Knock, knock, knocking on heaven's (or hell's) door

Jack found Victor lying unconscious in a heap at the bottom of the stairs. Was Victor really knock, knock, knocking on heaven's (or hell's) door? Will anyone but the hard-knocks Jack be considered a suspect in Victor's assault? Should Nikki knock on wood and hope that no one learns of her fling with Arturo? All this and more in Two Scoops.

Well, Victor finally did it. He finally pushed someone past the point of no return to where he lay on the floor, unconscious, after a fall down the stairs. It's really no shock that it happened. The only surprise is that it took this long for Victor to end up in a crumpled heap after a tussle with an opponent. Okay, maybe we all thought it would be Jack, rather than J.T., who would be the culprit.

But I guess Victor wouldn't care too much about who had sent him tumbling like a Slinky down the staircase, since the end result was that he was in a coma in a hospital bed, possibly knock, knock, knocking on heaven's door. But would Victor's entrance be at the Pearly Gates, if his end were to come? Or could he find himself just a little scorched from the fire on the welcome mat of Hell? That's probably something we will never know for sure, although we could probably take a stab at his final destination.

I thought, for sure, that Paul would have those handcuffs flying in Jack's direction once the chief of police found Jack at the Newman ranch with the unconscious Victor. And you knew that scenario would eventually play out; it was only a matter of when and where. After all, Jack continuously makes no secret of how much he hates the Mustache. But you've got to give Jack a lot of credit for not walking out and leaving Victor on the floor like J.T. did. Even with as much animosity as there is between the two, Jack's conscience just wouldn't let him desert Victor without getting help first.

Maybe the drinking had something to do with it, but Jack didn't even consider that he would be numero uno on the list of suspects, as he placed the call. As much as he sometimes wants to be sinister like his nemesis, Jack's good guy persona still rules him. And even though he claimed he called for help because of Nikki and the Newman family, Jack really didn't want to win that way. Jack's desire has always been to beat Victor at his own game, and well, Victor has to be alive in order for that to happen.

And I couldn't be more stunned to learn that my dislike for J.T. has actually grown. On the plus side, at least he's no longer boring. But J.T.'s become so unlikeable, he'd be much better off going back to being dull. Let's hope that Reed doesn't take after his father and become interesting by being diabolical. No, Victoria needs to hope her son will stay his same tedious self. And the same can be said for any lady who becomes a part of Reed's life.

When J.T. said, "Knock, knock," and Victoria responded, "Who's there," she should have slammed -- no, nailed -- the door shut after she learned it was her ex-husband. I am still somewhat flabbergasted, though, that her lack of confidence has turned Victoria into a complete and total victim. Abusers have a radar that can detect their next victim, and Victoria was ready, willing, and able to be J.T.'s. We have finally seen the final nail in the coffin of the independent woman that she once was. Victoria has become only a shadow of her former strong and capable self. How she got to such a low point in her life in such a short time and by someone she already knew wasn't good for her is what's truly baffling.

The funny thing, not in a ha-ha way but more of an ironic sense, is that if Victoria had booted her ex's rear out the door after he wrapped his hands around her neck, she could have put a halt to the abuse and to her being under J.T.'s complete control. But instead, after he promised to never do it again (yeah, right), Victoria thought it would be a good idea for them to become engaged -- I guess because being betrothed would ensure that he would never lay a finger on her again? Uh...okay.

Are you kidding? If he's already abusing her when they are still in the romantic stage of their relationship and everything's still supposedly all rosy, it's only going to get worse when the shine and glamour wear off. J.T. won't be able to stop abusing Victoria at the snap of a finger. Mac probably learned that the hard way, and it looks like Victoria will be next in line for a very painful lesson -- in more ways than one.

Even though Victor was ready to protect Victoria from harm, I thought he showed a lot of restraint by not rushing over to her house once he saw J.T. put his hands on his daughter. Shoot, Victor could have encouraged Victoria to throw J.T. out of her house like yesterday's garbage if he had gone there. But because he didn't, Victor ended up in the hospital in a coma. Wow, he must be in fantastic shape at his age to beat up J.T. in such a dominant way. It's rather amazing that J.T. only came out of their scuffle with a slightly bruised lip (which Victoria thought she had caused). All of Victor's other punches must have missed their mark, because J.T. looked almost unblemished.

Either Victor is a super senior or J.T. is the biggest wimp on the planet. My husband even laughed at their fight. It was rather hysterical, but this is where suspending our disbelief comes in, I guess. Anyway, J.T. has gotten to be so vile, he's even making Victor look like a saint, and that's saying a whole lot. When J.T. walked out and left the father of his so-called love lying on the floor, possibly dying, without doing anything to help him, he showed just how low he has sunk. Who can blame Mac for fighting for sole custody of their children? (Not me.)

And at the Walnut Grove reunion, Mackenzie flat-out stated to J.T. that having a bad father was worse than having no father when it came to her children. (Welcome back, Kelly Kruger!) Mac pretty much predicted Victoria's future, when she said that J.T. had controlled her every move and that she was finally able to be happy again by getting away from his constant criticism. Yeah, Victoria is getting a real prize there.

And J.T. had no right to complain that he didn't get to see his children when he's the one who deserted his family. If his number one priority truly was his kids, J.T. would have stayed in the same state where they lived to try to find a way to build a new life with them on his own. But instead, he ran to look for his next target, his ex-wife, who happened to already have self-confidence issues. Yes, J.T. squarely hit the bull's-eye when he turned his focus on Victoria.

I had to laugh when J.T. stressed at the reunion how happy he was. Oh, yeah. He didn't get the position he coveted at the police department because he was a genuinely worthless investigator. Shoot, I could have done a more thorough job than he did. At least I would not have underestimated Victor, and I would have realized that the invincible Mr. Newman had, once again, covered his tracks.

But poor J.T. was still stuck as the security guy at Newman Enterprises, where his ex...oh, I mean fiance, called all the shots. Since he apparently desired complete domination over Victoria, J.T. must be so frustrated with having her make the decisions at work. He does realize he will have to fight Victor for control over a Newman family member, right? J.T.'s just not too bright.

But J.T. was so joyous about losing the kids he never seemed to care too much about anyway, right? He was around Reed again, but that didn't seem to matter much to him. J.T.'s loving relationship with Victoria made him so over-the-moon that he strangled her and punched the wall right next to her due to all his happiness. No wonder why he was beaming at the reunion. And Victoria had to hunt him down at the event to get him away from Mac, whom he was determined to keep threatening. You almost got a hint of why their marriage failed from his vocal battering of her. J.T. should have been ashamed of himself, but he wasn't. That fact alone was downright scary.

Thanks to Billy's advice, Victoria finally listened to Mac's version of what went wrong with her marriage to J.T., even if it wasn't with open ears. Victoria obviously had a closed mind when Mac said J.T. was emotionally abusive, although, deep down, Victoria had to know it was true. Well, apparently J.T.'s graduated to being physically abusive, too, as the marks on Victoria's neck clearly showed afterward.

Billy had every right to be concerned that his kids were still in that household. Witnessing those kinds of images could scar their young lives forever. For the first time in a long while, I am really liking Billy again. He stuck by Mac, even after J.T. kept insisting she was sick, and you know he will remain Victoria's friend and confidant throughout this. Phyllis may have cause to be concerned.

But there was still a part of J.T. that was very aware that what he was doing was wrong. Any mention of Colleen seemed to remind him. It's just a shame that Victoria interrupted his chat with Traci. It's possible that Colleen's death was the first thing to send J.T. on his downward spiral, and he's been trying to climb uphill ever since. Who knows what his life would be like now if Colleen were still alive. But no one can live a life of "what ifs" and most of us suffer through trials and tribulations and have to heal to move on.

Mac was not to blame for J.T.'s downfall and Victoria shouldn't have to pay the price now. But only Victoria can stop the blame from being piled on her. I do give Victor credit for trying to warn Victoria about J.T., through Ashley, from his hospital bed. How does J.T. think he's going to get out of this one, for heaven's sake? Is he hoping that Victor will have amnesia forever when he finally recovers? Because we all know he will recover.

Well, fortunately, Nikki could tear herself out of Arturo's loving arms to visit her husband in the hospital. I hope she didn't knock herself out, hurrying over there. Nikki may think she has an open marriage, but somehow, I doubt if Victor would see it that way. However, because of Victor's dilemma, their marriage may be on the mend. If she truly wished to be Victor's dutiful wife again, then Nikki had better knock, knock, knock on wood and hope and pray that Victor never learns of her fling with Arturo. But you know he will eventually. Victor seems to be all-powerful and always knows what's going on behind his back and in front of his face. (And having numerous security cameras doesn't hurt either.)

It's funny how I wasn't the least bit crazy about the kinder and gentler Victor, but I can't say I'm a huge fan of the vengeful and manipulative control freak either. If only Victor could learn how to play fair, it would be fun watching him tackle Jack and Jabot or trying to get rid of his children's latest love interests. But Victor has never cared much for playing by the rules, and I doubt if his latest battle with death will change anything. After all, haven't we already seen this before, when Victor received the benefit of Colleen's heart? If the goodness from her pumping organ couldn't change him, nothing will. Nikki's love sure hasn't, as much as she has tried. No wonder why she looks for pleasure elsewhere. Victor will always come first for Victor, and that must be discouraging for Nikki at times, to say the least.

Victoria's really something else. Once she found out that Ashley was returning to work at Newman Enterprises, Victoria dashed away from her father's side and went running as fast as her tootsies could carry her to the family business to make sure Ashley couldn't take control. And then she got her mother to lie for her. Shame, shame, shame. Victoria's insecurity knows no bounds, and it's not the least bit attractive. No wonder why a predator like J.T. would be drawn to her. Victoria even had the nerve to lie about being demoted, so she could take her supposedly rightful place back in the company and lord it over Ashley. It's all rather sickening, really, and Victor probably won't do a thing about it when he returns to N.E. And yes, he will return.

Before Nick went to his dad in the hospital, he locked lips with his ex-wife Sharon. There must be a shortage of available and single men and women in Genoa City for everyone to be turning to their exes. However, Nick chose not to pursue any lingering feelings he may have for Sharon, because of Christian. But just think how convenient it would be for them to get together, since Nick is living with Sharon again. Hey, knock three times on the ceiling if you want me.

Judging from Sharon's reaction, I doubt if she would bang twice on the pipes with a negative response. I have always liked Nick and Sharon together, but to me, this seemed a little rushed. No, it's not as bad as J.T. and Victoria, but really, what's the hurry? If it's meant to be, it will happen, so they should take their time with it. Please, don't follow Victoria's example with J.T. Honestly, Victoria should write a book on what not to do.

Even if Jack wasn't eventually arrested for assaulting Victor, other problems would be staring him the face if what Dina claimed was true. Poor Jack sure seems to get all the hard knocks. But I have to agree with Ashley that Dina's story of a gorgeous country club dude being Jack's real daddy does seem to sound an awful lot like Dina's version of Ashley's biological history. Instead of just speculating forever, Ashley and Abby decided to secretly get a paternity test done on Jack to find out for certain. They do it on soaps all the time.

It's true Dina could be confusing her facts, which would be a symptom of her disease. But from what I understand, a person suffering from Alzheimer's can have clarity about details from the past and be forgetful regarding the more current events. So, getting a paternity test would answer their questions.

But no, Dina was dead certain that Jack was actually the son of her country club dreamboat and even had Abby take her to the hotel, the Stardust Inn, where she and her beau had secretly rendezvoused. Dina knocked and pounded on the door of room #5, but when it was all said and done, she still couldn't remember her long-lost love's name. It just seems that if she loved him all that much, to where she regretted not making her life with him, his name would be springing from her lips. It definitely wasn't Graham -- unless she had another Graham lurking around in her past. Jill was asked to provide some insight into Dina's romantic dalliances (even if Dina couldn't remember who Jill was), but she could only verify that Dina had many ancient infidelities at the country club.

Wow, if Jack isn't a biological Abbott, it will destroy him. Plus, after Jack had that blood Abbott amendment added, would Billy then have to take over Jabot? Heaven help Jabot! Hey, we are starting to run out of blood Abbotts here. If Jack isn't an Abbott by blood, Kyle wouldn't be either. Jack found emails between Kyle and Victor that showed they seemed to be plotting against Jack.

Could Victor and Kyle have something to do with Dina's "false" memories? As Jack noticed, they have "the plan," and it could very well have to do with his ouster as CEO at Jabot. They may have carried this stunt a little farther to really stick it to Jack by infesting his personal life, too. It would be just like Victor to strip away Jack's precious and cherished identity of being John's son. Victor would love to hand Jack his biggest defeat on a silver platter. But could Kyle really do that to his own father?

Apparently, he could, because as "a cool young rebel," Kyle was no fan of Jack's and seemed to be Team Victor all the way. Jack really didn't seem to have much family left, as Ashley and Abby held vigil at the hospital. As they waited, the two received the results of the paternity test, and by the look they gave each other after seeing them, I'd say Jack's reign as an Abbott blood heir (and "king of the world") is over. Kyle mentioned to Jack earlier that he had gotten back to Genoa City just in time, which made it sound like he might be ready to take over the reins at Jabot. But if Jack's not an Abbott blood relation, neither is Kyle, so how was "the plan" with Victor supposed to be successful, if that was the plan?

You don't need a crystal ball to see that Jack will be going through plenty of headaches and heartache in the near future. Thanks to Ashley's voicemail to Victor, Jack did indeed become Paul's number one suspect for Victor's assault. Who could possibly guess that would happen? And Paul refused to consider any other suspect, even after Christine questioned why Victor would let his entire staff go.

It was obvious Victor had planned to meet secretly with someone, and Victor would never need to keep quiet about another potential skirmish with Jack. Plus, Paul was ignoring one of the top soap rules: Jack was much too obvious as a suspect. That alone should have had Paul looking in another direction, however the chief of police's sole focus was to arrest Jack for the charge of the attempted murder of Victor Newman.

Along with Ashley and Abby, Nikki, Nick, Victoria and the hypocrite J.T. waited at the hospital to learn of Victor's fate. And, spoiler alert, guys...Victor lives! You can almost bet your bottom dollar on that (don't tell Billy). But they got to greet surprise guest Julia Martin, a blast from Victor's past who stopped by to offer her best wishes to the family of the man who was larger than life. Julia recalled that she had been at Nikki and Victor's first (of many) weddings, and Ashley remembered that she had been there, too. Probably all of Genoa City has been at one of their weddings at one time or another. Hello to Meg Bennett as Julia! What a fantastic way to celebrate Y&R's 45th anniversary.

Lily and Cane were determined to stop Hilary's venture to get a bun in the oven from Devon's kitchen, and Lily was ready to pull out all the stops. So, Cane and Lily locked Hilary in the office, so she was unable to make her rescheduled appointment. Once Devon found out, he decided that he and Hilary could create their baby "the old-fashioned way." Really, Lily should have seen that one coming. Probably everyone else did.

Actually, Devon was probably grateful for the excuse to make wild, passionate love to Hilary. The baby was always going to be the reason for Devon to reunite with Hilary, no matter how much he denied it. Believe me, those words on the contract will mean nothing when it's all said and done. Hilary will then hold the kid's lifetime guarantee of being able to have Devon dangling on her string.

When Jack saw the ever-handy Arturo with Nikki at the hospital, he noted that it would "be smart to get into bed with that one." If only Jack knew just how true his statement was.

It was pretty funny when Gloria commented that Victor would have done the same thing as Jack had done, only Victor would have kicked him, to boot, since a drunken Jack had actually kicked Victor's hand when he went upstairs to eventually steal Victor's hard drive. It turned out Victor got the better of Jack for the kick, since the hard drive is what landed Jack in the slammer.

The first of our special guests in town to attend the Walnut Grove centennial were Lorie Brooks (Jamie Lyn Bauer) and Leslie Brooks (Janice Lynde), who immediately were greeted by former step-mommy dearest, Jill. The sisters wasted no time dredging up the past, when Jill had stolen their father, Stuart, away from the love of his life because Jill had only wanted his money. The saying may be that time heals all wounds, but in this case, as far as the Brooks siblings go, that's probably never going to happen when it comes to Jill.

Then David Scott Lago's Raul Guittierez and Lauren Woodland's Brittany Hodges graced the reunion with their adorable-together presence. The lovely blonde and her gallant king had a picture-perfect life of being partners both personally and professionally. Really, J.T. and Victoria should take a page from Raul and Brittany in terms of what a loving couple really should look like. It definitely was not a mirror image.

Until next time, please stay tuned.Teddi

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