The Young And The Restless Weekly Blog!
Restless Rant
Week of September 6 – 10:
I thought this ‘short’ week of The Young and the Restless was great for a variety of reasons! As I combed back over the (three!) recaps, there was only a couple of things that irked me. I’ll start with them, and then move on to all the things that worked!
The Dull and Miscast?
You could have left Heather out of the entire Chance storyline this week and it wouldn’t have mattered. The character added nothing to the story except a number of irritating scenes with Ronan, Pomerantz, Chloe, etc. Many viewers believe Eden Riegel is miscast as Heather, and that may be the issue. In any case, I didn’t pick up an iota of real chemistry between Heather and Chance, nor did I feel any emotional pull when Chance pledged to come back to her – his parting scene with Chloe was far more powerful, as was Chloe’s reaction to him being shot. I also continued to grapple with the concept of pasty geek Owen Pomerantz being the sinister kingpin – at least this is good for a laugh!
Memory Lane.
I always love a good flashback, but the scenes with Victor shedding a tear over memories of Victoria didn’t have the desired effect on me. Maybe if he wasn’t having that same pregnant daughter arrested during her wedding at that very moment I might have been able to have a sniffle with him, but he’s meddled in his children’s lives often enough to know it always ends badly, and besides, it’s just plain mean. On a brighter note, I got a kick out of the preview of Nikki saying the ‘f’ word to Victor next week; “It didn’t work, they got married anyway. You failed!” Ouch.
Abbottmania!
You’ve gotta love the chemistry of the Abbott family. Watching Jack and Ashley spar is always terrific entertainment, throw Abby or Billy into the mix and you’ve got eye-rolling, sarcastic nirvana. The writers have done a good job of toning Abby down just enough, and I feel like she fits now.
Vance Trance.
I’m irresistibly drawn in when velvet-voiced, no-nonsense attorney Vance Abrams is on the screen for any length of time. I keep hoping they’ll beef up his airtime and get him a love interest.
Smile and Waive!
I loved it when Nikki called Judge Anderson and got the waiting period waived for Victoria to marry Billy – right as Victor was plotting to stop the nuptials! Too funny. In fact, Nikki was deliciously fierce toward Victor all week! Give her a smoothie and watch her go!
Billy versus Victor Part…
It’s funny the way jocular Billy gets Victor’s goat, like with this week’s line, “Well, two out of three ain’t bad, right Grandpa?” Cue Victor’s glower.
Big News!
I really enjoyed the scenes where Billy went to the Abbott Mansion and Chancellor Estate to break the news of his impending wedding - so much going on! From the tension fraught scenes with Jack, to the hysterical exchange with Jill who clasped her hands to her face and gasped, "She's pregnant, isn't she?" to Chloe raising her glass (in the morning) to the Annual Billy Abbott Wedding Debacle - all so good!
It's the Small Moments.
I enjoyed the scene with Phillip and Chance putting together Delia's bicycle and chatting about the years they've missed, it was simple, but heartfelt. Another small moment I liked was Kay telling Jill that Billy would remember those who didn't come to his wedding. Wise words, nice scene.
Point Blank.
It might have been partly the giddy relief of thinking the Chance storyline was wrapping up, but I'm happy to say that in spite of it being as dull as dishwater much of the way through, I enjoyed this portion of the story. The high points for me were Chloe and Chance's last scene at the Chancellor Estate (Liz Hendrickson was da' bomb this week!), Nina finding out that Ronan was not only FBI but also her son, and of course, the dramatic shooting and aftermath. Tricia Cast was brilliant as a mother reacting to her son's death! With that said, I'm not 100% convinced that Chance is dead. Remember when Chance went to confront Ronan at home about being his brother? Ronan told Chance he would tell him everything, but viewers weren't privy to their conversation. Could Ronan have told Chance he is FBI and the two have concocted a scheme to fake Chance's death in order to nail Pomerantz and Meeks? Hmm. Or maybe he's really most sincerely dead. Either way, it was a powerful way to end the week, and I'm intrigued to see what will follow. Do you think Chance is really dead? Vote in Soaps.com's Chance Snap Poll!
The Father Knows Best Wedding.
There were some really good scenes before the wedding at the house. Gloria's glitch, Phyllis's 'Desperate Housewives' narrative (odd, but something different), Billy gifting Vikki with the doorknob, Deacon chatting up Nikki about being 'alkies', Phyllis asking Deacon to be her plus one (he's so devilishly sexy!), Billy's moment with Mac, all the eye-rolling, the weirdness of Jana being maid of honor and carrying Delia around, and Nick deciding to walk his sister up the aisle. The very best parts were the unexpectedly catchy and cute scene with Rafe and Phillip having a flirt, Billy and Victoria's vows, which had me choked up for a moment regardless of any issues I've had with the story, and the 'timely' arrest. Billy standing on the curb cursing Victor after the cops took his bride was surprisingly poignant. Good stuff.
Have you missed episodes? Check out the Soap Opera Fan Y&R Weekly Summaries, and then feel free to cast your vote on our Soap Opera Fan Blog Y&R Polls.
- Candace Young
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