Young & Restless Fans Battle It Out Over ‘Nightmare Fiasco’ Custody Storyline – But Is Devon the Real Threat?
January 3 - 7
Credit: Howard Wise/JPI
Young & Restless remains a bore but at least they threw a twist at us this week that we didn’t see coming, and Devon deciding to pursue custody of Dominic has whipped up some controversy. Keep reading for my take and the views of a few fellow fans.
Nightmare Fiasco
I desperately wanted some drama in this baby storyline, or preferably, for it to just go away. The twist we are getting, with Devon pursuing shared custody, certainly qualifies, but also brought to the forefront – once again – everything that was wrong with this storyline from the get-go. With Young & Restless viewers reacting strongly all over social media and in our Soaps message boards, I’m going to let them have the floor before explaining why I’m torn – and what I believe might actually happen.
Soaps reader Fantastic64 took to the forum to sound off and made some points to illustrate why it’s problematic:
“My objection to this offensive story from its inception has been: Devon, a childless Black man, giving away his firstborn child, to a White couple to raise, w/n a toxic family. Making Dominic the “property” of Abby and her psychologically-still-MIA husband, Chance? Very irresponsible! This whole story has been a nightmare fiasco, except for Dominic being born. He’s been a sweet blessing.
Now, ever’body is having a fit because Devon has feelings for his child! As if he stopped being human because he signed a piece of paper. Dominic is as much Devon’s child as he is Chance’s on paper, more so ’cause Devon/Dominic share a biological bond. Devon already loves Dominic, while Chance is struggling w/well, ever’thing. I’ve no sympathy for Chance. Abby would’ve never proceeded w/surrogacy if he hadn’t left that letter… JMO.”
While some are just hating on Devon for the move, as well as Amanda and other family members for encouraging it, some simply feel he’s wrong and it’s harming the character to push ahead:
I don’t think Devon is being “perfectly reasonable”. He was the donor. Yes he was a hero & He’s my favorite but he’s needs to leave it alone, Abby’s husband just got back. #yr
— Immah Thrice Vaxxed Bey So… (@Charvettebey) January 5, 2022
Some fans came to Devon’s defence by pointing out the emotional/human factors that came into play:
#YR If you think Devon is wrong for wanting shared custody, fine. But it is unfair to dismiss him as only a “sperm donor”. He has been so much more than that. He emotionally supported Abby & Mariah, delivered Dominic, and cared for him when Chanby couldn’t.
— Happy New Year from Teal! (@realtealfeel) January 6, 2022
While the show has managed to create some controversy with the storyline, which I can appreciate (having been desperate for some soapy drama), I’m torn. Knowing Devon, it never made sense for him to agree to be the donor in the first place, therefore his attachment to Dominic after all that’s gone down does make sense, and yet the story feels as much a mess as ever.
But here’s the kicker. Devon may appear to be the person who is going to shatter Abby’s dreams of the perfect happy family, but the current narrative is hinting that it might actually end up being Chance, given he’s a wild card. He’s clearly trying with everything in him to be what Abby wants and needs him to be, but his reaction to Rey’s missing persons case hinted at what he’d rather be doing. Though Devon may initiate a legal challenge, it may be Chance who ends up disappointing Abby in the end. Thoughts?
More: Y&R star’s baby girls are growing fast
Plot Pivot
When Billy decided to abandon his revenge scheme by confessing to Adam, my first impression was ‘Wow, yet another case where the writers just walked away from potential drama’. But I realized it was also intriguing in that it was unexpected, and showed some much-needed growth for Billy, who had become exhausting. It seemed to signal a pivot from Billy vs. Adam back to Victoria vs. Adam, which honestly doesn’t make a lot of sense to me at this time. They were getting along better than they ever had and she’s already bested him by taking over the crown jewel – Newman Enterprises – so why the need to cherry pick the media company? Yet, here we are, and it appears from the preview that she’ll put Victor in the middle of the situation. If he sides with Victoria over Adam and we revert to Adam being on the outs with the whole family again, it will be disappointing. Adam is a character who should always have an edge, but as with Billy’s repetitive storylines, “Adam Against the World” had become tiresome.
More: Y&R’s latest infuriating plot twist
Something to Get Off My Chest
When Sally confronted Chelsea outside Adam’s office with something to “get off her chest” I thought she was going to put her on blast, but instead she denied being after Adam. She clearly decided to heed Chloe’s advice that she’s putting her job in jeopardy and elected to go the self-preservation route, but she’s also not being entirely truthful… so that’s a ticking time bomb. At this juncture, I’m feeling pretty “Team Sally and Adam” just because Chelsea’s being so territorial and bitchy that I want things to come to a head between them.
Chloe and Chelsea both seemed threatened by Sally. They need to get over themselves.#YR
— Miss_Abby 💜 (@MissAbb37309863) January 7, 2022
More: What needs to happen to fix Y&R in 2022
This is just my opinion. Feel free to join the conversation below, but first, don’t miss seeing the latest gorgeous Young & Restless cast photos in the gallery below.
