Days of Our Lives Said Another Goodbye But There’s an Upside to All the Exits — Plus, Vanquishing Jan and Wondering Who to Root For

Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI; NBC Screenshot

I’m back to fill in for a vacationing Curtis, who will return next week to critique Days of Our Lives’ shenanigans. While I really enjoyed Thursday’s episode with Belle taking down Jan, and EJ confessing his Clyde secret to Chad (Billy Flynn’s been on fire showcasing Chad’s grief), the rest of the week really just highlighted how terrible the characters we’re supposed to root for have been made to look. Let’s get to it…

Criminal Mastermind

Not that it takes much, but the police department is pretty inept if Jan did in fact get the code to their top-secret files, or whatever convoluted thing Orpheus is after. Jan’s confusion over which were upper and which were lower case letters in the code, plus the smiley face, didn’t exactly instill confidence. But if it is valid, how exactly did she get it? Does Shawn just have it lying around the house? And when did she get it? Did I miss it or did it happen offscreen the same time Sarah pulled a knife on Victor?

Belle whacking the bane of her existence with an oar appears to be the last we’ll see of Jan. Hopefully, this vanquishing will stick and we’ll never see her again because everything about her character is insulting. And while it’s understandable Belle doesn’t want to be the mother to Jan Spears’ baby, it’s tough to watch her wallow in her feelings of betrayal when Shawn hasn’t had one scene processing his rape. Which leads me to wonder, what will become of the baby when the truth about his paternity comes out? Also, will Belle be the next one to end up pregnant with a big ole paternity question mark attached?

Hypocrite

Any sympathy garnered for Nancy in the Craig/Leo debacle has been erased. Her defense of Clyde, a man she just met and who has done absolutely nothing worthy of her insta-loyalty, is outrageous. Not only does she not have the basis to declare “my Clyde is not a murderer,” it makes her a total hypocrite. By no means am I defending Leo, but why can Clyde supposedly change in her eyes, but it was out of the question to believe the same of Leo?

Speaking of Clyde, he and Ben should not have such a good relationship. Ben should never have let a child abuser live with him, his wife and his baby in the first place. It’s one thing for Ben to form what should always be a strained relationship with him, but quite another for him to have a loving send-off with the man who raped his sister.

Too Many Free Passes

But then again, Ben gets the same treatment. I’m all for him being redeemed, and I even buy it, until things like Marlena telling him he has every right to grieve Abigail happen. Yes, he’s allowed to have feelings about her murder, and yes, he’s turned his life around, but no, he should not get a pass, especially from his victims.

I enjoy Marlena and Ben’s dynamic, but, along with Jan, Dr. Evans should not help, befriend or become godparents to the children of the people who actively hurt her family. Ben killed her beloved grandson (who has since been resurrected) and Jan has tormented her daughter for decades, yet she agreed to treat them both. And don’t get me started on Ben’s actual victim, Will, being BFFs with him. Ben should always have more detractors than just Chad and Abigail.

Forecast: Hurricane Sami

Then there’s Lucas, who is just so hard to watch. He and Sami were super fun when they started their affair. But now, he has zero rooting value. Not to mention, it makes Sami look like a fool, which she’s not, for so easily being duped by him. Though, her current claims of love for Lucas ring about as true to me as Ben and Ciara do as parents.

Lucas could have just set EJ up for kidnapping Sami, without being the actual culprit. That way, we would have gotten the same drama surrounding betrayal, without completely sabotaging Lucas’ character. As it stands, I hope when she does find out, Sami unleashes the full force of her wrath on him.

The Silver Lining

Ben and Ciara were the latest characters to leave Salem this week. And the biggest problem with that is that their absence really won’t have any impact. Their storylines have been so isolated and sporadic that there will be no ripple effect.

Actually, that’s a problem with most of the characters on the canvas. I mean, when’s the last time we saw Gabi and Li? How is Nicole and Rafe’s marriage going? What about Brady and Chloe’s reunion? Is Sarah getting help for her issues? Is Sami planning her wedding?

According to Soap Opera Digest, Sami is leaving again next week. With the truth about Lucas kidnapping her, and Belle and EJ sleeping together about to be exposed, there will be very little payoff if she learns the truth and then just leaves town. Where’s the fun in that?

Hopefully, going forward, Days of Our Lives will actually invest in stories for the actors and characters they do have and not try to fill all the goings with too many comings. Because a little more nuance and depth could actually help sell all the things I just complained about.

That’s all I got this time around. How about you? Share your thoughts on the week in Salem below!

Love is currently a bit of a mess in Salem. Find out how it’s going for the couples in Genoa City with our Young and Restless romance report in our photo gallery.