The Golden Donut Hole Awards: Best of DAYS 2023 (So Far!)

Christmas might be in July, but August is the new "June!" Celebrate with Two Scoopers Laurisa and Tony, who will use Salem's weird time Space-Time Continuum to take us back so we can all share in some Golden Donut Hole Awards.

Hi there, Fellow DAYS Fans! So, just like Black Patch or the ISA, your faithful Two Scoopers are on a special assignment over the next few weeks. We've been handed down orders to celebrate everything we love (and loathe) about life in Salem so far this year. A midterm report on our beloved DAYS, if you will. Really not a hard task for us at all, especially when it comes with baked goods and Limoncello.

This week, we present the "Golden Donut Hole Awards"! We picked a few of our favorite categories from the end of the year awards -- the Golden Donuts -- and selected who would win the awards if they were for the first half of the year. Winners will get a tiny tidbit of a treat and, perhaps, upgrade to a full-sized golden donut in December.

A quick assignment note -- these picks were all selected around the middle of July. So, they really represent the first half of 2023. Anything that happened later last month or currently airing now will factor into the full awards at the end of the year. But this is a fun way to see who the leaders in the clubhouse are and whether or not we still feel so warm and fuzzy about them later!

Megan Hathaway

There's no chance that the woman who brought Bo back to life won't get a truckload of praise from us. Look, Megan, we totally get it. Bo's great! Who doesn't want Bo around? We want him around, and thanks to you, that's a real possibility now! Bo's not dead-dead anymore. He's reunited with Fancy Face, who's just waiting for him to wake up from his coma. Considering the alternative, we'll take it!

To add icing on the cake, Megan brought her dastardly son along with her. Instantly, this gave her a different side to play. Megan loves her son fiercely and wants the best fortune for him. Her "seize the day because it might be your last" speech -- delivered from her own hospital bed -- was pure evil genius.

Finally, she gave the DiMera family a little kick in the girl power stance it's been needing for...well...always. Kate and Gabi both tried, but no woman really stuck around atop DiMera Enterprises. But Megan certainly has what it takes. She may be off avoiding charges for kidnapping Kristen and E.J., but she's a DiMera and knows how to beat charges. So, we're happy to welcome her back anytime!

Leo Stark

Prior to the start of this year, Leo's most admirable attribute was that he wasn't afraid of confrontation. But in reality, he was a chronic sexual harasser and double-crossed everyone who came across his path. Also, DAYS seemed to give him blanket immunity where he never quite suffered any real consequences for his actions. So, we were thrilled when he seemed to channel all that passion into working on protecting his friend Gwen.

His counsel was right on with all things Xander. Gwen needed to let that one go. She lost. She screwed up. She needed to cut ties and walk away. Her devotion coupled with her proximity to him was making her do things she probably shouldn't be doing. But she got a career out of the whole thing where she can almost pay for a room with a queen bed, and she has Leo to thank for that.

Finally, Leo's assessment of the Dimitri situation was right on. Leo can smell a fellow schemer a mile away, and Dimitri was scheming Gwen a ton. We should point out that these awards cover only the storylines through the first part of the year. A few more months and Leo will definitely probably end up on the other list. But for the first part of 2023, we congratulate you, Matty! Way to go!

Stephanie Johnson

She's really displayed the best of both her parents. She's got Kayla's forgiving heart, which makes her wonderful with Thomas, Charlotte, and Alex -- you know -- all the children in her life. She's also very supportive of Chad and makes graceful space for Abigail's memory in their relationship. But then, when she needs to tap into her dad's side, she can fly to the other side of the world to help solve a case. And she can call out some professional shenanigans (hi, Yuri!) in a second. Her BS-o-meter is pretty well calibrated.

All the special guest stars for Team Abe

It was the Mary Poppins bag of guest stars that just kept making us smile. Olivia, Theo, Lani, Eli... plus new characters Whitley King, Jerry Pretis (original Theo!), Charlemagne Delacroix, Kassandra Loved, and Lorna DeLorean kept us smiling through the ridiculata of it all. This whole storyline was a huge risk, and it might not have been everyone's cup of tea, but these surprises were a constant conveyor of joy that we couldn't ignore!

That's it for this half a year! Only time will tell if these picks hold out through the rest of 2023. We have pretty good feelings about three of them! Oh, and Leo is here, too.

Speaking of snark, we'll be back next week with a "Mini-Me" Alex North Memorial Awards to let you know who has been the worst of DAYS so far.

Cheers, Laurisa and Tony

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