Parental units and measurements of the heart

Will E.J. and Nicole realize Holly could share some responsibility? If so, will Brady and Theresa be able to hold out hope that Tate is telling the truth? And will Kate be able to welcome her son back unharmed? Let's check in with the parents in this week's Two Scoops.

Well, look who finally decided to show up! Welcome to the party, Maggie. Nicole needed to see Maggie just as much as Holly did. I'm glad Nicole approached the topic of addiction with Maggie, though I wish the show would grant that there's possibly a third option between sobriety and addiction. Eric lent his support in a meaningful way, too -- being there for Holly, comforting Theresa, and then praying with E.J. and Nicole.

But the Holly storyline was much more about the parents this week.

On one end, Brady and Theresa went through it when they saw their son with a black eye. Their helpless panic felt true. Both E.J. and bad luck have been ahead of them at every turn. I think audiences will sympathize with Brady and Theresa a lot here because we know Tate is telling the truth. But it was nice to see the two of them take a breath, think for a second, and confirm that, yes, they're on the right path.

On the other side, Nicole and E.J. started to come to terms with the idea that Tate may be innocent and Holly has some work to do. E.J. even had some good ideas about calling the Italian clinic that de-marshmallow-headed him. As I said before, I don't love that the show is missing the nuance that sometimes kids experiment and get a bad supply, but anything that tones down Hulk E.J. is a needed change.

I granted E.J. some grace last week as he rampaged against Tate. He's ceded the emotional ground to Eric when it came to Nicole, so he had to puff up his chest somewhere. And his stance that Tate didn't act fast enough was so comically ludicrous that it proved how wrong E.J. was. But now that he knows exactly where the drugs are coming from -- Stefan told E.J. that Clyde is trafficking them through the Bistro -- I've become the Judge-Judy-watch-tapping meme when it comes to him taking down the actual criminal versus him going after the 16-year-old reformed paintballer.

And that's where Lucas comes in! Yes!! I have to be honest -- when Tate showed up with a black eye, I yelled at my TV, "Why didn't anyone call Lucas to help watch out for Tate?" Thankfully, Harris is still new enough to the Salem PD that he's got a bit of a creative thinking. It was smart to enlist Kate to go see Lucas. It's not that Lucas needs a permission slip from Kate. It's more so that Kate would -- stop me if you've heard this one before -- pull every interfering string she could if she disagreed with his decision. So, I'm glad he's going to help. Also, Lucas is kind of a badass when it comes to being an informant. I forgot he'd successfully done it twice. Go on, Lucas!

Noticeably, Tate and Nicole haven't seen each other since Tate picked up Holly for their New Year's Eve date. It's such a smart storytelling technique because these two characters are living very similar lives right now. On the heels of losing her son, Nicole's daughter falls into a coma. Nothing felt truer than when she admitted she's having a hard time believing in miracles. Likewise, Tate went right from finding his friend overdosing to being thrown in jail for attempted murder and having to learn how to not get beaten. I understand why Brady went to talk to Nicole. But I couldn't help but think Tate's the one who actually relates to Nicole in a common tragic way.

I have a sinking feeling that Stefan is going to divorce Gabi "for her own protection," which is right on brand for Stefan. Only he would think that divorcing a woman with a broken leg, in prison for a crime she didn't commit, would be the smart thing to do. Still, I have to hand it to Brandan Barash, who is playing Stefan's unraveling desperation with a palpable realness. He's the only reason I'm interested in this character.

For her part, Ava seems to be slipping back into her mob ways, and I couldn't be happier. That backstory is so rich -- from the history with Steve to her terror of a father -- that's where everything about her character and growth pulls from. Taking that completely off the board is silly storytelling. We need it back on. If anyone is made to repeat Lexie's red dress moment, it's Ava Ever Lovin' Vitali.

Wendy decided to stay back in Salem because of Tripp. She's a grown woman and can make whatever decisions she wants. But I'm really hoping she gets back to the police station sooner rather than later. Cyber sleuth Wendy is much needed here -- especially since the "crime ring" in Salem seems to be in the younger crowd. No offense to Rafe or Harris, but they seem more the types of guys who would ask what's going on with "these Internets" than the types to hack the complicated way kids are communicating to sell drugs.

Of course, Kristen decided to berate Brady for missing a play date with The Bride of Chucky. Because it doesn't matter that Kristen has decided to keep Rach3l from Brady for the last few months. He's the one responsible for messing her up because he missed a playdate with her while his son was in jail and his best friend's daughter slipped into a coma. Oh, Kristen. You're a special snowflake.

Melinda came over to check on Sloan and learned Leo is blackmailing Sloan, as well. Don't worry, Consuela Elephant (the opposite of Jiminy Cricket) reappeared to remind Sloan they'll both go to jail forever if she comes clean now. I kid, but this duo is low-key one of the more comically inclined pairings on DAYS.

Abe's flashbacks being through videotape is not acceptable. Abe needs his memory back. This man is a legacy in TV history. He's the longest-running Black character in daytime. He's been a cop, commissioner, mayor, and DiMera son-in-law on DAYS. We can't make all that old footage useless for future DAYS fans just because Abe still doesn't have his memory back.

Stephanie is giving Everett mixed signals. She's 100% flirting with him. No business meeting in the history of ever happens late at night when a woman brings her engagement-ring-carrying ex-boyfriend watermelon mojitos and his favorite food. That's fine, she's perfectly single now. But, again, I'd love to see her borrow an ounce of that patience she admires about Jada. You know it's rough when Jada guesses the "ex" wrong in Stephanie's midnight kiss story.

HOT Chad is the Bro Whisperer. I don't know where he gets that magic, but we need to bottle and sell that. It can go right on the shelf next to the Ace Body Spray as the antidote.

Alex's stance on Justin was petulant and obnoxious. I absolutely cringed when he told Theresa that she looked sexy when she prayed. I'm curious to know who looked around and said, "You know what we need? For Alex to be harder to tolerate."

Thankfully, Chad the Magic Bro Whisperer stepped in -- with his adorable sidekick Thomas -- to save the day. It helped that Thomas immediately made Alex the monkey. Then, the self-awareness that Alex displayed to say he blew it with both Theresa and Justin was right on the money. Chad could have spiked the football a bit here, but instead, he approached this conversation with a ton of grace. Once again, Chad brilliantly brought up that he found out he was a DiMera as a grown man (well, grown-ish), and he dealt with it.

NOT It's a small wording error, but I was shocked that Eric told Theresa that he drove drunk and killed Daniel eight years ago. It's well established that Holly is seventeen. Furthermore, Daniel died before Holly was born. His death was what prompted Chloe to try one more time to carry Nicole and Daniel's embryo. Eric timestamping Daniel's death was a really bad move for a show that's usually better at fudging timelines.

LINE OF THE WEEK Chad (on kids and parenting): "Luckily, their brains aren't as developed as ours, so they have no idea we're just tap dancing our way through."

Truer words have never been spoken.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

Watermelon mojitos do sound delicious.

Ava looked tremendous in that blazer.

I love that Paulina bought the best silk flowers possible for Holly's room.

I'm with you, Mags. Hot tea over cold plunge any day of the week.

I want to eat cucumber sandwiches with Victor!

I got only slightly concerned with Paulina coughing over an immunocompromised child.

Are Kate and Harris really on "Hey, it's me" phone terms?

Why didn't Ava tell Tripp to watch his back in Hong Kong?

I like how Paulina references Holly as Nicole's "little girl."

I call complete shenanigans on Stephanie never being a day drinker. She's Steve's daughter. Come on.

Yay for the Belle and Carrie shout-outs! (What a law firm that would be!)

I totally understood Theresa smelling dark chocolate! It's the same way people smell coffee beans. Dark chocolate has the same calming smell!

I love it when soap characters who should hate each other can't because a new storyline needs to start. In this case, Lucas can hand-wave all the Hope stuff because Harris saved Kate's life, and we've got to get to this prison informant business.

MOMENT OF GRATITUDE

Finally, we must end with a true moment of true gratitude. We got the news over the weekend that the spectacular Bill Hayes died. Bill played Doug Williams for over 50 years. He was 98. When I heard the news, I was, of course, sad for Susan Seaforth Hayes (his real-life bride who also plays Julie), his family, and his DAYS co-stars. But almost instantly came this overwhelming feeling of admiration and downright awe of a man who lived his dream for so long.

For most, legacy is what you leave after you die. But a very fortunate few get to watch themselves become a legacy. My hope is that the divine Mr. Hayes got to take all of that in.

On-screen, Doug lived life all the way through. I remember when I first started watching soaps, my mom said that many early soap actors were Broadway vets because soaps were live or live-to-tape. Bill had a mountain of stage credits before he came to Salem, and it showed. He drove storylines from the start in a prison cell to his later scenes on the show. These included playing the devil, performing a musical number with Dick Van Dyke, and hanging ornaments on the Horton Christmas tree.

Doug wasn't just a cameo character. He was a presence. It's hard not to think back and remember John Aniston (Victor) and Joe Mascolo (Stefano) alongside Bill as some of the legacy gentlemen of Salem. We're spoiled when it comes to these actors. But while Victor and Stefano kept things interesting in Salem, Doug was the soul. He kept hope (and Hope!) alive.

I was always happy to see Doug. It's nearly impossible to picture his face and not hear his barking laugh, as well. This good guy finished first -- and got several victory laps.

DAYS does a good job of memorializing characters on the show. So, I'll look forward to what this summer will bring us. Call in the full company. Strike up the band. Let's sing happy trails to our greatest showman.

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