The aftermath

If you thought sunshine always followed a storm, you obviously don't live in Genoa City.

If you thought sunshine always followed a storm, you obviously don't live in Genoa City.

Compared to the racing-heart excitement of the action-packed days before it, last week proved to be considerably calmer. But that doesn't mean there was nothing worth watching. With the rescue of the caged captives behind us, the much-maligned doppelganger storyline entered its final phase. The death rattles of one evil twin have faded now, although with Daisy out there somewhere gulping in deep breaths of life-giving air, I doubt any fan can say with much certainty that the long-drawn-out Sheila saga is finally over for good. Especially since her descendants have a way of materializing literally out of thin air. Daisy and Ryder are two Sheila spawns we never knew about, but those of us who have known Sheila from the beginning haven't forgotten for a minute the two children we did know she conceived. Sister Sarah apparently didn't have an opportunity to weave her evil web around them, but that doesn't mean some other family member or loyal friend hasn't.

But that's for later if the scribes are feeling particularly malevolent. For now, life for those most affected by the Sheila-inspired reign of terror must somehow go on. Kevin and Jana are reunited at last, but there's not much rejoicing going on in her hospital room. Just as Kevin returned from his kidnapping ordeal much the worse for wear, so, it turns out, has Jana. For months, she has suffered horribly, locked in a cage, confined in a crate, gagged and tied to bars, half-starved and downed by bout after bout of excruciating headaches, living for the day she could finally clasp her beloved to her bosom. All in clothes that had to be so encrusted with filth, by the end, they could probably stand on their own with no body inside to keep them upright. After all of that, it's no wonder she has become emotionally disconnected. I can deal with this turn of events, though, because I'm positive she will come around eventually and the Fishers' love will live again. But please, scribes, I'm begging here, please don't let her recovery have anything to do with a giant animal head!

As for Lauren, I'm guessing she isn't completely out of the woods yet either, even though her captivity was relatively brief and a walk in the park compared to Jana's. She will have to deal with the fact that she has killed yet again, though, no matter that Sarah deserved every bit of it and more. Not to mention she will likely be peering over her shoulder for quite some time, fearing possible retaliation by the dreadful Daisy.

Jack gets my vote for hero of the week for his last-second save of Emily. Even though she probably deserved every syllable, given the havoc she has wreaked, I still almost felt sorry for Patty as Jack went on the verbal attack, trying to goad her into giving herself away. But, his eyesight obviously restored to 20-20 vision, along with his sense of smell, the stench of peroxide and the cat scratch on her arm only confirmed what he had begun to suspect. I was on the edge of my sofa seat from start to finish and loved the scribes' creativity in wrapping this one up. The silent screams, the toe tag, the ominous sound of the bone saw, the trickling tear, Jack's despair -- it all worked -- and watching it, I was ready to shed a tear or two myself. Despite Jack's heroic act, however, it may wind up being too little too late, if Emily is unable to get past the fact that Jack wasn't able to tell the difference between her love and Patty's.

However brightly 2010 might have begun for the Newmans, each month has brought more darkness their way until they practically need a spotlight to see where they're going. With much of the credit going to Adam, sister, brother, and doting Daddy's life has spiraled out of control and the GCPD, completely clueless as usual, is having the time of its life, locking up, releasing and re-locking up one Newman, then another. Adam is laughing loudly from beyond the grave, as all the clues he left behind tighten the noose more securely around his hated brother's neck. Well, I hope Adam enjoys his little funnies because you know he isn't going to end up having the last laugh. Wherever he is, and I do believe he is still out there somewhere among the land of the living, all he has done in the darkness will eventually come to light. Super Sleuth Phyllis is on the case, determined to save her husband, and we all know the fearless Phyllis rarely fails to get what she wants. I know she's been whitewashed into respectability now, but she's a master at scheming and trickery, and I doubt Adam will stand a chance against her. It has been nice to see Phyllis and Sharon working together for a change, instead of their usual jealousy-fueled jabs at each other over Nick.

When it comes to Adam's murder, Victoria is off the hook, but she still has an armful of troubles to balance. J.T., already having been declared the better parent in the first round of the marital tussle for custody of Reed, in round two, vanquished Victoria again, this time because of Victor's ill-conceived attempt to make J.T. appear the derelict Daddy. I don't know about any other fan, but I could only shake my head in disbelief, though, at the way the hearing was conducted. Whoever say the wheels of justice turn exceedingly slowly, apparently has never had a case come through that kangaroo court. Did Victoria's attorney even get a chance to speak? The judge didn't give Victoria a chance to defend herself or bother to tell her why she should be ashamed. And since when do judges render such a hasty decision because of what someone relayed to them in a note? How could she know whether the informant was being truthful? I get that J.T. is looking out for his son and doesn't want him tainted by Victor, but for some reason I'm having a hard time mustering up much empathy for him. He just seems controlling and unyielding to me. Like it or not, Reed has as much Newman blood running through his veins as he does Hellstrom. Does he really plan to cut him off from his mother's side of the family forever? Besides, if J.T. keeps working for Tucker, it probably won't be long before his morals become almost as tainted as the man he so detests.

One of the best confrontations of the week came between the two wife-beater-clad adversaries in the GC Athletic Club. I hope Victor derived plenty of pleasure from that poke in the eye he delivered to Billy, because his joy will instantly evaporate the second he discovers his daughter pledged her troth to Billy in a Jamaican wedding. Is it legal? Well, probably not, but this is Genoa City land. Where all manner of improbable things are possible if the scribes so pen it.

Okay, just how many people live at 101 Patty Williams Lane? One of the things that has bugged me most about Patty, is her seeming ability to turn her insanity on and off, with or without medication. So maybe she isn't insane at all, but a woman with many personalities sharing her address. I don't know how the scribes plan to write the rest of her story, but if they want to keep her around, that might be a workable and maybe even enjoyable way to pull it off.

Speaking of pulling something off, I don't know if there's anything that will fix the confusion that surrounds the Malcolm character. What the heck is going on with him? Forget about the physical change in Malcolm. I can easily get past that. Sure Malcolm was a unique kind of eye candy, but characters are recast all the time and rarely are a dead ringer for their predecessors. What is perplexing and completely jarring for me is the character change. Malcolm could be a little hotheaded at times, but he still had a whole lot of charm and charisma and warmth. This Malcolm seems to teeter on a tightrope of rage at all times and constantly explodes without warning. And then there's this latest twist -- his connection with Tucker. Malcolm working as a mole for Tucker? Spying? Not that he was a goody two-shoes, but I don't recall him as ever being deliberately deceptive. And against his own brother at that? Regardless of how much he might be angry at Neil, he'd have to know he would also hurt Lily by attacking him. And at a time when she's least able to handle it. Besides that, he's a photographer, supposedly hired to take pics for Restless Style. Except for that cancer story featuring Lily, he hasn't picked up a camera since. But I know, I know. I have to be patient and let the storyline unfold and see where it goes. Okay, scribes, I have no choice but to wait impatiently, but as Ricky Ricardo used to tell Lucy, "you got a lot of 'splaining to do."

Oh no, yet another crisis for Lily. Another family meeting where everybody's chiming in with their opinion of how she should handle it. It was kind of strange to hear Olivia all gung-ho about how she thinks Lily should participate in the stem cell trial to save her life, even though it carried a slight risk to her babies. Because unless my memory is faulty, didn't Olivia postpone her own treatment for cancer, risking her life in order to save her unborn baby's?

The rest of the month should be quite entertaining as the repercussions for various acts continue to occur. Besides the painful hangovers from all that rum the newlyweds swigged, what are they going to do about that wedding they will probably only recall when their newly made Jamaican friends show them the video of it?

What other traps has Adam left for Nick to get caught in? We know Adam is one enterprising fellow and even though he was under police guard in a hospital with no outside access except through Patty, he still managed to put this whole frame-up together. But, as I mentioned earlier, Phyllis foiled him once and will undoubtedly foil him again, and this time she has her sidekick, Sharon, to help her.

Not least of all is the coming confrontation between Victor and Tucker, who has probably succeeded in accomplishing the unimaginable -- taking Victor's attention from his hatred of Jack and turning it instead upon himself.

I can't wait to see what happens next! Until next time, here's a few fan contributions from the e-bag.

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