When it's time to change, you've got to rearrange

DAYS shaked, rattled, and rolled as the winds of change swept Salem at a brisk pace! Don't feel alone if you're having trouble keeping up with all the latest twists and turns, but that's not necessarily a bad thing as you'll find out in this week's Two Scoops!

It's official. We've got a runner here. DAYS has been taking it at a brisk pace ever since the writer swap. That's not a bad thing. Nope. Not at all. It surely beats the former regime's rinse and repeat dialogue, an influx of new characters that sorely missed the mark, lackluster storylines, and payoffs that can only be described as underwhelming. Thank the soap gods, DAYS has an amazingly talented cast, or else the past few months would have been unbearable, but there's a new hope!

With all due respect to the newest Star Wars movie coming out in December, I really think DAYS could steal the subtitle "The Force Awakens." Balance is slowly being restored to Salem. Vets are acting like vets. We're seeing more of the characters we love acting the way we love them to. The returning vets and announced new characters sound fantastic. And storylines are moving along, making it exciting to watch again. Plus, Patch is back in full swing! Let's talk about that, shall we?

Off the bat, Stephen Nichols hasn't missed a beat slipping back into that eyepatch. He's amazing. Sure, Steve the character has a long way to go to win back his sweetness and son's affection, but I've already fallen for the guy again. How can you not love a man who walks into a tense situation between his ex-wife and estranged son and casually asks, "Anybody want to do lunch?" Ha!

Seriously, though, Steve has a lot of sucking up to do if he wants to win back Kayla and Joey. Oh, and Stephanie. Um, where is she again? Anyway! Steve has work to do, and as much as I adore him, I'm on Team Kayla here. She deserves every ounce of hesitance and anger she has about Steve being back in town. After all, he did leave her high and dry in Africa, which is an uncool move for such a cool cat like Steve. Still, there's hope! The current writers are actually addressing the issues and that goes a long way. So if we have to endure a little time of wonkiness until we get a sweet payoff, I'll be patient.

However, the current writers still have a big task at hand. A few of them, actually. They need to keep weeding out the bad and correcting past mistakes, while creating their own vision of Salem. That leads me to addressing an elephant in the room. Oh, joy! For the first time in months, I'm not actually talking about an elephant statue, either. Cheers to progress, but I digress. This problematic pachyderm is none other than Bo's absence.

For starters, the real bad guys here are the former writers who decided that Bo would go off on a super-secret mission for an extended period of time with pretty much a, "Check you later, Fancy Face." It was insulting to the character of Bo as well as Bo and Hope the couple, and fans of both.

Plus, Bo's departure came fresh off the heels of the horribly horrendous treatment of Jack's return and death. The writers really should have known better. In fact, had they done their homework or, heck, simply read the soapcentral.com message boards, they'd have known how fans felt/still feel. I mean, seriously, there are still angry posts about Jack's latest time in Salem. Lesson not learned, I guess.

So, the point is, Bo's write-out was a train wreck that plowed into a manure truck, sending crap everywhere. They should have just gone with the old "he died." It's a soap. We'd believe Bo died sooner than we'd believe he abandoned his family for an extended mission. We'd also believe that Bo could easily pop back up alive had they killed him off. Again, it's a soap. Most of the current characters have been "dead" at some point. So, that bad is on the former writers for not crafting a better story, yet we (fans and the current writers) have to deal with the cards we were dealt, and that shuffle -- as hard as it is to swallow -- was that the character of Bo did abandon his family for a long mission. Even Victor, Bo's father who loves him dearly, said, "He didn't have to go, but he chose work. It cost him his wife." Boom!

As heroic as it was, Bo chose to go on a mission to first look into Stefano (dangerous!) and then into a crime syndicate worse than the DiMeras (even more dangerous)! It's no wonder he was taken hostage. Though, unlike Jack's departure, Bo's came with a hand-delivered memo. One of Hope's best friends/former police partner/former brainwashed, submarine-sex pawn buddy, John, whom she fully trusts, gave her a handwritten note from Bo that would self-destruct after reading it, which stated Bo was going undercover for at least two years, make sure to water the plants. Those are the facts Hope and Bo's family were dealt.

Based on the facts, I'll be up front about something that may not earn me a seat at the popular kids' table -- I'm not on Team Bope or Team Haiden at the moment. I'm on Team Hope. She was the one who was left behind. She supported Bo's mission while raising their young/soon-to-be-not-so-young daughter alone and trying to come up with creative answers to the question, "When is daddy coming home?" Because of that, I don't blame Hope for being a little upset or defensive when people ask her about Bo. If he'd died, she'd have mourned and moved on, but, based on what she knows, he left her, and she chose after a long time to move on. That's hard to bounce back from, and I don't find fault in her for not flashing her million-dollar smile and wanting to constantly rehash one of her greatest heartbreaks, be it with his mother (who is justified in her concern, no doubt), former in-laws, or old friends.

Sure, we now know Bo is in perilous danger, but that's neither here nor there. He chose to grab a hot cookie sheet straight out of the oven with his bare hands. He can't be shocked that he got burned. That doesn't mean I don't have compassion for Bo or don't want him to eventually reunite with Hope (I mean, they're Bope, after all!), but the writers need to address the fundamental issue first -- that being that Bo originally left because he chose to. Once that's done, I'll be the first to hang the "Bope Reunited and It Feels So Good" banner.

Luckily, it seems like a lot of these wrongs will be righted because Steve "Patchman" Johnson is on the case, and he's enlisted Victor's help. Yes, please! He read letters that he knew Bo hadn't writtten based on their super tight past in the Merchant Marines. If it weren't for the fact that Bo handed John the first letter to Hope, I'd question that one, too. But Steve is on it. He's in it to win and get his bestie back, and I'm more than ready to see this rescue mission start!

LOOSE ENDS: Survey time! Raise your hands if you thought it was a bad idea for Lucas to sneak up on a woman in the park where a woman had just been murdered the night before? I know he was trying to be cute, but, sheesh.

Is it really a good idea for Caroline to be driving herself around Salem or, um, working shifts at the pub, slinging chowder, considering she just got out of the hospital? The poor dear can't even remember her phone's passcode. The concept of red, yellow, and green might be a bit much for her right now, despite her moments of feistiness. Just saying.

Serena had a long desire to snap a perfect picture. Eric stated she took them all the time. Um, hey Rafe, check Serena's phone. Methinks there's something there.

Also, it was brought to light that Paige saw Chad and Serena leave Club TBD. I'm guessing the killer might have as well. That's not good, especially because Paige's stock has been on an upswing ever since she found her sassiness.

Speaking of the investigation, I'm still convinced that Chad is innocent. First, he wears festive striped socks. More so, Chad's made mistakes, but he's always had a lot of heart. Unless he killed someone in self-defense, I don't think he has reason to kill someone in a crime of passion. If he was that, um, hard up for company, he could have easily drunk-dialed Zoe, who would have come running, as she's cool with his baggage. Plus, Abigail doesn't think he did it, and that's enough for me.

Unfortunately, Chad has Justin against him (and Eric, too, it seems). The new D.A. Kiriakis has always been a touch arrogant (one of his charms), but this time I'm kind of un-charmed. He was hard-core channeling his inner Charlton Heston last week and was a breath away from screaming, "Damn dirty apes DiMeras!" I'm thrilled that Justin has a larger part now, but putting the Scorpions in charge of the T-Birds and expecting Leo "Crater Face" Balmudo to be impartial to Zuko and Kenickie is probably not going to work out so well in the end. Still, I give Chad mad props for trying to stay classy for Sonny's sake. Well played, Chadley.

Fortunately, we have Abe, too! Hello there, newly instated Mayor Carver! Way to also stay classy and impartial. I thoroughly enjoyed the way he not only stuck up for Chad, but, more so, for truth, justice, and the Salem way. Let's get this man a red cape and a bigger storyline, partners!

Speaking of wrongs the current writers are righting, no sweeter words have been heard than "Consider yourself dumped" from Kate to Clyde. I'm over the moon that she didn't agree to his oh-so-chivalrous terms that he should be the most important thing in her life. As if. Way to cut those losses, indeed. Welcome back, smart, sassy Kate who has self-worth. We missed you dearly! She wasn't having any fun, either, and I'm looking forward to her promise to shake things up!

So, Roman and Kate were having coffee. I like this. I'm not sure if I'm ready to see them reunited, but I'd like their friendship to get a little more airtime. Though Ro Ro should start charging his exes for couch time. I'm sure he loves to hear all about their problems with other men.

Kate also heard others talk about Basic Black being up for sale. Her curiosity is piqued. Then we have Nicole, who's close to securing funding thanks to her lawsuit, dustings of her last divorce settlement, Dr. Dan, and now Brady. Finally, Theresa is in it to win it. Because, you know, she's always wanted to be a designer. Sure. I'll bite. Actually, I love all of this. The possibility of Nicole/Kate/Theresa scenes? Made of hilarity and win!

Also made of a little win is Maggie taking Theresa under her wings. Okay. I'll be real. It's a bit absurd, given all the things that Theresa has done to Maggie's loved ones. You know, up until last week, but I'm okay with it anyway. Maggie shines when she's nurturing Salem's youth.

Damn! Clyde "took care" of Kyle, it seems. Though I'm not entirely sold. I wouldn't be surprised if it were a plan to set up J.J. somehow. On the other hand, Clyde was over Kyle. So there's that, too. In any event, J.J. is knee-deep in the drug trade with Clyde. He knows his identity, and Clyde knows everything about J.J. Clyde's only request is that J.J. not tell Ben about their business, or he'll kill everyone J.J. loves and then him. Sounds reasonable. #scary!

Finally, let's talk about love! That is John and Marlena fans got a treat last week! There was a stroll down memory lane and the promise of a new start for this DAYS dynamic duo. But there's a catch! John has to "walk the talk" for a month, and then Marlena will let him put a ring on it. I'm rooting for you, John. Don't let our gal down.

HOT

The new writers promised us the return of vets, action, adventure, passion, romance, danger, excitement, and nods to DAYS' history. So far, so good! And we're only two weeks in. Let's make space on the mantel because I smell another Emmy coming if they keep holding up their end of the deal!

NOT Yeah, Aiden doesn't look as cute after being thrown under the bus. Those tire tracks on his back have got to hurt. Alas, one of the only misses I have currently is that Aiden is becoming the fall guy. I get it if he's a bad guy that clears a cleaner path to Bope, but I think seeing Hope genuinely torn between two loves for a moment or two would be easier to swallow than Hope being made a chump because of a con man. Well, at least with the current pace, this won't be dragged out too long. There's that.

LINE OF THE WEEK Theresa (to Anne): "Basic Black doesn't make wrap dresses." Total laugh at loud moment. I guess the writers do listen to fans...sometimes

EXCHANGE OF THE WEEK Kayla [exasperated]: "You are the same as always." Steve: "You're looking mighty fine yourself, Sweetness." 2015 SUMMER SERIES The final A Summer's DAYS' Dream installment is about to drop! Though if you've missed any of the fiftieth fun, take advantage of your DAYS-less Labor Day and follow the links below:

Part One: Dream Girls Part Two: A Few Good Men Part Three: Phantoms of the Soap Opera Part Four: Somewhere Out There

RANDOM THOUGHTS Um, yeah. This might be a good time for the writers to tell us where the frack Stephanie has been. Perhaps we can lure her out of hiding by opening a sunroof or advertising "Free Bad Decisions!" She's a sucker for both.

I loved, loved, loved Steve warmly saying, "Look at that," while noticing the plaque of Tom and Alice in Horton Square. It was such a great nod to their relationship. They really are still at the center of everything good about DAYS!

Speaking of Patch's relationships, I get why Hope was a little cold to him, as she's a member of Salem's overpopulated Abandoned Women's Club, but I was still tickled that he called her Sweet Thing. Their friendship has always been a DAYS highlight for me.

From what he knows, Aiden has every right to stick up for Hope, but I totally cracked up when Steve puffed up his chest and said he was Bo's best friend.

Cheers to Deidra Hall! She's playing the heck out of Marlena right now. Doc's stoic strength is at an all-time high, and she also has the best smitten giggle out there.

Okay, Nicole has an autographed golf ball from Tiger Woods, and we're just hearing about that now. I guess maybe Roman wasn't her only scandalous affair.

Though Eve and Jen fighting -- again -- might fall under a little redundant, I cracked up when Jen asked Eve, "Do you want to make it three times?"

Well played, Mr. John Black. 'Cause every girl crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man!

I feel like a failure. Every time Lucas says "triathlon," all I hear is "all-night waffle house." If I walk there and use light syrup, does that count as training?

Hmm. Serena died at 2:45a.m. I'm not saying I was Skyping with Dario, but I'm not saying I wasn't. I'll just say I have an alibi if questioned.

Oh, Bo has a birthday coming up on November 5th. I know what someone can get him if interested. Hint: freedom from captivity and probably a bar of soap.

D'oh! Hope said "Haiden." I guess she reads the soapcentral.com message boards.

New DAYS drinking game: 50th Anniversary Edition! Rules: Take a shot every time Ben disparagingly calls Chad "A DiMera." Take two shots if Ben is shirtless when he calls Chad that. Blackout drunk time estimation: half an episode.

Why didn't I ever run into Steve when I lived in New York!? It's not like a guy with an eyepatch is really that inconspicuous.

Please tell me I'm not the only one disappointed that when Kayla was on the phone with "Mr. Linus" from Joey's school, his side of the conversation didn't sound like, "Wah waah wah wah waaaah wah wah..."

PARTING THOUGHTS So, friends and fellow DAYS fans, that's Two Scoops for the week of September 7! Laurisa's back next week, and she'll be armed with a file baked into a cake to help Bo escape. And, "That's a fact!"

As always, thanks for reading! Tony

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