Are the brain cells firing on all cylinders?

There has certainly been a lot of action this past week in our little town. We all hope Faith gets the help she needs. Will the bullying continue, or will someone step in and help her? Will Jordan be reprimanded for her part in bullying Faith? What does Ashland Locke have up his sleeve for Kyle? Does Kyle have good reason to worry about retaliation from Ashland because of his affair with Tara? Can Lily stop Victoria from trying to win Billy back? Will Lily be able to keep Billy in check? Our columnist explores these burning questions in this week's Two-Scoops.

Let's begin by giving a shout-out to The Young and the Restless. Over the past 48 years, The Young and the Restless characters have graced our screens and have kept us salivating for what will happen next with their storylines. Congratulations to The Young and the Restless for 48 years of great entertainment and, for an hour a day, taking us on a journey away from reality. How can I sum up all the memories from the past 48 years?

I can still recall the first day that The Young and the Restless aired as a half-hour show. It didn't take long to turn it into an hour. It all began with the Brooks and Foster families. Jill Foster was then played by Brenda Dickson. The role was later taken over by Jess Walton, who created a character that turned into a force to be reckoned with, especially her tumultuous love/hate relationship with Katherine Chancellor (Jeanne Cooper). We still feel something is missing with the loss of Jeanne Cooper. She was the heart of Y&R and a powerhouse actress.

I remember when other legacy characters were introduced, like stripper Nikki Reed (Melody Thomas Scott), who became a prominent citizen after marrying tycoon Victor Newman (Eric Braeden). Victor breezed into town and established Genoa City as the home base for Newman Enterprises. I loved the stories that were created around Nikki and Victor, and later, with their children, Nick (Joshua Morrow) and Victoria (Amelia Heinle), and Nick's wife Sharon Collins (Sharon Case). They created storylines that kept me completely engrossed and anxious to see what came next.

I found it refreshing when the Abbott family was introduced, beginning with the wonderful patriarch, John Abbott (Jerry Douglas), and his then wife Dina (Marla Adams). Together, John and Dina, with their children, Jack (Peter Berman), Ashley (Eileen Davidson), and Traci (Beth Maitland), and Traci's husband, Brad Carlton, (Don Diamont), and, of course, Billy (Jason Thompson, John and Jill's son), also added to the drama. They always left me wanting more and anxious to see the next episode. I still miss John Abbott to this day. I recall the excitement around creating Jabot and the rivalry that began between Jabot and Newman Enterprises. Those were exciting times for me.

I can't forget the epic rivalries between Victor Newman and Jack Abbott. Those always kept me on the edge of my seat. I remember the day Adam Newman (then Chris Engen, now Mark Grossman) arrived like it was yesterday. The plots between Jack and Adam to dethrone Victor were so devious. Each day, I waited in anticipation to see what would happen on my beloved soap. I adored all the masquerade balls, the other galas at the Colonnade Room, the Naked Heiress, the countless times that Nikki and Victor got married and divorced, Katherine and Murphy's wedding... I think I might have cried an ocean when Cassie and Delia died. There are too many memorable moments to mention, but I'm reasonably certain that we all have our favorite memories of special moments from the past 48 years. Congratulations to Y&R for some great entertainment.

Bill Bell created something very special, and it has lived on for 48 years. Here's hoping for 48 more!

Where to start this week? I can't recall the last time there has been so much happening with so many storylines. I guess the best place to start is with the prominent story: Faith and the crisis she is in. Faith had been doing so well after the students who'd been bullying her had been dealt with, but as soon as she received that first text message on her new phone, I cringed. I had to question how anyone got her new number so quickly to send her a text message when she'd only had the phone for about a day. My first thought was Jordan. Mom and Dad had told Faith to stay away from Jordan, but what kids do you know who listen to that advice? My immediate reaction was that Faith would have given her new number to Jordan because Jordan was the only friend Faith had. How else would anyone get the number that quickly?

After a bit, I thought I was wrong about Faith's new "boy" friend, but then I began to mellow a bit and almost started believing it was real. Then this "boy" friend said he loved her and asked Faith to tell him she loved him. And boom -- there it was, my suspicion from the beginning had been validated.

My heart broke for Faith, and I couldn't blame her for running. I just wish she hadn't run off with a bottle of tequila and a truck. This felt like a parallel of Cassie's storyline -- to a point. Cassie and Faith were the same age, and drinking and driving had been involved. Cassie had driven Daniel's car because he'd been passed out drunk in the back seat. The only difference is Faith had been the one drinking, and she crashed the truck. Now, like Cassie, she was in the hospital, fighting for her life, while Nick and Sharon stood vigil over Faith, praying that she wouldn't die. This almost felt like a recycled story, but talk about taking a huge sigh of relief when Faith opened her eyes.

I was sad to hear that Alyvia AlYn Lind is leaving the show. She has been recast with Reylynn Caster. Reylynn has some big shoes to fill, but I wish her all the best in the role of Faith. As for Aly, I wish this little one nothing but success. She is quite the talent, and she will go far.

Sharon is playing with fire. She looked Rey in the eye and told him that Adam hadn't reached out to her, when, in fact, he'd sent her two text messages. However, later at the coffeehouse, when Nick pushed Sharon for an answer, she admitted she and Adam had been in touch. A galloping horse can see where this is heading, and as we all suspected, eventually, Sharon and Adam will be reunited. They will provide the afternoon delight for those who have missed all the hugging and the kissing. So, do we really want to see this couple reunite? I, for one, don't. I've seen their past relationship, and it wasn't pretty. I don't believe it will be any better this time around if Sharon and Adam reunite.

However, there was an article where Sharon Case went public about her and Mark Grossman being a couple in real life. In the article, she explained the reason she went public about their relationship. It opens up more romance options in a COVID-19 protocol world.

Now I have a ton of questions. Are Nick, Nikki, and Victoria going to change their opinion of Adam once they discover Adam was the good Samaritan who helped Faith? Will Rey accept that Adam hadn't poisoned him and had helped Faith? What will happen to Rey when his marriage to Sharon falls apart? I think we can all see the writing on the wall for this couple.

Who will discover that Chelsea set Adam up? Wouldn't it be delicious if Nick discovered it was Chelsea who framed Adam and the added bonus that she's been faking her paralysis? I think it would be poetic justice after the way Chelsea treated Nick. I'm hoping Nick will be the one to discover her so-called foolproof plan. If that happens, I will be the first to jump out of my chair and cheer. Who am I kidding? I will cheer for whoever discovers what she's done.

I loved the looks on Nick and Rey's faces when they watched the hospital video from the night Faith had been brought in. Nick and Rey both recognized that Adam had been the good Samaritan. Rey seemed more stunned than Nick and commented that Adam knew there was a manhunt out for him, but instead of running, he stopped to help someone in need, risking everything to save Faith. Well, I guess these gents are starting to have their doubts about Adam's guilt in Rey's poisoning. In the meantime, sneaky Sharon arranged to meet with Adam.

What does Chelsea think she is doing? I know she wants to frame Adam for poisoning Rey, but does she really believe she can outsmart Victor? I feel for Chloe because she's been caught in the middle. Chelsea has become an overconfident train wreck. Until recently, Chloe had no idea that she'd helped poison Rey. In the past, Chloe wouldn't have given a second thought about helping Chelsea with anything to do with getting rid of Adam. However, since her return to town, she has reunited with her family and had a new baby. She and Adam have made peace because Chloe didn't want to take a chance on being taken away from her family.

It wasn't hard to see that Chloe innocently offered to help Chelsea, her best friend. Now that Chloe knows she almost helped Chelsea kill Rey and endangered Sharon and Faith, she has to make a huge decision. Should she remain loyal to Chelsea and suffer the consequences, or should she come clean? Given their past closeness, it is going to be a very difficult choice for Chloe to make, since she would love to see Adam suffer. However, can Chloe allow Chelsea to get away with a crime and be an accessory? When Chloe pointed out to Chelsea that Rey could have died or that Sharon or Faith could have been exposed to the poison, Chelsea shrugged it off like it didn't matter because nothing had happened.

Chloe realized she would be facing jail time as an accessory and that she risked losing Kevin and her kiddos. I feel for Chloe. She has been a very loyal friend to Chelsea, but Chelsea seems to have gone off the rails since her health crisis. Chelsea wants to destroy Adam's life, and she was completely blas about the fact that she almost killed Rey and that she'd put Sharon and Faith at risk. She continues to believe her plan is foolproof. Has she met Victor? No one gets one over on Victor. Chelsea should have learned that by now.

I think Chelsea hit her little head too hard when she fell in that elevator, and no one bothered to check that all her brain cells were connecting. I think that bump on the head has turned her psychotic. Lately, even Chelsea's smiles look evil when she talks about her plans for Adam. She reminds me of the evil witch in The Wizard of Oz who rubs her hands together and says, "I'm going to get you, my pretty." Chelsea told Chloe that Adam should have died when the cabin blew up a couple of years ago.

Let's back up. When she saw the cabin blow up, she'd been devastated, believing Adam had been killed. When he rose from the ashes, she couldn't wait to reunite with him, but now that she believes he betrayed her with Sharon, she wishes he'd died in the cabin explosion. What kind of logic is that?

Chelsea believes she has done a great job framing Adam; however, unbeknownst to her, Adam already suspects she can move because he's already seen her move her upper body. Obviously, Adam is going to retaliate in his own vicious way. He knows he is in trouble. How is was he going to get out of the mess Chelsea created for him? Well, imagine my surprise when he turned to Sharon, claiming she is the only person he can trust.

Victor. Ugh! What is the matter with this man? I have to thank one reader who responded to my last column and reminded me of all the things Victor had done to Adam. I admit, I did forget about all that at the time. From the time Adam arrived in Genoa City, he started the manipulation and revenge game. Victor then retaliated in kind. This went on for years to the point when Adam almost killed Victor. Now, Victor is fighting to bring Adam into the family fold. Has anyone noticed that when Victor talks to Victoria or Nick, he no longer refers to him as Adam but as "your brother"? He keeps throwing "your brother" in Nick and Victoria's faces every chance he gets.

Nick and Victoria are well aware Adam is their half-brother; however, they both wish they weren't related to Adam. No one can understand why Victor is fighting so hard for Adam after everything they have done to each other. I guess Victor thinks he can bully his family into accepting Adam.

The look on Victor's face was priceless when Victoria asked Victor to back out of the deal with Ashland and let her buy Cyaxares. Victor said he couldn't believe she would take advantage of Adam's misfortune. Victoria fired back that Victor had taught her that. Victor was speechless. What a way of socking it to him.

Speaking of Adam, he needs some heavy-duty therapy, especially when it comes to Sharon and this sick relationship they have. He knows Faith is fighting for her life and that Sharon is constantly at Faith's side, yet he wants Sharon to believe he didn't poison Rey and wants to meet with her because she is the only person he can trust. How selfish can he be? What happened to daddy dearest -- probably the only person who could get him out of the jam he's in?

Rey shared the hospital video with Nick from the night Faith had been brought in by the good Samaritan. As I mentioned earlier, both their jaws dropped when they recognized Adam. Even Rey had to question how Adam could have been responsible for poisoning Rey on the one hand and saving Faith's life on the other. It gets curiouser and curiouser for Rey. I doubt if Rey's attitude toward Adam will change. Rey seems to be fixated on all the evidence he found at Adam's penthouse that led to Rey being poisoned. I wonder if Rey will ever believe that Adam didn't poison him.

Uh-oh! Kyle might be in deep doo-doo if Ashland Locke is onto him. Like Kyle, I would be nervous if Ashland wanted to meet with me for a lunch date. I admire Jack for wanting to step in and protect his son, but geez, Jack, Kyle is a grown man and needs to face his own issues. If I were Ashland, and Jack turned up for my lunch date instead of Kyle, I would immediately wonder why Kyle hadn't sent a text message explaining that Jack would be there in his stead because he was out of town. Jack should have offered Kyle advice on how to handle Ashland rather than telling Kyle to avoid him.

Kyle, on the other hand, wants to step up, be a man, and assume responsibility. I am wondering who is right. Jack could probably handle Ashland much better than Kyle, but this isn't Jack's business. Kyle hasn't rounded that many corners to know how to handle Ashland. He might let something slip, and Ashland would bring his wrath down on Kyle, Summer, and the Abbott clan. So, who is right in this situation? This is one storyline where we will have to wait and see how it will play out. I'm dangling on the fence post over this one. I keep jumping from Jack to Kyle and then back again because there are too many "what if's" in this situation.

And then, there is Kyle's airhead fiance, Summer, who thinks Jack's suggestion for Kyle to leave town is a great idea, so she suggests a romantic getaway to celebrate their engagement and make some wedding plans. Is she serious? Kyle might be in the fight of his life with Ashland, but she wants to play kissy face. No surprise that Miss Airhead obviously doesn't see how precarious Kyle's situation is.

Kyle came clean with Jack about his affair with Tara, but there was no mention of the son he and Tara shared. What will Jack do when he finds out he has a grandson? Sally already knows about Harrison. I believe she will continue to nurture her relationship with Jack because of what being associated with Jack could do for her career. On the other hand, if and when Jack finds out that Kyle has a son, Sally's leverage over Kyle goes out the window, which would leave Kyle holding the information he has on Sally over her head. It will be interesting so see how this plays out.

When Ashland had been interviewing the prospective buyers for Cyaxares, he appeared to be very interested in Victoria. I wonder if there will be a connection there and whether it will blossom into something more. Now there's an interesting thought -- Victoria and Ashland, the power couple. Wouldn't that just blow wind up your skirts -- or shirts, as the case may be!

Is Victoria's plan in a joint venture between Newman Enterprises and ChancComm a real business proposition, or is it a ploy to be closer to Billy? I'm with Lily on this one. I think it's a new ploy to win Billy back. I really hope Billy will recognize that and back away from Victoria's proposal. However, as always, when Billy gets an itch, he goes in full bore, damn the consequences. At the moment, he sees an opportunity to acquire Cyaxares because the deal hasn't closed yet with Victor, and with a manhunt going on for Adam, Billy believes they have an opportunity to snatch Cyaxares away from Victor and Adam.

I understand that Billy wants the company to protect ChancComm, and it would be a feather in their cap. I don't believe he wants it to write another expos on Adam. He knows that Victor is out to destroy him and ChancComm, and that is the reason he wants Cyaxares -- at least that's my understanding of the reason Billy wants it. However, Billy has to find another approach other than being the bull in a china shop. I have to wonder if Lily, or Jack for that matter, sees that ChancComm and Billy might be in danger if the deal is finalized with Victor and Adam.

Lily did a smart thing when she asked Billy if he would have accepted Victoria's proposition for the joint venture if he had been alone with Victoria. I found it interesting that Billy didn't respond. Instead, he claimed he didn't like arguing with Lily. My guess is that Billy knew she made too much sense, and she could see right through him. I really hope Billy can actually snatch Cyaxares away from Victor and Adam.

I'm at odds about Amanda. She was furious with Devon when she discovered Devon had slept with Elena, twice recently! When Devon tried to explain, Amanda refused to talk to him on any platform to try to resolve the issue. When Devon arrived on her doorstep, she was still angry, but she agreed to talk to him after her meeting with Naya.

Okay, I get the anger. What I don't get is her sudden sweetness when she arrived at Devon's and told him she wasn't there to discuss their personal issues, but she needed his advice. Now that she needs him, and in spite of their issues, she becomes all sweet and smarmy. She told Devon about Naya's request for Amanda to defend Naya's father, Sutton Ames. Why go to Devon to talk about the dilemma she was in over Naya's request to defend Naya's father on the charge of murder of Richard, Amanda's father, rather than straighten out the issues between them first to clear the air? Amanda is in a quandary, so will she defend her biological grandfather or pass on it, and since he is her grandfather and family, should she defend him?

I personally wouldn't, but Amanda might. I think she finds the idea of belonging to a family for the first time in her life very appealing. I feel Naya is using Amanda, but I could be wrong. I just don't trust Naya. She struck me as having no backbone, and she does as she is told. If Amanda decides to defend her grandfather, it will certainly provide her with information she craved about the family that abandoned her. However, will the information she discovers give her greater insight, or will it become a deeper mystery? I also wonder about Sutton Ames. He appears to have been a powerful politician, and he apparently dictated the law within his family. Is he really innocent, or did he kill Amanda's father?

Let's talk about my least favorite storyline, "Abby and the surrogate." I admit I have a hard time watching this story because I find it silly. Abby's husband is absent, but she is determined to go ahead and create a baby without Chance. Rather than acting like a normal person who has paid a surrogate to carry their child and keeping in touch with the surrogate, Abby has to be in Mariah's face, day and night, and totally obsessed with recording every little detail daily.

Nina to the rescue -- or not. Nina suggested that Abby immerse herself into a project to keep her mind off baby things. Nina suggested that Abby help her write a screenplay. Oh, good grief! This is exchanging one obsession for another. Is this going to be a storyline similar to the one about Traci's book that showed excerpts from her book in black and white cut screens from segments of Traci's book? Abby tends to become obsessed with anything she tackles. I'm not sure Nina's personality is strong enough to keep Abby in check. Nevertheless, be prepared. We might have a screenplay coming at us, similar to Traci's book storyline.

Nina wants to base the main character on Abby. Oh, joy! Nina felt that because Abby had had so many great adventures in her life, there was a lot of fodder to work with. There was an added bonus because Abby was a Newman and an Abbott and married to a Chancellor -- three very powerful families. I can see Abby becoming completely engrossed and taking over this project. I know I'm being very skeptical about this storyline, but who knows, it might turn out to be interesting. Let's wait for that box to open and see what falls out.

Elena messed up big time. She lost the love of two great guys because of her insecurities. Elena is also in denial that the baby Mariah might be carrying is Devon and Abby's baby. She claims it's not Devon's but Abby and Chance's, and she is very happy for them. Technically, it was Devon who fertilized Abby's egg, so that would make it Devon and Abby's baby. What a mess this storyline is. Abby should have waited for Chance to return, and they maybe could have had their own baby implanted. I can see Mariah not willing to give the baby to Abby, since she is already extremely protective of it. I foresee trouble down the road.

Elena complained that Nate was busy mentoring Moses, and everyone has moved on with their lives except her. Why is she lamenting her losses, when she did this to herself? To make matters worse, when she encountered Nate and asked if they had a chance, Nate said there was no going back for them, because she wasn't over Devon -- and then the kicker... he would never fully trust her. Elena has decided to take a break from men. Good choice. Did she honestly believe Nate would take her back after she cheated on Devon with him and then cheated on Nate twice with Devon? The girl needs to give her head a shake.

I'm sure many of you have heard that that the Daytime Emmy Awards will air on June 25th. Click here for more information.

I must apologize for my verbal diatribe, but there was so much in the way of big news. The Young and the Restless is working very hard to stay exciting. Happy 48th anniversary again, Y&R!

I hope you have enjoyed my thoughts about what has been happening around our favorite town recently. I would love to read your comments and opinions, and perhaps you might like to offer up some of your own thoughts. In the meantime, it's a wrap for me. Until next time, stay safe!Nel

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