Johnny and Chanel's potential adoption ends before it starts: Days of our Lives Two Scoops for the week of March 3, 2025

The fake Rafe story is finally coming to a close. The DNA test proved that the person Gabi grabbed the hair from wasn’t Rafe, but couldn’t prove it was Arnold. But when you think about it, who else in the world looks and sounds so much like Rafe that hardly anyone could tell the difference for the longest time?

Meanwhile, Johnny and Chanel are a little more desperate to have a baby. When Tate and Sophia were planning on setting up a meeting between her mother and the loving couple, the teens had to confess that Sophia had oversold them as being super religious. You knew that their little pretense was going to go horribly wrong. And it did.

EJ had no idea what Johnny and Chanel were up to. So when Paulina came over and he again tried to lobby for his old job back, the young couple showed up and told them they had to play nice and go along with their religious story. Mrs. Choi, Sophia, and Tate eventually came over, and things started to go well until Jada and Gabi barged in and threw all sorts of accusations at EJ.

Naturally, after Mrs. Choi left in a huff, Johnny tore EJ a new one by telling him that if he had anything to do with Arnold, the guy who raped his mother, he would never ever see Johnny, Chanel, or their family again. Johnny was very bold to take a stand like that.

Holly continued to play nice with New Doug, although she laid down the law and said she wasn’t into him. Of course, she held his hand to console him as he continued to beat himself up over stealing Julie’s grandmother’s necklace, and Tate caught them. She talked her way out of i,t thankfully. However, New Doug stupidly told Tate that he stole a necklace and had confessed it to Holly, which was probably a stupid move. He was banking on the fact that Tate would keep quiet about it, but that could change as we’ll see later on.

Elsewhere, Stephanie asked Sara how Xander and Phillip were doing since she’d been keeping secret the fact that Phillip’s letter was a forgery. Do they have to keep saying these things out loud? Seriously?

They used a good phrase to describe their lie, which I was looking for when I wrote last week’s article. They said they were keeping the lie “for the greater good,” and I think that’s an accurate way to justify it. If Xander and Philip can coexist peacefully and work together with no issues, then the lie would have been worth it. That is, until it comes to light and everyone freaks out.

Leo had pitched Chad the idea of doing a story about some of the crazy DiMera stuff that’s been going on, including the Woman in White. Chad okayed it, as long as little Rachel wasn’t part of the story. It’s good that Chad continues to maintain his integrity as he tries to run a newspaper while his family continues to get caught up in all kinds of wacky schemes and crimes.

Alex and Joy were upset to learn that their Body & Soul characters had been recast. But it turned out, much to Stephanie’s chagrin, that both would be working at Titan. Xander agreed to rehire Alex, and Philip hired Joy. It’s an interesting situation because Xander and Philip each approved the other’s hire, but it’s going to be super uncomfortable when the two have to work in proximity of each other. Couldn't they put Joy in the mail room or something?

In front page news, Philip and Xander managed to convince Wei Shin to work with them on a hostile takeover of DiMera Enterprises. Xander won him over with a good argument that, as Shin could see, the Kiriaki were working well together, but can EJ and Kristen do that? I should think not.

The saddest part of the week is knowing that the countdown is on until it’s revealed that John isn't alive. Marlena learned that he’s been incommunicado, even with his handler. Since Shane won’t return her calls, Marlena and Steve decided to go and confront the head of the ISA directly to get some answers. It’s not going to end with good news, but the show needs to soon bring back more spy stories.

Ava and Brady had a rough week. She ultimately agreed not to press charges against the Woman in White because Child Protective Services could take little Rachel away from her home. This has put a huge strain on Ava and Brady’s budding relationship. We’ll see how this works out in the long run, but it's affected Ava and Brady's Hot List status.

Shawn got Savannah, the exotic dancer, to reveal that Fake Rafe wanted her to call him Arnold. It was nice that he finally did some actual police work, but Jada was the one who had the breakthrough. While interrogating Rafe, his memories of her started coming back. It was a series of sweet scenes where he first remembered hiring her and then later proposing. Ultimately, forensics figured out Rafe was Rafe, and he and Jada had a wonderful reunion, and I was very glad to see it. Poor Jada's been through the wringer with all this Arnold business. But...since she slept with JJ, I wonder how they're going to deal with that?

Gabi almost ended EJ when she took Rafe’s gun and confronted him, demanding to know where her brother was being kept. Fortunately, JJ intervened and told her that they’d found the real Rafe at the police station. Rafe’s memories came back except for the time between when he was knocked out and when he woke up in his kitchen. This works in EJ’s favor and is exactly what the DiMera was hoping for. I love soap opera logic. EJ shared his concerns with Rita that they gave Rafe too much of the RS-17 and all of his memories may have been wiped like a magnet near a videotape. Fortunately for EJ, it was just that perfect window of time that's now missing from Rafe's head.

Of course, blabbermouth Holly told Tate that New Doug had stolen the necklace from Julie — a fact that New Doug left out when he revealed to Tate what he had confided in Holly. This probably means that the typical soap chain reaction is about to start. It won’t be long before Julie is upset by the fact that New Doug ripped her off, and I'm not sure if I'm prepared to see the look of heartbreak, anger, and disgust that will adorn Julie's face.

Marlena let Brady know that John was missing, and he agreed to tell Paul. Things are starting to come together, and it's the beginning of the end for John, sadly.

I had forgotten that Melinda had become the general counsel for DiMera. She hilariously told Kristen that Rachel Blake was “a little unstable” after the Woman and White bit another prisoner. Kristen’s getting frustrated because Mommy Dearest perseverates on trying to get Kristen and Brady back together. She's becoming a wild card in the stories, and who knows what scheme she'll cook up next.

Speaking of which, Leo tracked down who the necklace got fenced to because New Doug wanted to buy it back for Julie, and the woman turned out to be Melinda!

The final scene for the week had Tate freaking out about John’s death, and when he went to talk to Brady about it, guess who entered the room? Theresa! Emily O’Brien returned, and it was shocking to see her.

LOOSE ENDS:

Holly needs to decide what she wants. She told New Doug that she’s not into him even though he’s into her, yet she’s always having these personal conversations with him, even holding his hand at one point, which irritated Tate when he saw them. If you’re already in a committed relationship, then you don’t go around holding other guys’ hands and being their confidante. That’s a great way to lose your relationship.

Joy and Savannah bumped into each other, and Savannah gushed that she loved her on Body & Soul. She thought Reagan and Arrow made a great couple. Uh oh! Did the show just drop a hint that because of the baby and working together, Joy and Alex might become an item, with Steph left by the wayside? I sure hope not.

Emily O’Brien is back as Theresa! I’m happy that she is, but I’m also wondering why they didn’t bother to just bring Jen Lilley back, considering the disreputable producer who fired her has been long gone. It would have been nice to see her return as Theresa, and O’Brien could have brought Gwen back as well.

EXTRA SCOOPS

HOT

The Hot List continues to remain slim this week, with Steph and Alex remaining at the top. I like that Alex has matured since they were last together, and this could be the makings of a super couple…except for the whole Joy being pregnant thing.

NOT

Brady and Ava are on the Not list because she worries that little Rachel won’t stop driving a wedge between them. Although they ended up kissing, it seems as if the momentum has been taken out of their romance. Hopefully, they won’t fall apart before they’ve really begun.

LINE(S) OF THE WEEK

After Johnny and Chanel agreed to pretend to be uber-religious in front of Mrs. Choi, Chanel told everyone they would get back to the DiMera mansion and get things ready. Johnny added, “God willing,” as they were walking away, and when she groaned, he asked, “Was that too soon?”

Leo: “I just picked up on the vibe. See, I used to be a soap opera writer so I’m a good vibe detector.” He said that to New Doug when explaining that Dougie shouldn’t get in between Holly and Tate.

After Chad yelled at someone on the phone, he saw Leo was there waiting for him and apologized. Leo said, “No, you were too busy going all William Randolph Hearst on your staff.” William Randolph Hearst was an American newspaper publisher and also a politician who created the largest newspaper chain in the U.S. called Hearst Communications.

Alex bumped into Joy and he said that he hadn’t seen her since…Joy jumped in and finished his thought, “Since you dumped me?” Ouch!

Ava was telling Belle that if Kristen got in her face, she’d tear her limb from limb. Surprise! Kristen showed up at the Brady Pub and told her, “Well, now’s your chance.” And it was after Belle left the scene that Ava slapped her.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

At the beginning of Monday’s episode, EJ was talking with Kristen on the phone, and he was wearing a sharp gray suit with a black shirt and this cool blue tie that popped. In this casual day and age, it’s nice to see that suits can still be in fashion and look excellent. My wife said she wants me to get one like EJ’s! In this instance, it’s really the tie that makes the ensemble work.

The look on Paulina’s face as Chanel was pretending to be this wholesome religious girl for Mrs. Choi was absolutely priceless.

Of course, Joy’s pregnant. Maybe she’ll end up giving her baby to Johnny and Chanel, although Alex may have something to say about that.

Phillip and Xander had this high-powered meeting with Mr. Shin, who is dressed to the nines in an awesome suit. However, neither Xander nor Phillip have ties, and Phillip's shirt is untucked, so even though he has a sports jacket on, he looks sloppy. How could they pitch Titan taking over DiMera with a straight face when they’re dressed so slovenly?

Xander and Philip not only hi-fived each other after getting Shin on their side, but they also called each other “Xan,” and “Phil.” That was hilarious but also showed how relaxed they are with working together. I just hope they can keep that momentum if Sarah and Kate can just stop saying it out loud!

I’m so happy that Charles Shaughnessy will soon be coming back as Shane. He was great on General Hospital as the villainous Victor Cassadine, who nearly killed 80% of the world’s population with a deadly pathogen. Glad that he’s a good guy here, though. Maybe he’ll smack some sense into that daughter of his.

We’re starting to see some great flashbacks of John, and this week it was from when he thought he was Roman.

After Kristen demanded that Belle free Rachel Black since Ava wasn’t pressing charges, Belle left to go do that. Ava then slapped Kristen on the face, and it was hilarious because she really deserved it for letting Ava remain a captive of her “kooky-ass” mother.

Rita said Feniger wouldn’t get on the plane, so she resorted to a “more permanent solution.” EJ asked if she killed Arnold, and she managed to evade the question. This leaves me wondering if she actually did off the doppleganger, or if she had him hidden away at a black site prison where he’ll never be found?

PARTING THOUGHTS

Wei Shin was happy to see the Kiriakis brothers working together, and so was I. It’s going to be fun watching Titan strike DiMera while their ranks are in chaos. It would be cool if Titan succeeded because these shows need to continually reinvent themselves and stay fresh. Having DiMera absorbed into Titan for a few years until they inevitably reverse it will be fun to watch, with many stories of revenge and scheming coming out of that.

OUTRO

Until next time, DOOL-ers! Ciao!