Holy Ted and Betty, Batman! DAYS was on fire last week, and this time it wasn't Claire's fault. Many minds melted like candle wax in an inferno from the bombshell reveals. Really, there was so much crammed into this last official week of February Sweeps that it's nearly impossible to cover it all and figure out where to start. So, I guess let's go with the easiest part first...
Wowza! From the start of Monday's episode to the credits rolling on Friday, the entire cast delivered performances that were mind-blowingly epic. To gush properly over each actor's work would take this entire column, so I'm just going to start a Wayne and Garth-like chant of "We're not worthy!" and go nuts applauding like Natasha Lyonne at the Emmys. Cheers, Team DAYS. So much cheers-ing!
Oh, and since I'm not driving anywhere later, perhaps I'll refill the old champagne flute. We might need a little bubbly to get through all the heavy action last week. Heavy action like Maggie knows she killed Adrienne! I knew this one would eventually come, but it hit the old heartstrings hard.
Okay, I said I wasn't going to gush about individual performances, but Suzanne Rogers was just heartbreaking throughout Maggie's discovery. The horror, the devastation, and the remorse were real. While this storyline has gut-punching moments that are hard to watch (and there will be more, I suspect), I love that it's given Suzanne such meaty material to work with. She's the best.
And then came Freddie Smith, who was already on fire from his scenes with Camila Banus. It's not often that we see Sonny go from Care Bear to Berserker mode, but, damn! Freddie was captivating as he navigated the utter lows and happy highs of this revelation -- his beloved Maggie killed his mother and Uncle Vic knew, but Will is innocent. Whew. There's a lot there, and Freddie played it all perfectly.
Side gush, Freddie also made me adore him more when he Tweeted, "So excited to see next weeks episodes. I remember it was so hard yelling at @SuzanneC_Rogers but I had to do it!"
Truth be told, part of me wanted to keep Sonny in Berserker mode to see who he would rip through next. Like, take him to Horton Square and whisper in his ear about the time Fran from the café served him lukewarm fries then watch him go off. Or remind him about the time the dry cleaner didn't starch his favorite maroon shirt. Smash, Sonny. Smash! But I digress.
So, yes. What a fallout! I breathed easy for a second or two then suddenly realized. Oh, right! We just made it through the field filled with Velociraptors, but we still must face the Tyrannosaurus Rex in the final showdown! That T-Rex being that Maggie's going to completely break when she and others learn about the baby swap and Sarah's child and Victor and Xander orchestrating it all and -- bring it home -- all that jazz. Oh, I hope we don't have to wait for May Sweeps until this comes out, but, either way, I'm staying in my seat to watch the stuff out of this show.
On the topic of the eventual baby-swap blowup, which is sure to be juicy and heartbreaking, there's also a wild card I'm suspecting might come into play. Okay. Sometimes a line is just a line, but this isn't the first time I remember hearing that Maggie doesn't even remember taking that first drink. Hmm...
Something tells me that Summer drugged her mother, or implanted a microchip to control her actions, but, really, Summer isn't that crafty. So, she must have spiked that shiny bottle of vodka! Granted, when dealing with Summer the Bummer, it is normal to instinctively reach for a drink and guzzle 'til you can tolerate her. There's that. Still, for Maggie to get that drunk that fast. Well. I repeat, "Hmm!" The only thing I can say with clarity is that Summer ruins everything. Every. Thing.
In the meantime, Sonny and Will have paved the path to reuniting! There're just a few things first. One, Will skipped out on some, umm, reunion time to be with Ben as he's executed. Will was a little all over the place in those scenes, but I can't blame the guy. I don't know what I'd do first if I were locked up for nearly a year and suddenly freed. Seeing my loved ones and a sundae would be pretty high on the list, though I can see why he'd also want to be there for his buddy Ben, which shouldn't work given their history, but, damn it, if I don't like their friendship nonetheless. Chandler and Robert are charming together.
Then there's Sonny who had to "officially" end things with Evan. That meet and greet between Will and Evan was super awkward (and hilarious). But did I say Evan? I meant Christian Maddox. Yep. Evan is a liar liar pants on fire and most likely a killer, and David's bio-dad, and committed federal crimes by keeping Rafe's mail from him. Lots of "ands" there, but the moral of the story is he's shady, and Kate and I totally called most of that. And, like, a lot of other people did, too. Back pats to all of us! What that means is...
Evan isn't exactly taking the breakup well. He pulled a gun on Sonny. He also kidnapped David. He's a jerk, but fear not, Rafe and Ciara are on the case. And, really, if you want anyone on your side in a crisis, it's a committed Ciara. She's like a dog with a bone working to clear Ben's name before it's too late. Sure, she's micro-focused, but with good reason -- Ben's counting down the hours.
As such, Clyde slinked out of his hidey hole to spend time with his son, more so, to say goodbye. In lesser actors' hands, these scenes would come off as "too little, too late" or even exasperating propping, but James Read and Robert Scott Wilson sold it. Their performances made me misty. I almost believed Clyde when he said, "If I had a do-over, I'd do it all different" and when he lamented that he was a "terrible father and worse stepfather." He clinched it with saying he loved Ben in his own twisted way. Ben's reaction was understated, but perfectly delivered. If Ben lives, it will be interesting to see where things go.
In the end, Ben faced his mortality while chatting with Marlena as the clock ticked down. On one level, it's hard to wrap my head around Mar's compassion toward him, as he caused her and her family so much pain, but she is largely forgiving, and more so, she's been with him professionally from his breakdown through his recovery. We didn't get to see all of their sessions, but there's a connection there, and Marlena, out of everyone, has witnessed his journey. Will it end next week? Stay tuned!
LOOSE ENDS:
You know you stepped in some serious sands through the hourglass when Abe comes in hot with an "I want you to just shut up and listen to me." Damn! The mayor was not messing around. He basically told Gabi she was disgusting, he hated that she hurt people he loved, and he's sickened that she's getting a "Devil's bargain." Oh, then Abe mic-dropped by stating Eli went to talk to Lani, and they're probably reuniting as they spoke. I repeat, "Damn!" Abe, there is a reason you're known as "The Man" in Two Scoops Land. Well played. Well. Played.
Of course, Gabi was quick to learn a lesson. She's turning over a new leaf. She ran to Ari G. and embraced her daughter -- I kid. I kid. She's still terrible, but also terribly amusing, especially in those scenes when Stefano met Gabi. They had me rolling. I didn't expect to enjoy them as much as I did. The banter. The threats. They were diabolically delicious. I hope to see more of this duo duking it out or, perhaps, partnering up?
To loop back to Gabi's latest stunt, she blackmailed herself out of the clink by threatening not to give Mickey her bone marrow unless she was freed. If you thought that was sick and twisted and really, really wrong, you're, well, not wrong. If you also thought it was unbelievable, you're not wrong, either. And if you thought it was a brazen baller move by a baddie, you're also not wrong. It's kind of all of those things, and the most important thing, it's all over. I'm ready to move on from the Gabi/Lani feud. Team Lani is justified to hold grudges forever, but Lani's a stronger character in detective mode, and Gabi's better at barking with the big dogs now that she's graduated from junior schemer to "Oh No You Didn't!" diva.
Plus, I highly suspected Gabi wasn't going to serve time again. We've been down that river. And while this devil's deal might have taken her out of the fire, she's back in the frying pan, as at least one microchip-controlled freaky, scary old dude has her in his crosshairs. Stefano and Gabi round two? Yes, please.
Speaking of mind control, if Dr. Rolf really wants to know more about it, he should observe Julie and Val. They had Eli doing their bidding in no time. No arguments here -- Gabi did them all wrong. Everyone has reason to sing the blues as well as celebrate her downfall. No doubt whatsoever. But...
Eli also, kind of, you know, has a right to feel how he wants to feel and shouldn't have been pressured. As he said, he was with that She-Devil for a year and loved her, even knowing she's done bad. Plus, Lani did shake his trust when all is said and done. I think he deserved more than a 24-hour turnaround to sort out all those feelings before being told his pride is preventing him from reuniting with Lani. Okay, Jules and Val. Sure. Well, at least Lani got what she wanted, and she didn't have to fake a stakeout or break out the selfie stick this time. Yay to happy, strong-armed endings.
While I agree with Stefano that Justin is kind of a consolation prize, I admire Dimple's dedication to Kayla. He's doing what he can to get her back, and if that means more scenes between Wally Kurth and Stephen Nichols, I'm all in. Plus, it looks like John and Marlena are ready to join the mayhem. This could be a fun, vet-filled team-up, yet I'm still kind of curious about Stefano's endgame here. Does Dr. Rolfie have a microchip for Mar Mar, too? That's sort of the only way Doc would swipe right on the Fauxnix.
I'm not saying Chad deserves to be poisoned by Stefano, but he hasn't brought me a cupcake lately, so, you know, turnaround and fair play and all. Okay. For real, what the heck is Stefano doing to Chad? I suspect he's slipping in some Dr. Rolf magical potion or something. Though if controlling Chad is the ultimate goal, Andre did it with more flair. Does anyone else remember those mixed hypnotic images? It was all explosions and kittens and other random images. Anyway, Steffie, you're on notice. Don't mess with Chad. Kate and I will come after you -- as soon as she's out of jail and we deal with Evan.
HOT
Again, congratulations to the cast and crew for a Sweepstastic finale to February! There were so many solid performances that DAYS should dominate the Emmys next year. If they don't, the audience still wins for getting to witness such high levels of awesomeness. One more time, cheers to Team DAYS!
NOT
There might have been a few "NOTTIER" moments last week, but I was disappointed not to see Sonny telling Justin about the Maggie bombshell. Freddie Smith was tremendous during the initial scenes, and I wanted to see that magic combined with Wally Kurth's. Alas, we got the old, "Sit down, I have something to tell you," thingy, and we have to imagine what happened next.
LINE(S) OF THE WEEK
Ben (to Will): "Did anyone ever tell you that talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity? [pause] I should know."
Sonny: "Really, Gabi? What are you going to do? You gonna download an app that makes the jury deaf?"
EXCHANGE OF THE WEEK
Clyde (regarding Ciara): "That girl's your weakness."
Ben: "No, she's my strength."
I'm pretty sure I heard audible swoon sounds from every "CIN" fan when those lines were spoken.
OH SNAP! OF THE WEEK
Abe (to Gabi): "I want you to just shut up and listen to me."
BURN OF THE WEEK
Chad (to Gabi): "It's funny. After all that time plotting with my father, trying to find a way to get you kicked out, all I had to do is sit back and watch you self-destruct. I would ask for your company badge, but I'm guessing it was confiscated when you were arrested...by your own brother...at your own wedding."
RANDOM THOUGHTS
When Rafe said to the officer on the phone, "Be careful. He's got my son," I sort of choked up a bit. Rafe-A-Roni really is a good father. He always has been. Go get him, Commish!
I would have gladly exchanged those scenes between Julie, Val, and Eli for ones where Julie went to comfort her dear friend Maggie. I hope we get to see those, too.
I'm not sure Xander "I Put a Lady in a Cage" Kiriakis emphasizing the dangers of texting and driving is the most effective "The More You Know" moment. It's like Stefano scolding someone for littering or Gabi getting on a soapbox about turning off the lights when you're not in a room.
Will recognizing he's no saint is great self-awareness, but he has been on a roll lately in the sweetheart department.
I'm calling it now -- Kayla is 100% going to dig that microchip out of Steve's head.
I enjoyed Justin's line, "You're not moving the damn goal post." I'll have to use that soon. Probably at my next work meeting.
One of my favorite parts of the weekday is that around three o'clock, I get a text from my mom after she's watched DAYS. This week's gem was, "If I ever want to commit a crime, I'm going to Salem to do it!"
I think it's safe to assume that in her spare time, Ciara totally binge-watches Forensic Files. Again, you go, girl!
Wait! Ciara should totally go to school for forensics and then join up with Shawn-D and Paul to create Black Patch: The Next Generation.
Gabi's lines to Stefano about Steve's eye were hilarious, but I also enjoyed when she later looked at his portrait and quipped, "You are a freaky, scary old dude." Ha!
Whatever happened to Melinda Trask? I think the last mention of her was J.J. spending time with her, but then again, I think that was a lie while J.J. was in withdrawal. Dealing with Trask might just be proper punishment for Kristen.
Am I the only one who wouldn't be shocked if Baby David turned out to be the killer? This is DAYS, after all. Maybe someone implanted a chip in his brain, too, and he has the essence of Chucky from Child's Play.
I loved the mention of Vivian's molar controller, tooth chip thingy when Stefano and Gabi had their tête-à-tête. I guess that was sort of a prelude to bionic eyes and pacemaker apps. At least Gabi impressed Stefano for a minute.
Though Stefano claiming that Abs broke Stefan's heart brought the record to a screeching halt. Dude's wig-obsessed mind was broken long before his heart, and, considering he raped Abigail, I'm not that concerned about Stefan's boohoos over his make-believe relationship. Nice try, Fauxnix, but no.
Can DAYS' next digital venture be perfume commercial parodies featuring Dr. Rolf's lineup of super wacky potions? *whispers* Resurrection by Wilhelm has already been on the market, but now we have Essence by Rolf. Maybe him slinking around a fancy party in a spangly dress with some sultry French tag like, "le sang de la vie par Rolf."
PARTING THOUGHTS
So, friends and fellow DAYS fans, that's it for March 2! I'm off to smuggle celebratory martinis into the holding cell so Kate and I can drink to being right about Evil Evan. Maybe we'll whip him up some brownies, too. With that, Laurisa is back next week and will be covering Ben's execution live from Statesville. Okay. I can't back that up, but she will return with an all-new Two Scoops, and "That's a fact." As always, thank you for reading!
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