Where do I even begin when there is so much to unpack and discuss from this past week on Y&R!? A lot has happened in Genoa City recently, so let's just start out at the top of the week, which gave us the Victor vs. Jordan showdown that "The Mustache" has been salivating for and plotting into fruition. It was good to see Michael involved and helping out Victor (because it's always good to see Michael), but I was a little worried when Jordan was pointing a gun at both of them. I knew Victor would be fine but was a little worried about Michael there for a minute (thankfully, no harm came to him)!
To be fair to Jordan, she certainly has proven to be a worth adversary to Victor, and things weren't looking so good for him a few times. Although it seemed for a moment that she was going to take Victor's money and make a run for it, her taste for revenge was too strong for her to resist, and she decided to take him prisoner instead. I was sure Victor had some sort of backup plan so that he wouldn't lose the upper hand with Jordan, but it was fun to watch it all play out regardless.
Victor and Jordan were both so convinced that they were going to best the other that they even had me questioning what the outcome was going to be at times. But, of course, we all knew Victor would ultimately prevail and not be left to die as Jordan's prisoner. It was a surprise to see Nick show up out of nowhere and use a Taser on Jordan, though. I'm surprised that Victor didn't just enlist someone on his security team to handle something like that, but, hey, why not make it a family affair and put your son's life in danger? That's the Victor Newman way, I suppose!
And it's a good thing that Nick made it in time to save Victor, since he might have found himself otherwise preoccupied with Phyllis if he hadn't turned down her advances the previous evening. I was a little nervous when these Nick and Phyllis scenes started because I was not prepared for the writers to potentially start up their romance again, but I was ultimately pleasantly surprised with how everything played out.
I like seeing Nick in the role of a protective friend with Phyllis and was relieved when he turned her down after she drunkenly made a pass at him and suggested they have "no strings" sex. I don't think putting Nick and Phyllis back together again would be a good remedy for what either of these characters needs storyline-wise. But it was still nice to see that they care about one another, and it was sweet of Nick to give her a shoulder to cry on and lean on. More female/male friendships like this on the show, please!
The Newmans certainly had an eventful week. I was very pleased that Adam was finally included in the family gatherings to give everyone an update on what was happening with Victor and Jordan. I like the dynamic between Claire and Adam, but I hope that they ultimately bond over their similarities about joining the Newman family late in life and that we see less antagonistic interactions between them. It would make for a fun little thorn in Victoria's side if Claire became an advocate for Adam. Hell, maybe Claire will even get Adam and Victoria to become closer as siblings over time. That would be great!
It's been nice getting to see Claire bond with different members of the Newman family throughout the week. It was fun hearing Nikki reminisce about her and Victor's (and Eve's) past to her granddaughter. I also thought it was really cute when Claire and Victoria ran into Summer and Harrison at Crimson Lights. Claire meeting her extended family and growing a close connection with Harrison has me wondering if she might end up as Kyle and Summer's new nanny. We've been hearing a lot about how they are looking for a new one that Harrison approves of, and Claire could certainly use a job now, so I have a feeling this little "coincidental run-in" at the coffeehouse was meant to set the stage for Claire's next storyline.
Speaking of Claire's potential next storyline, are she and Kyle related in any weird sort of way? Or could there be potential for something romantic to happen between the two of them if she were to become Harrison's nanny? I think they are in the clear (genetically speaking), and Summer has certainly moved on with Chance now that the two of them have "made love," so Kyle will be needing a new love interest again soon. Kyle and Claire could be interesting together, but I'm not sure if I'd like them paired up. I'd have to see more scenes of them together to really decide if it's something I'd want to see explored.
A pairing between Kyle and Claire is just my speculation at this point, though, which is really just based on limited options available for either of them. But I do think the writers could have some fun playing around with different potential pairings. I've been curious what an Audra/Nate pairing might be like. And for Kyle, they could test him out with Elena. We haven't seen her for a while, and although I've been saying for some time that I'd like to see her paired with Nick, maybe she could be good with Kyle.
And, of course, Lily is single now, also, but it's a little too soon for me to be speculatively pairing her with Kyle. I'm pretty bummed that Lily and Daniel's relationship ended before their reunion got a chance to really get going. I doubt I am the only old-school Lily/Daniel fan out there that was excited to see them find their way back to one another. It was hard to watch it all come crashing down for Lily this past week (even though we all knew it was just a matter of time, since Daniel had already essentially reunited with Heather while Lily was out of town).
I get that Daniel's character needed a storyline while Christel Khalil (Lily) was out on maternity leave, but it's really unfortunate that his reunion with Heather was the route the writers chose to take. Since most of Heather and Daniel's relationship has happened off-screen over the years, I can't image that viewers are more invested in them than they are in Daniel and Lily, who were a popular teen couple; but I digress. It appears that what's done is done, and the writers have decided to split Lily and Daniel, so there's not much point in me complaining about it over and over.
I just hope that the writers have a plan to make Daniel and Heather more entertaining to watch now that they've decided they are the couple we're supposed to be rooting for. Can you tell I'm a little salty about the whole situation? That's why it's hard for me to think about pairing Lily with Kyle (for now), but there are still other options for him. Audra is single again now, too, but I have a feeling the ship has sailed on a Kyle/Audra pairing; however, stranger things have happened -- especially in Genoa City!
Poor Audra. Just when she was starting to think she might be able to "have it all" with Tucker, Ashley had to go and have a mental health crisis that only Tucker might be able to save her from. I really do love Audra's character, but I was never sold on the happily ever after she was trying to convince herself she wanted with Tucker. I have always preferred their characters' interactions together that have been non-romantic in nature. Even when they "let off a little steam" and had sex occasionally, it never felt like there were feelings involved for either of them; so, it was a little weird to me when Audra was suddenly saying she wanted a future with Tucker.
One of the things that is great about Audra is that she is not defined by the man (or men) in her life, and she controls her own narrative. It felt like she lost a bit of that when she suddenly wanted a relationship with Tucker. I'd much rather see her in more scenes like the ones she had with Sally this week. How fun was it to see these two strike up a new friendship?! I really hope they continue to bond and have more scenes together. But that's not to say that I don't want Audra to be in a relationship ever, because I do want that for her at some point, but with someone like Tucker, she can't shine. She is not the diva in the relationship that she needs to be because Tucker is much more of a diva than she ever will be. And I just don't see that ever working for Audra long-term.
Additionally, Audra was foolish and naļve (two words I would normally never use to describe her) to think that Tucker had really gotten over Ashley and that he wouldn't still be drawn to her. Sure, Audra couldn't have anticipated that Ashley would be having a break with reality, but, of course, she doesn't really believe that Ashley is going through something, either. Sadly, the whole reason for their breakup is that she thinks Tucker is just too obsessed with Ashley to let her go, so he is seeing things he wants to see and making up reasons to need to help her.
But Ashley's break with reality is definitely real, whether Audra wants to believe it or not. We have confirmation now that Ashley is suffering from dissociative identity disorder (DID), because the voice in her head (at least one of them so far, that we know of) referred to Ashley in the third person and said she had to protect Ashley. This clearly indicates that another identity is able to, and has, taken over as the primary identity in Ashley's body on more than one occasion. We've now heard Ashley's inner voice trying to fight to take control back, too, so it will be interesting to see how much power one identity wields over the other to stay in control.
This storyline has the potential to go on for some time, and I hope the writers do take their time with it to be able to tell it properly (unlike some other recent storylines that have been rushed way too quickly). So far, only Tucker has noticed that something seems off with Ashley. Her alter is good at deceiving Ashley's family (for now) into believing that everything is fine with her, but hopefully, Tucker is able to get some others to realize that something is not right with her before her alter(s?) do much damage.
I really love that there is potential for Tucker to be the hero in this story with Ashley, and I hope the writers don't squander this redemption arc for him. They could use this storyline as an opportunity to clean up a lot of the mess that was made surrounding Tucker and Ashley's insta-annulment after their wedding last year, which a lot of fans are still unhappy about. Ashley and Tucker have the potential to be a lasting, fan-favorite couple on the show if their reunion is treated properly during this storyline. And Ashley deserves a happy ending (just like Jack got his with Diane)!
Some good news for the folks at Chancellor-Winters (CW) is that they likely have one less person to worry about coming after their company now. With Tucker so tied up in what is happening with Ashley while also having to juggle his newly acquired company, he definitely won't have time to stick his nose into the corporate shenanigans going on over at CW. And, boy, are there some shenanigans going on.
Mamie and Jill are so focused on their rivalry and not letting one get the upper hand on the other that they are going to destroy the company that they are both trying to preserve for their families' legacies!
Jill's got two "henchmen" working for her -- Billy and Amanda -- and they are stirring up all sorts of commotion among the CW staff. And now, Mamie has got Billy pushing the idea that the companies should split again. And did I understand correctly that they want to give the appearance of being a joint company still to the public (keeping the name the way it is), but that they separate the two sides of the company and run them as separate entities?! Like Devon, I was pretty shocked to hear that they were anywhere close to even discussing anything so drastic as that, since operations seem to be running relatively smoothly (other than the current problems concerning certain personalities clashing, which seem to be stemming from the egos and past grievances of those in upper management). If that's not relatable, I don't know what is.
That's all from me for this week, folks! Don't forget to hit the Comments (here on the site and in social media posts throughout the week) to share your opinions, too!
Until next time,
Vance
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