November 19, 2008
Okay, this may be a morbid thing to say, but Katherine's funeral on YOUNG AND RESTLESS was one of the best big soap "events" I've seen in a while. Though no one realizes that it was Marge who died, and not Kay, the event itself was perfect. Almost everyone in the cast was present, with special visitors Brock, Liz, Nina, Dina, Traci and Danny. Even Victor came home for it! The speeches made by Kay's loved ones were so moving and I loved the portion where the personal thoughts of each person attending were heard. After, everyone gathered for a reception which Gina had organized, a very realistic touch, given that most funerals do end with some kind of informal family gathering. There, we got to see the characters mix and mingle, and share even more stories about Kay. Again, very much what real people would do in this case.

Y&R really pulled out all the stops for this one. Here's to doing such a great job when it comes to a happy occasion!

October 30, 2008
I don't usually like holiday-themed episodes, but Y&R's Halloween show actually made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. At Nick and Phyllis's place, they, along with J.T. and Victoria chatted about which dead person they'd want to encounter and Victoria said that she'd like to make peace with Sabrina. A picture then fell ... on its own. Everyone laughed it off, but when Vicky was alone, she asked if anyone was there, and a shadow passed by her. Later. Reed's rattle (the one Sabrina gave him) shook by itself and then the shadow again passed by a photograph of the Newmans and whispered Victor's name. Spooky! Y&R doesn't incorporate the supernatural as often as some of the other soaps do (John's ghost is supposed to be Jack's conscience speaking to him), but this was a nice, subtle — and creepy — way to do it. Happy Halloween indeed!

October 22, 2008
I can't say I'm that interested in the Y&R storyline regarding River and Gloria's past, and whether or not River was involved in a bombing that took place over 40 years ago. When it comes to Glo, I'm much more intrigued by her toxic romance with Jeffrey and scheme to trick poor, confused Kay into signing over her Jabot stock. That said, I did get a kick out of learning that when he was 4 years old, Michael loved to get naked. Looks like his parents' one-time hippie ways rubbed off on him!

October 15, 2008
I'm enjoying the friendship scenes between DAYS's Sami and Lucas. Over the years, they've been scheming partners, enemies, husband and wife and parents, and have a lot of painful history behind them. That said, it's nice to see Lucas be Sami's confidante as she deals with her EJ problems (she's again pregnant with EJ's child, but is afraid to tell him). Lucas has surprisingly been the voice of reason as he's urged her to come clean to the other man. "Lumi" may not be romantically involved at the moment, but their cordial relationship is refreshing to watch.

October 8, 2008
I never thought I'd say this, but I'm now actually starting to feel badly for YOUNG AND RESTLESS's Adam. No, he's not the nicest guy and he didn't handle taking over Newman Enterprises well at all, but getting blacklisted from every business by the Newmans seems to be a bit harsh. The guy did just lose his mother and still hasn't quite figured out where his position in the Newman clan is supposed to be (his pop Victor being MIA isn't helping matters). While Victoria, Nick and Nikki definitely shouldn't overlook his bratty behavior, part of his attitude stems from them never really giving him a chance in the first place. Still, character-driven family drama is always welcome for me — and the fact that I don't know whether to hate Adam or pity him means he's definitely caught my attention.

October 2, 2008
I'm a little confused about Cane's decision to ask Colleen, of all people, if she wants to replace Lily as the Fresh Face of Jabot. For one thing, Colleen has never shown any interest whatsoever in modeling. She's majoring in art history and has made that pretty clear that that's her passion. Lily at least, had her mother Drucilla's footsteps to follow in when it came to posing for a camera. Colleen is certainly cute, but her sudden desire to become the next Heidi Klum seems entirely out of left field and not at all believable. It would make much more sense to have her model for a famous artist (and we don't mean Daniel!).

September 24, 2008
On 90210, it was very uncomfortable watching Annie as she contemplated losing her virginity to her beau of only a few weeks, Ty — and not in the good, soapy, coming-of-age story way. For one thing, she asked her brother, of all people, if she could have the four-year-old-condom he kept in his wallet. Ew! Aside from the fact that this was icky in itself, didn't anyone ever tell them that a condom would probably not even work after all that time? Then, after Adrianna made her believe that she'd slept with Ty instead, Annie went on a long, tearful rant about California versus Kansas boys, and how the latter wouldn't do a thing like that. Really, do teenage boys in Kansas not have hormones? While I can appreciate 90210 wanting to show how Annie is still a fish out of water in trendy L.A., the show needs to write her naivete more realistically, especially since she's the lead character. It's hard to relate to someone when she crosses the line from clueless into silly.

September 17, 2008
I'm finding the storyline involving B&B's Taylor, Brooke and baby Jack rather upsetting to watch — but not because I necessarily feel for either woman. It's just that the idea that Jack won't bond with Taylor simply because she's not his biological mother is insulting to anyone who's ever been adopted. Plus, he was still in her womb for nine months! This storyline would have much more impact had Jack been raised with Brooke for a few years and was then introduced into Taylor's life or vice versa (ala Tommy on OLTL who was with Marcie and Michael for a couple of years before being sent to live with Blair). Family is important, but a true family isn't merely built upon DNA.

September 10, 2008
I'm really intrigued by the way Victor has been behaving on Y&R. Cutting himself off from the world, pacing around in the dark... it's disturbing to watch such a powerful, controlling man fall apart like this. Yet he's still managing to reach out to Nick and Victoria (and spurn Adam) from his hideaway. It's fascinating to watch and is a great storyline in that it includes all of his family members — and is completely character-driven.

September 3, 2008
I was an unabashed fan of the original BEVERLY HILLS, 90210 (actually, I still am as I thoroughly enjoyed SOAPnet's Labor Day marathon). That said, I wasn't sure I'd like The CW's new version of the series (now simply called 90210). But I'm happy to report that I enjoyed the two-hour premiere.

It was great seeing some old faves back, like Brenda, Kelly and Nat and I was intrigued by the mystery surrounding who fathered Kelly's adorable blond-haired boy (personally, he looks like Steve Sanders's kid with all that curly hair). I also liked the "returns" of Kelly and David's now grown-up half-sister Erin Silver (who now goes by just Silver) and Andrea's daughter Hannah. Hannah only appeared in a brief, but amusing cameo, when she read the morning announcements at the high school, but Erin — uh, Silver — is turning out to be one of the more interesting characters. Though she's not an evil person, she's obviously been damaged by her strange family dynamics and has a mean streak a mile long (which she expresses through her blog).

Meanwhile, the other new characters were interesting, as well. The Wilsons, make a solid core family and the new group of teens are all likeable (though some more so in a "love to hate" kind of way).

My only quibble: why does the bitch have to be named *Naomi?*

August 28, 2008
As a fan of GH's Spinelli, I feel so bad for this character who keeps getting sick or injured. I'm not quite sure what medical plan the computer nerd is on, but I hope it's a good one! That said, I'm rooting for Maxie to finally realize how much he means to her (in a non-friend way). Then maybe they can take a nice vacation together in a safe, secluded place. Or better yet, maybe Spinelli can just wear some protective gear.

August 21, 2008
I'm enjoying the rivalry between Phyllis and Nick and Jack and Sharon and their magazine Restless Style. There was no logical way that these four would get along (Jack used to be wed to Phyllis and Nick to Sharon — can we say awkward?) and both couples needed a little shaking up in their storylines. No, the way they run that magazine doesn't make much sense, but their infighting feels just right given their histories.