Is The Young and the Restless or musical chairs?

Everybody's on the move on The Young and the Restless. Characters are playing musical chairs, changing jobs, partners, and goals. Victor's desperate to get Newman Enterprises back, Chloe and Kevin have figured out how to keep the duffel bag of money, and Nick and Avery are in romantic bliss -- at least until Dylan McAvoy appears. Finally, what's going on with Jabot? Talk about musical chairs in the CEO's office! When the music stops, you'll want to make sure you have a seat pulled up to read this week's Two Scoops!

These days on The Young and the Restless, I feel like I'm watching an elaborate game of musical chairs. Start the music, and see which character winds up in a new place, or the same old place, or someplace you'd never imagine!

You should have seen my face when Adam hired Sharon to run Newman Enterprises R&D department. I think I might have screamed, and then fallen on the floor with laughter. Never mind the fact that Sharon is probably unqualified to manage a research and development unit for a major corporation, how about the fact that Sharon had only recently been the de facto-CEO who'd nearly sunk Newman Enterprises entirely?

Also, would the SEC approve of her participation in Newman Enterprises in any capacity, considering the way she'd aided Tucker in stock manipulation? It's true that all that business was glossed over, but come on. Sharon should never be allowed back at Newman.

But I'm not knocking Sharon. In fact, she's been getting better and better. She made it through an entire week without flipping out or needing to send an SOS to her psychiatrist. That was pretty amazing, considering that she had to handle Cassie's birthday and the memories of her late daughter, and also accepted the job at Newman Enterprises.

Still, it must have been pretty funny when she stepped off the elevator at Newman Towers. Nobody threw a tomato at her or shot spitballs in her direction, even though she probably deserved both. After all, the last time Sharon was there, she fired people right and left, the stock plummeted, and the atmosphere was toxic.

Well, somehow Sharon made it through the lobby and actually was productive in her meeting with Adam. It's hard to believe that research and development is really her specialty, but her ideas sounded reasonable, and Adam was duly impressed. But I was wondering, why were all the ideas involving Jabot products?

Do you think Adam realizes that Newman Enterprises is bursting with cosmetic companies already? Why turn to Jabot products -- when you haven't even completed the merger -- if you have Beauty of Nature and Newman Cosmetics? Remember? Beauty of Nature was the company everybody wanted, and Sharon and Nick made that big Mitsukoshi deal for their no-name company that was eventually dubbed Newman Cosmetics. Nowadays, nobody's even talking about Mitsukoshi or Beauty of Nature.

That said, why build a tie-in with Jabot products if there's no assurance that the merger's going to happen? Here's what they need to do in the writers' room: design a flow chart so all the writers can see what goes where and how it relates to everything else. They might also see what they're leaving out. Like what the heck has happened to Restless Style? Is Chloe still collecting a paycheck as a stylist? Speaking of money, has Phyllis told Summer that her trust fund has been cleaned out?

I have another question that's been bugging me. Is Abby still in love with Carmine? She went to New York for a while and then spent the holidays, skiing with Ashley and Traci in Colorado. Jack and Kyle let us know about that, but has anyone told Carmine where his girlfriend went? Carmine's been pouring drinks at On the Boulevard and the Athletic Club, flirting madly with Lauren, and seems to have forgotten his connection to Abby.

I guess it's understandable that Carmine would be attracted to Lauren. After all, she's beautiful, and he's not blind. Of course, if her district attorney hubby had once prosecuted you for kidnapping and still made no secret of the fact that he doesn't like you, would you really risk offending him by making passes at Lauren? Maybe Carmine likes to live dangerously.

Noah is living dangerously by letting Adriana manipulate him. On first blush, I despised Adriana. By the end of the week, I still hated her. Is this really what Noah considers an irresistible woman? Sure, she's pretty, but there didn't seem to be a sincere bone in her body. Maybe this is the soap's attempt at aping an ABC Family show like Pretty Little Liars, although my favorite on that network is Bunheads.

Have you seen Bunheads? Amy Sherman Palladino created the show, and she's the same person who did the Gilmore Girls. Like Gilmore Girls, Bunheads has good characters, snappy dialogue, and interesting stories. So, here's my advice to executive producer Jill Farren Phelps: inject some of the quality of Bunheads into The Young and the Restless. Give Chloe and Chelsea that kind of rapid-fire dialogue, and let them skewer everyone in Genoa City!

Getting back to business, which is really the direction the show is taking these days, I'm baffled about what's going on with Jabot. It seems like everyone is "pretending" to work, but nothing seems to get done. Jack handed the reins to run the company to Cane, and then Cane abdicated that role to his father-in-law. It was a magnanimous move, but seriously, Cane doesn't want to answer to Neil. This new arrangement is a big mistake, and I predict it'll blow up in Cane's face.

Lily and Devon are also busy, busy, busy at Jabot, but they just aren't corporate types to me. Yes, Lily was once the face of Jabot, but that doesn't mean she should be "running the company," as Tyler suggested. And Devon was more interesting as a guy pursuing a music career. By the way, what's up with Tyler? Doesn't he realize that Lily's a married woman? It's really inappropriate that he continues to pursue her, and that Lily doesn't stand up to this guy and tell him to knock it off. I'm losing respect for Lily.

I think my biggest problem with Jabot, however, is this: for as long as The Young and the Restless has been around, Jabot was an Abbott family enterprise. Why aren't there any Abbotts at Jabot? I mean, wouldn't it make sense for Jack to assign Kyle to work at John Abbott's company? At least then there'd be one Abbott on the property. The way it is now, Jabot has turned into the Winters family domain, with a couple of Michaelsons thrown in.

I'd love to see Ashley return, but Eileen Davidson is busy on Days of our Lives. By the way, wasn't it great news this past week that Days of our Lives was renewed through 2014! That, plus the great news about All My Children and One Life to Live returning -- thank you, Prospect Park -- has made this soap fan very, very happy.

You know, instead of Billy babysitting Adam for Victoria in order to get Newman Enterprises back to Victor (a fact that will definitely tick off Jack), Billy should have insisted that Jack make him CEO of Jabot. It was the job Billy really wanted from the start -- to save his father's legacy. Unfortunately, the way things are going right now, Jabot will probably wind up as part of Victor's empire.

Victoria really hates Adam all of a sudden. I mean, they've never been friends or anything, but lately she's been fixated on getting Adam out of Newman Enterprises as though he's wronged her in some terrible way.

Has Victoria forgotten that it's her dear old Dad who's victimized her again and again? He had her arrested on her wedding day and tossed in jail. He set up Billy with Chelsea in Myanmar, then framed Billy for a crime he didn't commit, letting Victoria think she'd been abandoned. When you add it all up, Victor's been much more vicious to Victoria then Adam's ever been. And yet she's willing to help her father and wants to punish Adam.

At least Nikki stood up to Victor this past week when she heard about his plan to splash Jack's addiction to pain pills all over the press. She was right, of course, to tell Victor that he was out of line. Jack's addiction -- which Nikki characterizes as a "disease" -- shouldn't be used by Victor to undermine Jack in the public eye. But Victor plays by his own rules, and he'll do whatever it takes to get back his company. He also has no mercy when it comes to Jack.

Victor also has no remorse for his part in Stephanie's death. He chooses to blame Jack and Adam for the woman dying, even though it was Victor who arranged for Stephanie to seduce Jack on New Year's Eve. Shouldn't he bear some of the responsibility for setting into motion her overdose?

I'm starting to wonder what really happened to Stephanie. Yes, her father said her body had been found dumped in the alley. Yes, Adam "cleaned up" the crime scene, but there's something weird about this entire incident. Has there been an autopsy done to determine cause of death? And even if Adam was the greatest cleaner of all time, wouldn't there be fibers and clues in the alley that would lead back to Jack's house?

Maybe Stephanie's death is part of the reason that Adam doesn't want to leave Genoa City. He can't tell that to Chelsea, so he's making her think it's all about business and his promise to Jack. But do you really believe that? Adam may owe Jack for giving him a chance at Newman, but they're hardly bosom buddies.

Adam has chosen to be more loyal to Jack than to Chelsea, and I can see why that's unacceptable to Chelsea. From her point of view, Adam has lied and disappointed her again. Last time, he had to help Sharon. This time, he has to help Jack. Chelsea never comes in first place for Adam, and she's waking up to the fact that as much as she loves Adam, he's not a good husband.

It looks like Kevin and Chloe have figured out a way to keep the money. It was smart of Chloe to consult with Chelsea about how to create the illusion that the cash is legit. It pays to have a best friend who was once a con artist! The question now is will their plan to borrow against the coffeehouse, pay off the house, and borrow again really work? Will the money really be undetected in all those transactions?

The thing I'm wondering about the money is whether or not it was ever really the property of the NYPD. Maybe it really was drug money that Adriana found in her apartment, like she said. That would explain why Alex hasn't wanted to use Michael, the local legal authority, to help him find the missing money. Could Adriana be right about Alex being a dirty cop? Maybe he plans to keep the money and never give it to the authorities.

Isn't it refreshing to see some happy romances on the show? Victoria and Billy are in synch, and Avery and Nick can't get enough of each other. For Nick and Avery, of course, this is the calm before the storm. Dylan McAvoy will be on camera in a couple of weeks, and I can't wait to see Steve Burton on The Young and the Restless.

Think about it. On General Hospital, as Jason Morgan, Steve had to play a character who had been brain-damaged in such a way that he couldn't express emotions. He found a way, sort of, but it was a challenging acting assignment. Over time, I think it must have gotten tiresome. Therefore, being a new character, an ex-soldier with secrets, should be exciting for him. And us as viewers.

It's interesting that while Steve Burton left General Hospital for The Young and the Restless, Genie Francis is going in the opposite direction. Genie will be playing Laura again, no doubt involved in a major adventure that will include Anthony Geary as Luke.

While I'm thrilled that Genie's going back to GH, I wish they'd given her a better send-off from Genoa City. Cane has never mentioned what happened to his mother or if he's concerned that she was forced to go on the lam. Fortunately, it keeps the door open for Genevieve's return, so I guess that's a plus.

Finally, before I wrap up, a thought about Jack and Phyllis: let me go on record saying that it's foolish of Jack to try to go through withdrawal without medical assistance. One visit from Dr. Lee doesn't count. Phyllis is wonderful to be sticking by his side, but it's unrealistic that she would know how to deal with his symptoms. What if he goes into cardiac arrest or has a stroke?

We've seen Jack having hallucinations, tremors, the sweats, and wicked mood swings. They're not showing the other, more nasty stuff like puking and the inability to control his bowels. It could be really ugly, which is why he should be in a rehab center.

But maybe I'm getting bogged down in details. Phyllis is doing a selfless thing, and maybe this is the beginning of her and Jack rebuilding their relationship? I must say that I prefer super-Phyllis to the crazy redhead who was moving dead bodies and cheating on Nick with Ronan.

That's it for this week, fellow fans. Please write me with your thoughts. Are you psyched about Steve Burton? Do you expect Victor to fall on his face with all his machinations? I'd love to see Billy best him, wouldn't you? I guess we'll have to watch and wait. So, till next week, let's take a look at some letters from the mailbox, and remember to click here to send me your thoughts. They could very well appear in a future column!

• I've had enough of Victor hiring hookers to destroy people's lives. Wouldn't it be nice if someone would ask how and where Victor is finding these hookers -- is he a client? A little sex addiction, or diversion, that Nikki doesn't know about? And, boy did Fen go over to the dark side quickly! Phyllis needs to know about this [his manhandling Summer] and kick his butt. For once, Red, use that phenomenal temper and physicality for good! Protect your daughter! -- Eva F.

• If Victor doesn't get caught this time I'm done. Let Adam take over Newman, Jack get Jabot and Victor get screwed. He is to blame for Newman being [in] trouble, because of marrying Sharon. -- Pat B.

• Why would Chelsea, who seems to be a pretty smart person and good judge of character, take marriage advice from Chloe, who is a total idiot and flake? I realize she is limited in her choice of girlfriends, but while she may want to hang out with Chloe, should she really listen to her? Why do Kevin and Chloe think it's cool to steal money? I would like to see them both locked up for a while. Kevin has never paid the consequences for anything. It would be a nice change. -- Judi

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Best,Allison

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