Steph/Alex and Javi/Leo and nobody cares about either. Having said that I am glad to see EJ and Belle implode. It's a horrible pairing.

I'm sick of Sarah using Brady to make Xander jealous. It was annoying in 2020 and this is more of the same. I'd hope Brady would be smart enough not to be used but it's Brady...

Gabi picked the wrong mark. Despite all her appeal Xander is not interested. I did like his reflection on Victor. If she wants to get information via sex she should be going after Philip.

Chad and Cat need to be put out of their misery. It's awful and awkward to watch.

39 minutes ago, brisbydog said:

These new writers don't want anybody happy together, do they?

If I had to pick, I'd rather it be this way.

Stephanie/Alex and Javi/Leo may be happy, but they're boring lol Stephanie and Alex need something a lot better than this book stuff. And if we're forced to endure Javi and Leo, they could at least have some good conflict 😂

Xander/Sarah and even EJ/Belle are the ones that have really been keeping my interest lately

 

Chanel/Johnny, Paulina/Abe, and Kayla/Steve are all happy.

In fact, standard summer procedure would have been for Chanel and Johnny to have a romantic interlude this week to help distract from the trial.  But, we get so few love scenes, that the best we got was Johnny and Chanel having lunch with her mother.

I can't think of Johnny and Chanel being happy while he is facing jail. But yes couple wise they are together.

The vets thankfully are left alone 

Roman/Kate are happy!