Rating February Sweeps: The Hottest Plots, Best Couples, Silliest Twists and Biggest Shocks to Rock All Four Soaps — Plus, Previews and Predictions of What Will Happen Next
See if you agree with our assessment of what worked… and what really, really didn’t.
The past few weeks saw big plots take center stage on the soaps as they competed for eyeballs during the all-important February sweeps. But it’s safe to say that some proved far more successful than others… both in our estimation and that of the thousands of you who’ve been weighing in on our various social media platforms. So get ready, because we’re about to look at the good, the bad and the what-the-actual-heck moments which unfolded during sweeps.
“Wait,” you’re saying to yourself right this very second. “It’s the second week of March… why are you only now grading February sweeps?” Well, you may recall that things got thrown out of whack when three of the four shows were bumped off the airwaves for a week thanks to the impeachment hearings. With that in mind, we included the first week of March in our “grading period.”
Check out our take on what went down during sweeps, then be sure to hit the comments to share your highs, lows and general thoughts on how the soaps are doing.
The Bold and the Beautiful
The big plot points: Steffy had a paternity test, but Thomas began to suspect his pal Vinny had meddled with the results. Thanks to Ridge, Carter had his eyes opened to the fact that he might not be the only guy Zoe was interested in. Flo was forgiven by the Logan sisters, and Bill begged Katie to take him back.
What worked: Nobody can accuse the show of having dragged its feet where the test results were concerned, with Thomas starting to get suspicious about two minutes after the life-altering news was delivered to his sister. Lawrence Saint-Victor reminded us of just how good an actor he is when Carter unleashed his anger on Zoe, and of course it’s always great to see more of the woefully underused Don Diamont (Bill) and Heather Tom (Katie).
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What didn’t work: Pacing on this show continues to be a major issue, with characters having the same repetitive conversations day after day. Worse, most episodes failed to have a secondary story, meaning that when Steffy, Liam, Hope and Finn weren’t hashing out their situation, we’d cut to others talking about the foursome’s conundrum.
What’s next: Not surprisingly, more baby drama… all leading to a shocking twist later this week. Plus, Carter and Zoe’s relationship could be headed for the point of no return.
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What we hope is next: With Jacqueline Macinnes Wood’s maternity leave rapidly approaching, this would be a great time for the soap to tell a few stories that don’t revolve around Steffy, Liam, Hope and Finn. There are a whole lotta characters sitting on the sidelines who deserve a little time in the spotlight. Heck, since we’re putting together a wish list, maybe it’s time for Carter to prove Zoe’s not the only woman on the planet by finding out what Maya’s been up to on the backburner!
Days of Our Lives
The big plot points: Everyone in town threatened Charlie, who turned up dead… just as Sami returned and became the prime suspect in his murder. Kristen pulled a prison-swap with Susan in order to keep Chloe away from Brady. Gabi and Abigail kidnapped mutual enemy Gwen. Steve and Kayla re-tied the knot. Lani and Eli got their kidnapped babies back. Ben searched for Ciara, who was now being held by a vengeance-seeking Evan.
What worked: Days of Our Lives took a “more is better” approach, throwing something for everyone into the blender. The “Who killed Charlie?” story is an old-fashioned whodunit which was beautifully set up. Kristen’s switcheroo didn’t make a heck of a lot of sense, but allowed portrayer Stacy Haiduk to pull out all the stops. Ben and Ciara connecting in dreams was either uber-romantic or super silly, depending on your tolerance for that sort of thing.
More: Did one of these people kill Charlie?
What didn’t work: The kidnapping of Lani and Eli’s twins went absolutely nowhere, and as much as we love Linda Dano, she was terribly miscast as Vivian. And don’t get us started on the decision to kill off a legacy character like Laura in so random and relatively inconsequential a manner.
What’s next: We’re quickly approaching Xander and Sarah’s wedding day, although look for a Rex-sized roadblock to throw a wrench into things. Ciara will soon be reunited with her friends and loved ones, and new suspects will emerge as the search for Charlie’s killer continues.
More: What the heck is going on with Sami?
What we hope is next: Given that we’re likely to spend the next few months digging into the circumstances surrounding Charlie’s death, fingers crossed the solution proves worthy of the time investment. Meanwhile, we will watch literally anything involving Jackée Harry’s Paulina, and kinda really need for Days to address the whole Hope situation once her daughter’s back home.
General Hospital
The big plot points: The double wedding went to hell in a handbasket when Peter’s sins were exposed. Nina discovered the circumstances surrounding daughter Nelle’s death. Franco’s tumor showed no signs of shrinking. Cyrus continued to exert his influence.
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What worked: The double-wedding paid off in a big way, with revelations galore and fallout that promises to rock the canvas for quite some time. It’s also been fun to see Maurice Benard’s Sonny plopped down in an entirely new environment.
What didn’t work: At this point, it’s becoming something of a running joke that Peter hasn’t yet been killed off. Meanwhile, the show’s biggest problem continues to be that with so many plots unfolding, there are often major pacing issues. Cyrus was introduced as a big bad but hasn’t really done much since the bombing back in November, and Sonny needs more to do (and a potential new love interest) in order to keep us invested.
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What’s next: One of the things that has helped make General Hospital must-see TV is just how few spoilers the show releases each week. While other shows put out videos giving away practically every twist (we’re lookin’ at you, Days of Our Lives), this one has fine-tuned the art of the tease. That said, Finn and Jackie will have to deal with the results of the paternity test he ran on Chase, while Maxie finds herself having to make a few big decisions about not only her future but that of her new child.
What we hope is next: It’s time for the writers to you-know-what or get off the pot where Jason and Sam are concerned. Let’s send the characters their separate ways and into new relationships, even if only as a temporary move so they can realize how much they love one another and reunite. Meanwhile, how awesome would it be if Brenda were to wander into the Tan-O and discover an amnesia-ridden Sonny?
The Young and the Restless
The big plot points: Kyle found out he’s the biological father of Ashland Locke’s supposed son, Harrison. Jack and Sally began dating. Victoria seemed to maybe want Billy back. A picture of Adam kissing Sharon had Chelsea seeing red and Rey questioning the state of his new marriage. Abby decided to have a baby with the help of Mariah and Devon. Elena slept with Devon and admitted to Nate she still had feelings for her ex.
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What worked: Adam and Sharon’s inability to stay away from one another was as maddening as it was intriguing, and it certainly caused big drama for those around them. Special kudos to Melissa Claire Egan who did more with her eyes than many actors can their whole bodies while portraying Chelsea as trapped within her own all-too-mortal coil. Given that many fans felt as if they’d never gotten closure where Devon and Elena’s relationship was concerned, playing that the characters felt the same way really resonated.
What didn’t work: Pretty much everything about Abby’s baby story has missed the mark despite solid performances from everyone involved. The seeming re-emergence of Victoria’s feelings for Billy came out of nowhere, while several promising stories — including the conflict between Amanda and her biological family — got virtually no play. As for Jack and Sally’s relationship… yeah, the less said the better.
More: The love story we’re telling for Victoria continues
What’s next: We’re extremely excited about the arrival of Richard Burgi’s Ashland Locke, a character with the potential to truly shake up the canvas. Meanwhile, Victor and Adam will once again join forces in the hope of bringing Billy to his knees, and Devon may have to make a big decision regarding his romantic future.
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What we hope happens next: With Victor and Nikki having been backburnered for far too long, we want to see Ashland try and steal both Newman Enterprises and the former stripper out from under The Mustache. Meanwhile, the darker Chelsea goes, the more we like it. And sorry, but we’re really hoping that someone manages to talk some sense into Abby and she just gives up the whole idea of having a baby… let alone one fathered by Devon!
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Now that you’ve had a hot minute to process our thoughts on how the soaps handled February sweeps, take a moment to reflect on what went down in Port Charles, Salem, Genoa City and Los Angeles over the past few weeks. What did you love? What did you hate? What are you hoping will happen next? Let’s hear your take in the comment section below. Then, just for fun, check out the below gallery from last year in which we made predictions about what might happen on the soaps in 2021. See what we got right… and what we missed by a mile, at least so far!
