Dear readers, nothing on this earth grabs hold of my soul like gentleness. If I see a video of someone helping an elderly person across the street, I cry. I cry if I see a kid hugging another kid who lost a ball game. I cry if I hear a song like the one referenced in the title. "Delicate," by Damien Rice.
There is something so beautiful in kindness and gentleness in a world filled with anger and rage. The conversation on The Young and the Restless between Chelsea and Billy this week was so beautiful.
When Chelsea talked to Billy about his gentleness toward her, he replied, "You've had a rough life, and you deserve everything to be gentle." I wept. I had to pause the show to finish crying. This world is harsh and rough, and people can be mean and abrasive. You sometimes feel like you are always in defense mode, waiting for the next blow. But when someone comes into your life and looks at you and sees that you are wounded and goes out of their way to approach you softly, it changes everything.
Chelsea has made horrible mistakes in her relationship with Billy. She has hurt him multiple times, but he never allows her mistakes to put him into attack mode. Chelsea told Billy that she didn't deserve his gentle treatment of her, but despite her mistakes, Billy still views Chelsea as delicate. He gives her the softness of his heart every time, and that moves me.
When Chelsea was on the ledge, ready to end her life, Billy gently coached her off the ledge and back to safety and has never stopped being her hero. I understand the nature of soaps, and love triangles are a given.
A character loves two people, one she has a past with, and one she wants a future with. One brings security, and one brings adventure. One she had a child with, one saved her life. The thing that hurts here is that she made her choice; Chelsea let go of Adam long ago. She chose Billy and moved forward with him, but in one moment of drunken desperation, when she felt helpless because Connor tried to harm himself, Chelsea fell into bed with Adam. She wishes she could rewind and erase it, and I do, too.
I love Adam and Sally together, Billy and Chelsea together, and Adam and Chelsea together. But back in the beginning, I loved Adam and Chelsea together. It's all so hard and sad. I wish Chelsea and Billy would sleep together for old times' sake, and she would get pregnant. I know that's a soap cliché, but I wish it nonetheless. His loving treatment of Connor and Chelsea makes him a champ in my book. I would love any scenario that would keep those two intertwined.
But the gentle side of Billy seems to be reserved for Chelsea these days. He has been a roaring lion to everyone else this week. His quest to prove himself and his business genius to all the naysayers is leading him to become reckless. I feel bad for Billy because everyone is conspiring against him—Lily, Victor, Nikki, and even his ex-wife Victoria.
While Billy is definitely making enemies in his quest to lead the newly christened Abbott-Chancellor, has anyone considered that he might be right? Perhaps his idea to invest in an AI company and bring their company into the future is actually a good idea. We may never know because Victor will snatch it from under him to give Nikki a consolation prize for taking Newman Media away from her and giving it to Adam.
But wait, Friday's episode entered a new player into the game: Phyllis Summers. Phyllis pitched herself to Billy as a perfect hire for him with her computer expertise and ability to take Abbott-Chancellor into the future of technology. She baited him, and he bit. That seems to be going around this week… But hiring her wasn't the only worm on Phyllis' hook; she also worked to convince Billy to give Daniel his job back. Is Phyllis tough enough to take on Victor with Billy? Yep. I am not naïve; no one ever truly beats Victor Newman, but with Phyllis on his team, Billy can at least hold Victor off a lot longer.
And over on Team Newman, Lily will wake up and realize that she double-crossed Billy only to be double-crossed by Victor and second in command to Nikki. After all these decades in Genoa City, why do people keep trusting Victor to keep his word?
Michael, who is cautiously trying to earn back Victor's trust after the Jordan debacle, warned Victor about screwing over Lily. I just want to go on record and say Christian LeBlanc is as handsome as he has ever been. I felt it was too long since I showered him with adoration. I love him and his alter ego, Michael Baldwin. On Y&R, Lauren and Michael have one of my favorite marriages. They have been through so much and are still together, despite having some rocky moments. I appreciate them both. Tracy Bregman never ages; the only thing that changes is the hairstyle.
Audra has landed on Victor's list of people he doesn't trust since Kyle told Victor that Nate Hastings knows that Victor is the (not so) silent investor in Glissade. Audra explained that Nate just guessed, and Audra didn't deny it. Now, he doesn't trust Audra or Kyle, so seeing if he can accomplish his goal of taking down Jabot with two people he has so little faith in will be interesting.
Speaking of Faith, her mom, Sharon, is off the rails. Sharon is either off her meds or getting placebos like Sonny was over on General Hospital. It seems that Sharon's grip on reality gets looser by the day. She sees the bloody ghost Cameron, the ghost Cassie, and a version of Nick who is still married to her. Ghost Cameron told her that that's the life she could have had if Daniel had died instead of Cassie.
I do agree with Sharon that Lucy seems obsessed with Faith, and that's concerning. Every time Lucy says, "I'm just going to ask you this one more favor, and then I'll never ask again," you just know she will be back the next day. It's a total Single White Female vibe. But Sharon's reaction is frightening. She is staring daggers through anyone in the Romalotti family. Phyllis told Nick that Sharon's look of hate scared her, and as Phyllis said, she doesn't scare easily. If Sharon's crazy is so bad that it frightens Phyllis, Nick had best take heed. If Sharon makes a move on any of Phyllis' family, Phyllis will end Sharon.
But readers, my patience with the crazy Sharon storyline is running thin. Watching Sharon stare off into space every day with hallucinations while her family frets about her is not the nonstop laugh riot that the writers seem to think it is.
If you had a family member who had been hallucinating for weeks, would you do anything about it? Nick, Faith, Phyllis, and Mariah have all discussed Sharon's issues, but it's getting to the point where they are going to have to do something. Sharon is starting to lash out at people and cause a scene every place she goes. Is this plot line ultimately a vehicle to reunite Nick and Sharon? I thought I had wanted that for a while, but now I definitely don't.
I am tired of Nick being in his relationships where he is the caregiver. For once, I wanted Nick to have a partner who actually took care of him. Phyllis asked Nick a pointed question, which I hope he will consider: "Why do you like to rescue women? After you rescue them, they always go back to where they came from." I would not mind a "Phick" reunion but won't hold my breath.
Kyle and Summer have amicably figured out their custody issues and are on good terms, but I wonder if that will hold when Claire and Kyle become a full-fledged couple. Claire and Kyle discussed having dinner and a movie, and right now, I am on the fence about them. They are sweet together, but I wonder if they have longevity. Or if Jordan will burn down another prison to get to Claire when she finds out Claire is dating someone. What do you think, dear readers? Yea or Nay? Friday's episode ended with our newest couple finally kissing, as Kyle and Claire had a tender moment in the park after Kyle's fight with Diane.
Summer's current beau, Chance, has decided to give up the corporate world and go back to being a cop, and for that, I am glad. I liked him as a cop. I do not want him to get shot again, but having a cop in town opened up storyline possibilities to get us out of the boardroom sometimes.
I told my GH readers last week that they didn't know how good they had it because GH storylines are flying fast and furious right now, with interwoven complicated storylines, people from the past coming back, murders, intrigue, and romance. Y&R's pace is a bit slower, so to me, anything to move the needle in the direction of more action is a good thing.
Another storyline stalled in place—and I am weary of it—is Jack, Diane, and Kyle being at odds. Jack overheard Kyle tell Claire an apology would help, so Jack tried to apologize, but things didn't go as well as Jack had hoped. When Jack tries to talk to Diane, she immediately makes it about her and whines the rest of the episode, never even acknowledging Jack's pain and heartache in this. They never go to work. They never go out. Jack and Diane's entire relationship these days is just sitting in different places around Genoa City and moping that Kyle is mad at them. PSA: If your kid works for you and you fire him, he will most likely be pissed and not want to talk to you.
Diane keeps begging Kyle not to move out, and he has to remind her that grown-ups move out of their house, start their own lives, and don't live with their mommy and daddy forever. He said adults want to start their own families in their own homes, and she shrieked, "But WE are your family, too!" If I were Kyle, I'd stay at the Hilton tonight so I didn't have to return home to his whiny, clingy, needy mother who brought this all on herself.
Cole doesn't have the problem of a kid who doesn't want to talk to him; his newly revived daughter Claire and ex-wife Victoria are very fond of him and thrilled for every moment they get to spend together. Cole's problem is that Victor is not fond of Cole and has warned him to stay away from Victoria. Cole doesn't seem to be paying the slightest bit of attention, but as soon as Victor takes a break from trying to ruin Jack and Billy Abbott, he will most likely turn his attention to Cole.
Readers, do you know people like that? Always trying to control everyone around them? It's a sickness. I used to fret about it and try to please everyone who wanted me to do this or that. But then I got old, and there is a freedom that comes with that. You no longer care what anyone thinks of your life choices, and you can just be.
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What will happen tomorrow, dear readers? Will Heather and Daniel ship Lucy to Portugal on a one-way ticket? Will Connor work to get Billy and Chelsea back together? Will Nikki get Chancellor and tank it so Billy gets the last laugh? Will Phyllis ignore Nick's warnings and go full Phyllis on Sharon? (I hope so! I love full Phyllis!) Will Chance get a juicy new first case back at the GCPD when Sharon tries to kill Daniel or Lucy? Will Diane and Sharon run into one another when they each get the therapy they so desperately need? Will you miss me when I am gone?
Only tomorrow knows, dear readers, and I will tune in tomorrow as long as there are tomorrows.
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Delicate; The Young and the Restless Two Scoops for September 16, 2024
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