Opinion: From GH to Y&R, Soap Battles Rule — When the Conflicts Make Sense!
Adding Ava to Sonny v. Drew caused big drama on General Hospital, Days of Our Lives‘s Philip called Joy on her junk, Beyond the Gates‘s Bill is wising up, The Bold and the Beautiful‘s Dylan is running rings around Electra, and Billy v. Lily is a dilly on The Young and the Restless. But for soap rivalries and battles to truly sing, they need to make sense!
Six Feet Under
The war between Ava and Sonny is a head-scratcher because we haven’t seen the daughter they’re supposedly fighting over since March 2025. Sonny hired Ethan to protect Ava just last spring and Ethan took a bullet for Ava as recently as July 1, so their sudden animosity makes no sense. But their manufactured battle took an entertaining turn when Ava teamed up with Drew to “take down Sonny.” Drew decreed they needed to locate the dirt Brennan was blackmailing him with (so he could seek revenge without fear of retribution) and assigned Ava to drug Brennan’s drink while Drew searched his hotel room.
Drew (reassuring Ava): “I’m sure Brennan is taking a nap somewhere.”
Cut to the closed Metro Court pool where Charlotte and Danny found Brennan floating.
Danny: “He’s dead!”
The kids hightailed it out of there, leaving Drew and Ava to stumble on him next. Worried that an autopsy would reveal Brennan’s drugging, they decided to hide the body. Hijinks ensued as they bickered over whose car to use (“I will not have my upholstery ruined,” sniffed Ava) and dug a grave on the Quartermaine property. Ava apologized to the WSB baddie for the scheme gone wrong and called for a moment of silence. “It’s the least we can do,” she explained to an exasperated Drew as they threw dirt in the hole.
Elsewhere at the Q’s, Danny was spiraling that he had dinged Chase’s car during their cruise to the pool. “Things could be worse,” replied Charlotte sarcastically. “We could have fled the scene of a crime. Oh, wait! We did!” She later realized her bracelet was missing; it was last seen dangling from Brennan’s cufflink. In came Outback to sniff around the scene and probably solve the case.
The arc worked on many levels, starting with Drew disabling the Metro Court cameras so he and Ava could believably steal a dead body from a large hotel. The security breach also gave Carly a reason to call Jason for help so they could run into WSB agent Josslyn in Brennan’s hotel room (and likely be suspects). But the real kicker was Drew planting Brennan’s wallet in Nina’s car to get her back for pushing his wheelchair into the lake. Brennan warned Nina weeks ago that her blind loyalty to her unhinged daughter would be her undoing, and his words proved prescient. If revenge is a dish best served cold, Drew framing Nina was ice.
My Best Friend’s Bedding
Electra and Dylan brawling over wealthy scion Will Spencer is Soaps 101, but B&B has missed a few beats. With Dylan making endless passes at the brokenhearted Will, the stage was set for Electra to decide to forgive him and come by the beach house to find them in bed. Instead, Dylan just… blabbed.
Dylan (to Will): “I had no intention of telling Electra, but she sensed it, I guess.”
Riiiight. They’re writing Dylan all over the place, first as the sweet teacher who killed Luna, then innocent homeless girl, cunning predator, now earnest pal trying to win back her bestie.
Dylan: “I want us to be friends.”
Electra: “After you had sex with my boyfriend?”
Dylan: “Come on. You had broken up with him, and not for the first time.”
Fair point, but the framed photos of Electra in Will’s beach house tell us Dylan is not his endgame. For a soapier triangle, stick with Dylan being devious. Dylan’s mother, Darcy, showing up adds a good wrinkle, although I had to laugh when she appeared at Bikini where Dylan “works so hard!” and in the next scene they were seated at a table being served cocktails. That’s some “job” Dylan’s got.
And don’t play the drinking game to anyone saying “best friend” because it’s B&B’s go-to phrase lately.
Steffy (to Carter): “Daphne is my best friend! Thank God she doesn’t know what we did. This never should have happened.”
Two people who didn’t share one moment of chemistry in decades of working together doing the nasty on an office couch out of the blue? You can say that again.
Billy The Kid
I could watch Billy and Lily brawl on Y&R all day long. His giant ego won’t allow him to accept that he lost Chancellor, and finding a document claiming it belongs to the Abbotts just added fuel to his ire. He really thinks he can badger Lily into handing Chancellor to him.
Lily: “I am not going to give up my company without a fight.”
Billy: “The only reason you have that company is because you colluded with Victor.”
Lily: “You think you deserve to run it because of some deal you didn’t make that doesn’t even mention your name.”
Billy: “See you in court!”
Billy later said he’d abandon his quest for Sally’s sake, but I don’t buy it. He’s a jerk to her, too: “You and the baby are my number one priority but I’m going to drop a bomb about Chancellor on my mother despite your desperate objections even though Jill has a heart condition.” Okay, I’m paraphrasing, but not by much. That wedding looks doomed.
No Joy In Dudville
Joy’s machinations to break up Alex and Stephanie on DAYS are so obvious, yet the only person calling her on it is Philip. He questioned her about why she won’t tell her sister Chloe, mom Nancy or dad Craig (a doctor!) about her spinal surgery, and a lightbulb went off.
Philip: “Oh, I get what this is about.”
Joy: “Do you, Doctor Freud? Enlighten me.”
Philip: “If you keep your family in the dark about your injury, that guarantees Alex will have the baby all the time and Stephanie has to stay away. This keeps Alex connected to you. You’re loving it!”
Joy: “Butt out.”
The whole story makes Alex dumb. If he can be so easily manipulated by this vapid liar, he is unworthy of being Stephanie’s husband. When Joy told Alex her “best offer” was ordering Stephanie to stay away from Kelsey for another year, that was his cue to go to court, get joint custody, and tell Joy to shut up.
Bill Of Goods
Bill busting Hayley for her trickery is looooong overdue, and we got a glimpse of the future when he caught her fibbing about a dentist appointment.
Bill: “Stop lying to my face! I saw you yesterday with ‘Sammy.’”
Hayley claimed “Sammy” (aka her cousin Randy) was in trouble and she was helping him because she is a good person. She lied about it because Bill’s daughters Chelsea and Naomi are always judging her.
Hayley (fake crying): “Hearing it out loud, I realize I let their noise get in my head. I should have told you the truth. I’m so sorry. Do you forgive me, baby?”
Bill: “As long as that’s the last lie you ever tell me.”
Oh, hahaha. Hayley “secretly” meeting Randy at Uptown once a week to openly plot Bill’s murder makes the whole town morons — even Randy chastised her for conspiring with him in “busy restaurants in broad daylight.” But there was Hayley sashaying out of Bill’s office after their confrontation like it was nothing.
Hayley: “That was too easy.”
Her comedown better be hard. Ditto whatever’s coming for Joey’s nutbag sister Heather, who slithers around the DMV in a gown cut down to her navel, committing crimes and threatening people like she owns them all. Why is Joey putting up with her? Isn’t he supposed to be in the mob?
Heather (to Joey): “You offed Doug so you could have his wife.”
Them’s fightin’ words!
Hey. It’s only my opinion.
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