Written by:
Sara A. Bibel
Cheryl L. Davis

Directed by:
Steven Williford

original release date: Wednesday, May 13, 2026 | writers: Sara A. Bibel, Cheryl L. Davis | director: Steven Williford

Thoughts:

• Good on Naomi for calling out Bill for his sexist views of what Ashley may or may not be doing in reference to her breakup with Grayson.

• I love that Vanessa loves the glow that Nicole has and that their friendship seems to be right back on track.

• Oh Dana. You are not going out to dinner. You will be eating in with Ted and Izaiah, so get whatever plan you had in your head out of it.

• Not the "like mother, like daughter" comment and how it always comes back to Dani shooting up Bill and Hayley's wedding. 🤣

• Hayley, I did not know you were capable of being hurt, but it is nice seeing you wear something a bit more appropriate for the office... it is just a shame it is not during actual office hours.

• Of course Dana would be judgmental over Izaiah's cooking based on his physical appearance. Plus, spending money seems to be her favourite pastime, along with underhanded comments.

• Vanessa is on the right track and I am in agreement with her. Nicole's thoughts of Ted during her initial romantic interlude with Carlton mean more than she is letting on.

• I love that, despite trying to have a drink with Bill and Hayley, she cannot help herself by making some shade at Hayley's involvement at the law firm.

• Tomas is playing it smart: to get what he wants, he needs to give a little to get the information he needs. I just hope he gives the right bit to Bradley.

• This is why I do not like speakerphone multiway calls. They are overstimulating as Hell.

• Not the 'hospital ho'. Ha.

• Ted gifting Eva all of these gifts for her birthdays of the past is just beautiful. I will not divulge information, but I have done the same thing for Christmas and birthdays of the past.

• That is right, Nicole; feel yourself quiver at the sight of a sweaty, post-workout Ted. I know there is another workout you are likely thinking of.

• Time number two, Izaiah has let the 'L' word slip from his mouth. SECOND!

• Vanessa is way too hospitable to dismiss Dana at the country club and Dana is way too dumb-witted to not realise Vanessa is not interested in hearing about any of this.

• GET IT, NICOLE! Thinking about a very public hookup with your ex at the country club! WOW! That was hot!

• Thank goodness that Eva feels the same way. That could have been very, very awkward!

Notes:

• Another day of outstanding script work by Bibel and Davis. A third consecutive day of hitting it out of the park. More great story and character movement, which I do love seeing happen.

• I like seeing both Chelsea and Naomi connect with the respective parent they are meant to be more imitative of. Great.

• Daphnée Duplaix is stunning but her current wig is just not right for her. It is too flat; her previous hairstyle had more body and felt more realistic and natural.

• That macaroni and cheese looked both cheesy and dry at the same time, which is not how I like my macaroni and cheese, but overall the flavour palette sounds delicious.

• Kudos to close captions for appropriately spelling 'ho' the right way. People spelling it 'hoe' are misspelling it in the context and it is very irksome to me.

• The onscreen graphics are amazing; I do not use social media like most, but I do like that they have what I assume are realistic templates for these live presentations.

Ted is so fine and Nicole wants him back!

41 minutes ago, Cheap21 said:

Ted is so fine and Nicole wants him back!

Oh wow! Can't wait until the weekend to see this.

Wait, where is Kial in all of this.

I've been assuming Nicole is "acting out" with the Plasma Thieves because she wants Teddy back. And I assumed Ted was sabotaging his friendship with Shanice because he wants Beautiful back.

Leslie ain't gonna like this at all. As retribution, she'll undoubtedly make sure the Articulettes can't use Barbara's voice on their tracks they hope to record. Unless Anita drops a few more million into her trust.

5 minutes ago, MontyB said:

Oh wow! Can't wait until the weekend to see this.

Wait, where is Kial in all of this.

Good question re: Kial! But don't get too excited about those screenshots haha....

1 minute ago, alwaysAMC said:

Good question re: Kial! But don't get too excited about those screenshots haha....

LOL!! 😆

-- Speaking of being a ho, Vanessa tells Nicole to "scratch your itch" with Ted. Vanessa stays being trash. This is good advice for a best friend? It's not.

-- I really don't want Nicole to be screwing three men.

-- Did Bill really say that he'd use Mike's sexual harassment charges and dismissal against him at trial? HUH???

-- Izaiah's mac and cheese looked good, but it was odd to see that as the only thing served at the dinner. JOEY taught Izaiah to cook? GAG ME.

-- Seems like Leslie's budding relationship with Marcel is over. Feels like a dropped story.

-- This is nitpicking, but the opening shot to the episode was odd. Dani is clearly using the remote on the TV, but no furniture in that room is set for any kind of movie watching.

Edited 3 hours ago3 hr by ranger1rg

25 minutes ago, ranger1rg said:

-- Seems like Leslie's budding relationship with Marcel is over. Feels like a dropped story.

-- This is nitpicking, but the opening shot to the episode was odd. Dani is clearly using the remote on the TV, but no furniture in that room is set for any kind of movie watching.

LOL - I thought the exact same thing about the TV location - very odd.

I'm also disappointed if the Marcel/Leslie relationship is over. I thought it had a lot of potential.

That random scene where Elon is on the phone at Orphey's. I'm thinking 'Why is he there'?

But then we had that poorly staged scene with the reporter (whose acting was off) all in Chelsea/Madison's face, so that Elon could intervene.

It seemed unnecessary.

And then Joey at the casino then for some reason at Caffeine Fix, so he could be menacing to Smitty, then back at the casino. Huh?

Can anyone tell me why Smitty is interested in talking to Lynette Wise? He apparently didn’t know she left town so I can’t figure out why he cares enough to grill Tomas about it. Maybe I missed something?

Just now, Romalotti said:

Can anyone tell me why Smitty is interested in talking to Lynette Wise? He apparently didn’t know she left town so I can’t figure out why he cares enough to grill Tomas about it. Maybe I missed something?

It makes no sense. What is he gonna ask her? If she really scammed Lia out of her money? Im getting tired of him acting like an amateur detective

I’ve found I enjoy this show much more these days when I let episodes build up and do a binge. I still enjoy the show but it’s no longer appointment viewing to me where I feel the need to watch it live while I’m working like I did most of the first year.

I’m really hoping something literally anything dramatic happens at the cotillion. If it ends up being another Winter Fest or the clinic opening, I’m just going to give up on ever being excited for these “big events.” I still can’t believe how much focus was given to the clinic opening to only be an offscreen location that it looks like we will never see. I’m just confused why they can’t redress one of the hospital rooms to give us something. Does redressing a set really effect budget that much?

Edited 36 minutes ago36 min by Antoyne

We got the motel room for Jacob. That size set could be used as a reception area for the clinic.

27 minutes ago, Paul Raven said:

That random scene where Elon is on the phone at Orphey's. I'm thinking 'Why is he there'?

But then we had that poorly staged scene with the reporter (whose acting was off) all in Chelsea/Madison's face, so that Elon could intervene.

It seemed unnecessary.

And then Joey at the casino then for some reason at Caffeine Fix, so he could be menacing to Smitty, then back at the casino. Huh?

Agree with all of this, especially that the reporter casting was bad. And then everything -- the broken phone, a potential lawsuit, the assault, the viral video, the Chelsea response, the positive reaction -- all took place in one day. Really?

And I still can't get past the completely ridiculous lawsuit against Madison.

Joey showing up at Caffeine Fix bothered me much more than Elon at Orphey Gene's.

25 minutes ago, Romalotti said:

Can anyone tell me why Smitty is interested in talking to Lynette Wise? He apparently didn’t know she left town so I can’t figure out why he cares enough to grill Tomas about it. Maybe I missed something?

Yep. Does Smitty ever turn in anything for publication? Because all I see is the amateur detective work that goes nowhere.

Just now, Paul Raven said:

We got the motel room for Jacob. That size set could be used as a reception area for the clinic.

That would work. Also agree with you about a casino set that looks richer and realistic. Y&R did a decent casino set for a few episodes in Vegas. On this show, we don't have one when the owner is supposedly the most powerful and wealthiest guy in town. And I could write paragraphs about how bad that back room is.