It's a Blue Christmas in Genoa City

Instead of ho-ho-ho, it's looking more like ho-ho-hum in Genoa City this holiday season. Will the sadness fade by the holidays or is the entire town looking at a Blue Christmas and an Unhappy New Year?

If you were looking for a little merry merry and ho-ho-ho this past week among our friends in Genoa City, you had to search far and wide because all around were some serious sad townsfolk. Sad is not so bad, really; it's a legitimate emotion for many people at this time of the year, especially if things haven't been going so great. That was certainly the case for one of the youngest characters in the cast, Kyle Abbott.

You have to appreciate that instead of glossing over the grief this kid is feeling over the brutal death of his mother, Maria Arena Bell -- the Santa head writer of the soap -- is allowing the storyline to play naturally. It would be unrealistic for Kyle to be playing hockey and going to Christmas parties when his heart is shattered over the fact that his mother is not just dead, but she was horribly murdered. The woman he knew and loved was violently killed by someone he knows, because right now Kyle believes that Victor is the killer. If you put yourself in Kyle's shoes and feel that level of despair, you can understand why he was not ready to sing Christmas carols or trim the tree.

And it created a perfect storm of a moment for Jack to wonder what he could do for Kyle. That brought John's father into the mix, as the spirit of John appeared and offer his son some sage advice. That led Jack to take Kyle to the church where he could "speak" to Diane once again and express his sorrow that she wasn't there for Christmas. It was a logical and believable progression...and very moving. I have to admit to you all; I was crying as I watched that scene. Kyle's pain came through. It didn't matter that Diane had been a vile, manipulative witch who picked up enemies the way other people collect pennies. No, from Kyle's perspective, Diane was a good mother who loved and cared for him unconditionally. That scene for me was the highpoint of the week.

The lowpoint, in my opinion, was Nikki passed out on the floor of the Athletic Club! Oh my, is this really the storyline that Melody Thomas Scott was handed upon her return to the show? I don't know what's harder to watch, Nikki's non-stop swigging of the booze or Victor sitting in the jail with his arms folded like a cigar store Indian taking all this punishment like the ultimate masochist! They're both impossible situations and difficult to watch. How did we get to this point anyway? And what on earth was Nikki supposedly doing for six month of rehab? She seems to have learned nothing about staying off the booze; she's drinking with abandon. And Victor's determination to accept the blame for the murder is nonsensical and I'll tell you why.

Even if Victor believes that Nikki remembers killing Diane or covering for Victoria killing Diane, neither one of them used that paralytic drug. There were no fingerprints on the syringe before Victor planted his own. How would Victoria or Nikki have known what kind of drug to get and where to get it and how to administer it? And anyone who would have used the drug would have been committing premeditated murder. Victoria and Nikki's stories are supposedly based on their being pushed to the edge. They would be crimes of passion, in the heat of the moment, not planned and calculated killings. If Victor is smart enough to outmaneuver corporate giants, why has his so stupidly accepted that someone in his family committed this crime when there's so little evidence to back that up?

If Victor was thinking clearly -- like the Prince Machiavellian Newman he's been in the past -- he'd have listened to Michael and allowed a vigorous defense to be built on reasonable doubt. And there's a TON of reasonable doubt. I mean, look, there are no fewer than 11 suspects according to Ronan, not including Patty, whom the cops have still not discovered even though she's flitting all over Genoa City! Have you noticed that she only remembers to cover her face now and then? Where are the security cameras in the mall and the shops to find thois escaped mental patient with homicidal tendencies? Maybe if the GCPD were on the ball, they'd have found that the most likely suspect has been lurking around town for weeks.

Patty is probably ready to kill again, too. I'm really, really worried about Genevieve. Thanks to Jack's surprise proposal, you know that Patty will wipe those tears away and figure out how to eliminate Genevieve from Jack's life. The only possible hope I see for Genevieve is if she turns Jack down. It's possible, too, because I don't think Genevieve is ready to be a wife again. She's barely gotten over her marriage to Colin. She's only been divorced two months. I could definitely see the former Mrs. Atkinson suggesting that she and Jack just continue their love affair for a while before exchanging rings.

As for Jack, he should have consulted with John again before buying an engagement ring for Genevieve. It's all well and good that he's in love and wants to make her the next Mrs. Jack Abbott, but did he stop and think for even a moment about how his getting married again might impact on Kyle? In the same week that he was in tears while listening to Kyle in church pouring his heart out over missing Diane, Jack couldn't have paused a moment to reflect on how Kyle might react to his father bringing a new woman into their family? That was just insensitive and clueless. It was unworthy of Jack. He should have known better. Which brings me to the dumb marriage of Neil and Sofia. Yes, folks, it's dumb. Neil doesn't love Sofia and a marriage for the sake of little Moses is doomed from the start. Does Neil think that he'll never be interested in another woman or want a romance some time down the line? Suppose the right woman does come along and he's shackled to Sofia; will he remain faithful to a woman who's not his wife in every way? And if Sofia loves Neil as she told Tucker she does, why on earth is she not expressing those feelings to Neil? She could be the seducer, the aggressive one. She could sweep him off his feet, couldn't she?

Ronan and Phyllis seem to be taking turns sweeping each other off their feet. Watching their unabated romping this past week was exhausting. And isn't it convenient that Phyllis is able to park Summer and Lucy when she doesn't want to be mommy for a while? I guess it helps to have unlimited money thanks to Nick's alimony payments. But I have a question about Phyllis... Didn't she say just a couple of weeks ago that he was leaving town? I thought she was going on vacation. Then, suddenly, she's hacking the magazine website, consulting with Ricky and having a hot time with Ronan. What's up with her?

Did you get more insight into her relationship with Avery based on those flashbacks of the girls buying a Christmas tree? I didn't. It seems like there was once a lot of love between the sisters and Avery definitely felt abandoned when Phyllis left home and never looked back, but why? Why would Phyllis not want to reach back for the little sister she loved? You can understand if their father was a criminal that Phyllis would be ashamed, or that her parents were bad to Phyllis, but in my experience, if you love a brother or sister, that's a tie that does not get broken. I think Maria is scrambling to fill in this back story so that it makes sense. So far, she's striking out.

I'm still not thrilled with Harmony. And I'm curious about why Kay has adopted her as a good buddy. With very little exposition, Kay has Harmony living in her home and she's gotten her a job with Billy and when we last saw them, she was enlisting Harmony to help get Nikki to stop drinking. Does Kay really trust Harmony so much that she's made her a permanent fixture in her life? And why should Nikki be more inclined to listen to Harmony than anyone else? I get it that Debbi Morgan's a great actress and they want to give her a good story, but thus far, Harmony is a dud. A sassy dud, but a dud nonetheless.

Adam seems intent on taking over Newman Enterprises, and for some still unexplained reason, Victor wants him to succeed. Could Victor be mucking up his personal freedom as part of some big plan that will destroy Adam? Seems like a farfetched plan, but you never know. Victor did once bring Patty Williams back to town with a new face and a mentally defective brain. I don't despise Adam, but I do think he should pay for letting Patty out of the mental hospital. That was a seriously bad thing to do. Patty's a dangerous woman and Adam cannot control her. Oh, and on the subject of Patty's face, where did Emily go? She was on last week and now she's gone again. I thought she was moving back to GC for keeps.

Of course, we still don't know if Patty killed Diane. In fact, we still don't know whodunit at all and as time goes by, it seems less and less important. What do all those clues mean? Who put out the pillows? Where did the pillows come from? Was Patty doing needlepoint in South America when she came up with all those clever sayings? And where did Patty get the paralyzing drug? I still think we're going to find out that there was more than one killer involved. It's going to be like a bunch of people did things and all combined they killed Diane. But, one thing, who the heck sent the Nikki video from the park to Ronan and Phyllis this past week when they were alone in his apartment? It was like somebody had been listening in and gave them just the information they were looking for. But that could not have been Patty, could it? Did Adam bug the room because he wanted to know what Ronan was working on? That's a weird loophole. What do you guys think? Share your theories, please!

So, that's it for this past week. The holidays are next week -- expect lots of eggnog, caroling and presents on the soaps! This is a favorite time of the year. Do you think we're going to get a special episode like last year? Remember when Victor had his visitations from Christmas past, present and future? I think Nikki's getting some special attention this year. Hopefully her ghosts or elves or angels will be sober.

Our year-end review is on deck, so if you have thoughts about what I have to include, please email me! Also, I'm anxious to hear more from you all -- your theories are dynamite. And tell me about which characters you'd like to talk about in the Two Scoops! Write me! Till then, let's take a look at some letters from the mailbox:

• I know that the writers think that they know best but this is an outrage. We waited for Nikki to come back to the show and what do we get a falling down drunk who marries a pathetic con man. We don't want to deal with this nonsense!!! It is so distasteful to watch I am thinking about not watching at all. When are the writers going to learn give us what we want good strong story lines. -- Linda

• I am so sick of watching Nikki drown herself in booze. This Deacon storyline is so lame. Do these writers think we are stupid? Emily/Pattycake, Nikki/Deacon. Sharon/Adam! I am just about ready to stop watching this fiasco. Sometimes I wonder how these really good actors can stand to go to work, or do they just laugh at us for watching? -- Annie

• I don't care for Jack and Genevieve together at all. If Emily were to return to Genoa City, then it would be more plausible to explore the relationship between Gen and Tucker. It would also be worthwhile to have a psychiatrist in town who could work with various characters concerning their problems, but maybe Emily could also work with the DA & cops as a part-time profiler. I'm really tired of Patty's story. -- Jeanne

Best,Allison