Family ties, wins, and losses

Crown prince Nick made love to his deceased brother's wife. Elsewhere in the kingdom, a journalist returned from the wars, a billionaire signed divorce papers, and Princess Victoria's son stunned the Underground crowd with his talent. Hear ye, hear ye, in this week's Two Scoops.

Good old Nick got the girl again, even if it was his deceased brother's wife. I had a big laugh during their pillow talk when Chelsea said, "Neither one of us knew where this was headed." I wanted to yell at the TV, "All us fans did!" So, no surprise there, but it does complicate life for Chelsea. Her instinct was to tell Nick the truth about Christian's paternity, but big bad Victor pointed out all the ways telling Nick could backfire and cause untold harm for both Nick and Christian.

Naturally Chelsea will have a battle with her conscience, but I doubt that she will tell the truth willingly, which I would find refreshing, but with all the writers running around like chickens with their heads cut off, worrying about job security on the soaps, most are unwilling -- or unable -- to have characters do the right thing, and I do think that telling Nick the truth is the right way to go. Then, Nick and Chelsea could honor the secret as Sage and Adam intended, since both Sage and Adam wanted Nick to be Christian's father. I don't see any reason that anyone else needs to know about Christian's true paternity until Nick and Chelsea think it's time for Christian to know the truth, and I do believe that sometime in the future, Christian should know everything about his true family ties. How refreshing it would be for Nick and Chelsea to share the secret as a couple instead of having it stand between them.

Elsewhere Devon and Hilary proved that neither could choose whom they loved and that they still loved each other, despite the fact that Devon signed the divorce papers. I still really love these two together, and while I hoped for a chance to see Mariah in a relationship with a good, caring man, which Devon is, the chemistry between Devon and Hilary is too strong to ignore. I don't see how either Devon or Hilary can ever be as happy with another as they have been with each other. Of course, the fun is in the trying, so we'll see what's next for these two.

Now that journalist Scott is back from the wars, maybe he and Mariah could strike up a relationship -- if Abby doesn't snag him first. Both Scott and Mariah are journalists in the broadest definition of the word, so they at least have that in common. Now that Scott's been fired for being ransomed, maybe he could be a correspondent for GC Buzz! I do think Scott looks a lot like modern depictions of Jesus, and I wonder if the Victator was being honest when he told Scott that he had paid the ransom because of Scott's truthful and accurate reporting. No fake news there, at least in Victor's opinion, but what favor will Victor eventually ask of Scott?

Scott will have to prove to me that he is more that a pretty face. So far, his acting is unimpressive. I hope he gets over shellshock and starts showing more than one note. Certainly Scott was shaken by his experience, but I don't believe that an adrenalin junkie, like Scott has to be in order to be a relentless war correspondent, would turn into a nervous Nellie, even after an experience as traumatic as the one that Scott suffered.

Lauren certainly showed her worrywart side. Not being a mother, I don't know whether or not Lauren's behavior is typical of parents when their children are in dire situations. I do consider my niece, who is so much like me she could be my clone, my daughter from another mother, but I don't think I would react like Lauren did if somebody asked me for a ten million-dollar ransom. I'd be a lot more calm, and I certainly wouldn't want to hop on a plane and go to the Middle East, where, logic tells me, it would just make matters worse, considering how those folks feel about women over there and considering I didn't speak the language. Maybe logic just flies out the window when your children are in jeopardy, no matter how calm, cool, and collected you are the rest of the time.

Until I read Teddi's excellent column last week, I hadn't noticed Lauren's hair. Now that I have, I see what Teddi meant. In the first scenes, with Scott, Lauren has long ringlets in the front and neck length hair in the back. By the end of Friday's episode, she also had a long ringlet in the back. Personally, I think that Lauren could do with a new "do." I think her hair would be very nice if it were all neck length, perhaps a similar cut to Chelsea and the others who have gone neck length. I don't think it would make Lauren more attractive -- nothing could do that; she's flawless still -- but it would be a change, and I like change every now and then. What do you think?

Speaking of change, our boyish Kevin had shades of gray in his hair, and his derring-do has reignited Chloe's passion for him. She loved him when he was a cat burglar, and it appears that using those same talents for law enforcement is just as big turnon for her. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Kevin were actually Bella's father? I'd love that, but with Billy and Victoria getting close again, I fear that Bella's paternity could shatter that fragile bubble. I do hope that both paternity stories -- Bella's and Christian's -- find a swift resolution.

Reed is growing on me, and Mariah gave him a kind, caring pep talk. Once Reed was on stage, I think Victoria should have ignored Cane's call instead of walking out on her son's performance. Surely, that phone call could have waited for the three minutes it took for Reed to perform his song. Again, not a parent or wealthy CEO, so I might have done the same thing in her shoes. How about some parents out there weigh in?

I was shocked to hear that Noah had ended his engagement to Marisa, because I thought that they got married last year. Anyone else confused, or is it just me? If history has been rewritten, then it's better that way. Noah can fall in love all over again. I'm glad to see him back on canvas. Both Noah and the actor who plays him are very likable, and soaps need younger actors to energize the stories. Even an old fart like me enjoys fresh young faces!

Noah has provided support for his mother, Sharon, when she needed it most, though Sharon seems to be coping very well at the moment, if her chat with Faith about freedom and independence is any indication. I could relate to Sharon's talk to her daughter about being able to be happy even when alone. I've been completely independent for the last 25 years, and I cannot imagine a situation where I would willingly change that. I do whatever I want to when I want to without having to be concerned about anyone's comfort but my own, and it's very addicting.

I haven't given up the idea of a great romance, but at this stage of my life, it would have to be the mother of all romances -- Victor and Nikki times ten -- and I would have to be so besotted that I became more of a puppy than Ravi has become for Ashley.

One thing I really did admire about Sharon was how she could clean the Crimson Lights counter in that super white sweater with those long floppy sleeves and not get a speck of dirt or water on it. I also wondered what part of "Witness protection" she didn't understand as she begged Kevin to phone Dylan for one "last" chat. I guess it's a good thing she's so independent now!

I like Cane, I really do, but sometimes he is such a big dumb lug, so it's crystal clear why Victoria has to be in charge of him -- ditto for Billy. After all Cane's practice with Japanese customs, he still could not resist a bro hug with an almost complete stranger. In all the years I was in business, I don't ever remember the desire to embrace customers, unless they were already close friends. Cane's impulsiveness got him into trouble, but his willingness to grovel got him out. If his impulsiveness gets him into trouble with his interpreter, I'd be surprised if any amount of groveling will get him out of trouble with Lily.

It doesn't look like papa Colin is going to squirm out of his problems with Jill, either. Jill seems more than willing to cut family ties after Colin ripped her off and then paid her back with her own inheritance! What a guy! A cautionary tale for any of us old romantics who still hope for Prince Charming, or even a loving frog. After watching Jill's heartbreak, I think I'm lucky to have a cantankerous cat that is "im-purr-vious" to just about everything, except the dinner bell.

Join me in two weeks for the next Soap-aholics meeting. Our speaker is Scott Grainger, who will preview his latest news article, "How it feels to be kidnapped twice in one lifetime -- Is third time the charm? As always, imaginary friends are acknowledged freely.

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