This is more of a semantic question than a plot critique, but I’ve been wondering: did Xander ever explicitly lie about beating Philip, or did he simply avoid confessing while Philip did the lying?

Now that the truth has come out, it’s mostly academic, but I don’t recall if Xander lied to Marlena during couples counseling. He sidestepped the truth, yes, but he didn’t fabricate a story. In fact, my memory is that it seemed deliberately written that way, to allow plausible deniability (despite everyone assuming it was true).  To be clear, I know Xander beat Philip, I am questioning if he lied about it.

I read elsewhere, some said: Maggie never held Victor accountable for his past misdeeds, even though some were arguably worse than Xander’s. By the time they married, Victor had mostly cleaned up, but Maggie’s expectations for him were clearly different from the ones she now places on her daughter’s relationship with Xander. It’s understandable to want more for your child, but it’s also fair to point out that Maggie often turned a blind eye to Victor’s history. (Granted, Victor was never involved in a DUI, so he was forgiving in-turn of Maggie's past.)

Edited October 27Oct 27 by j swift

I find Days so dull. There’s no real story. There’s just scenes. Nothing ties the show together. Boring. 

Are we getting Halloween all week on this show?

I am very very confused about who we are supposed to be supporting in this story. Sarah is so abrasive. Maggie is awful. Philip is the voice of reason. Xander is just bereft and most of the audience will be behind him. And I know maybe I am awful too but I do not get the big deal about this. Sarah, Maggie, Alex, Philip all lied to Xander for MONTHS. He blew his top. Sarah whined that she kept the secret because she was scared of losing him. Xander told her he kept his for the same reason. Philip is 'cured' because he went into therapy, Marlena 'wasted her time'?? And do not get me started on "he will never see his child again". I love Xarah but right now I think XANDER could do better and Sarah deserves to be the latest in Brady's doomed to fail romantic relationships.

36 minutes ago, brisbydog said:

I am very very confused about who we are supposed to be supporting in this story. Sarah is so abrasive. Maggie is awful. Philip is the voice of reason. Xander is just bereft and most of the audience will be behind him. And I know maybe I am awful too but I do not get the big deal about this. Sarah, Maggie, Alex, Philip all lied to Xander for MONTHS. He blew his top. Sarah whined that she kept the secret because she was scared of losing him. Xander told her he kept his for the same reason. Philip is 'cured' because he went into therapy, Marlena 'wasted her time'?? And do not get me started on "he will never see his child again". I love Xarah but right now I think XANDER could do better and Sarah deserves to be the latest in Brady's doomed to fail romantic relationships.

I agree with ALL of this.

I'm all about drama, but so much of this seems to be manufactured. The reactions of Maggie and Sarah towards Xander are insanely over-the-top. When Philip is the voice of reason, you know you're too far gone. 

Sarah and Maggie are being written as so unsympathetic it's hard to believe. And yeah, a romance with Brady and Sarah is laughable.

Are they setting up a possible romance between Julie and the former owner of the bookstore??  Sorry, I've forgotten his name.   Just my opinion, but I think it is too soon for a new romance for Julie.  There are lots of other plots that could be written for her.  But not a romance at this time...

 

October 13

Omg evil Rachel is back even under the new actress I love it! The new actress played the switch so perfectly.
 

I’m still confused how Chad ever thought Jack, Jennifer, or his kids would get over Cat pretending to be their dead daughter and mother and actually be okay with him dating her? Like that’s just straight up dumb. 

I’m usually not really into teen stories but the Sofia story has actually been a very entertaining umbrella story as we head towards it’s conclusion. 

There was a lot of depth and maturity in the script today.

And as a whole, I feel like it helped us to better understand what many characters have been going through lately, particularly Theo/JJ and Chad/Jennifer. The most important parts of today's episodes were not played like a big joke, which is always a good thing. 

I'll always enjoy scenes of Theo and JJ discussing their friendship and where it's at right now. The two of them really do work well together. I feel like they have a natural chemistry and are completely believable as friends that hit a rough patch. They're right in the middle of real, natural conflict that could go in so many different directions. I'm interested in seeing where the two of them are going to go from here. And I'm glad that JJ also had Jennifer to confide in.

Speaking of Jennifer, I also enjoyed Chad and Jennifer's scenes. Jennifer brought up a really interesting point about Chad possibly projecting his feelings for Abigail onto Cat, which I wouldn't mind being used to drive future storylines. Chad and Cat still don't do much for me as a couple, or even just being in each other's orbits.

Marlena and Xander's therapy session was nice as well. As much as we've heard Xander say that he wants to be a better person, this time actually feels a little different. It seems a lot more believable this time than any other time that he's said that before. 

As for Tony's disappearance and re-appearance, maybe this is going to end up meaning what I suspected about Tony from the beginning.

The Theo and JJ storyline is genuinely compelling. I appreciate Theo refusing to let JJ off the hook. But we've never seen JJ being a 'good' cop. If he’d cracked the EJ shooting case or rescued Holly from Doug³’s loan shark, we’d have tangible proof he’s a capable cop. Instead, we’re left with Theo’s justified anger and JJ’s credibility hanging by a thread.

Eric Martsolf’s Brady makes my skin crawl.  I don't get why RSW gets so much guff, when EM is objectively bad, and no longer cute to boot. Whether it’s the smarmy game show-host energy, the oddly dyed facial hair, or the aging heartthrob vibe, the whole package feels off. He plays Brady like a petulant man-child, not a romantic lead. That said, he somehow made the rage room scene entertaining. Do they really stock those with breakable glass? Feels like a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Tony’s cruise came out of nowhere, right? No prior mention, and it’s bizarre timing—why jet off a week after reclaiming the company? And what exactly is EJ’s role now? Between the hospital and DiMera Enterprises, he should be drowning in responsibilities, not floating in plot ambiguity.

Lastly, Cat is breathtaking. But I still can’t wrap my head around her almost working in the hospital cafeteria. And are all four Greenes crammed into that shoebox apartment? The logistics alone deserve their own subplot.

 

Edited October 28Oct 28 by j swift

No, it didn't come out of nowhere. Tony mentioned his cruise when he was talking to Gabi/Theo last week.  He had his bags by the door saying he was going to Monte Carlo with Anna.

Well Anna's been fooled before (more than once)...

I actually dislike the way the make Anna seem dumb and flighty.  She's spoiled and vain, but she isn't stupid.  And the show makes fun of her and her design career like she's tacky, which IIRC, was actually quite a successful venture for her in the 80's. 

34 minutes ago, carolineg said:

No, it didn't come out of nowhere. Tony mentioned his cruise when he was talking to Gabi/Theo last week.  He had his bags by the door saying he was going to Monte Carlo with Anna.

🤭

Early Anna and Tony were both sophisticated and complicated characters.  They were a bit lazy, and didn't enjoy the rigors of villainy.  They were very close with Marlena, and I would've preferred Anna and Marlena were stuck together during the blackout, and talked about grief, rather than Susan Banks.

It is truly a shame that they've made a mockery of Anna, who should be allowed the same dignity as Kate.  

They've really leaned into the "Anna is kooky" thing since... maybe not her return in the 2000s, but since Tony's death in 2009 for sure. And yes, this weird little Tony interlude reeks of an Andre swap. Ugh.

Did anyone catch that establishing shot of the neighborhood that the Horton home is allegedly in? It looked like a planned subdivision or a golf community or something. Such a weird mismatch.

I did like a lot of the dialogue between JJ/Theo and Jen/Chad, though!