Fire and ice: A flame and a cold shoulder

Phyllis' need for revenge burned hot, while Adam was cold and calculating in his vengeance. Was there more to these two than just as partners in crime? Could a triangle with Phyllis and Sharon over a new Newman be looming? Michelle Stafford was back as Phyllis and ready to blaze in Two Scoops.

Welcome back, Michelle Stafford! I was fortunate to get to see her again just recently at the 2019 General Hospital Convention, and she couldn't have been more gracious. I'll admit that I haven't been the biggest fan of her Phyllis. But now, since I have met and talked with Ms. Stafford several times, I found that she is very, very nice, so I will keep that in mind when watching Phyllis. Michelle Stafford truly appreciates her fans. While she will be missed at GH as Nina, the Y&R fans welcome her back as Phyllis with open arms. Phyllis was always a spitfire, who would never take no for an answer and lived by her own rules, which sometimes caused her downfall. It will be interesting to see what path Phyllis blazes for herself now that Michelle Stafford has taken over the reins again.

Becoming entangled in Adam's mess, thanks to Kevin, certainly had Phyllis much more interested in Adam and in his Las Vegas activities. Because Sharon has already practically become glued to Adam's side since his return, could another triangle be in the making with Phyllis and Sharon over a new man -- a new Newman? With their history of duking it out over Nick throughout the years, it would be rather intriguing for a romance to develop between Phyllis and Adam, with Sharon glaring at them from the sidelines. Phyllis and Adam have already shown they have no qualms about being partners in crime, so sparks could fly between the black sheep and gorgeous redhead. Since he's so cold and calculating, Adam would be the ice to Phyllis' fire, although it's unlikely he'd ever be able to douse her flame.

Kevin apparently believed there was more to Adam and Phyllis than what met the eye, since he kidnapped Phyllis as leverage to use against Adam to get Chloe back. Poor Michael always gets saddled with Kevin's escapades, and he's had to help cover up his brother's nefarious deeds on more than one occasion. But for the most part, Kevin is a good guy, even if he's done bad things in the past, and Michael knows that. Nowadays, Kevin's shady actions are more misguided than malicious, which still has gotten him in plenty of trouble. And Kevin's shown that he will push aside any and all misgivings to ensure Chloe's safety. But Michael reminded Adam that Michael is no slouch when it comes to being dark and twisted, and he gave Adam fair warning. Wouldn't a duel between the two be fun to watch?

Genoa City certainly has no shortage of characters coming back from the dead, since J.T. and Adam have recently shaken their ghostly images to materialize back into actual flesh and bones. Even though I can't really include Chloe with this phantom duo, since we have known all along that she was still of this world, Michael didn't know, so he yelled out to Kevin that "only one person should be allowed to come back from the dead at a time." Hey, that was funny. I remember that Michael used to have some hilarious one-liners in the past, mostly when he had to deal with his family. Gloria really should come back, also, and her text to Kevin indicated she just may be on her way. Michael's mother sure can push his buttons like no one else.

Adam has done more than just discard his shroud, since he's shaken up his entire family's existence with his reemergence. Just ask Nick. At one time, Adam had stressed that Nick would be the best person to raise Christian and had never wanted the truth about the child's paternity to come out. But those days are gone. Adam has staged an all-out war to gain custody of the boy, plus he's also stripped Nick of Dark Horse, the company Nick started on his own. Adam also pointed out that Victoria was either his unwitting asset or useful idiot in the matter. Just what any sister would love to hear. Hey, what are brothers for?

Nick had every right to call Chelsea and warn her, although Chelsea should have a better chance of getting through to Adam, who wanted nothing more than to have his family back together. While he didn't seem to give two figs for his father, brother, and sisters, Adam coveted having his warm and fuzzy life with the wife and sons, whom he claimed to love. But after Adam threatened to sue for full custody, Nick did right to arm himself with the best weapon possible, Michael. Hooray! Michael was finally on the right side and refused to let Adam later buy him out. At least someone in this battle has some scruples, although it's probably best if Nick goes into his battle against Adam without them. Being Mr. Nice Guy would not be beneficial in this circumstance.

Even Sharon couldn't get Adam to back down. It's funny that she could see his destructive streak with his threat of taking full custody of Christian from Nick but never saw it after Adam stole the first six months of Faith's life away from her loving mother's arms. I still don't get it. But the light finally clicked on, and Sharon saw Adam as a jealous, spiteful, and vindictive stranger who only liked to play mind games. Yeah, a thank you card wouldn't quite cover all the love and support Nick has given the boy throughout his young life -- that's where Adam doesn't get it.

Actually, even if it was unintentional, Nick would be much better off having Victor on his side. Nick was going to need all the big guns he could get, and his father was a bazooka. Inviting his dad to Christian's first tee-ball game might have just done the trick. Victor even admitted that Christian belonged with Nick, but maybe he's mellowing out a tad due to his health. But even a mellow Victor can still be vicious, baring plenty of teeth, as Adam found out when his dad threw him off his property. Victor really can't say that he had never blamed others or been hateful, though. Look at all the torture he has put Jack through. For heaven's sake, Victor had a doppelgnger posing as his archenemy and sleeping with Jack's wife. That seems pretty darned hateful to me.

Victor continued to show his kinder, gentler side when he let Victoria take charge as CEO of Newman Enterprises, but really, he didn't have much choice. After all, Adam and Nick both refused to go back into the family business. However, Victor still left Abby out in the dust, as usual. I doubt if she was even a blip on her father's radar. I can't blame Nick for being upset, though, since he could possibly lose everything, while Victoria seemed to have gotten her money's worth, thanks to her huge payment to Adam. Victoria wanted Nick as COO, however, and the two of them should work together if they want to take their younger sibling down. They sure weren't having much luck on their own.

Since Adam needed another place to live, he threw big bucks at Nate to buy Neil's penthouse. Although Devon was upset about it at first, he realized it was more beneficial that the money go to the hospital. Neil would really like that. Nate was right in that it was too sad to keep the place as a shine to Neil's memory. Neil would want his family to move on and be happy and not let their sadness over his loss keep them from doing that. Since he had been about helping those in need, Neil would thoroughly approve. It's just too bad that it benefitted Adam, also.

I mean, really, does Adam have absolutely no consideration for anyone else? He had some nerve to show up at Delia's grave, especially when Billy was there. Even if Adam denied knowing that Billy was already there, he should have known better than to go at all. All Adam was doing was soothing his guilty conscience for his past deeds, but going to a place that Delia's loving family might frequent was not the way to go. And if Adam was as sorry as he claimed about running her down, he shouldn't be causing her family any more grief or pain. But he just can't seem to help himself.

No matter what Nikki has to face due to Victor's illness, since Victor's medication appeared to not be working, at least she'll always have Paul to lean on. Those two are such solid friends, and she should consider herself fortunate, especially since Victor's her husband. Paul hasn't had it so easy, thanks to Victor, either. Anyone who gets into Victor's crosshairs ends up in a world of trouble, and Victor hasn't always appreciated Paul's friendship with his wife. Paul must truly care about Nikki to go through the drama Victor has thrown his way. Really, how could Victor say that he was never like Adam? The apple sure didn't fall far from that tree.

I adore Mariah and Devon's scenes together. They are such good friends, who truly care about one another. Mariah has proven to be a true and loyal pal, even if they couldn't be a couple in love. And Mariah gives great advice for someone who had such a rocky start of trying to even get close to someone. But she was able to explain to Devon's satisfaction why paying off Elena's student loans was such a bad idea. But Elena's pinkie swear with Devon may still not be able to ward off the ghostly presence of Hilary, who continues to loom around. Even with all the spirits who have come and gone, I really don't see any way for Hilary to return. She was just so dead after her glorious wedding to Devon -- unless she has a twin like Cassie did.

However, I'm still not feeling Devon and Elena as a couple, but that's because Hilary was so saucy and spicy, which makes Elena look a little bland in comparison. Devon was so over the moon for Hilary, and I wonder if anyone who's not as outgoing could compete with Devon's loving memory of Saint Hilary who, in his memory, did no wrong. But, then again, maybe that's just the type of girl Devon needed -- one that didn't remind him of his deceased wife in any way, shape, or form. But since Elena was so completely different from Hilary, it was rather telling that Devon mistook Elena for Hilary at Neil's dedication celebration, which was then followed by a panic attack. Devon clearly wasn't ready to let go of Hilary just yet,

The couple who seemed to be on the right track was Lola and Kyle, who asked his dad to be his best man at their wedding. Ahh, that was so sweet. Jack and Kyle have not always had the best father/son relationship, so it was good that they could finally find the bond that they both really needed. Once Mallory came into the picture, you knew she was bound to be Jack's plus one at Neil's tribute. Jack and Mallory were kindred spirits in that they were members of a club, parents with Alzheimer's, that no one wanted to join. Summer was the one still on the outside looking in, but that was her own doing. If she really loved Kyle, she would let him go to be happy. If she couldn't bear watching Groomzilla's happiness, she should avoid him at all costs and give her heart a chance to heal.

Neil's tribute became rather eventful when Lola lost her engagement ring and she and Kyle had to dig through the dirty dishes and garbage, where they eventually found it. They are so cute. Even in the trash, they were all kissy-kissy and adorable. They could only hope the honeymoon stage would last forever, yet Lola's mother will apparently be on her way to Genoa City soon. With Lola, Mariah, Jack, and Lola's maid-of-honor, Abby, Kyle may need all the help he can get.

Devon's dedication to Neil was so heartwarming, complete with a plaque and a toast to Neil's memory. The celebration was tainted a little, however, by Devon's control freak attitude over Ana, especially since it involved music, which Neil really loved. Why did Devon hire his sister, since he obviously had no faith in any of her decisions? If she were to say the sky is blue, he would disagree and say it was aqua. It's understandable that Ana wouldn't want someone babysitting her and micromanaging her every move. It was like Devon didn't trust her, so there was really no way she could do her job.

While it's great that Traci's book was giving her a new purpose in life, hopefully she wasn't blurring the lines between fiction and reality. I mean, her story's terrific escapism as long as Traci's not escaping from the truth. A phone call from Lily seemed to briefly awaken Cane's hopes that there was still a chance for them, even as he learned she wouldn't be returning to go to Devon's tribute to their father. Cane obviously still loved Lily. Even if Traci could bring joy to his life, the most she could probably hope for was as his faithful Girl Friday. It was interesting that Lily changed her mind about attending Neil's dedication, but she may have been showing Cane that she was taking control of her life in every way, which was just what she needed to do. Cane needed to face the truth.

What was Victoria thinking when she gave Adam so much money and Chelsea's phone number? Without meaning to, she sure royally messed up Nick by giving ammunition to Adam to use against both Nick's son and his company.

Let's see, what else? Oh, yes, Tessa sang. With all her singing, we are bound to get more than just "a taste of Tessa."

Abby told Nate that she felt she didn't fit in the Newman family, but seriously, does anyone besides Victor?

Sharon hit the nail on the head when she told Adam that everyone was the hero of their own story -- even the villain. As the latest Newman villain, Adam could only be the hero in his own mind.

Billy had the line of the week when he stated that "getting in the mud with Adam only makes you feel dirty."

However, when Jack announced the new Abbott-Winters Foundation substance abuse program for musical artists, he had the most sentimental line that he attributed to Neil. "It's good to touch a life. It's better to save one."

Hmm...which "certain member of the Chancellor family"? Phillip? Chance? Another "new" Chancellor?

What are your thoughts on ? What did you think of this week's Two Scoops? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.