The Bored and the Rest of Us

This past week on The Young and the Restless, several characters made life-altering decisions for seemingly no other reason than wanting to make a change in their (suddenly) mundane lives. Join our Two Scoops columnist as he discusses the impact their decisions had on the rest of Genoa City -- and what the fallout could mean for the future of B&R -- er, Y&R! Whether you consider yourself to be a bored troublemaker or part of "the rest of us" that are usually left to manage all the manifested drama, this column is for you!

We all know one of those people -- someone who is so bored with their own life that they go out of their way to create drama for themselves or others. These types of people certainly do tend to keep life interesting (to say the least), but as some of our favorite Y&R characters learned this past week, it's no fun to be caught in the fallout of someone else's drama!

Take Chloe, for example. How many times is she going to suddenly change careers and leave Chelsea and/or Sally in the lurch? I feel like we are seeing the same story play out between these three ladies over and over again every few months as Chloe bounces back and forth between choosing which of her two besties she wants as her business partner.

Now that Chloe has decided to leave designing at Marchetti behind her (and in Chelsea and Summer's capable hands), I'm sure it is only a matter of time before she will be asking Sally if she can team up with Sally again and work at her new interior design company. She certainly made it sound like that is what she wanted to do when she rubbed it in Chelsea's face how much fun it was bouncing ideas off of Sally when she joined her on her first interior designing gig at Daniel's penthouse.

Ouch! The look on Chelsea's face certainly showed that she was jealous of Sally and Chloe's friendship and professional compatibility. Although Chelsea has lost Chloe as a business partner, I hope she doesn't also lose her as a friend, because I do enjoy their scenes together. I would also like to see Chelsea and Summer continue to form a bond because both of them could use a good friend to lean on (especially if Chloe will be spending more time with Sally).

Speaking of Summer, she has seemingly decided to go after Chance, regardless of his relationship status with Sharon. I guess she is finding herself bored romantically, since her marriage to Kyle doesn't seem to be getting back on track. By the way, have they officially divorced yet? I don't think so, but I digress...

I am not sure how I feel about a potential Chance/Summer pairing just yet. Part of me thinks it will be a snoozefest, but part of me also thinks they could be an entertaining pair if their story is told well enough. I think the chemistry is there, but I am not sure because we haven't really seen a lot of them together lately. In fact, we've hardly seen Chance at all. Sharon is usually working at the coffee shop, playing grandmother to Tessa and Mariah's daughter (how cute were their scenes this week when Aria heard for the first time with her hearing aids?), or she is dealing with Newman drama. The point is, we've barely seen any of her romance with Chance because they so rarely feature him on the show. That makes it hard for viewers to be invested in either coupling right now, but maybe the love triangle between them will shake things up in just the right way that will make us start to care more.

Given Sharon's lackluster reaction to Chance having been shot, I think Phyllis may have been right this past week when she assured Summer she needn't be worried about the longevity of Chance and Sharon's relationship because Nick will always be Sharon's endgame when it comes down to what her heart really wants. Sure, Sharon was concerned for Chance when she heard that he was shot, but she didn't seem all too bothered about the whole situation when Nina tried to convince her to talk Chance out of working on the police force.

I get where Nina is coming from because this is the umpteenth time that Chance's life has been put in jeopardy, but I don't think she was being fair by putting Sharon on the spot like that. Sharon understands that Chance needs to make that decision by himself, and it wouldn't be appropriate for her to try to force his hand one way or the other. And while I appreciate that she understands the psychology of it all, it was her demeanor that spoke more volumes than her words or logic when she spoke with Christine and Nina. I just didn't get the sense that she is overly invested emotionally in her relationship with Chance yet.

Like Sharon, though, I wasn't very emotionally invested when I heard that Chance had been shot, either. Sure, Nina's scenes with her son were heartwarming, and it was nice to see them interacting in general again, but I feel like the writers have become lazy regarding Chance's character. It seems like they don't know what to do with him. His life being in jeopardy is becoming a bit of a tired trope at this point -- especially since this time, it was nothing more than a rushed plot point that served only to make Summer realize she is starting to have real feelings for Chance (and to make Sharon a little jealous).

There are a number of different ways the writers could have led Summer to that conclusion about her feelings for Chance without having put his life in danger yet again. If they want viewers to be more invested in this couple, then they are going to have to do more than cheap tricks to make us get there. Sure, Summer and Chance had a lot of sweet scenes together earlier this year throughout Phyllis' legal woes, but we haven't seen a whole lot of them together since then. It would have been better to see that tension build and see them unintentionally fall for each other more naturally over time.

Now that Sharon seems to understand Summer's intentions toward Chance, it will be interesting to see whether or not she fights to keep him for herself or if she decides to call it quits before things get too messy. At this point, I'm not sure whether I'm Team Sharon or Team Summer when it comes to who should "win" Chance's heart. Hopefully the writers can do something soon to make one of these couples more interesting so that viewers have a couple they care about and want to root for in this triangle.

There is a similar storyline issue for me right now with the Lily/Daniel/Heather triangle that has been simmering. As a longtime viewer who saw Lily and Daniel's teen love story back in the day, I am rooting for them to make things work now that they have found their way back to each other. Daniel and Heather are fine as a couple, but I'm just not invested in them the same way.

In my opinion, it would have been far more interesting for the writers to have played on Heather's history with Adam and set up a triangle with him and Sally. It would have been interesting to have seen Adam finally try to start moving on from Sally with Heather just as Sally began to show interest in him again. Come to think of it, since Adam and Sally aren't officially a couple again, I guess that a triangle with Heather could still have some potential, but at this point, I would be okay with the writers just letting Adam and Sally be happy together for a while. After all, Adam and Sally fans have been tortured enough already!

I'm guess I'm just still shocked that the writers haven't had Heather bump into Adam even once in all the time she has been popping in and out of town. I was a big fan of Heather and Adam as a couple when they were first together, so I have been anticipating seeing them interact again all these years later. I keep wondering why the writers haven't tapped into that potential drama yet. I just want to know if Heather still holds a grudge after Adam cheated on her with his lawyer, Rafe, or if she has let go of her animosity and they are able to at least be friendly toward one another. Are the writers afraid to remind viewers that Adam slept with a man and that is why they are keeping Heather out of his orbit? Whatever the reason, I'm irritated more and more by it the longer they refuse to address their past relationship in general. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we at least get one awkward Heather/Adam/Sally scene soon!

But Heather works well (sort of) as a thorn in the side of Daniel and Lily's romantic reunion, so I get why the writers have chosen to primarily use her in that storyline for now. I just can't tell if the writers want us to root for Heather or for Lily. It should be Lily, right? Or are there some diehard Heather and Daniel fans out there that I'm unaware of? In my opinion, the drama seems a little forced between this trio, but I think I see what the writers are going for, and I'm willing to see where they take us with them.

Daniel might be a little too bored and comfortable with Lily already (or is afraid of becoming too bored and comfortable with her) because at times, it seems like he is the only one creating the drama between them all. The two women have actually been nothing but polite and cordial to one another, but Daniel is always bringing up Heather to Lily and trying to make sure she is okay with Heather being around more (much to Lily's chagrin).

Overall, I think that Lily is understanding of why Heather is still a major part of Daniel's life. Even though she is not Lucy's mother, Heather raised Lucy as her own daughter while she was married to Daniel, and the two of them formed a strong mother/daughter bond. However, even though Lily understands this and assures Daniel she is not bothered by it, you can see on Lily's face (and sometimes hear it in her tone of voice) that she is uncomfortable with their familial bond. I think that is why Daniel is constantly checking in with Lily -- because he can see the concern on her face and hear it in her voice, even though she continues to insist that everything is fine. This could cause some real problems for them in the near future, but I hope it is a hurdle that they can ultimately overcome.

In the meantime, there's another new love triangle that seems to be on the horizon -- yes, I'm talking about Phyllis, Danny, and Christine. I can't say for sure what is brewing between these three, but it certainly feels like we are headed for another triangle with them (is it the 90s again?)! But I don't really get the impression that Phyllis or Danny has romantic feelings for one another (at least not yet), so that is where I get a little lost with the direction of the potential storyline. For now, their interactions seem to be spontaneous and inspired by boredom more so than by desire or longing for one another. I'm not necessarily opposed to them teasing us with a little Christine/Phyllis rivalry again for the sake of nostalgia, but I'm not sold on whether or not it's a good idea for anything more to continue beyond that.

Danny could be a really good influence on Phyllis and act as a sort of guiding light along her current "redemption tour" as she tries to make amends for all the schemes she pulled this past year. However, I think I would prefer if he continues to provide that guidance as a friend and nothing more. A coupling between the two of them might just be a bit too bland (especially since Phyllis' storylines are typically fun and exciting -- exactly the way I like them)! The writers really need to bring someone like Malcolm back into Phyllis' life that can have fun with her and that shares the same passion for life that she does.

Admittedly, Danny and Christine can be a little on the boring side sometimes, too. But after having seen so many of their flashbacks lately and learning about how they are essentially star-crossed lovers that never got a true shot at happiness together, I feel like a reunion story for them would be a great payoff for longtime viewers that were rooting for them all those years ago. And it would make their reunion all the more sweet if Christine "won" Danny in a rivalry with Phyllis this time around, since Phyllis is the one who split them up back in the day. I am cautiously on board with this storyline for now, but I hope it's not too drawn out and that the writers ultimately find something better for Phyllis to do with her time.

At least Phyllis can be grateful she is not wrapped up in the Newman drama that unfolded on Y&R this past week! I certainly am wishing I didn't have to be wrapped up in it, either, because it's been a mess of a storyline. I was hoping that once Victor's full plan came to fruition and everyone learned the truth that it would be worth it all in the end and make a little more sense; unfortunately, his plan sounded just as stupid while he confessed everything to his family as it did when he first started mumbling about gaslighting those closest to him.

This storyline with Victor has got to be one of the most convoluted and unnecessary plots that the writers have come up with for "The Mustache" -- and that is saying a lot! I touched on this a little bit in my last column, "Tricksters and treats," but I just can't believe that Victor found himself so bored in his retirement that he concocted this ridiculous "fake dementia" scheme all out of a sense of paranoia that someone might be out to stab him in the back. And what did he ultimately prove now that it's all over? Absolutely nothing.

Sure, Victor fired Nate because he felt like it was ultimately Nate who was trying to stab him in the back and oust him from his company, but the whole argument he made against Nate was completely ludicrous given that Victor himself led Nate down the path to make the decisions Victor is now using against him! We saw Victor purposefully seek out and manipulate Nate by faking a serious medical condition that would give him an excuse to make it seem like he could only rely on Nate because of Nate's medical knowledge. Then, as soon as Nate suggested that Victor be sent to a medical facility (or as Victor referred to it -- "the loony bin"), which is a recommendation he likely would have made for any patient exhibiting the symptoms Victor had faked, Victor used that as his so-called proof that Nate was trying to get rid of him. It's so maddening that all the Newmans just stood there and pretended that Nate deserved what he got as Victor laid into him.

There was never any real "gotcha" moment that Victor had against Nate -- no matter how hard Victor (or the writers) tried to convince everyone (including us viewers) that there had been one. I agree with Nick that Victor's motive at that point must have been to just use Nate as a scapegoat to try to "prove" to Nick and Victoria that Adam wasn't the real threat to the family, which (as I mentioned earlier) was such a convoluted and unnecessary way of handling the situation. There was absolutely no reason that Victor had to put everyone through all the stress and worry over his health for this! Whether you are a fan of Nate's character or not, it's hard to argue that he wasn't completely screwed over by Victor simply for providing sound medical advice based on the false information he was provided.

If you've read my previous columns, you know I am a fan of the Victoria and Nate coupling, so I am also upset that Victor's plot may result in a breakup for the two of them. I'm hoping that Nate takes Victoria's pleas for forgiveness to heart and that we can see their relationship strengthen despite Victor's underhanded tactics. I was a little irritated, though, that Victoria interrupted Nate's conversation with Devon when she spotted them together at the jazz club. She knows that Nate has been wanting to repair the relationship with his cousin, so she should have shown some restraint and waited to approach until they were done. Up to that point, it had been really nice to see Devon and Nate finally start to forgive one another and try to move past all the hurt they've caused one another.

Nate was not in such a forgiving mood when it came to Victoria, though. I get that his ego and pride are wounded after learning how Victor played him (and after assuming Victoria was siding against him), but I was surprised when he told her that he wasn't sure he wanted to salvage their relationship or his job. I'm very curious to see what the writers have planned for Nate next!

Well, that's all from me for this week, folks! Don't forget to hit the Comments (here at the bottom of my column and on Soap Central's social media posts throughout the week) to share your opinions, too.

Until next time,Vance

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