Declarations of Independence

Y&R got to celebrating the Fourth of July early this year as Kyle declared his independence from Jabot, and Devon and Lily came to blows over the idea of Chancellor-Winters operating as two independent companies again. Plus, what sort of trouble is brewing for Sharon? Our columnist has the lowdown on all that and more in this week's Two Scoops!

Well, Diane firing her son, Kyle, from his family's company was not something that I had on my Y&R Bingo Card this year (although, in retrospect, maybe it should have been). I'm still a little thrown by the Diane/Kyle feud on Y&R. Don't get me wrong; it has been good drama (especially as the story kicked into high gear this past week), but it still feels weird to see Kyle and Diane at each other's throats after how they reconnected upon her return from the "dead." I do understand why Diane is upset with Kyle, though. I am all too familiar with the type of work environment Diane finds herself in, with someone constantly questioning your decisions and your ability to do the job you were hired to do. It can be extremely frustrating, especially if it is happening on a daily or even weekly basis.

Kyle has not been making the best decisions lately. He told Jack that he wanted his mother to get the CEO job, but it's almost like he expected Diane to be so grateful for him moving aside for her that she would let him run things behind the scenes for her or advise her on how to do her job (despite the fact that Jack had already decided to give her the position before Kyle "stepped aside"). Kyle clearly didn't have faith that his mother could actually do the job (at least not as well as he could), so I think he only offered to step aside because he didn't think his father would actually give her the position.

Still, I was as shocked as Kyle when Diane told him that she was firing him -- and she hadn't even discussed it with Jack first! What?! Why did Diane think that was a good idea? Jack clearly was not pleased with the decision and regrets not stepping in sooner to try to make peace between them before things escalated to this point. Jack couldn't disagree with Diane that Kyle was behaving unprofessionally, though, and I can't disagree with her, either. Shocking as his firing was, I do think it was somewhat warranted.

Kyle is acting a bit like a spoiled brat. He has years ahead of him in his professional career, and when Jack and Diane retire, Kyle will still have plenty of years to run the company as he sees fit. You'd think he would have some patience and stay in his lane. But I'm sure Victor's offer of a new job running his own cosmetics company (alongside Audra) was sitting in the back of his mind as all this drama unfolded with his mother. That little idea that Victor put in his head is likely what led him to continue to ignore Diane's direction at work. He must have known things would blow up like this eventually, so it comes across as though he was just looking for an excuse to take Victor up on his offer, albeit subconsciously.

Since Kyle was not exactly great at teamwork at Jabot (at least where his mother was concerned), I'm curious to see how things will go once he is sharing the CEO spot at Glissade with Audra. I was very glad to hear Victor tell Kyle that he would have to agree to working with Audra as co-CEOs, otherwise, Victor wouldn't hire him. After the demand Kyle made to Victor previously (that he would only work for Victor if working alongside Audra wasn't part of the deal), I was worried that Victor might kick Audra to the curb. That would have been a foolish mistake, since Audra is the one that formed relationships with the board members and stakeholders at Glissade, whereas Kyle would be a stranger to all of them. Having Audra at the helm of the company alongside Kyle will make the transition go much more smoothly. After the shake-up with Tucker being ousted as CEO, I'm sure that Audra's exit would not have gone over too well.

It was rather convenient for Victor that Kyle quit his job at Jabot, because Kyle immediately lost any leverage he might have had in negotiating Audra's departure from Glissade once Victor knew Kyle was unemployed. If Kyle were happy at Jabot, then, of course, none of this would be happening, and Kyle would still be loyal to his family. Instead, Kyle has declared his independence and is using it to willingly be used as a bullet in the gun that Victor is aiming squarely at Jack and Jabot.

It's clear that Victor is looking for revenge against Jack after the disaster that came of Jack being Nikki's A.A. sponsor. Even though Jack ultimately did get Nikki to stop drinking, Victor is still determined to declare war on his on-again, off-again nemesis yet again. And using Jack's son to lead a cosmetics company that will be in direct competition with Jack's company is such a Victor move. Locking Jordan up in a cage in his wine cellar really brought out the ruthless side of Victor again. Now that Jordan is free from Victor (and in a proper prison where she belongs), he is directing his attention elsewhere and taking aim at his other perceived enemies again. Victor's gonna Victor, I suppose, so let's buckle up and prepare for this latest ride his character is taking us on!

I'll admit that I am curious to see where all of this is going. Will Kyle and Audra be successful and run their own empire (as a Newman conglomerate), or might Kyle start to feel guilty and begin to sabotage Glissade from within to give Jabot the upper hand? Honestly, I'd really like to see Audra remain a permanent power player in Genoa City and take Glissade to new heights (with or without Kyle). She's already taken down Tucker -- who might be next? Jabot had better watch out!

No, I'm sure Jabot will be fine. Like Newman Enterprises, it will likely be a part of Y&R for as long as it airs. For being a family company, though, there are certainly a shortage of Abbotts working there currently! While Ashley and Kyle are both away, I wonder who they will hire as replacements? I would love to see Allie back -- it was great to hear Diane mention her and acknowledge her existence again. Even though Noah and Allie were a little boring as a couple, I really liked Allie's character and was hoping to see more of her interactions with the Abbotts, since she didn't know she was a part of their family for so many years. She would make a great replacement at Jabot in Ashley's position until Ashley can return. Maybe she and Noah will be making their way back to Genoa City (or perhaps she will come alone)!

As for Kyle's replacement, hell, Jabot might as well hire Chance for the job, since he has apparently learned so much about the business world (in less than a year!) that he is now qualified to be a chief operating officer. I literally laughed out loud when Billy told Chance he could be their COO at Chancellor once Chancellor-Winters splits into two companies again (assuming it actually does). If that's the type of hiring decision Billy is going to make as CEO, then the company is surely doomed to fail under his leadership. But the Winters clan seems to have a plan to thwart Billy's efforts to reverse the merger of the two companies -- or do they?

The lines started to blur for Lily and Devon as they each got a little too into their roles of pretending to be fighting for Billy's sake. Normally, I don't take Devon's side in many of the Chancellor-Winters battles, but I'll admit that I had the same thoughts he did about Lily being a little too comfortable with the idea of leaving the Winters side of the company to run the Chancellor side alongside Billy. It doesn't really seem like they have a well-thought-out plan put together if they are so easily shaken this early into their con against Billy. I wonder what Lily said to Jill when they spoke and if, as a result, Jill will be the voice of reason and stop the splitting of the companies. Billy is on an ego trip that is taking up way too much of everyone's time at that company. Do any of them ever get any work done with all this arguing about whether or not they are going to keep working together?!

I can't decide if I like the idea of the two companies gaining back their independence from one another or if I want to see them remain as Chancellor-Winters. I certainly don't want it to become Chancellor-Abbott, as Billy is suggesting. It doesn't even make sense that Abbott would be used to "honor Jill's legacy" -- didn't Jill change her last name to Fenmore when she found out who her real father was? Didn't she and Lauren have a whole bonding moment over it? Or was that just a fever dream I had?! Seriously, though, if Billy wants to name the newly splintered company Chancellor-Fenmore, which would actually honor his mother's name, and that means that they could rope Lauren into this storyline, too, then I'm all for it! But, no, Billy obviously wants to use the name Abbott because he wants his own last name to be recognized. He's not exactly subtle.

Anywho, let's move on from all the corporate drama and talk about Ms. Independent herself -- Sharon! I'm really excited that it seems like she is getting a storyline finally! Like Mariah, I am starting to get very concerned about Sharon's behavior and overall mental state. Her new bipolar medication certainly does not seem to be agreeing with her. She's been all over the place. She was really uppity and in high spirits (maybe even a bit manic) in her interactions at the start of the week. Then, after speaking with Daniel and flashing back to memories of Cassie's death, followed by her dropping in on Nick comforting Phyllis at Crimson Lights, her mood certainly shifted to a much more subdued state.

These are types of extreme mood swings that people suffering from bipolar disorder can go through -- especially if they are not properly medicated. I knew there was going to be trouble when she mentioned that her doctor has her trying out some new meds. It was sad to see her so checked out mentally that she didn't even hear Mariah knocking at the door. She was struggling even to pay attention to much of her conversation with Mariah -- even the visit with her granddaughter couldn't pull her out of it. If Sharon's meds aren't working, then Genoa City had better watch out, because the last time her disorder got the better of her, the results were not pretty, and she became quite the terror. As much as I feel for her struggle, I'm ready for the drama, and I am anxious (in a good way) to see what kind of havoc is about to be wrought!

Sharon isn't the only sidelined character that seems to be getting a storyline of their own soon. I have been so thrilled with how much we've seen Beth Maitland as Traci lately. She even had her own scenes this past week that weren't solely about Ashley's mental health issues. Sure, she and Alan talked briefly about Ashley and his brother, Martin, but their meeting also felt like an almost-date! Is anyone else feeling this chemistry they have?

I really hope they are not teasing us with a possible new romance for Traci without planning to follow through on it. I am not sure how long Alan's portrayer, Christopher Cousins, is set to stick around at Y&R, but I hope we'll be seeing a lot more of him (especially if it means more scenes between him and Traci). Traci has been through the wringer over the years, especially in the love department, and it would be great to see her get a new romance. Maybe Alan will consider relocating to Genoa City and leave all the drama with his brother behind him in Paris.

Other honorable mentions from this past week include Katie's attitude toward Claire, the new Marchetti team, and the glorious way that Mamie read Devon for filth and put him in his place! Let's start with Katie: She's become quite the independent teenager and is not hiding how she feels about her newly discovered sister. I am loving the irony of Victoria trying to get her two daughters to get along, even though she has always done the exact opposite when it comes to her own brother Adam. As much as I would love to see Katie and Claire getting along eventually, I am not in any rush to get there. Katie's attitude toward Claire is Victoria's comeuppance for her own attitude toward Adam -- and I'm here for it!

Speaking of Adam, I suppose I should quickly touch on his storyline with Chelsea and Connor, since it took up an excruciating amount of screen time this week (even one episode is too much). I just find this whole storyline so incredibly boring. I used to get excited when Adam was on-screen, but now, I have to try to avoid reaching for the fast-forward button. And don't even get me started on the "Next Week on Y&R..." preview that showed Chelsea and Adam kissing. These writers really do hate Adam and Sally fans. Does anyone want to see Adam and Chelsea back together? They used to be one of my favorite couples (particularly when Justin Hartley was portraying Adam years ago), but they've not had the same chemistry for a long time now. I just really hope it's only a kiss they share and that no one ends up pregnant!

Let's move on to a more pleasant topic, shall we? I really enjoyed the scenes with Summer, Sally, and Chloe, so I'm thrilled that Summer has agreed to hire Chloe to work with them at Marchetti. Even though Summer's harping about Kyle spending time with Audra again soured the mood a few times, overall, the scenes were a refreshing change of pace, and I am looking forward to seeing more of their new partnership. Let's just hope Summer spends a little less time worrying about who her ex is spending his time with.

And last, but not least, is dear ol' Aunt Mamie. Her character always has some of the best lines! When Devon essentially threw her out of the Chancellor-Winters meeting after reminding her she no longer makes decision about the company, she knew just how to strike back at him. She nailed it when she called him out for not caring about his father and about the regrets he will have about so easily pushing family away. She rarely fails to leave a room without a "mic drop" moment.

Well, that's all from me for this week, folks. Now that you've listened to me go on, let me know your thoughts about the past week's episodes of Y&R in the Comments here on the site or on social media posts throughout the week!

And to my fellow Americans that are reading this column, I hope you have a great time celebrating the Independence Day holiday! Stay safe and cool out there!

Until next time,Vance

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