The power of goodbye

Maya parted ways with blackmail, Rick said sayonara to Caroline, and Brooke's own body found a permanent solution to her change-of-life pregnancy. But Steffy's adieu to Liam -- and Los Angeles -- packed more punch than all the other goodbyes combined. Get your head around Jacqueline MacInnes Wood's B&B departure with Two Scoops' Mike!

Has your week been bold and beautiful? Did a new medical term save you from having to 'fess up about your affair? Did you take the stinger out of the bee of your blackmail? Did you find yourself with custody of a hand-me-down husband? These and more situations faced the Forresters et al this week!

Wow, Scoopers! It feels more like May Sweeps now than it did during May Sweeps! Each story took a giant leap forward after lots of spinning in circles. And Jacqueline MacInnes Wood may have turned in the performance of her career just as she clocked in her last episode! Let's get right to it and not waste another keystroke!

After weeks of Brooke pleading with Eric to claim fatherhood of Bill's baby, who knew the tale of Brooke's pregnancy would take such a dramatic and permanent turn? On the verge of telling all to Katie -- with Bill producing bricks from his nether regions, shall we say -- Brooke collapsed under the weight of her resulting panic attack and found herself Spencerless! I don't mean to make light of a miscarriage, even Brooke's, but I have to say I honestly didn't see this one coming.

So, Dr. Caspary, who just hours before had deemed Steffy infertile, explained to Brooke that she had experienced a "missed miscarriage." (All in a day's work for a doctor, I guess.) From my research, that means an egg fertilizes, but something goes wrong in the uterus, and so subtly that the woman's body doesn't register signs of a typical miscarriage.

I had still suspected that Brooke's pregnancy test was a false positive, and I kept waiting for it. But it looks as if Brooke really was pregnant, if reference to her having had a prenatal checkup is any indication. All right, we'll go with that. But then what was the point of making Brooke perimenopausal? It didn't factor into her pregnancy, or even general health, at all. Unless it does later, B&B has yet again shelved an outside-the-lines storytelling opportunity for a more predictable one.

Bill was surprisingly tender toward Brooke once Katie conveniently left to deal with Will's meltdown. I loved that Bill knew Brooke was about to spill the beans. Of course, now he may never know Brooke almost had his child. Hmm. How is this all going to come out now? Because you know Katie will eventually find out about everything. With no baby, there's certainly no urgent reason for truths to be told any time soon. At least we don't have to hear Brooke badgering Eric to be the "perfect family" anymore!

Brooke actually took a turn on the backburner for the rest of the week, and Bill retrained his laser-sharp focus on one Maya Avant. "All this for your niece," the usually absent Justin deadpanned. "You're such a doting uncle." But then we got the real reason Bill wants Maya to sing "Jailhouse Rock" -- it's for Karen!

Sort of. Justin guessed that Caroline's happiness would keep co-owner Karen away from Spencer. How Caroline getting dumped would make Karen want to run the company, I don't know, but it didn't make sense that Bill was trying to help Caroline out of the goodness of his heart. He's really doing it out of the goodness of his wallet! For Dollar Bill, that is an appropriate enough piece of motivation.

Meanwhile, Maya finally got to rep Hope for the Future in a bizarre photo shoot set up by Caroline. Having Maya pout in a make-believe prison was definitely a unique way to underscore Bill's threats, but doesn't the image of incarcerated fashionistas clash with the wholesome messages of Hope for the Future? And I know Maya was in a world of hurt, but she needed to buck up and smile for the camera, no matter how she was feeling. Especially during her first fashion shoot. It's her job. She didn't do a very good one.

Maya saved her smiles for Bill, who found himself impressed by her refusal to back down. She was sure the judge would laugh off the photo of her and Jesse (at least she smiled for that picture), and wasn't having any of Bill's assurances that she'd go back to jail. "You picked the wrong person to mess with," Maya sassed. Woo-hoo! Maya was also right that Bill wasn't doing Caroline any favors by stalling the inevitable -- that Rick really wanted to be with Maya.

And Caroline found that out in no uncertain terms. Rick finally told perenially-clad-in-lingerie Caroline it was over because he loved Maya! Double woo-hoo! What took so long, Forrester? That was a card that needed to be played weeks ago. But it wasn't any less satisfying for the wait. Still, isn't it interesting that Rick was so enamored with Caroline that he stole her from Thomas, only to apparently find real love with Maya? Maybe all that was only ever about besting Thomas.

Caroline oozed with false claims about sexing Rick when Maya showed up at the door, but Maya wasn't about that, either. As soon as Rick emerged from the shower, Maya hipped him and Caroline to Bill's blackmail! Caroline was genuinely shocked and offered to call Bill to straighten things out. Instead, Rick showed Caroline the door. When Maya explained about Jesse, Rick sneered that it should be Bill going to jail. Bill's long overdue for it! Will Rick return to the Dark Side to send him there?

Liam got a lot of visitors while Steffy stayed away having flashbacks. First Taylor came by, compassionately acknowledging that Liam also needed an outlet for his own loss. Then Thomas stopped in, knowing that Liam had to be thinking about Hope. "You're starting to piss me off," Liam growled. Touched a nerve, Liam? "I'd like to believe you deserve Steffy," Thomas shot back, forcing Liam to own up to loving two women. Harsh, but you gotta admit, Thomas told it like it is.

Hope could have used a lesson in that. In one breath, Hope copped to Steffy's heartache; in the next, she blithely told Aunt Katie that Steffy would find someone else to have babies with because Liam would be having them with her. "Just hit me in the face with something," Hope joked. A lot of us were tempted, my dear. And Katie found herself in the middle, wanting Hope with Liam but feeling horrible for Steffy. It's really too bad "Keffy" couldn't have lasted a little longer.

Taylor visited Steffy's loft to remind her of all the babies she could have with Liam (talk about pushing it, Dr. Hayes!), but Steffy's darkness threw Taylor for a loop. Taylor gently coaxed Steffy to go home to Liam, saying, "I'm not the one you need anymore." Suddenly, it hit me that I was watching Taylor's final scene with Steffy. Taylor's gotten on my nerves the last few years, and there was a time I truly hated Steffy, but I've always liked the mother-daughter connection between them. So it was kind of sad to see that playing out for the last time.

Steffy then made a beeline for Hope, blowing Hope away with the revelation that she was joining Ridge in Paris and telling Hope that she could have Liam! "I'm surprised you're not pouncing on this," Steffy admitted. "I would if it made sense," a flustered Hope replied. Hope knew something was wrong and tried to get Steffy to talk about it, but Steffy would only make the interesting observation that she knew Hope loved Liam like she did, begging her rival to take care of him. "Do it!' Steffy cried, hugging Hope hard. Wow. Did you ever think the Never-ending Triangle would end like this?

I loved that Liam was angry when Steffy first told him her plans, and demanded that she stop talking about Hope. Liam rose above his usual clueless self, aware Steffy was hiding something from him. But Steffy said "It's better if I'm not here whispering 'cha-cha-cha' in your ear." For the first time, that tired phrase had deeper meaning. Steffy's goodbye scene with Liam was quite moving, or at least it was until B&B went with the equally tired teenybopper music montage, which I felt diluted the impact.

Meanwhile, Hope's I-feel-terrible-but-I-get-to-be-with-Liam stance made me throw up in my mouth a little. And herein lies the whole problem with Steffy handing Liam over to Hope. They made it sound like Steffy was signing a car over to Hope. Doesn't Liam have any say in this? What about his feelings, his wants? Of course, I guess the girls have come to expect Liam's heart to turn on a dime these last two years. Two years...two years of suffering through the quagmire of Leffy/Lope. Is it finally, truly over?

And for all of Liam's resistance to having another baby with Steffy right away -- which sure looked to be caused by Liam's resurgence of feelings for Hope -- it turns out Liam was only afraid of another disappointment! It was never even about Hope! For the first time, Liam seemed to be settled in choosing Steffy, despite Hope's hovering. What a crying shame his resoluteness had to come at the eleventh hour. And now, Wyatt Fuller is going to show Liam what it's like to be on the losing corner of a triangle.

To think that Steffy should have her last scene with Katie, of all people. Called to mind Stephanie's last scene with Brooke, didn't it? Katie advised Steffy to tell Liam the truth about her infertility and let him decide. Made sense to me. Instead, Steffy demanded that Katie remain quiet, insisting Liam would only pretend to be happy with her if he knew. It was a powerful sequence. And then Steffy boarded a plane, leaving Katie with one helluva secret. A secret I'm sure will come out one day...but not today.

All that in the course of one soap week. Less than twenty-four soap hours, by B&B's clock. Steffy learns she's barren, then decides to split Los Angeles the next day. It was good drama, but it all seemed a bit "here's your hat, what's your hurry" to me. Nevertheless, Steffy Forrester has departed from our screens (nine months to the day after Ridge did, ironically), and, if you have to go out, go out in a big way. Watch for Jacqueline MacInnes Wood to win an Emmy next year for all this. I'm tellin' ya.

What are you/ tellin' me? There's no shortage of communiqus on the Soap Central message boards or the comments section, to say nothing of e-mails and voicemails. Add to them, and your comments could end up in a future column. Like these!

• "Mike, Brooke was in Paris when she was pregnant with Rick; she was going to have an abortion because she thought Eric didn't want the baby. She was befriended by Pierre...[who] informed Eric where she was. He had been looking for her and he rushed over to stop the abortion. That is what Brooke was referring to." -- Rose [EDITOR'S NOTE: Thanks for the history lesson, Rose! I wasn't watching B&B as closely in 1990 so I'm a little fuzzy on that era!]

• "Steffy must think Liam is her puppy that she can give to Hope. He doesn't belong to her...he will probably understand...that she cannot conceive a child now...[Steffy] schemed with Bill to hurt Hope. I know this is only a soap opera, but I am from the old school. You reap what you sow." -- Joan

• "The Steffy/Liam/Hope saga is finally over. Yippee!" -- Ron

• "Mike: Thanks as always for your thorough review of all things B&B!...no, Thomas is not gay, he just has dinner with his mom twice in one week because. Probably because Oliver was in Genoa City!...Loved the [Brooke/Eric] flashbacks; loved Eric enjoying the kisses while being the voice of reason. Looks like Brooke is going to have the heart attack over sleeping with Bill, not Katie. One last thing, which I hope is not too deep...Steffy can't have more kids because her 'behavior' contributed to her physical condition. Is that perhaps a subtle message that women shouldn't be adventurous and risk-taking, for fear of losing their 'real value' as a baby-maker?" -- Michael [EDITOR'S NOTE: Really good point, Michael! And it wouldn't be the first time B&B reverted to '50s-era sensibilities...]

• "...What [B&B] is doing to Steffy and Liam is cruel and heartless...the thought of Liam and Hope together again makes me want to puke. I am hoping [the show] will send Steffy to Paris where she can have a procedure to make her whole again. If Liam goes back to Hope I will pretty much be done with this show. There are other things I can do with my life than watch the Logans always coming out smelling like roses..." -- Vickie

• "I wish B&B viewers would just watch the show and allow themselves to be entertained by the insanity. I really hate the venom some viewers spew, the name-calling, the threats to not watch the show anymore. I have something I would like to say to these people: 'Deuces!' Geesh, it's fiction; relax and take a Xanax or some Ativan." -- Jan

Jan, that touches on something I've been thinking a lot about since Jacqueline MacInnes Wood and Hunter Tylo announced their departures. I know that everyone has favorites on any show, and I, too, have heard the outcry of disgruntled fans who have sworn to stop watching come July 3 when Taylor makes her last appearance. And that's their prerogative. But I would argue that there's something called loyalty to a show that people are forgetting.

I know; it's not that the writing has exactly engendered fan loyalty, especially these last few years. If you're gonna stop watching, do it because Brad Bell has bludgeoned us with Leffy/Lope, told implausible stories at impossible paces, and banished core characters to the backburner. But even through all that, I still follow the show. I have since 1988 and I'd be hard pressed to turn my back on it now.

It seems overkill to me to stop watching because a few favorite characters are exiting the canvas. If I were going to do that, I'd have done it in 1998 when B&B wrote Sheila off, and more so in 2002 and 2003 when they basically brought Sheila back as a cartoon character. Yes, Taylor is an important part of the fabric of B&B...less so Steffy, in my opinion, because she's only been on for five years. If people want to stop watching when Taylor and Steffy are gone, that's their choice, but I think it's an unnecessary one.

As to B&B becoming the "Logan Show", I admit that's a possibility, and I think now more than ever, it's time for Brad Bell to bring some balance to this soap. Hallelujah that Leffy/Lope is over, but hitting us over the head with Liam/Hope/Wyatt for the next two years isn't the answer, either. Let Wyatt shake things up, but how about dusting Thorne and Felicia off? Bringing back Clarke and CJ? Where's Amber hiding out? We do need more variety, and other stories besides who's sleeping with who would be nice as well.

Ronn Moss, Susan Flannery, Hunter Tylo, and Jacqueline MacInnes Wood might still be with us if Leffy/Lope hadn't taken over the show. Bell needs to learn from this mistake and kick it old-school, interweaving several stories with many different characters, giving us a little something for everyone. And yeah, I still want to see Brooke around -- after all, she and Eric are all that's left of the Core Four -- but it's time for Brooke to do the growing up she said she would do when Stephanie died.

I don't know what's coming this summer, but I say if you've followed the show this long, you'd owe it to yourself to see what's in store post-Steffy and post-Taylor before cutting and running. If the show doesn't improve, then I'd say we owe it to ourselves to work harder to make ourselves heard by the Bell camp. I do agree that this is the end of yet another era. Let's just see what the next one holds.

And, this extra rambling has left me out of time for Points to Ponder. Except to say, can Steffy really just up and move to Paris like this? What about her P.R. job at Forrester Creations? And what -- no telling Taylor and Thomas that she's leaving? That struck me as odd. Like father, like daughter? Just in time for Father's Day, too.

We've got a "holiday" of our own happening in the form of the Emmys! Check out all the goodies here at Soap Central, including the site's redesigned Emmy section that will give you all the Scoop. Plus, our very own Dan J Kroll will be on the red carpet with GH's Haley Pullos and Chrishell Stause from AMC/DAYS, and I hear he may have a surprise or two up his sleeve. Now who could resist that?

A big thank you to all those who didn't resist seeing my music video, "Change My Mind" -- check it out if you haven't already! In the meantime, it's all about to change on B&B, so keep watching, be alert, and most of all, be bold!

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