A collection of sweets and treats

Is Alex right? Will Jarlena bust Kristen? And how long before Nicole finally makes a choice? Let's lay out all the options in this week's Two Scoops.

Heading into Halloween, it was appropriate that this week was a candy bag of plotlines. Nothing took center stage, but we had a delightful mix of indulgent treats...with a few nuts thrown in there.

First, it looks like everyone is officially over their Orpheopox. Whew! Marlena came home to a warm welcome from Kristen. Wasn't it so nice of Kristen to run to the store and get some of Mar's favorite things? Pancakes, jelly, blackmail...you know...the essentials!

In truth, this may be for the best. While Brady's certainly on an upswing when it comes to seeing Kristen for who she really is, it can't hurt to have a legendary spy and a mental health expert within living vicinity of Kristen at all times now. John is already onto her with a solid theory that Kristen used the serum to blackmail Brady. Keep digging, John Black. Don't give up.

It's getting monotonous watching Kristen get the upper hand for doing absolutely no work what-so-ever. Li and Orpheus pulled off the Dr. Rolf scheme. Yet Kristen swooped in at the last minute to get the orchid and make the final call on waking up Stefan. She's like the group member who never helped contribute at all but somehow gets to put her name on the assignment.

Next up, they built Sloan a set! Her apartment is very nice. I love the high bookshelves. It matches the handcuffs nicely. Oh, and her front door must also be a time portal because, for some reason, when we walk through it, we're looking for paper copies of proof. Yes, in this poshly decorated she-power loft, scanners haven't been invented yet.

I enjoyed Chad and Stephanie together this week. His James Bond accent was delightful. I am glad to see her remember her Patch Johnson roots and remember how to break a lock, more so, that she wasn't waiting for someone else to save her day. Steph was going to be the hero in her own story, and I'm here for all of that.

As for Alex, you know, he manages these moments of pretty astute observations, which save him from plunging into himbo territory. Stephanie was being judgmental and was breaking and entering. It was kind of like two weeks ago when Alex pointed out that Stephanie was being a little hypocritical. Is it palatable to have him be the messenger? Not at all. Still, he's not wrong.

Finally, Eric and Nicole treated us to a complete walk down nostalgia lane. These two fell in love during photoshoots decades ago. The magic is still there. Nicole looks amazing in that blue dress.

My only caution is to respect this nostalgia by not making a photocopy of it. Back in the day, they were crazy kids who didn't know any better. In her case, she'd quite literally never had a man show her anything resembling respect.

But they're both older and wiser. They've come through a lot since then, and the only thing standing in their way right now is Nicole's inability to decide which fella she wants. That's incredibly unlike Nicole. While I can appreciate her not wanting to hurt Rafe -- who's been a genuine friend to her over the years -- Nicole's never been one to not go after what she wants.

Just when we thought Gabi finally made some progress-- either to get Stefan's memory back or start her own scheme to toy with Li for his involvement in Stefan's memory lapse -- Gabi got injected with a very specific form of memory eraser that only affects about a ten-minute interval. Neato. All schemes aside, where are Li's friends to give him a reality check. Gabi talks about Stefan every ten minutes. Li needs to wake up and smell the mediocrity feelings.

I've found Leo utterly exhausting, so I took an immense amount of glee seeing him in Paulina's realm. Finally, he had to share scenes with someone he can't walk all over or charm his way around. She can enjoy his unique sense of humor while still shutting him down if he gets a little too far out ahead of his skis. Thank you, Paulina. Your powers never cease.

Li asked Rafe to be his best man. That sigh you heard was an exasperated Wendy who just heard her brother give yet another man a job she should have. I'm not even joking. Why can't Rafe stand up for Gabi and Wendy stand up for Li?

I really would like to visit Johnny's planet sometime. It must be lovely there with all that Oblivious Happy Gas they pump in. He's gotten enough doses to forget anything Ava's done in the past and immediately exalt her for any crimes, just by comparing her to his own father. I'm not saying E.J. isn't bad, but Ava is absolutely on E.J.'s level.

As if Chanel couldn't get any cooler, she put an end to Allie's hissy fit and convinced Allie to let Wendy stay on their couch. Yes. Yes, Chanel. Yes, Wendy. I love the idea of her bunking with these two. I also laughed out loud at Johnny's explanation of why his sister is dating his ex-wife. Kudos to Johnny for being up-front about the story, though!

Ava finally talked to Tripp! It was smart of the show to have Ava mention Henry. I don't think she needs to be bunking with the Johnson bros in Seattle. Instead, I think she and Tripp need to stay in Salem. Lani and Eli's apartment is open. Ciara and Ben are surely subleasing their place. So many options!

HOT I loved all the Halloween costumes! Brady and Rachel looked delightful. Chloe, Stefan, and Holly made a surprisingly cute group costume. And while Steve dressed as a pirate may have seemed obvious, Kristen dressed as an actual cartoon villain was the costume that was right on the nose.

I have slight concerns about this hospital Halloween party if Joey, an extremely realistic-looking vampire, and Ava "Creepy Clown" Vitali were directed to a gathering with small children, no questions asked. But I still support the party.

Gabi letting Ari pick their costumes was great. And the whole thing welcomed back Susan! Good times!

NOT: How is it any of Sonny's business what Allie does in her own bedroom? Oh! That's right! It's not. If Alex wants to tell his brother information between family, fine. But for Sonny to Gladis-Kravtiz it over to Allie to ask her about her private business was a poor move by our favorite mini-Titan.

LINE OF THE WEEK: Li: "Faint heart never won fair lady." Stefan: "Right. Thanks. It's always nice to get advice from someone you barely know."

Brandon Barash's timing is a thing of beauty.

LINE OF THE WEAK: Brady: "The Kristen that I loved would never humiliate herself by trying to blackmail someone into sleeping with her."

Nope. She'd only drug and rape them...or wear the face of another woman and rape them. Actually, blackmail is an upgrade.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

I find it hard to believe Victor doesn't buy things for himself. He strikes me as an Amazon Prime Day guy all the way.

EJ's paisley's tie was dashing.

Theresa Donovan's "Jeanie" Collection?!?!? I. Love. This.

Do we know who the deputy mayor is? I'm a little worried about what will happen to Salem if Abe does resign to move to the governor's mansion.

I loved how Abe said "our girls" when talking to Paulina about Lani and Chanel. Technically, neither of these girls is his biologically, but Abe is too classy to let anything like that get in his way.

I chuckled when Sonny asked Alex to stay in, order food, and watch American Ninja Warrior. The cross-promotion was well done here. I really can see Alex watching American Ninja Warrior and proclaiming things like, "You know, I could beat that time."

Don't feel bad about not seeing Henry, Ava. None of us ever sees him, either.

Chad got nervous when he noticed people looking at the cash in the open briefcase. I've got news for you, Chadsworth. Carrying around a silver briefcase with a combination lock kind of ruined the stealth element. It didn't matter if the briefcase was open or not.

With Dr Rolf going to Jakarta, who's monitoring the lab where Bo is?

That's it for this week! By the looks of Friday's cliffhanger, we're probably in for another Very Special Halloween Episode of DAYS to kick off the week. Tony will be there to cover it all and certainly not trading candy with the kids in the Horton Town Square. Laurisa

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