Let it now and forever be known that Jake truly is the Danny DeVito twin. Not only did he not grow up in the lap of luxury, but his final act on this earth will be for a mad scientist to remove his heart -- with permission from his sister -- and transplant it into Stefan.
Marsha Brady has nothing on Jake DiMera.
But I love this twist. Sure, it's ridiculous that Rolf kept a heart-less Stefan alive for four years (has it really been four years?!?) on autopilot life support machines. But Brandon Barash's Stefan was always the more focused character. Yes, he was diabolical at times, but at least that direction was consistent. Jake was all over the place, from T-shirts to suits and Gwen to Kate, it was all hard to follow.
I also never bought Jake and Ava. Even in her grief, I still don't buy their relationship. I am here, however, for Ava vs. E.J. Both of these cats know what the other is doing. And that beat they played where they connected over being the children of mob bosses was well done. E.J. hasn't had a true rival in Salem since Sami, and we all saw how that turned out. I wouldn't be surprised if they test Ava and E.J. in the same manner.
So, go on, Dr. Rolf. Let's get Stefan back! I know one person who will be excited to see him -- Li. For sure, he's going to be thrilled that the woman he's captivated by is about to get her one true love back. How do I know Stefan is Gabi's true love? Well, only because she goes around saying it to anyone who will listen. Gabbers found a fine time to try out the truth.
Speaking of truth, Marlena helped Sarah uncover hers. Under hypnosis, Sarah remembered that Rex came to see her that night to shoot another shot with her. She declined, but he realized that she was in no condition to go anywhere thanks to the drugs and sleeping pills. So, he put her to bed, monitored her breathing, and then left. The good doctor is her solid alibi.
Can we pause here to say how great Mar's powers are? She could get a drugged woman on sleeping pills to remember what happened that night. She got a drunk man to remember what happened that night. Think of the wonders she could work with me if I need her to help those times when I can't remember why I walked into the kitchen. "What was I in here to get again?" Anyway, moving on.
With Sarah off the list, the suspect list is narrowing to Leo or Gwen. We still need to figure out why Leo was soaking wet the night Abigail was killed. But Gwen is really the only one who has any sort of storyline weight here.
If Sarah killed Abigail, or even if Lucas had, both would have been done under the influence and without much motive. There wouldn't be any fallout from it. Gwen killing Abigail feels like there's payoff for the last several years of storytelling.
I thought I'd have a bigger problem with Rob Scott Wilson in the role of Alex. But it's been seamless for me. First, I knew it was coming. Second, Ciara and Ben got such a final send-off, that feels settled. Third, it was smart of the show to have him in scenes right away with people he didn't interact with before. Scenes with Suzanne Rogers and John Aniston are never a bad way for a new character to be introduced.
To that end, Alex feels like he's filling the old role Xander graduated from. Aunt Maggie loves him but is still able to speak some truth to him. She's not wrong that a woman who lets a man call her by the wrong name but still wants to date him might not have the best standards. I loved that moment.
Also, I adore Alex being hired on as the enforcer at DiMera! I think this is the role Xander always wanted, but Victor never came around to accepting him. With Alex, Victor is in right away. No one ever thought Sonny was ruthless enough to be the Kiriaikis CEO. Now, he doesn't have to be because Alex will do that for him. This is going to be good!
I didn't love Li making some snarky remarks about Ava having no qualifications for the job. Hardly anyone has qualifications for working at DiMera. And I don't mean to get snarky with the lovely Shin, but how exactly did he get his job? He wouldn't have to have been born into it or anything, right?
I'm glad Paulina and Johnny didn't team up to break up Allie and Chanel, mainly because I'm a Chanel fan and support her making her own decision! I did, however, love the idea of Paulina and Johnny working together. Last week, Tony mentioned that Paulina may need an assistant -- especially if she's going to run a campaign for governor. What if Johnny was her assistant...err...apprentice? If anyone can teach him how to pivot that sometimes annoying smugness to confident negotiation ability, it's the goddess Paulina!
I'll take a hard pass on mouthy-cop Jada. For sure, the thing this incompetent police force really needs right now is someone with that much of an attitude. The jury is still out on regular Jada. I love that she was confident enough to ask a man out on a date. I'm just not sure about Eric. Dating the man her boss's wife is clearly still in love with could get complicated.
Billy Flynn is doing great work. The scene where he chewed all the scenery at the Brady Pub was over the top in the best way. The scene where Chad yelled at Thomas broke my heart multiple times over. The scene where Chad confronted Sarah was chilling. The dazzling Mr. Flynn and the writers are excelling at displaying all the nuances of grief.
I chuckled out loud when Shawn declared that the paternity test would be accurate because Kayla was overseeing it. I love Kayla. But accurate tests are not her jam. Either way, Evan got his baby back, changed baby's name to Maddox, and almost instantly got kicked to the curb...err...river by Jan. She's taking the tot on the run and vows to be back to Salem again.
I think someone had to tip off Jan that Evan would be there. That list starts and ends with Orpheus. He has to still be working with her.
He took it back right away, so no harm done, but I am glad Shawn landed one zinger on Belle about never wanting the baby to be his. You gotta take that punch, Tink.
HOT
It took them way too long to remember the mask could still be in play here, but I adored Sarah and Xander in investigative mode. If John and Steve ever look to expand Black Patch, they should hire these two on as junior gumshoes. They're supportive, funny, flirty, and smart together. The Dumpster scene with Xander really wanting to use tongs was delightful. I laughed out loud at them posing in the "I'm caught" position in Gwen's room. They're threading that needle of fun without veering into ridiculous. (Which, to be fair -- when they're on a show with Rolf, that ridiculous bar is very, very high.)
NOT
I didn't feel great about Allie laying into Lucas. Did he do something bad? He sure did. But more often than not, Allie treats her mother like the trash Xander didn't want to touch with tongs. Whether or not Sami deserved it is not the point I'm arguing here. Allie seemed completely self-righteous when talking about how Lucas kept Sami from her family because Allie didn't search for her, nor does she seem to be all that eager to talk to her mother since Sami's been back. Allie's got a bad streak of Horton superiority, and now that streak is turning on one of their own!
LINE OF THE WEEK:
Xander (upon hearing Sarah's theory of how Gwen could have committed the murder): "That's a lot of premeditation."
Sarah: "Isn't Gwen kind of known for her organizational skills??"
RANDOM THOUGHTS
Aw! Is Ari nine already? Time flies!
Sarah's soap-opera-voiceover-guy voice was funny.
Xander used to be better at keeping secrets. He was Chatty McChatterson about all sorts of details of Abigail's case.
Nice to hear someone say they are bleeding money by staying at the Salem Inn.
Xander seems way more bothered by Jada than Eric does.
Shouldn't Jake have access to the Alamain fortune, as well? Or is Quinn holding all those gold coins and not sharing with his brother?
Did your mind just do a little flip, picturing Quinn, Jake's brother, off with Taylor? (Taylor looked a lot like Ava!)
Why were Gwen and Leo dressed like they were the grand marshals for the Easter parade?
Say what you will about Lucas, but he's clearly a sophisticated drunk for wanting to garnish his cocktail.
Wonders never cease! Marlena actually turned down a client!
I guess Gabi goes to the same fake-a-document shop where Rafe got Grace's birth certificate. Those Hernandez kids always know a guy!
Eric denied that he was still in love with Nicole by explaining that he just didn't want to live in this world without her in it. Got it. That's not at all the same thing. Nope. Not at all.
Finally, the news broke this week that DAYS is moving from broadcast NBC to streaming NBC -- Peacock. As a premium subscriber, I watch DAYS this way already, and I love it! It's easy from my TV or phone. It's much more mobile and easy to pause, rewind, and watch again! Also, from what we've seen on the other DAYS installments on Peacock, there's a bit more budget there. So, I'm hopeful this move is paving the successful way for a new era of soaps!
Laurisa
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