How do you solve a problem like Brooke?

It seems like Brooke is a magnet for trouble. How else can you explain the mess that she found herself in this past week, when she landed on the receiving end of a tonsil-hockey liplock from Thomas?

It seems like no matter what she does, Brooke Logan Forrester is a magnet for trouble. How else can you explain the mess that Brooke found herself in this past week? I know the Brooke-haters out there are lined up with rifles, determined to shoot down any reasonable explanation from Brooke's point of view. For those of that anti-Brooke persuasion, there could never be a reasonable explanation for her being on the receiving end of a tonsil-hockey liplock from stepson Thomas. I hear you.

However, I think you have to look at all sides of the situation. Thomas himself has stepped up to defend his stepmom. He admitted that she was not "in" on the publicity stunt, which should be sufficient evidence that Brooke was innocent. Should she have asked Thomas what he was plotting before saying yes? Absolutely. Did she put too much trust in his judgment? No doubt. Was it another example of Brooke not using her head and leading with her heart? You betcha.

See, that's Brooke's problem in my estimation. She's not a deep thinker. In her Valley Girl bubble, she sees things in a superficial way. Instead of trying to think of what could go wrong, Brooke only thinks what will go right. Had she asserted her authority with Thomas and been the adult, Brooke would have demanded to know his plan beforehand and had a say-so in the decision. Like I said, she's the wiser, older, experienced fashion expert. She's been through hundreds of runway shows and knows from publicity stunts. For that reason alone, she needed to take charge. By letting Thomas do things his way, Brooke stepped into another scandal at a time when her reputation is already a precarious mess.

What about the other side of the story? Well, as Stephanie put it to Ridge, these things happen to Brooke too often, and saying it's a mistake is not a good enough excuse anymore. Brooke is a total screw-up and she's too old to keep on doing these things. She needs to know better. Stephanie and Taylor would have liked to have seen Brooke push Thomas away in mid-kiss. They would have preferred it if Brooke embarrassed Thomas in front of the media by calling him out on it. Thomas would have been mortified and the Men's Line would have been buried under the weight of Brooke disapproving of the neophyte designer. It would have looked really, really bad.

The alternative is what we have now; Thomas and Brooke made headlines and the Men's Line is getting lots of publicity. But wasn't there yet another possibility? What if the morning after the kiss, Brooke and Thomas called a press conference? Everyone would show up because the kiss was big news. So at the press con, Thomas makes an announcement - GOTCHA!! I gotcha, Jared and all your other reporters! Ridge appears from behind a curtain and kisses Brooke just like Thomas had. The Forresters tell the press that they hoped they got their attention for the Men's Line, but there's nothing to Thomas and Brooke other than pride in the new line! The press would lap it up, positive or negative, and the Men's Line would get additional pub. A win-win all around.

You have to admit that Ridge's reaction was a bit bizarre. How come he was more upset about Thomas' kiss than he was about Oliver actually shtupping his wife? Ridge forgave the graduation party a lot faster than the kiss. Weird, hmm? At least Ridge didn't let Stephanie convince him to shun Brooke. Really, how many times can Ridge listen to his mother go on and on about Brooke faults? We get it; no matter how lovable Brooke may be, Stephanie does not approve of her and wants Ridge to divorce her. Can you imagine a parent telling you time and again to divorce your spouse? It's got to get old after a while.

As for the Jackie M crew, what can you say? Has Amber actually convinced herself that Nick wanted her to steal designs? What sense could that make in any universe? Nick and company have now spent a fortune on a line - the Hotline - which they cannot sell. That should really help the corporate bottom line for Jackie M, especially in light of the Jackie/Owen/Bridget disaster. If Nick thought they were bleeding money before, they should be on life support soon!

It's hard to feel sorry for Amber. What she did by stealing the designs, and using Oliver to do it, was reprehensible. By the way, I know I called Oliver a walking haircut in the past, but please explain to me why the Forresters didn't fire him? He's an idiot. Worse than that, he's an idiot who doesn't seem to learn from his mistakes. How else can you explain his letting Amber into his home on Friday? He should have slammed the door in her face, but he didn't. Which is how we can now see that Amber's new profession will be prostitute. She offered herself to Oliver and said she'd do whatever he wanted. Is this the same woman who was married to Daniel on The Young and the Restless and had some self-esteem? What happened to her?

Oliver looked like a letch as Amber wriggled in front of him and said she could make him happy. Yeech! Excuse me while I lose my lunch! This is worse that Steffy throwing herself at Oliver. Does Brad Bell have a problem with women? Why would he write characters like that who use sex to get what they want instead of brains and initiative? And that includes Brooke! It wasn't really necessary for her to convince Ridge to forgive her with sex. After all, she and Ridge have been together for eons; couldn't she have persuaded him without using her shapely bod to make him love her?

Finally, I guess we have to mention Hope and Liam. Sorry, but I'm bored to tears about them. I realized that every man who meets Hope falls madly in love with her, but seriously, she's a baby. She just graduated high school! She hasn't traveled or been educated...she's just sweet and pretty and dull. I expect more. Liam has a little more going for him, but he's also extremely nave. These characters are in desperate need of some edge, some angst. Instead of Stephanie going to the homeless shelter - when she should be recovering from surgery - send those kids down there to learn how fortunate they are!

There were some great letters in the e-mailbox this week. You can read them below and feel free to write us with your thoughts at Soap Central...

• Is it just me or has everyone seemed to conveniently forget about Taylor's past antics? Can't anyone (Hint: Brooke) remind Taylor about her former relationship with Rick? Didn't Taylor get involved with her daughter's boyfriend, slept with him, and got engaged to him? Taylor's "holier than thou" attitude towards Brooke is way off base. -- Deb

• Ok, feel like I only have complaints this week. First of all I am so sick of the scandals with Brooke. Seriously, can they not write her any other way? I would like to see Ridge and Brooke become the solid couple on this show. They are so awesome together. I am also disgusted by how they are writing Taylor. She has never been this petty and insecure before. Years ago, she was always the one with class that "rose above." Bring back that Taylor. Don't make everyone hate the current one. ...PLEASE keep Stephanie and Brooke together and not make them start warring again. I too like the old Drew Tyler Bell as Thomas. The new one does look amazingly like Ridge, but I love the old one. I do not miss Steffy either. Hope she stays overseas. I miss Bridget and want her and Nick back together. Couldn't they find out they had made a mistake with both Logan and Jack's paternity and make them both Nick and Bridget's? I do not like Nick and Aggie. And last but certainly not least...can we lose Amber again? She is disgusting, not interesting, and I just hit the forward button when she is on there. They always write unbelievable storylines for her, and she's like a little mosquito buzzing in my ear that I'd like to swat and silence forever! There...I feel better now! -- LoriThanks for reading! Till next time, see you on the soaps!

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