Sweet and sour Days

When Sami and Lucas aren't screaming at each other, they're actually very enjoyable to watch.

This was a tricky week. It was one of those weeks that we, as soap fans, have to accept because while it doesn't really carry any substance, it does set up a new set of storylines for just about all of our favorite Salemites. The fact that Days has some of the best acting talent in daytime certainly isn't lost on me so I'm hopeful that these new storylines will be deliciously sudsy! Here's what each character has to look forward to:

SAMI Sami spent the earlier part of the week having some awesome scenes with Lucas. I've long thought that Sami is missing a friend. Honestly, I never thought she'd find it in Lucas. But, lookie there! When Sami and Lucas aren't screaming at each other, they're actually very enjoyable to watch. Sure, there was a point this week when I was convinced that Lucas would agree to pretend that he was the father of Sami's baby. But, I'm so glad that I was wrong. I sincerely hope I stay wrong. Mark my words writers, if Lucas even thinks about posing as Littler Elvis's father I will be super pissed. Not only would that go against everything that Lucas ever said about Sami keeping Will's paternity a secret; but, it would be a slap in the face to viewers who watched Lucas spend the better part of a year telling Sami that she didn't need to marry EJ to end the vendetta. If Stefano wasn't scary enough to harm Sami's kids then, Lucas can't possibly believe that Stefano is scary enough to harm Sami's kids now.

I do understand Sami's reasoning for not wanting Stefano to know that she's pregnant. And, I even understand her apprehension when it comes to trusting EJ since he did just let Stefano babysit Johnny. However, no matter how much I understand or even how much I like Sami, nothing will overcome my absolute disgust for secret-keeping storylines. I HAAAATTTTEEE them. I hate it worse than when I chip my tooth on popcorn. I'd rather watch Stax have sex all day than watch Sami keep this secret from EJ. (ackkkk....pass the smelling salts please....) Since Sami overheard Nicole tell EJ that Nicole is pregnant, we're probably in for a few more scenes with Sami waffling back and forth. If so, I hope that she has another conversation with Roman and Marlena. I love the way they handled her. Something about Marlena saying that she's learned from her mistakes and hopes Sami does the same was right on. As my better half Tony pointed out to me, normally Sami-bashing is bad, but when it comes from her parents and it's actually PRODUCTIVE, it's ok.

Side note: How dense are Roman and Marlena? Sami tells them that she's keeping a secret from someone that she loves because she's worried about a DiMera child who isn't Johnny; and, they have no idea what she's talking about. Gee....think.....think....think..... Could Sami be pregnant with EJ's baby and afraid to tell him!?! Nah, I bet Sami's just worried that Eddie's scary husband on "Desperate Housewives" is after her. Yah, that's it.

NICOLE I'm not thrilled with Nicole's reaction to her pregnancy. It just seems like Nicole should stuggle a little more with the idea of being a mom, especially since she's spent a chunk of her adult life thinking that she isn't able to have kids. Don't get me wrong, making her pregnant is a great plot tool to develop the character but she needs to develop...not just POOF! magically be ready to have a baby. Nicole needs to have some conflict over whether or not to keep the baby. The idea of adoption never even enters Nicole's mind?! Really? Nicole is unemployed, homeless, not close to any family members, in the middle of a law suit, and pregnant by a man who can't even remember that he made dinner plans with her. I hope to be proven wrong, but I don't think Nicole is as excited to be pregnant as she is excited to be pregnant with EJ's baby. The proof was her scrape-my-dignity-off-the-floor plea with EJ to choose her or Sami. That scene was painful to watch. She was clingy. She was irrational. She used the word "modicum". I'd blame it on the hormones if it wasn't for the fact that....

Nicole is a rock star in scenes with everyone not named EJ. Her scenes with John, Philip, even Sami were awesome. She was the perfect blend of wit, charm and honesty, with no desperation added. I'd like to see her continue this friendship/investigation relationship with Philip. I'm still harboring a slight desire that the writers will actually make Nicole be the one who killed Trent, and I'd like to see what happens if Philip finds out first. She did suggest that Philip focus on the person who has Trent's wallet. Hmmm....how does Nicole know that Trent's wallet was missing?

JOHN and MARLENA Marlena is still going through with the divorce. She personally served John with divorce papers and after a few passionate kisses, walked out of the door. I was on the fence about this divorce for a while, but this week I came down firmly on the side of Marlena being a complete selfish idiot for leaving John. Marlena told Kayla, "I just can't be married to him right now." Huh? Right now? I guess only in the world of Jarlena, where they have been married and remarried a bazillion times, would it seem acceptable for Marlena to view marriage as a situational decision. You're making me mad, Marnie! As for John, I'm still not quite sure why he won't go get tested. I thought it was because he still harbored a most-justified fear of doctors and hospitals. But when he told EJ that doctors and hospitals didn't bother him, that reason went out the window. So, I'm left with...what? John can't actually be enjoying his life right now. He has no friends, no real family support, and soon, no Blondie. There has to be another reason John refuses to get his headaches checked out. I'm intrigued. I want to know more.

MAX and STEPHANIE I have to give Boman props for keeping everyone on the suspect list. While Caroline made bail and was home to make more chowder, Max moved up on the suspect list. Bo and Roman found a bloody shirt in Max's apartment. (Do bachelors EVER do laundry?) CSI: Salem confirmed the blood was Trent's and little Maxwell was scooped up and taken downtown, despite Stephanie's protests that, "Max is your brother." Note to Ms. Johnson: It's best if you just stay away from claims that you understand the Brady family tree there, Stephers. Otherwise you might actually realize that you're sleeping with your uncle.

Max made it clear that he didn't kill Trent, but didn't back away from claims that he hated Trent and had a fight with him. Good for Max. I like this Max much better than the mess he is when he's with Stephanie. No disrespect intended, but they really don't do anything for me. Max just seems to disappear in Stax scenes. Considering that Darin Brooks is so easy to look at, that is quite a feat. But Stephanie looks like a horrible dunce for staying with Max. He told her to "use her head for a second" and rather than call out the love of her life (sorry, I can't even type that without giggling) on his rudeness, Stephanie just continued groveling to anything Max says. This is not a healthy relationship. Worse, it's not even entertaining anymore. It needs to end. Hopefully now that Max found Trent's wallet in Steph's purse, we can get on with the break up.

MELANIE I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but Melanie totally rocks my socks. She tore into Stephanie this week for being clingy and jealous when it comes to Max. Mel may have been mean, but she's absolutely right. Just for good measure, Melanie planted Trent's wallet on Stephanie. My inner Smarky McSinister loved this move. Not only will it teach Steph a lesson, but Mel was able to plant evidence that frames a suspect in an on-going murder investigation INSIDE the police station. Gotta give her credit for being slick!

Bo decided that he needed to question Melanie again and told her that she might need to call a lawyer. I'm no expert, but Melanie is still underage, right? That means that the cops aren't allowed to question her without parental consent or at least the consent of a court appointed guardian, right? Oh look at me. There I go being realistic again. My bad. Anyway, Melanie insisted that she didn't kill Trent. But, she left out the fact that she did confront Trent with a knife, in the cemetery, and couldn't remember what happened next. Could my favorite ginger-headed vixen be a killer?!?!? I hope not. Not my Mel! NICK The Salem PD brought Nick into the station for drunk driving. He ran a red light with a blood alcohol level of 0.16, which coincidentally, is the exact same BAC I need to attain before I can watch a scene with Stax. Anyway...

I want to say that I am absolutely against drunk driving. It's stupid, reckless and selfish. So, please don't mistake what I have to say as support of drunk driving. It's not. At all. I promise. Got it? Good. Here goes: I love that Nick made a mistake. For me, Nick's always verged a little too much on being a one-dimensional do-gooder and Nick (not to mention Blake Berris) always deserved a little more depth than that as a character. Squeaky clean characters tend to make me snooze. So, I'm glad that Nick has some personal drama in his life. What I don't like is that the drama is over Chelsea. Come on, writers! There's a good thing going with Melanie and Mick. I get that Chelsea will always have a piece of Nick's heart and I'm glad that isn't being overlooked. But having Nick get a DUI because he was upset that Chelsea is hurt is a liiiiittle too much for me. Remember Melanie? The cute trouble maker with oodles of storyline potential that we HAVEN'T already seen? Let's focus on that, mmm-k?

But, I did like how Maggie and Hope got a chance to lay into Nick. Sometimes the writers are too quick to forget that Hope is a Horton first, and I'm glad to see her getting some quality time with Nick. Gold stars for that!

ABE, LEXIE and THEO Abe is officially running for mayor and Evan (of Java Caf fame) is his campaign manager. He'll need to do a great job since Mayor Buzzkill is insisting on bringing up Theo's autism and Lexie's paternity in his campaign. I love the idea of a campaign storyline! I think it would be awesome if Tony helped Abe out with his campaign. Tony does own an advertising company and all! Plus, since we suspect that the mayor is on Stefano's payroll, Tony could use this campaign as another way to loosen Stefano's grip on the DiMera empire.

Lacey, who apparently went to the Who-ever-was-watching-Zach-that-night School of Babysitting, let Theo wander off in the park. Theo went to the hospital to find Chelsea. Lexie has mentioned Theo's obsession with Chelsea before, so I'm glad that the writers aren't forgetting this detail. But, I would be reckless if I didn't give a little eye roll (not a big one, just one eye) to the idea that anyone, much less a small child could navigate their way around the hospital to find someone that they weren't even sure was there to begin with.

PHILIP, CHELSEA and KATE I grouped these three together because they seem to in a holding pattern right now- hopefully because they are on the brink of storyline greatness. There's a lot of potential for these characters and as long as the writers avoid some obvious pitfalls, I think we'll see some good things from these three!

The writers are kidding trying to pair Daniel and Kate right now, aren't they? I get that Shawn Christian and Lauren Koslow have chemistry together, but even that doesn't negate the fact that just a mere few weeks ago, Daniel was ready to bed Kate's granddaughter. If Kate and Daniel had been paired from the beginning, I'd be ok with it. But, that's not the way it happened. Besides, between the cancer storyline and Stefano's proposal (what happened to that, by the way?) Kate has enough storylines. She doesn't need Daniel. I'm starting to wonder if Salem does either.

With Morgan gone and Brady on his way back to Salem, Philip doesn't have much to do right now. I'm never opposed to seeing Jay Kenneth Johnson since the guy oozes sex appeal, but Philip's interaction with Melanie is just weird. I appreciate the chemistry test, but I'm going to have to politely decline. Isn't it about time for one of those awesome father/son talks that Philip and Victor do so well? Philip's life is upside down right now. I'd like to see him confide in Papa K.

The writers seem to be keeping Chelsea marginally connected to Nick so that she can be a back-up plan if Mick doesn't work out. Not cool. I hope that Chelsea gets more involved in Theo's storyline. She is so great with him! Plus, it would mean that Chelsea has more interaction with Mark (the guy looks like a mini Patrick Dempsey, no?), and I know that my partner, Tony, would be thrilled to see that pair. LOOSE ENDS: John got the board of DiMera business to have a meeting to evaluate Stefano's competency. Now, call me crazy, but if this board has been around Stefano for any more than 10 minutes, I think they'll know better than to risk their necks (and other body parts) by voting against Stefano.

Max, the guy who's dated Chelsea, Stephanie, Mimi, Abby, Morgan, and then Stephanie again, told Melanie to stay away from Philip. The reason? Because Philip is a guy who goes through women. Uhhh...yeah. Got it.

Sami had a dream of Johnny being older and quite smarmy in his DiMeraness. The real question is: Why is Sami still living in the mansion? And if she's living in the mansion, why is she doing her own laundry?

RANDOM THOUGHTS: How huggable, squeezable, cheek-pinchable is that kid who plays Johnny? SOOOOOO CUTE!!!!!

Is Lucas drinking OJ out of a baby bottle?

I like how John says "ahNaaooooo"

Where did Sami get all these changes of clothes? Does she just travel with a full wardrobe, make up, and hair products at all time?

Kayla called John her cousin. That's weird. Not inaccurate. Just weird. Extra Scoops: HOT: Abe and Lexie, or more importantly James Reynolds and Renee Jones's performances when Theo was missing were amazing. I felt Lexie's panic pain as she screeched out with desperation. I wanted to help search for Theo too! And, Abe handled the situation with the proper amount of control and concern. Also, I'm glad they followed up with telling Theo that he was bad for leaving and not telling anyone. Nice follow through, writers. Good job all around! NOT: This whole baby storyline is a way too EJ-centered; and, this is coming from the world's biggest EJ/James Scott fan ever (back off, ladies!). Neither woman is thinking about a baby. Instead, both women are thinking about EJ and having EJ's baby and whether or not EJ is going to choose them and how EJ is going to feel. This whole week was surrounded around who was going to tell EJ first. AHHHHHH!!!! STOP IT! How about these women get jobs, homes, and start planning for her baby's future? Hmmm?!? I'm less that thrilled that both of these pregnancies are just another challenge in the "Who Wants to Be with EJ" game. No soap relationship is based on a child. If they were, Roman would be with Marlena, Abe would be with Faye, and Stefano would be with Susan. I don't want a love story based on an unplanned pregnancy. I want a love story based on actual connection between the characters. LINE OF THE WEEK: The end of Nick's drunken rant: "CUFF ME! Read me my Melinda rights."

Laurisa & Tony's Big Anniversary Celebration, Part Two!

Biggest Hit: Tony: Ironically, my biggest hit was totally by accident! I had no control over it whatsoever, yet my wish on a star came true - back when Chloe first returned one of my first statements was, "I just wish that Nicole was around so they could really square off. I don't think Ms. Walker would underestimate the "new" Chloe." And it happened! Ms. Walker did return and they did square off! But ... but the "hit" didn't stop there as the ended up forming a very odd alliance/budding friendship cemented by their love of top shelf booze and hatred of Sami! Didn't see that one happening, but I loved it!

Laurisa: Keeping an open mind about the sorority storyline. Sure, it was cheesy at first, but I really do like how it all worked out. First, rather than fighting over a guy, three girls actually stuck together and supported each other. I know that some of you are not thrilled with the characters themselves (y'all know my feelings on a certain Bootylicious Barbie), but no one can argue that it's nice to see female characters who actually get a long. Not only that, but they interact with other characters. Where the kiddie class of before (Shawn/Belle/Mimi/Philip/Chloe) seemed to exist in their own little "Last Blast" world, the kids of this era have internships with Tony and Anna, hang out in the Brady Pub, and interact with their parents and even their grandparents. I also like the character development that we've seen from Max and Nick, as well as the awesome addition of Melanie- all of which would not have been possible if the sorority storyline did not pan out from the beginning.

Biggest Miss: Tony: This could be argued as I've had a fair number of "misses" throughout the year, but my biggest personal miss was, sadly, getting onboard the "Phorgan" train. As much as I wanted them to happen they were like the little couple that couldn't and that's sad as they had potential. On the grand scheme of things, they sort of reminded me of a modern day Victor and Caroline ... Philip was growing into his father's ruthless yet secretly tender shoes and Morgan playing the part of the feisty, fiery good natured woman who stole the would be tyrants heart. It was almost ... almost there then totally derailed. Boo. Laurisa: Ahh...there are so, so many ways that I can be wrong (just ask my husband!) But, there are two GLARING examples that stand out this year as to why it's a good thing that my mouth is big enough to occasionally accommodate my foot: Miss #1 (thanks to the writers) My support of Dansea. Once upon a time, they had great storyline material- mainly, a new relationship hurdle that didn't involve a third party. But had I any idea that the writers were going to take us down the road of gross granny lovin', I would not have misled you guys! Since I didn't read the spoilers (I really should have. It would be better for my blood pressure!) I ended up with egg on my face for telling you that "If you don't like this pair by now, you're missing out on some great TV." What I should have said is, "Chelsea and Daniel are headed for the biggest gross-out storyline this side of a Fear Factor milkshake surprise. Turn away now and save yourselves!"

Miss #2 (thanks to me being a complete dummy) Not thinking Ava's storyline would be good. When I heard that Ava was coming back as part of Steve's past I penned blasphmous remarks like, "I don't care about Steve's past. This storyline is going to be stupid. Wha. Wha. Wha". If I had a time machine I would go back and slap some sense into my all-knowing self. I can't believe I was foolish enough to poo-poo the awesome villain that was Crazy Ava, the amazing scene where Kayla tore into Steve for being in bed with Ava, and the squeal worthy pair of Nicole and Ava. I humbly bow down and beg the soap gods for forgiveness! Thank You from Tony: Wow - an entire year! Time really does fly when you're having fun! All of you simply logging on week after week and all of the feedback has been much appreciated and I can only covey to you my sincerest and most humble gratitude. Really, thank you so much! I also have give shout outs to my very supportive family and friends who take the time to read Two Scoops. That too is much appreciated as some of them don't even watch Days - a fact I'm constantly trying to change! Special thanks to my mom, Holly, Sumer and QZ and my "midnight editor" Jojo. Finally, thanks to Dan, who created this entire, wonderful site, and, thanks to the Abe to my Roman, the Roman to my Abe, Laurisa, who has been an amazing "partner!" Really, I couldn't ask for a better person to Scoop with. Not only is she talented, she's funny too! Proof? Her recent line about Kate not sounding horse from all her hacking, "I know when I have a bad cough I walk around sounding like a prepubescent frog." Brilliant!

That it, Days junkies! I know this week was a little heavy on filler, but I have a feeling we're in for some great stuff once November sweeps starts! I can't wait to see what happens with Kate's health, how Abe's campaign goes, and if Lucas can keep up his A+ behavior. Tony will be back on Monday to recap it all for you!

Happy viewing, Laurisa

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