It’s Only My Opinion: Y&R, B&B, DAYS and Other Soaps Deserve Applause For Ending Drawn-Out Stories
Some daytime storylines go on for soooo long, it’s actually a relief when they end. So, let’s hear it for the shows that acknowledge when they err — and then get back to soapy business.
First up: Young and Restless’s Newmans and Abbotts, who returned from their disastrous incarceration in “Nice” and admitted how awful it was.
Nikki: “It’s so good to be home.”
Nick: “And not a maze in sight.”
Jack: “If only we hadn’t gone on that stupid trip.”
Kyle labeled it “the trip from hell,” and then found himself back with the family from hell when Victor got angry that Claire went to see Kyle before him upon their return. (Possessive much?) Even Cole’s funeral didn’t impact The Mustache.
Victor (raising a glass): “This is a toast to the fact that Cole rightfully considered himself a member of our family. There have been many who tried; they were left outside. Cheers.”
Claire: “Are you serious? You are using my father’s memory against Kyle? I am sick and tired of giving you the benefit of the doubt every time you trash the man I love.”
Victor: “I will do what is best for my family and make no apologies.”
Claire: “You no longer have a say in how I live my life. I’m done.”
Cheers to Claire for finally getting a backbone! And a toast of Perrier to Nikki, also fed up with her husband’s hatred of the Abbotts.
Victor: “This is my house, and I damn well invite who I want to invite.”
Nikki: “This is our house, and you have no right to determine who comes and goes. Do I need to remind you that Kyle has already been a member of this family?”
Yes, she does, because Victor has conveniently blocked out Kyle’s marriages to Summer.
These dishy family dynamics were missing in Nice, where the story focused solely on the recast Cane holding Genoa City’s A-listers hostage. Bringing Cane back to Genoa City, where he’s on equal footing with Victor, Jack, and even Billy, is much more interesting because the action is balanced.
Billy slipped right back into “poor me” mode when talking to his mother, Jill, as well as discussing what he wants from Cane. The conceited mogul implausibly said he plans to take over all the GC companies — including Jabot.
Billy: “Jack is not going to roll over.”
Cane: “It’s going to take a lot of strategic planning, so I need you to make a decision.”
Billy: “I want control of Chancellor.”
Cane: “Think bigger.”
I’m Team Jack on that one.
I was Team Vernon on Beyond the Gates, but he’s shown a shady side lately. Covering up Martin’s secret (that he killed a bad guy) went on for too long, even though it turned out to have high stakes. Martin is supposed to be a congressman, yet he’s so fragile that the Dupree men tiptoed around him and kept the truth from his husband and his mother for two years?
Enter Martin’s aunt with some well-deserved tough love after he said he wouldn’t attend his grandmother’s reunion concert with The Articulettes.
Dani: “I never thought I’d have to have this conversation with you, Congressman Nephew, but you are one selfish son of a bitch.”
Martin: “I beg your pardon?”
Dani: “You have everybody walking around like we’ll shatter you if we say the wrong thing. Fine, you’ve been through a world of trauma. But sometimes you have to suck it up. Tonight is not about you. Surely, you can sit through a concert for our famous matriarch: Two hours. And then I promise you can go back to being Eeyore, moping around your grandparents’ house.”
Ooof! That rousing speech was almost worth the months of secrecy when we didn’t know Martin or care what he was hiding. Bring on Phase Two!
Naomi (to Bill): “Have you had anyone murdered lately?”
Like that.
The months-long story of Liam’s “fatal” diagnosis due to a brain tumor was a huge bummer on Bold and Beautiful. Hope and Steffy spent the whole time crying, and the one person who could have bulldozed his way into a medical miracle — Liam’s rich father — was inexplicably kept in the dark. Finally, the show pivoted and made the whole thing a scam on Dr. Buckingham’s part to extort money from Dollar Bill Spencer.
Finn (suspicious): “Why can’t I find any records?”
Grace: “I’m very busy. You’re going to have to trust me.”
Turned out, she was being blackmailed for gambling debts her ex-husband, Reese, owed, and Grace had to come up with $1 million to keep their off-screen daughters, Paris and Zoe, safe.
Grace (to Finn): “I chose to fight for my girls. It’s done. Please keep this between us.”
Please don’t. The only saving grace to this cockamamie story would be if Finn busts the sham doc and Hope reunites with Liam. And is it too much to ask for Bill to sue the hospital for Grace’s crime and go toe-to-toe with Finn, Li, Bridget, and the Forresters? That payoff could make those months of sadness worth it.
Over on Days of Our Lives, they had no choice but to tell the sad story of John’s death. There was no recasting his pivotal character after Drake Hogestyn died, so this is an example where dragging out a “bad” story works. Both Drake and John deserve to be mourned for a long time, and Sami’s recent appearance helped accomplish that.
Sami: “I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there to say good-bye to him. I wish I had done more, said more, called, come to visit you. I can still hear his voice — so calm, no matter what insane disaster I got myself into.”
Marlena: “He was so proud of the woman you became.”
Trying to remake the character of Cat into a likable person after she impersonated Abigail and broke the hearts of Jack, Jennifer, and Chad? That’s another story…
General Hospital’s Willow and Drew sputtered uncomfortably to the altar for months before their spectacular implosion, but it was worth it. The first payoff came minutes after Willow’s meltdown when Obrecht went to their reception to order a triple Schnapps and inform the bartender that no one else would be coming (ha!). Other benefits included Tracy laughing at Drew that he “misplaced” his bride, Curtis and Portia finding their way back to each other in the wake of the blowup, and dopey Willow realizing she had burned every bridge.
Willow (to Elizabeth): “I can’t go to Drew’s. I can’t stay with Nina. I don’t have a home. I have nowhere to go.”
Finally, some consequences for her rotten choices.
Conversely, Josslyn’s journey from flaky college student to secret WSB agent is getting harder to believe. Luckily, Anna is onto it. She had a heart-to-heart with Obrecht about the mistakes they’ve made in their lives, which caused Anna to make a move.
Anna: “What would you say to your younger self?”
Obrecht: “I would tell her not to fall in love with megalomaniacal Danish terrorists [like Faison].”
Anna: “That is solid advice. I would tell her that nothing matters more than our children.”
Cut to Anna calling Carly to spill the beans on Joss, which caused Brennan to preemptively kidnap Anna and warn her to stay out of it.
Anna: “If you think I’m going to stand down, you’ve wasted your time kidnapping me.”
Josslyn lying to everyone while coasting with Vaughn is not logical (her mother and her BF Trina don’t track Joss’s cell phone?), but the reward will come when Carly discovers what Anna just learned.
Anna (to Brennan): “You just sent your lover’s daughter on a high-risk mission. How are you going to face Carly if, God forbid, something goes wrong?”
He’ll face it with regret — and it will be quality soapy business.
Hey. It’s only my opinion.
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