Credit: CBS screenshot

Young & Restless episodes that don’t feature the Newmans/Jordan storyline have become like work to get through. Something needs to change! While I’m here to give you the rundown on this week’s happenings and what’s coming up, I’ll be off next week and the hilarious Charlie Mason will fill in. Enjoy!

Taking the Bait Part I

The Phyllis/Danny/Christine triangle is dreadful, but you can’t help but be entertained by the expressions on Danny’s face when he’s dealing with Phyllis. Hysterical! Anywho, just as Phyllis put the moves on Danny yet again, Nina was across town counseling Christine to back away from him, which could play right into the redhead’s hands. I got a kick out of Christine calling Danny and asking to meet. So, instead of just backing off and disappearing, she has to announce it to him first. Too funny. The way things are going, I fully expect Phyllis to “taste Danny’s secret sauce”, or at the very least, Cricket will walk past the window of the restaurant Phyllis rents out and see them together and think that’s what’s happening. I’ll just be glad when it’s over and Danny is back on tour, which is a sad commentary on the writing choices here.

Taking the Bait Part II

The reason Audra is so wound up about Ashley is because she knows that deep down Tucker still loves her, and as Alter Ash pointed out, he won’t be able to resist her. You could already tell by his level of distraction after the kiss. How much do you wanna bet that he finds a reason to weasel out of the trip to Paris with Audra? Or, if he goes, giving Ashley and the alter a few days to battle it out, he’ll come up with a reason they have to cut the trip short and return to Genoa City. It’s a given that Alter Ashley’s diabolical plot to destroy Tucker will go full steam ahead. Question for readers: Are you enjoying this story more now that Ashley has D.I.D.?

Whiplash Twist

Seth, as predicted, has put himself directly into the line of fire between Nikki and Jordan. I honestly hope he doesn’t die right when he’s cleaned up and decided to go to rehab. How sad would that be? Notably, it says a lot that I’m this invested in Seth as opposed to the plethora of established characters I’m supposed to be invested in. Yet another sad commentary on the writing.

In related, there’s a lot of chatter about the possibility that Claire is playing the Newmans and is secretly still in cahoots with Jordan. On the surface, she’s the picture of innocence — or at least regaining the innocence that Jordan stole from her — but this is a soap, so a twist certainly isn’t out of the question. There have been some clues that could be taken as hints that she’s not on the up and up, and it is hard to believe that she’s cut through a lifetime worth of programming in the blink of an eye. It certainly would be a twist that would give the Newman family whiplash, if she were to turn on them unexpectedly. That said, she appears to be loving her new life, so there may not be anything to the speculation. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.

Odds ‘n’ Ends

While the Ashley/Tucker story has taken a turn for the better, the stories aside from ‘The Newmans vs. Jordan’ remain abysmal. The constant small talk between characters is so boring, the business stories no longer have any impact on viewers (we’re as sick and tired of the in-fighing and empty threats as Nate seems to be), and there’s a myriad of things happening offscreen. Connor’s story is offscreen, Amanda’s mother’s death was offscreen… That said, even the stuff we don’t see is totally snoozeworthy!

The preview for next week shows Chance and Summer about to get it on in a suite at the Genoa City Athletic Club. Here’s hoping some love in the afternoon somehow brings the heat between these two, because I’ve yet to see any. In related commentary, it’s interesting (not really) that they put Abby back into Chance’s orbit. The only reason I can see to bring her to Chancellor-Winters is for her to feel drawn to Corporate Chance and perhaps, down the road, cause issues for him and Summer. Thoughts?

The opinions within are my own. Please feel free to share your thoughts on Young & Restless in the comments.