Opinion: Exes Like GH’s Valentin & Anna and Y&R’s Jack & Nikki Stir Up the Best Soap Drama
History shines through General Hospital‘s Valentin/Anna, which sparks Carly’s jealousy, Beyond the Gates‘ exes Bill and Dani light up the screen, and Young and Restless‘s Diane better watch her back with Jack/Nikki. But newer duos on Days of Our Lives and Bold and Beautiful need to beef up the drama.
Seems Like Old Times
Playing former marrieds together is one of the best ways to cause trouble, and Y&R scored with Nikki’s visit to Jack’s hospital room. He had been stabbed by Patty; she had gone blind. That’s plot. Character entered the room when Victoria guided her mom to the chair next to Jack’s bed.
Jack (joking): “If you want sympathy, there are easier ways to make that happen.”
Nikki stuck her tongue out and called her eye bandages a “fashion statement” as they bantered. She visibly brightened during their lighthearted conversation, as opposed to her usual melancholy when dealing with Victor’s nastiness. Talk turned serious when Nikki fretted about what Victor’s resentment of Jack might make him do next since bringing Patty back led to Jack’s stabbing.
Nikki: “So many people have asked me how I can forgive Victor for his behavior. This time, I’m not sure I can.”
Jack: “Diane and I are fine. Victor did not win.”
Nikki: “But does he know what he’s lost?”
No, and he doesn’t care. The Mustache flipped out that Nikki was at Jack’s bedside, calling it “another betrayal.” Kyle noted that.
Victoria: “The bond they have has gotten them through so much.”
Kyle: “My dad is grateful for the visit. Not sure your father will feel the same.”
Duh. It was a missed opportunity that Claire’s name didn’t come up (considering Kyle was engaged to Victoria’s daughter less than a year ago), but they did cover Victor’s misdeeds. Enter Diane to awkwardly interrupt the kumbayas for some quiet time with her husband.
Nikki (exiting): “You two are so lucky to have each other.”
Diane: “Thank you. I agree.”
I don’t. Victor and Nikki seem headed for another reconciliation, but it’s surely doomed. Sorry, Diane — Jack and Nikki are endgame.
Ex Marks the Spot
GH is chock full of old flames causing trouble, from Chase and Willow torturing Brook Lynn to Curtis’s current girlfriend delivering his baby with his former wife. That’s probably why newer duos Molly/Cody, Trina/Kai and Gio/Emma have gotten short shrift. Baggage sells — which is why the drama swirling around Carly and Valentin’s steamy affair is so entertaining. His past love Anna took the news like a trained WSB agent during their heartfelt walk down memory lane.
Anna: “Last I laid eyes on you, you had almost killed Carly.”
Valentin: “She forgave me.”
Anna: “Are you sure?”
Valentin: “Pretty sure. If she hadn’t forgiven me, she wouldn’t have hidden me in her attic for the last seven months.”
The knowledge that Val only turned to Carly because Anna was unavailable clearly pained her, but she kept it to herself — unlike the jealous Carly who went straight to the source.
Carly: “I ran into Emma today. She said Anna is back in town and you went to see her.”
Valentin: “I wanted to see if she’s okay. Are you concerned about how I feel?”
Nothing gets by him. Valentin compared his relationship with Anna to Carly’s with Sonny, saying they are incapable of indifference toward one another. (A better comparison would have been Jason since his love life sparks envy in Carly, which Sonny’s does not.) Valentin assured Carly she has “changed everything” for him.
Across town, Sonny had a different reaction.
Sonny: “Valentin needs to be removed.”
Brick: “I’ll get incriminating info on him, but I’m not going to go behind Carly’s back to do it.”
Carly knows Valentin messed with Sonny’s bipolar meds and didn’t bat an eye, so good luck with that. A bullseye on Valentin’s back will only make her want him more.
Two for the Road
DAYS doesn’t stick with promising duos long enough to build rooting value, so they are lacking in exes to create needed drama. Xander/Sarah, EJ/Belle, Stephanie/Alex were dropped for nonsensical newbies, and I will never get over Leo ditching Javi on his wedding night for that cartoon Dimitri. The cherished couples they do have, like Patch/Kayla, Tony/Anna and Justin/Bonnie (who I pretend is Adrienne) aren’t played enough to balance out the lack of believable romance across the canvas.
Obviously the sad real-life deaths of Victor, Doug and John’s portrayers caused the loss of three beloved duos, and DAYS was smart to allow widows Marlena and Julie to mourn. Julie’s first date since Doug died did not go well.
Julie: “I started to remember what it was like to go out on the town with Doug. Foster sensed my depression and must have decided I didn’t want to deepen the relationship. I didn’t.”
The way they talk about loss is comforting because we’ve all been through it. And I’m starting to like Chad and Belle, mainly because the OG vets took a shine to them at the Verdi concert.
Julie: “I am so glad to see Chad and Belle spending time together.”
Marlena: “They do seem to be enjoying each other’s company.”
The camera panned to the other side of Horton Square:
Belle: “Don’t look now, but my mom and Julie are spying on us.”
Baby steps…
Where There’s a Will…
It would be fun if B&B played lingering feelings of love or hate between past A-list spouses on the show, but they don’t. It’s like Brooke/Bill, Steffy/Liam and Eric/Sheila were never married, and Hope/Carter weren’t engaged just a year ago. That’s such a missed opportunity!
Scripting Sheila coming between Steffy and Finn is a good break-up effort, but neither of them can believably forgive her for shooting them in cold blood. Meanwhile, the show’s only young couple, Electra and Will, battled nut jobs Remy and Luna before moving in together for a nanosecond this June. Their obstacle now is… her father’s cousin.
Electra: “Ridge says I can’t see you anymore. He took a very strong stance: Forresters and Spencers don’t mix.”
Will: “He can’t tell you what to do.”
In came Eric to throw Will out with the same old “Spencers are bad!” speech we’ve been hearing for months. To his credit, Will wasn’t having it.
Will: “I’m not going to apologize for the success my family is having.”
Eric: “I come home and find a Spencer in my living room?!”
Will: “You make us all sound like cartoon villains. It’s ridiculous.”
Contrast that with Ridge and Brooke’s nepo baby RJ, who busted into Will’s house and cried foul when Will hit him.
RJ (to Electra): “We create beauty, they create chaos.”
Um, RJ? Breaking and entering is pretty chaotic.
Paying the Bill
As a new show, BTG only has two ex-marrieds: Bill/Dani and Ted/Nicole. They play Ted with his nutty former mistress Leslie way too often while ignoring his once-happy marriage to Nicole, which is a mistake. But all hail every scene between Bill and Dani since their tryst in that elevator. Bill called the newly-married Dani on antagonizing Hayley about their “strong connection,” and she gave it right back.
Dani: “Of course your little Only-Fans-reject-of-a-bride would come running to you to claim I was mean to you.”
Bill: “Hayley is not as dumb as you think.”
Maybe not, but she’s pretty bad at poisoning her husband. The show adds layers by showing us Bill’s longing for Dani while also mining great humor from his May/December marriage. I especially enjoyed Kat explaining her uncle’s attraction to his younger bride by saying, “I submit Exhibit Double D into evidence.”
Pamela is the only person who knows Dani’s secret, and she chastised her bestie for dallying with Bill.
Pamela: “Stop romanticizing this man who never earned the pedestal you put him on.”
That’s sound advice for real life, but not for good soap drama!
Hey. It’s only my opinion.
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