The times, they are a-changin'

It was a week with delusion, deception, backstabbing, and a coma -- in other words, a typical soap week. But there is serious action in Genoa City, and a major writing change is around the corner. Let's look at what was, what is, and what could be in Two Scoops.

The Writing's on the Wall

I don't envy the people who have to undo Mal Young's work (and only the things they can undo). They have a huge job on their hands.

The new executive producers are listed in the credits, but Mal Young is still listed as head writer. Some things have reportedly been reworked, and all the new writer material will hit in mid-March. However, from what I've heard, The Young and the Restless doesn't want to officially make it a big deal. I think that's a mistake. I think they should tell the fans that tuned out over the last year: Sorry -- we were wrong. Promote the heck out of it that folks you know and love are back in charge. Shout it from the rafters: the Y&R you know and love is back!

Luke, who watches with me, and I were discussing how empty the police arrest scenes have been with no police chief. There is no way a police chief would be silent and have no press conference/input around major arrests. I think Doug Davidson's return is a huge win for fans. Does it prove that the show runners realize mistakes were made? I have to think so. If I could only have one person in the couple, I'd pick Paul over Christine.

Recently, there have been a lot of announcements about new characters being cast. I don't keep a formal tally, but it seems to me that there are more men being cast than women. This makes me feel that we won't have all these women in jail forever. Who will the men date if only Abby (who's engaged to Arturo), Phyllis, and Mariah and Tessa (a known couple) are single and out of jail? Mia should be jailed for attacking Lola. Nikki, Sharon, and Victoria are already in jail. Lily is in jail. Lola is in a coma. The pickings are slim.

Doing Time

I cringed when Phyllis was using her tough gangster tone with Christine, saying she'd help "if and only if you agree to help me in return."

Mmhmm, if I'm Christine, I'm going to bargain with the woman who tried to kill me? Sure. She wouldn't lie to me or anything, right? She wouldn't be trying to save her own behind. No, as pure as the yellow snow. Oh, wait, I mean driven snow. Right. That.

At one time, Phyllis wanted Paul and hated that Christine was with him. She followed Christine and Paul on their honeymoon and put a dead octopus into their bed. Putting a dead octopus in a honeymoon bed. Who does that? Who even thinks of that? Although there might be a moment from my youth where there was a dead frog in someone's bed, but that's a different story.

Phyllis also hit Christine and Paul with her car, which left Paul impotent for a while. And they never could have children. If I were Christine, I'd want Phyllis to go down more than I'd want the Newmans to go down!

I want Nick to kick Phyllis to the curb. I suspect Victor will make her sorry for throwing Nikki, Victoria, and Sharon under the bus by telling Christine some of what happened the night of J.T.'s death. One thing she didn't tell Christine was that she manipulated how they were going to cover up the whole situation.

Phyllis was the one who said that J.T. didn't have a pulse after Nikki hit him. I think Phyllis has been working with J.T. all along because she is hellbent on getting her revenge on Victor. Nobody could have predicted J.T. being whacked on the head, but she's been in on everything after that. Phyllis has made sure she was always in control. She also disappeared while they were digging the hole to remove the body, if I remember correctly.

There is no way the show will have five leading ladies in jail for any length of time. So, either J.T. is alive, or they will be released because it was justifiable. J.T. being alive would be the easiest and fastest way to end this storyline, especially since it has been ongoing for way too long. With the news that Thad Luckinbill is back at Y&R, I have to think J.T. is alive, which I've been saying since he died.

J.T. could have the soap brain tumor, get fixed, return to Mac, and move away. It's a rough storyline all around. And there are ways to fix it, but Mal(eficent) left some problems, for sure.

When Nick wanted Phyllis to go to the trial with him, and she said, "The optics on this look terrible for me," I might have wanted to gag a little. She would "be with you in spirit," but Nick wanted her there for real. The whole time, I was thinking that when Nick learned the real reason she walked and didn't want to go to the courthouse, he wasn't going to be happy. Friday's previews show I wasn't entirely wrong!

How did nobody know about the arrests? The arrest of all those prominent women would not have been secret. Honestly, I could see the defense telling the media and putting the D.A. and police in a bad light. But I can't see a CEO, an acting CEO, the wife of the current murder suspect, and an employee of the police department being arrested with no media awareness.

I do not believe Phyllis is being noble and helping the other women. I think she's saving her own behind, nothing more, nothing less.

One of my biggest issues of the whole story: why didn't Nikki call Victor at the moment of J.T.'s death? He would have cleaned the whole mess up. Then, nobody would be facing Second Degree Intentional Homicide charges. And J.T. could still be alive and escape whatever prison Victor put him in, continuing their feud.

It's a mixed-up, muddled-up, shook-up world except for Lola

Mia's latest fiasco, trying to harm Abby and harming Lola instead, was bad. I wonder if she will be gone because of her new series. Mia could go to jail to be written off.

I admit I've been rough on Lola. I have said she was immature, and you know what? She is. Because she's never been in love before. Perhaps her brothers are part of the reason. Perhaps what she saw in her parents' marriage was. But this poor girl is terrified of being hurt, and I get it. Seeing that she really did love Kyle made a difference to me. Then, of course, she fell into a pool, because we can't just jump to happy ending, and this would not be the moment for her and Kyle to have sex.

When there was a police investigation and Lola was the victim, how did Rey, at the police station, not hear a word about the investigation? You would think one of his fellow officers would have let him know. Unless they all hate him, and even then, you'd still think someone would speak up. If I learned a coworker's sibling had been injured, I'd tell them to drop everything and go to the hospital. Even if I hated them.

I was 100% on board with Detective North "accidentally" letting Rey see the file. Rey should be questioned about the case and asked about things he might know. He can't investigate it, though. If he were a smart cop, he'd know this. He might be hovering over people's shoulders, telling Detective North who to question, but he would not be doing anything to compromise the case against someone who hurt his sister. Rey questioning suspects and taking notes would effectively invalidate any actual information he got. Unless he's up for vigilante justice, which might not surprise me.

The key would be for him to see the file, see the earring picture, and have the realization that it was Mia. I mean, I expected he'd be the one to recognize it, but I was very upset that he went around and questioned people. Rey thinks he is better than anyone else. He doesn't think but just rushes in. He has reckless disregard to protocol.

When we were looking at the screen, Luke said to me that Lola is going to wake up with amnesia. I had hoped Kyle's love would wake her, but we just had that happen with Victor and Nikki -- in the same room, no less. Amnesia or not, Lola never saw her attacker, but will she remember that she and Kyle were a couple and that she is the head chef at the new restaurant? Will she wake up with her memory intact but be stressed that she can't identify her attacker. Will Mia enter a room, and she recognizes the perfume? Will Mia be a red herring, and Summer walks in and she recognizes that perfume?

Why did Rey not retrace Lola's steps and learn from Mariah that Lola was going to make things right with Kyle? This could help Lola's recovery by letting the man she loves be there and profess his love to her. I didn't like the way Rey treated Kyle when he was questioning him. These macho brothers are going to do me (and maybe Lola) in. Kyle needs to be there -- for Lola more than for himself. And Arturo "Kyle can't visit, but I slept with my sister-in-law" Rosales is in no place to talk about how one treats someone they love. We make mistakes, but when someone I love is in danger, I do all I can to help them heal, including letting that guy I hate but she loves in to talk with her.

I want to know more about Lola's "liver issue." Is it related to the accident, or is there some underlying very serious medical problem going on?

Does no one see Mia lurking/eavesdropping when she could just join the conversation?

I Want You To Want Me, or How You Bring in Characters

I'm going to speculate on how the Rosales family could have been brought on the show in a way that would make me care about them.

First, you bring in someone like Arturo. He's a contractor. He has a thing with Nikki. He takes up with Abby. There was a build-up, so you don't mind him. His time on-screen wasn't a ton. Yeah, he's kind of meh, but it started rationally, and viewers could invest a little in him. Was it a little icky when he hooked up with Abby after his affair with Nikki? Yes, but he can grow from a horndog into a real man. And we accept him.

Then along came Rey, pretending to be something he was not, and he wasn't likable from day one. He hasn't endeared himself to me, and I can't invest in him. But it didn't have to be that way.

What if Rey had once worked with J.T. on a big case, and that's why he's so invested in this? Mac or Victoria could have met him before and thought he was okay. Links could fill out the story and make us care.

Victoria would have remembered meeting Rey before because her mind is like a steel trap. We might have invested in Rey if Victoria realized, "Oh, yeah, he worked with J.T. back in the day." Or even Rey having worked with Dylan or some such thing. In Miami. From Witness Protection. "Dylan told me to tell you he didn't forget, and he's safe. But he can't be in touch." Instant connection, so he could be a substitute for Dylan.

And then Rey could be connected to Arturo, but they didn't talk about each other because they had "issues," which wouldn't have to be explained immediately.

Then we have Mia. She was in our faces from the first day, and I disliked her from the start. With her, there were no ties except to newcomer Arturo, who was just working in, and Rey, who nobody but Sharon liked. It felt like she was shoved down our throats because she's "relatable" or something. I am not anything like her. And sleeping with brothers is just yucky. Mia makes Abby, who had grown more likable, less likable in her insecurity

Mia could have worked with someone on the cast on makeup and been brought in for a special event, then, when we already knew her, she could visit Rey or Arturo. And because we knew her, we'd maybe feel they'd wronged her. But gradually, with other connections first. Not just this blob of stuff dumped all at once and not mixed in.

I feel Mal Young wrote off the top of his head, and a lot of things didn't make sense. Throwing Rey and Mia into the fold the way he did would be like me throwing some goldfish in my fish tank. It isn't going to go very well. The other fish will all just die off. Or at least be sick. The Rosales family was brought in too abruptly.

Admittedly, Lola came in fast, but she has other ties. She has the truck, so Kyle bumped into her -- and there were no other ties at that point. She's friends with Mariah and Tessa. She's working with Devon and Abby, and Abby has a big sister vibe with her. She and Arturo made sense when they came on, but not Rey and Mia.

Characters need to have ties! They happen in real life. There is nothing these people do that happens in a vacuum, which is why the Rosales family needs some connections if we are to invest in them as more than day players and certainly before they're ever leading players. It doesn't matter how esteemed or talented the actor(s) is (are).

Want to know what I think might make the Rosales family drama way more interesting? Papa Rosales showing up in town because somehow, he's heard his baby girl is sick. Suddenly, all the hate the boys feel for one another and Kyle would be focused on him, and perhaps little Lola would want to see her father, because she was much younger when he left, and sometimes people really just want their parent to be better than they're able to be. It could be a short visit, but if done right, it could add more depth to the characters.

Will there be a use for Rey in the future with Paul returning? I think that is up in the air. Unless they hook him up with Sharon, I don't see a purpose for him -- and I think the arrest perhaps burned that bridge. There isn't enough crime in Genoa City to warrant having both Paul and Rey. He was brought in to investigate J.T., so once that is solved, perhaps he'll leave.

I can see Lola sticking around. She has a future with Devon and Abby as a chef, and she and Kyle could finally be a real couple. I do like them together. Unless she can't reconcile with Kyle and decides she needs to get away from Genoa City. I hope she sticks around.

With all the casting calls, I doubt the entire Rosales family will stick around. For the first time, I realized there are no Rosales family members in the opening credits, and there never have been. That doesn't scream staying power.

I don't mind new people being added -- and in fact, we need it -- but not when they are in your face almost from day one and taking over the legacy families. Even if we don't love the legacy families!

Nikki: 40 and Counting

I don't have a lot to say about this. After 40 years, Melody Thomas Scott deserved a standalone episode. Writing the letter from jail to the grandkids while looking through the photo album was a nice way to walk us through some of the big moments in her history. Clearly, the show would not be the same without her, and watching her transition from the squeaky-voiced innocent to the woman she is in an hour reminded us of that.

Denial Is Not Just a River in Egypt

Summer was an idiot to show up at the hospital, but Arturo's macho big brother BS toward Kyle afterwards was obnoxious, too. When Arturo told Summer she was the "meanest, most selfish cold bitch I have ever known," I thought to myself, "He's slept with Mia."

Summer was sad that Kyle hurt her precious feelings, but he said, "I know I wasn't thinking about you at all." Why is Summer surprised Kyle loves Lola. This is not new news. She thinks it's enough that she just accepts Kyle for who he is. And she told Kyle, "I love you." Kyle told her "attraction is not love." Is it attraction or just familiarity?

Summer is delusional. Abby told Summer that Kyle planned the Valentine's Day getaway for Lola, but Summer said that neither she nor Kyle was happy when Lola interrupted. She lies with such ease and conviction that when she recounts what happened, she makes herself look innocent. Does she believe her lies? I wonder. She told Abby she won't back off when Kyle and Lola are back together. Abby even asked Summer, "What are you hoping to gain by throwing yourself at Kyle?" What indeed? As soon as she has him, which I hope doesn't happen, she'll want a new toy because it's being denied that motivates her.

Random Observations and Thoughts

I admire Sasha Calle, playing Lola, lying on a bed that long (I can do that part) without a blink or twitch (there's where my problem would be). I stared at her eyes and saw no movement.

I wish Arturo had stood up to Mia when Abby and Mia had their fight at the club or had stopped Abby before it started, but he sure got into Kyle's face about Lola at the hospital. I suspect he and Abby will not marry, and I do wonder where that would leave him.

When Mia hugged Rey at the hospital when he first got there, he gave her no return hug. He was emotionally checked out.

As soon as Devon didn't want to go to the hospital with Ana, I knew why, but she wasn't catching on. He said he hadn't been to the hospital since Hilary died, but I could have sworn he was there when he defended Nate against Rey back when Nikki had been "kidnapped." But nobody I know recalls whether he was or not. Surely an astute viewer will remember where that happened. His panic attack before going in the room was believable. And I loved him telling Lola not to leave them.

Summer being all pissed at Kyle because Rey questioned her was ridiculous. Kyle was right, Rey would have questioned her, anyway, and he also considered Kyle a suspect. But, as I said, Rey had no right and would have ruined the case had one of them been guilty.

I loved Mia's reaction on Monday when Abby told her Lola had been attacked. She lost that smug look she always has.

I was also amused when Mia realized her earring was missing.

Reader Feedback:Here are some of your thoughts on the column and the show:

Colleen shared: I can't stand Mia. She adds nothing to the show. She's insecure, immature, needy and we already have a character with those traits...Sharon. So now we have 2 useless women. Sharon, a blonde and Mia, a dark haired woman. Between the two, the show is almost unwatchable.

George shared: The Ranch Main House was just rebuilt a few years ago. How could anyone be living in the walls? New construction would not have permitted such nonsense. Unless Victor intentionally built the house with secret passageways within the original plans, no one could have known or placed such nonsense within the walls. Also, why is there no surveillance cameras already at the ranch. I understand the Newman family want privacy, but with all the crazy people running around, why would they not have at least outside surveillance at the home? What about poor Patti Williams? Could she have returned to stir things up again? What about Phyllis working with that Jack look-alike in an attempt to get back at Victor for what he did to each of them? It was Phyllis who declared J.T. dead originally. Maybe she knew he was not dead, went back to the park, woke him up, and planned this whole revenge on Victor for the both of them.

Interesting thought, George. This would be a cool way to bring Patti Williams back, and would help usher in her brother!

Robin shared: I sure hope Adam comes back. My favorite besides Billy and Chelsea. Please come back!

Looking Ahead:

Next week's previews looked great (and you can check them out in The Scoop)! Rey arrests Mia, Nick kicks Phyllis out of his house and his life, Arturo chases Kyle out of Lola's room as Kyle is dressed as a doctor (I hope he got to tell her he loved her before the eviction!), and Jack, Billy, and Kyle want to take Jabot away from Phyllis.

Usually sweeps are wrapping up now, not going into the start of the next month. But this is good. I'm ready for the big action and the change. I don't know what will happen next, but I know for sure I'll be right here watching with you because this promises to be some good stuff.Christine

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