Bold choices -- finally

Liam finally stood up to his old man and asserted his independence, but that wasn't the only display of boldness on The Bold and the Beautiful. Find out in this week's Two Scoops why our columnist, Allison, is glad that there's finally a showing of some backbone.

It's taken a long time, but finally this week we got some resolution on The Bold and the Beautiful. Liam finally stood up to his old man and asserted his independence. He also stood up to Steffy and acknowledged that the foundation of their marriage has been built on sand. They don't have the solid underpinnings for a strong marriage. You see, Liam loves Steffy. Liam enjoys being with Steffy. Liam might be happy with Steffy if they stayed together. However, Liam does not trust Steffy. She's lied to him too many times. She's deceived him. But, mostly, Liam realized that whatever he feels for Steffy cannot alter what he still feels for Hope.

Liam decided that he wants to resume the track he'd been on before marrying Steffy. He wants to be with Hope, and Liam's desire to build a future with her is stronger than his interest in remaining with Steffy. And if you try to be objective, you can understand his feelings; he knows that he was bamboozled by Steffy and Bill. They lied to him. It doesn't matter that they rationalize the lies and believe that their ends justified their means; Steffy and Bill were in the wrong. But don't jump for joy just yet, Hope and Liam fans. To me, this triangle is far from over.

What's been so disturbing to me about this entire Hope-Liam-Steffy situation is the over-involvement of the parental units. Honestly, what are Taylor, Brooke, and Ridge in particular getting so vexed about? These young folks are barely adults. They haven't even begun to really live their lives. These parents are acting like what happens now will be forever. It won't be!

Steffy's parents have really irked me. Remember when they were once so against Steffy marrying young -- during her romance with Rick? Do you recall how Ridge nearly got himself run down by the Forrester jet in an effort to stop Rick and Steffy from flying off together on a holiday? Ridge was a mad man, all because Steffy was going to be with Rick. Now, however, is another story.

When it comes to Steffy and Liam's romance, Ridge and Taylor have been completely supportive and pushy. Think of how they reacted when Bill shuttled the "engaged" pair onto a private jet to the Colorado mountains. They were gung-ho that Steffy and Liam be together. It didn't matter to either Taylor or Ridge that Liam had rebounded from Hope to Steffy in less than an hour! You think that was normal behavior? Don't you think Taylor the shrink might have questioned Liam's true feelings for Steffy? Instead, she pushed her daughter to Liam like Steffy might never find a guy to marry her!

While we're on the subject, when did Ridge turn into this doddering old dad that's thrilled about either of his daughters (Hope does count as a daughter in his eyes) being fixated on just one man? Does he really want Hope or Steffy settling down when both are still very young women? And why is Taylor not advising Steffy with the old adage "don't put your eggs all in one basket"? Or "don't count your chickens before they're hatched"? How about "there are plenty of fish in the sea"?

I nearly gagged this past week when Taylor complained to Ridge that Hope had no respect for the sanctity of Steffy and Liam's marriage! Excuse me, did Steffy have any respect for the sanctity of Liam and Hope's engagement when she made the moves on Liam the night of his bachelor party? Steffy did everything she could to destroy Hope and Liam's engagement and had no regard for their commitment.

Here's what I think should happen with all three of these kids: a time out. Stop getting engaged/married/involved with each other. Take a sabbatical from each other! Think of how much healthier they all might be if they were forced not to share the same oxygen for a while!

But I digress because I don't want to let Brooke off the hook about this business either. First of all, why on earth was Brooke watching Liam and Hope reconciling on the balcony after Liam learned that Bill had lied about the MRI? That should have been a private moment between Liam and Hope, but there was Brooke watching and getting teary-eyed and grinning like a merry matchmaker. All she needed were some pom-poms and she could have done a cheer -- "Rah rah, Liam and Hope, Liam finally is not a dope!" Give me a break!

Hope really should have turned her eyes away from Liam's watery ones to tell Brooke, "Mother, get the hell out of here! I don't horn in on your love scenes!" No, seriously, can you just imagine what you'd feel like if your mother was that involved in your love life? What beau in his right mind would want to date a woman who's Mom is egging on the relationship and pulling strings?

As much as I bemoan Ridge and Taylor having nothing to talk about but Steffy's marriage to Liam, it's also pretty lame that Brooke has been set on "all-Hope, all the time" for the past six months. What happened to Brooke's foundation? What happened to her interest in the homeless? What happened to R.J.? Is he still in the family?

Brad Bell needs to get out of the kiddie pool and return to the land of the adults. Even if young love is supposedly a ratings draw -- is it? -- I think there's been a nasty imbalance on the show because of it. Frankly, Steffy, Liam, and Hope aren't that fascinating day in and day out. And the fact that Liam made a decision last week doesn't ameliorate the fact that he's been a dork through most of this situation. He's allowed Steffy to lead him around by the nose, although considering his desire for sex, it was more likely another appendage involved.

Liam's also been manipulated by a powerful father. He's been completely sucked into Bill's world. Behold Liam's look since learning he was heir to the Spencer fortune; he's got the same beard as Bill, wears the same sword necklace around his neck, and has gone into the same business. Bill wanted a miniature version of himself and has been shaping Liam into one. And Liam knowingly went along with Bill as he wiped away Liam, the IT guy, and turned him into a miniature Bill.

Despite the ardent and sincere love Liam has for Hope, he let others convince him that her choosing chastity -- until the wedding night -- was a slap in his face. If I were Hope, I wouldn't be so fast to take Liam back. After all, what did the marriage to Steffy successfully accomplish when all is said and done -- Liam got sex! A lot of sex in a short amount of time. He should be good for a few months now, at least until Hope and Liam walk down the aisle.

But Hope should have qualms about the way Liam acted before. His need for intercourse was kind of gross. He was like a starving man at the buffet table, unwilling to wait to partake of the vittles. That didn't say a lot about his self-control. A word about Steffy; I felt bad for her. It hurts to be rejected, and Liam's decision to take off the wedding ring was a slap in the face. Steffy was stung, and my heart went out to her. Her methods were wrong, but I do think that she adores Liam and wanted to be Mrs. Liam Spencer for life.

Also, Steffy was victimized by Bill almost as much as Liam. She thought she was dying, and that is traumatizing. However, up in Aspen and down in Cabo, Steffy did her part to deceive and entrap Liam, so she's no innocent. She didn't play fair. She gamed the system to get what she wanted; she was playing with loaded dice. Hope, on the other hand, played by the rules and got trapped in a gondola.

What was so wrong about all this is that Steffy never gave Liam the chance to truly choose between her and Hope -- until the end of last week. Steffy could have allowed Liam and Hope to meet in Aspen. She could have said to Liam, "Look, I love you. I've accepted your ring, but if you want to see Hope and really end your relationship with her, do it and then we'll move on." But she was too afraid to trust Liam. Maybe she knew in her heart of hearts that Liam was more in love with Hope than her.

So now what? I have the sneaking suspicion that a baby is going to be involved very soon. Can't you see it? Steffy signs the divorce or annulment papers, and Liam and Hope plan a beach wedding for April. The sun is setting, Hope's ready to say, "I do," and here comes Steffy to stop the wedding. "I'm having your baby, Liam. You can't marry Hope." And then we have another year of the triangle!

I'm also curious about the soon-to-be addition to the cast of Hillary B. Smith -- recently Nora from One Life to Live. Hillary has been cast as a sex therapist. Whom do you think she's there to treat? The obvious choice would be Hope. Is she a virgin because of her moral decision, or has she been suppressing her fear of sex? Does she have intimacy issues? She doesn't seem to have a problem; she never pulls away when Liam kisses her. And what would have happened the night of the bachelor party if Liam had not canoodled with Steffy in the car? If he'd simply gone home without Steffy's "ride," would Hope have made love with him that night?

Here's my suggestion for Brad Bell: let's make Liam the one with sex problems. Suppose he wants to go all the way with Hope and suddenly he has performance problems? Wouldn't that be a great twist? He'd have to wonder why he could have sex with Steffy, but not Hope, right? I'd love to see that story played out.

The news late Friday that Jack Wagner is being taken off contract was a shocker. Can this show really just wipe out the Marones and Jackie M? Is that smart? It sure looks like that's the direction in which they're going. Nick, Jackie, and Owen have all been axed or demoted. Which makes me think that Alley Mills's Pammy is the next to get pink-slipped. Now that Stephanie has abandoned her sister, her only hope is to join the Jackie M family...and they're all being dropped.

Let's talk a moment about the Pam and Stephanie situation. Granted, Pam is a looney tune. That's a given. However, Stephanie's turning her sister away like what she did was unconscionable. Family is family, is it not? Sure, Pam betrayed the Forresters and did something illegal and immoral by stealing the designs. She was absolutely in the wrong. But this has happened before. Rick did the same thing just a couple of years ago, and nobody threw him out of the family! For goodness sake, Stephanie only has one living relative left in the world -- her sister. Stephanie showed no compassion whatsoever to a sister who is not only weak and dependent, but has a history of mental troubles.

Stephanie's action struck me as exceptionally cruel. Here's Stephanie, the dowager of the homeless and downtrodden, willing to take in strangers and give characters like Dayzee and Beverly another chance, but unable to forgive her sister? Stephanie could have just banished Pam from the business, kept her out of the building, couldn't she? Why end the relationship with her sibling?

I also find it bizarre that nobody else in the Forrester family has intervened to speak up for Pam. Unless Eric hasn't found out yet... he's far more understanding that Stephanie, and I think he'd accept Pam's apology. For Stephanie to not even call a family meeting about Pam was odd to me; everyone was affected, so everyone should have had a say about what to do with Aunt Pam.

Finally, on the subject of forgiveness, what about Bill and Liam? Bill thinks that he can force his son to forget about his misdeeds and manipulations and just accept the Bill is Bill and he's incapable of change. Well, that might be true if Bill and Liam had a typical father-son relationship. They don't. They never bonded when Liam was an infant, a boy, a teenager, or a young man. All those years were lost in their developing a connection that could withstand this kind of chicanery.

Look at it from Liam's point of view. This guy Bill Spencer is his biological father. He's been really swell to Liam and has given him money, power, a beach house, and a car. He has not given him respect or regard. Bill has been a bully and a conniver. Liam would be well within his rights to tell Bill to "go to hell." For all Bill's done to Liam, the damage is severe. It will be disingenuous if Liam just accepts Bill's evil ways as "Hey, that's my dad."

So, share your thoughts with me about what's going to happen in the weeks ahead... your comments are always welcome at Soap Central, so stay in touch. And tell me which other characters you want to see fixed or changed, or return to the show. Contact us at Soap Central. And keep on reading Two Scoops every week!

Meanwhile, here are some letters from the readers!

Meanwhile, here are some letters from the readers!

• Brooke is ridiculous. I get totally annoyed at her comments and would love nothing more than for Ridge to put her in her place, especially her comments about Steffy. And when Brooke makes comments about Steffy to Taylor, Taylor needs to remind Brooke of all her wrong doings. Ridge belongs with his devoted love Taylor, and I wish the show would put a spin on Brooke's world, leaving her for the pathetic sex addict she is. I get so sick of Ridge always forgiving her and the bedroom scenes are overrated. I'm sure I'm not the only one that is tired of those scenes. As far as Hope, I can't stand her innocent, pure character. In the case of Liam and Steffy, this is where I wish we could expect the unexpected and he decide to stay with his wife and tell Hope to hit the road. Everyone knows Liam is going to pick Hope. This actually makes me sick. I would love for the bad girl Steffy to actually win this fight. She loves Liam, regardless of how it unfolded, and by him picking Steffy it would take the story line down a whole new unexpected path. I really would like to see some major shake-ups to the story lines. I want the edge of your seat wandering what is going to happen instead of already knowing what the outcome will be. That makes it boring and predictable. Come on writers.... Shake it up a bit!! - Stacey

• Talking about Liam, I don't understand why he seemed so disappointed about Steffy! He knew her, what did he expect from her after everything she did! He gave her Hope's ring, he proposed, he said, 'I do,' and he knew what he was doing! Bill and Steffy manipulated him but he let them do it! If he was so in love with Hope, when she broke up, why didn't he run after her to know why? He jumped on Steffy for sex. He married her; he should stay with her! Hope deserves better than Liam! - Miss K

• This idiotic interference by Bill in Liam and Steffy's life should be proof positive that Bill needs to stay the heck out of all Steffy story lines. Bill has been looking like an immature young fool since last May sweeps. Steffy brings out the inner brat in him. How many dumb idiotic ill though out schemes must he blunder through, before TPTB keep him out of the kiddie story line. If Bill is really after Steffy's stock, this crap might make sense. Steffy stole from him, blackmailed him, stalked him and got it on with his son. What a nasty gross romance a Bill and Steffy would be! -- Moe

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