Four DAYS Characters That Didn’t Catch On

Marina Toscano To infuse conflict into supercouple Steve and Kayla’s relationship, Hunter Tylo was cast in 1989 as Marina Toscano, Steve’s never-before-mentioned, presumed-dead first wife. From the get-go, fans rebelled, as Marina’s presence rendered “Stayla’s” beloved 1988 yacht wedding invalid, and the entirety of her short-lived run was a messy misfire, as Marina dangled the promise of a divorce like a carrot in front of Steve’s nose, provided he help her locate a key she’d once tossed into the sea. The convoluted story took a variety of characters to Italy, where greedy Marina found the key (which would grant her access to the Toscano family fortune), but her victory was short-lived. When Marina returned to Salem, she came face to face with sister Isabella, who ended up killing her in self-defense six months after she landed in Salem. Fans’ misery continued for a bit longer, as Kayla was accused of her murder and ended up giving birth to daughter Stephanie behind bars.

Jeremy Horton It seemed like an inspired idea when DAYS announced in 2007 that it was reintroducing the character of Jeremy Horton, all grown up, in the form of Trevor Donovan. The legacy character (Mike Horton’s son with Robin) had deep ties to Salem’s first family, and when he reappeared, he was dating Stephanie Johnson, another legacy character. Sadly, this potential went unrealized because Jeremy was scripted as a cocky jerk whose unusual line of work (he ran a private airline that shuttled Salem’s one-percenters to Las Vegas) turned out to be a smokescreen for criminal activities — and not just any criminal activity, but the smuggling of illegal cloth (!). Even worse, Jeremy was abusive to Stephanie, nearly drowning her during a lovers’ quarrel. A mere four months later, Jeremy went on the run and hasn’t been heard from since.

Cameron Davis Lexie gained a sibling in the spring of 2012 when her half brother, Celeste’s son, Cameron Davis, surfaced just in time to learn that Lexie was dying of an inoperable brain tumor. Originally portrayed by Schuyler Yancey, then recast with Nathan Owens, Cameron was a complicated mix — doctor by day, stripper by night. He was romantically linked to Abigail (she supported him through Lexie’s death; he returned the favor when Jack “died”), but the coupling went nowhere fast, as Abigail’s sexual hang-ups kept them from moving forward (not that fans minded; the pairing felt forced). Before long, Chad tricked Cameron into believing he was dying so that Cameron would step aside, paving the way for a Chad/Abigail reunion, and though Chad’s trickery was exposed, it was still curtains for Abigail and Cameron, as she was livid with him for being so quick to let her go. When that story wrapped, so, too, did Cameron’s stint in Salem; he decided to accept a job offer from Doctors Without Borders and left town in November of 2013, never to be thought of again.

Serena Mason ONE LIFE TO LIVE fave Melissa Archer (ex-Natalie) had the deck stacked against her when she joined DAYS as Serena in 2014. First, she was saddled with a challenging backstory as a woman Eric had never mentioned, but with whom he shared a romantic past. They fell in love in Africa, but he felt the calling to be a priest and she didn’t stand in his way. Fans yawned over their scenes discussing a past that had taken place entirely off screen, and things went from bad to worse when an elephant figurine entered the plot and just wouldn’t leave (earning the dubious “Worst Story” title in Digest’s 2015 Best & Worst issue). It turned out Serena was really in Salem to recover the figurine, which had blood diamonds in it, and pass it along to co-conspirator Xander. In the end, she helped save Nicole and Eric from Xander’s plot to kill them, but with her rep in tatters, she decided to leave town. The poor dear never made it: Serena became The Necktie Killer’s first victim in August 2015. “I completely understood and somewhere, expected it,” Archer told Digest of her exit. “I just feel like the story wasn’t working for a lot of reasons.”