Holy Crap! Did We Just Figure Out the *Real* Reason Vinny Might Have Switched Those Test Results? Plus, Why Hope Needs to Run, Not Walk, Away From Liam

Credit: Howard Wise/JPI (4)

The results of Steffy’s paternity test led to big drama in this week’s episodes of The Bold and the Beautiful… not that most viewers believed for a second that they were accurate. In fact, some pretty impossible-to-miss clues as to who might have switched the results were dropped this week, and a light-bulb moment has me connecting some dots that may or may not actually exist. Ready to dive in? Let’s do this thing! 

I See You, Vinny!

If there’s one thing Bold & Beautiful isn’t, it’s subtle. So I joined the rest of you in sitting up and taking notice when Vinny popped up again to become Thomas’ talk-to where Steffy’s baby is concerned. Anvils began dropping left (“You know there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, buddy”) and right (“This is what you wanted, right?”), and that was before Vinny started talking about his new job.

“Lemme do you another solid, Thomas: Ditch the Gilbert Grape outfit and facial fuzz.”

Credit: Howard Wise/JPI

You know, the job that is a drag because it’s long hours and requires him to check in and, in case you didn’t notice, has him suddenly casually carrying around what looks an awful lot like the kind of white lab jacket folks in hospitals wear.

Oh, Brother!

The more I thought about the possibility of Vinny switching the test results, the more ludicrous it seemed to me… until suddenly, the worm in the bottle of my tequila bottle raised an interesting question: “Have we ever seen Finn and Vinny together?”

More: How we know Vinny switched those tests

For a moment, I thought my liquor-soaked pal must be drunk. Did he somehow think there was a Clark Kent/Superman thing going on? But no, it was something far more insidious… and, now that I think about it, kinda brilliant.

What if Finn and Vinny are brothers? Not bros, like Vinny and Thomas, but honest-to-goodness siblings. The kind with a major grudge which would cause Vinny to kill two birds with one stone by giving best bud Thomas a shot at happiness with Hope while screwing up brother Finn’s love life by keeping Liam firmly planted in it.

Now that you mention it, we do see the family resemblance!

Credit: Howard Wise/JPI; Jill Johnson/JPI

I’m gonna let you stew on that theory (and the above photo) for a while as we talk about a few other things…

Reality Bites

My favorite thing this week was seeing Hope and Finn deal with the fact that Liam fathered Steffy’s baby. Building up to the reveal, both Hope and Finn had decided that no matter what, they’d stand by their respective partners. That as much as anything should have clued viewers in to whose name would be listed under “Daddy” on those results.

Apparently, apologies are Liam’s love language.

Credit: Howard Wise/JPI

But as often happens in real life, there’s a big difference between thinking you can accept something and actually having to. The moment the doctor shared the news, Hope pulled away from Liam, both literally (dropping the hand she’d been tentatively holding) and metaphorically. Annika Noelle beautifully captured Hope’s world crumbling as she collapsed to the floor, tired of fighting a never-ending battle against Liam’s pull toward her rival.

More: Why we have a love/hate relationship with Liam

At the same time, Finn’s whole “stand by your woman” act fell to the wayside as he let himself admit to being hurt, angry, even disappointed in Steffy. Sure, he’d talked a good game about them being a family no matter what the results showed, but the reality proved a more bitter pill than he was prepared to easily swallow.

Words, Words, Words

For their parts, Liam and Steffy… well, they spoke a whole lotta nonsense. I almost laughed aloud when Steffy insisted to Finn, “You showed me there’s life after Liam.” He most certainly did, and yet that didn’t stop you from falling into bed with your ex.

More: Star shares anxieties about turning 50

For his part, Liam gave the same speech he’s delivered to Hope a thousand times over the years, but the words rang particularly hollow… especially when he tried to make it sound as if dealing with his infidelities was what made them a stronger couple. “This is what we do best,” he claimed. “We take the hit, and we get back up again. It’s our talent.”

No, seriously. He really said that.

Since Liam is big on repeating his empty apologies, I’m going to repeat myself, too: Run, Hope. Get away from this guy while the gettin’ is good.

Random Thoughts

• Doesn’t it seem odd that a vegan like Liam would live in a cabin with antlers on the wall? You’d think since the landlady is his mother-in-law, she’d be cool with him taking them down.

• It was kinda cool having Bridget just casually swing by for a visit. Even better? When she walked into her mom’s house, she jumped right into the conversation about Steffy’s baby. Nobody had to catch her up, making it clear that — as would happen in real life — she’d been communicating with her family and keeping up on recent events.

Hey, if Bold & Beautiful needs ideas as to Carter’s next story, might we suggest revisiting this never-fully-explored triangle?

Credit: John Paschal/JPI

• I’m totally loving Angry Carter. He has every reason to be upset with both Zende and Zoe. My fear is that they haven’t really given him an alternative in the romance department. Assuming he’s done with Zoe — which he should be — does he simply go back to crunching numbers? Hopefully, there’s more to the story than is apparent right now.

More: The Bold & Beautiful affair we’re dying to see

• We got more of Bill telling anyone who’d listen that he loves Katie and is a changed man… but we still got no insight into what makes him more worthy of her now than he was when they broke up. And if they do get back together, what next? This feels like a been there, done that story that has no real drama or payoff. What’s standing between them? Nothing, really. What comes after they reconnect? Likely more time on the back burner since this show has never really known what to do with a couple between when they get together and when they next break up. (Doubt the veracity of that statement? Ask Brooke and Ridge… or Wyatt and Flo… or Eric and Quinn… )

That’s my take on this week’s episodes, now visit the comment section to share yours. And since we’ve been talking about characters and couples who’ve been pushed out of the spotlight, why not take a look at the photo gallery below in which we list a bunch of familiar Bold & Beautiful faces we’d love to see back on our screens.