Has Days of Our Lives Finally Given US a *Real* Death and a Surprise Pairing We Didn’t See Coming?
Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI, Peacock screenshot (2)
Bo and Hope’s return took center stage this week as it also seemed to take off at break-neck speed. So why does it feel like it’s falling flat? Things fared a bit better back in Salem, at least, as we got new pairings, twists and feuds.
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Mixed Up Messages?
After getting little more than a trickle of the Megan storyline for weeks, we were suddenly treated with a flood, and the change was almost jarring. It’s like we’re rushing to a resolution within days of finally getting into the story. I guess that’s how it would have gone down if this were Beyond Salem, but there’s no reason why this had to stay written that way once it was moved to the main show.
My musing last week about that “almost a decade” line of Dr. Rolf’s was pointless. As folks pointed out, with the time jump, Bo would have been in that chamber for seven years. Of course, on Monday, Marlena tried to find out from Rolf who was in that chamber for over a decade. Which… what? Still, none of that mattered. I was ninety-nine percent sure it didn’t, but I was really hoping for a big twist — a surprise return outside of Bo.
Well, at least someone’s surprised in this story.
Credit: Peacock screenshot
But there wasn’t some secret grand scheme we just weren’t seeing yet. It was Bo in that chamber and time is irrelevant because Megan’s big plot involved turning her and Bo into teenagers again. Or not.
Miranda Wilson said that it wasn’t meant to be literal, the serum would just make them feel like teenagers again so they could fall back in love. And maybe that’s what she got out of — maybe that’s even what the story is sometimes — but when Dr. Rolf was admiring the test rat’s “shining fur and sparkling eyes,” those are literal hallmarks of de-aging mice. That’s something scientists actually can do in real life. (I’m fascinated by the science of stopping and reversing aging, so I follow these studies a lot.)
So who knows what’s actually supposed to be going on. And then there’s Bo’s brainwashing. At first it seemed like Megan and Rolf had brainwashed him to obey her, then it seemed like they just wiped out his love for Hope and he was hanging around for… loyalty? Did they also wipe out the bad things Megan did her first time around? Was he that grateful to her for resurrecting him? Eh, who knows? He was brainwashed some way, he’s there, that’s that.
The long and the short is that everything just seems muddied.
But Why?
What I do know is that something as theoretically big as the “Bope” return should have me excited to tune in every day to find out what’s happening next… and I’m not. I’m mostly wondering what the point of a lot of this is. Ben and Ciara aren’t sticking around, so… congrats on the pregnancy of the kid that’s going to be born off-screen? Hope and Harris are getting all flirty, but she’s about to meet Bo again — I have a feeling, soon — so why bother pretending there’s additional romantic tension there?
Don’t worry John, my first instinct on seeing a strange pod sitting next to me is to pull a gun on it too.
Credit: Peacock screenshot
No one’s invested in Harris or remembered who he was until this past July. Unless — and I say this as a very remote possibility — unless Hope decides even after Bo returns that she wants to try something with Harris and the two leave Bo behind to restart life in Salem. I have more of a feeling that Harris is the one who’s going to be left to do that.
Even Kayla seeing Bo alive and John spotting Doc in her chamber didn’t have the impact they should have for me.
One thing I am enjoying is Wilson’s barely-clinging-to-reality take on Megan. I know her type of villainy isn’t for everyone and while I’m underwhelmed by her de-aging plot, I think she’s as close to Stefano levels of villainy as we’ve gotten in ages. And I almost felt sorry for her on Friday practically begging Bo to let her try to re-start their love. There are people out there who’ve never been able to get over their first love. She’s just taking it to extremes because it’s clear that she lives in her own fantasy world.
“Why can’t I shake the feeling that Megan’s nuttier than a can of almonds?”
Credit: Peacock screenshot
At this point, as much as it seems like the end is rushing towards us after months of dragging along, I’m ready to just get to everyone’s return and find out who’s staying and who’s going. Like Kate. I don’t want Lauren Koslow to leave, but it would be nice if there were some real consequences to this story. If long-vanished characters end up coming back just for this story only to leave Salem after it, and everyone who was supposed to have died didn’t, then we’re going to end up exactly where we started. I might just throw my hands up at that point.
Meanwhile, In Salem…
Just when I was starting to wonder where Kristen was, she’s back! And has already screwed things up for Chloe. Well, Chloe kind of did that herself… but can any of us really blame her for losing her cool over Rachel? That kid has just been a nightmare. It would be interesting if she really did end up growing up to be like her mom. But yeah, with no one having actually died from Kristen’s meddling, I’m sure, per the Salem rule of law, she’ll be out of prison before we know it.
I still don’t buy that she won’t end up winning Brady back over. Leo’s column is going to cause serious trouble for Chloe and Brady is Brady.
Sloan is rapidly becoming one of my favorite characters. Just when it felt like she’s being petty and cruel, she had that complete breakdown with Eric after losing her case. She knows who she is and she knows how people see her. Those lines about how everyone thinks she deserves whatever happens to her while Paulina and Chanel get away with murder and destroying her life because “they’re cute and cuddly and fun and everyone loves them” really hit the core of who she is.
“I can’t believe you won’t just say that I’m the best sex you’ve ever had, Eric!”
Credit: Peacock screenshot
I don’t ever want her rough edges sanded off. They make sense, given what’s happened and I like that she, for the most part, embraces them even as she understands that others may not. Also, who ransacked Paulina’s office? It wasn’t Sloan, that much is obvious.
I’m also enjoying Gwen and Alex together more than I thought I would. They’re having fun and with Alex rapidly blowing things with Maggie at Titan, I can see him turning to scheming with Gwen to get everything back. That would be an interesting wrinkle if he and Xander effectively switch places in the family. Alex would become the black sheep while Xander finally pulled his life together and became respectable. If they don’t kill each other first.
Stray Thoughts…
• There’s no world in which I see Stefan actually trusting Nicole and EJ with this plan to get him and Gabi together. But sure, let’s go with it.
• I’ll hand it to Li, he knows exactly what to dangle in front of Gabi to get her interest. But unless they start fleshing him out a bit more, I can’t root for him in this.
• Sometimes Megan’s lack of touch with reality is just hilarious, like talking to Bo after he read about his own brainwashing. “That file has made you very negative and oppositional.” You think?
• I enjoyed Chad’s talk with Abe and the fatherly advice he got. It felt like more than just characters rehashing plot and was just a sweet moment.
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Things change fast in Salem — and beyond! — so catch up with where all the show’s pairings are with our updated Days of Our Lives couples photo gallery.
