Wowzer

Since Victor and Caroline had scenes, I've been thinking about Victor's relationship with Bo and his family. Did Bo know that Victor was his father when he named Shawn Douglas? Also, did Shawn D have a relationship with Victor growing up? I've been trying to think if Victor and Shawn D had any scenes together when Claire's paternity came out and I can't remember.

Abigail should just leave for Ireland for the two weeks and say that she is checking in on her old babysitter. Then she doesn't have to act awkward around everyone and she won't be hiding in the bushes watching Chad interact with people. Her spying annoys me. I know that other characters peep through bushes, but she is pathetic. Just in the past month she's spied on him with Theo (though in an office), Zoe, and now Ariana. I really hate that Abigail plans on keeping the baby from Chad if he's the father. She's doing that because he hurt her feelings. She wanted to be the one who would keep Chad at arm's length and end their affair. She continues to be over-the-top selfish. Her decision to hide Chad's potential paternity comes after her seeing how good he is with Theo, Johnny, and Ariana as well as Chad mourning the fact that he never got to spend time with Grace. They should have left that Chad scene out if they wanted to make Abigail seem sympathetic because it just proves she cares more about how people perceive her than how her actions affect others. The Dimeras are a shell of what they used to be and Chad is Dimera lite lite. Echoing everyone ready for the new writers. I've stopped watching Serena, Daniel, and Nicole. I only watch Eric when he's out of their sphere. I wouldn't mind if they dropped the storyline with Serena and Xander going into a stairwell and not returning. No explanation necessary, just go.

I think that core family threads would be better than ones on individual characters. Having individual threads would create too many potential threads. Also, much of the discussion of characters include discussions on family history or how a family is being portrayed. I like the idea of family threads because then we could talk about the show history without it feeling like we're getting off track. Some of the individual character venting has its root in the way a family as a whole is being written or represented in Salem. ETA: I enjoy reading about the family/show histories in the main thread. However, think it would be a good middle ground between one main thread and multiple character threads. In terms of Abigail, she's on a lot. Discussion gets repetitive because the writing is repetitive - the lack of character growth does Abigail no favors. She is and will continue to be one of the show leads with her storyline expanding to bring more people in. I don't know if a character thread would help lessen the discussion on her when she is on roughly a third of the show.

I would want Tristan because he was patient, kind, and sassy. Plus, I would get to hear his accent all day. My second choice would be Artem because I liked his partnership with Patti Labelle and I would get to dance a trio dance with him and Henry. Keo would be a maybe - we haven't really gotten to see him teach a celeb to dance. Lolo was awkward and Charlotte just wanted to walk and pose. I did like how he called Charlotte out on her poor work ethic. He seems like fun and I like watching him dance in the buffer dances. I would feel bad for Keo because he would be going home first or second again with my two left feet. If I were male, I would want Cheryl or Chelsie Hightower because they were creative and badass. I also like Emma.

Whoa! Thank you, Donny Ketchum. I completely missed that - don't know if I blocked it out or I missed some shows. The storyline makes much more sense.

Shadowsixx, thank you for the awesome updates! I'm not able to watch until the evening, but your updates let me know what to watch and what to roll my eyes at and skip. Abigail continues to be a fine human being. She pushed Ben to reconcile with Clyde and now she's hesitant that Ben wants to change his name? It wasn't until Abigail told him to give Clyde a chance that Ben reluctantly got to know him. On top of that, one of the main reasons Abigail wanted Ben to buddy up to Clyde was for money. I don't think that Abigail is being seduced or manipulated by Chad. She's seeking him out any chance she gets. If anything, she manipulates him to tell her whats going on. I think the writers are trying to torpedo her at this point. I don't think she has any redeemable qualities. The only person she doesn't annoy me with is Sonny and even then I feel like she needs to mind her own. Daniel continues to disgust me. Theresa is (little man) Tate's mother. Her feelings do matter. If this was Melanie's baby, Daniel and Maggie would be barring Brady's girlfriend from entering the hospital and would continually talk about the importance of parents bonding with their child. It scares me that Daniel may be considered, by the writers, as a moral center of the show.

On yesterday's show Chad said that he blackmailed Gabi. That never happened, right? She and Nick blackmailed him into keeping quiet about Mel's kidnapping and the explosion because Chad beat up Nick. Is the show changing character history or did I forget something? I agree that Chad makes his own trouble and that this is a rehashing of his storyline since knowing he was a Dimera. It feels like the show wanted everyone to know he was conflicted rather than naturally developing such a story over time. Thus far, his actions have been typical Salem. If he was a true representative of the Dimera family, the Bradys and Hortons would be sketchier families. His and Melanie's scenes were good yesterday and I enjoyed the scenes between Chad and Kate a few days ago. I like Chad and Kate's relationship. I wish they would develop that dynamic rather than his and Stefano's.

I'm really tardy for the party on this, but I liked that JJ applied to San Jose State and was supportive of Paige's want to go to Stanford. It was smart and considerate planning, even if it was for completely selfish reasons. It would be a nice gesture if he wasn't trying to cover up an affair with her mom. Other then that, JJ continues to be awful. He doesn't deserve friends based on how he treats Rory. He must have learned his people skills from watching his mom and Daniel interact with others and each other.

I hate how Brady seems to be making decisions about the baby's medical plan without consulting Theresa first. He should have told her (texted or called) about the baby undergoing a second series of tests. He also should have waited to discuss Daniel being part of the medical team. Even without being Melanie's father, Daniel is the worst choice ever because of his past beef with Theresa. For as much talk about how untrustworthy Theresa is, I wouldn't trust Daniel with my life. He is a worse doctor than I thought if he couldn't see a conflict of interest in performing the operation.Where is Kayla? Daniel, Maggie, and Melanie standing in judgment of Theresa today was too much for me. They act like she planned for her baby to be stolen from her. I also disliked seeing Melanie and Maggie in the background when Caroline was meeting the baby for the first time. Am I supposed to feel sorry for Melanie that Theresa had a moment with her grandmother? I don't know how Melanie could act in this situation to make me like her but her constant mopey face is grating. I wish the writers would surprise us and have Theresa focus on the Christopher instead of trying to get back with Brady. Prove Daniel, Melanie, and Maggie wrong. My big wish would be for Theresa to be completely disinterested in Brady other than as a coparent.

Thanks! Good to know. I saw her in a buffer dance and couldn't believe she wasn't picked. I need to start looking more on social media. I thought all of the chosen trio dancers were great, but would have loved Keo in a dance too.

I liked the staging for Nastia's trio, it was an interesting concept and a good way to work around Derek's injury. I continue to love Sasha and his eager beaver attitude. That being said, I'm not the biggest fan of sitting down dancing. I've noticed the pros doing it more often in recent seasons and would prefer them to do their assigned dance without it. I don't think that she came off bad in her package, just tired and over being filmed. It would be frustrating trying to learn the dance and then having a camera in your face trying to stir things up. She has been doing it for 8 weeks, but it is under different circumstances than other "stars" and it seems like the time in the season where people get hurt or are emotionally drained. Derek's passive aggressive digs can get under her skin or shake her as much as another pro's more vocal temper tantrums. She's always seemed introverted and I doubt she talked out her feelings with her former coaches (even if it was her dad). It seemed like she wanted to work through it until people kept asking her to express what she was thinking. I think it was better that she left rehearsal and cooled down off camera than hashing it out to the producers and then it being shown to the audience. I loved Rumor's trio - Artem makes everything better. I wish that they would return to standard ballroom more often. The producers are really into themes, so make it a theme night. I was surprised that Peta wasn't chosen for the trio dances. I was even more surprised to find out that troupe members Jenna and Brittany weren't the same person. I don't follow dance outside of DWTS and thought that the same troupe member danced in Riker and Robert's trio dances. If anything, the trio dances help the audience notice the troupe members. My favorite trio dance is still Artem, Leah, and Henry's from last season.

I can't remember the context, but there was one time that Theresa bolted on screen to yell at someone that made me laugh because she came out of nowhere. Jen Lilley does such a good job that I can't help but love Theresa through most of what she does. I do think she goes overboard at times - I think she could have had Eric on her side a few times if she had turned it down a bit. She could have also had Kayla as support, though I think that Kayla would side with the Hortons when it came down to it. I also didn't like it when she went after the lab guy and then felt less bad for him when he turned over Theresa's plasma to Melanie. Daniel can take a big leap off Salem pier. He blamed Theresa for causing problems with him and Nicole - F that, he is always the worst. I also really like the scenes between Eve and Theresa when we see their sisterly bond. I like when they call each other out and yet still have the other's back. I think that Theresa has shown through her interactions with Eve and Grandma Caroline that she has feelings and can love. I hated when Brady told her she didn't know how to love - I just find him condescending and lacking any self-awareness. I am a fan anytime someone in Salem calls out Abigail. I don't know why Eve and Theresa seem to be the only ones allowed to do so. Theresa is flawed but I see enough vulnerability and scrappiness that I want her to succeed. I hope that the bitchiness can be toned down or honed towards those trying to undermine her parental rights. I don't want Victor to scheme the baby away from her. I hope that's not why Xander is staying in Salem.

What gets me is that Melanie and Theresa actually liked each other before they knew who the other person was. Each reached out at different times in the beginning to be civil and the other one blew them off. Melanie found Theresa and Brady's baby because of snooping and trying to show that Theresa was out to get Brady. She thought Theresa was up to no good and went into detective mode to prove her suspicions. She full-on taunted Theresa about the "faked" pregnancy on multiple occasions. Melanie sought out and antagonized her on a few occasions and then when things got too real, welcomed people coming to her defense. It did cause tension between her and Brady, but she kept going. There were also decisions that Melanie made that put Theresa in danger and violated Theresa's privacy. I wish she would have told Theresa that Clint took her blood. I also wish that Melanie and Brady had told someone to keep an eye on Theresa and keep her away from Clint after they found out he was working for Kristen. Theresa is a grown woman and makes destructive decisions, but they knew what he was at that point and she was in danger from Kristen. Really, I think it was shitty that Theresa wasn't going to be told that her child existed until they decided it was the right time. It felt to me like Melanie viewed it as an adventure for her and Brady. Theresa was the one violated by Kristen, Mandrake, and Clint and should have been told immediately. I don't doubt that Melanie would have eventually reunited Theresa with her baby, but that wasn't her original intent. Melanie is smart and she found the baby, I just didn't like the writing. Theresa is no way an innocent and she had it out for Melanie. Additionally, Theresa's alienated herself from a lot of people who have tried to reach out for her. It was just shitty writing all around. She should have been the one to find the baby. Seriously though, Brady is no prize. I'm glad Theresa's mom is in town and has someone who is on her side. Maybe the Bradys will be supportive too.

It wasn't my intention to make it out like the anniversary special was going to be the Derek show. However, I think the producers intended to feature him throughout the show and were still able to do so through clips. I didn't think he was absent or forgotten, one could see his accomplishments when they showed a montage of past seasons' winners. There were talking heads about how he, Julianne and Mark shifted the focus of the show and how innovative they were. They also talked about how amazing his slanting room dance was. I do think that he should be one of the pros heavily mentioned, but honestly, there were pros who accomplished quite a bit on the show and weren't even mentioned. Did they even talk about Kym being a two time winner or Cheryl outside of the cowboy number? When I see Amber and Amy Purdie, within the context of this show, I think of Derek. Derek has contributed a lot, I just think that so have a lot of the pros who weren't featured that should have been. Maybe not in terms of wins, but in terms of how fans responded to them. The dance number that he and Mark did was longer than the other pro-featured numbers and had a costume change. Derek and Mark are best friends and I think they have enough pull that if they wanted to have solo dances, even if they had to with multiple former partners, they would have gotten it. The staging of the dances gave plenty of face time for both Mark and Sasha (in Derek's place). IMO, the Whitney and Alfonso dance was only because of Alfonso's popularity, they were on the road show together, and he was the most recent winner. Tony and Melissa because she was going to host something. I have no idea why they had Val do that number other than the shock value. I do think a significant portion of time was about Maks, when you consider his dance, the audition tape, and conflicts/bike ride with Len. Maybe they're trying to woo him back.

I can understand what you're saying about the physical absence of Derek from the anniversary show, but he was heavily featured in the clips. Additionally, his partners were front and center throughout the show. If he hadn't gotten injured rehearsing the special, he would have been in a long dance number. To me, it wasn't as much of a big deal because the intention was to make him a star of the show. I agree it was rushed and that they could have gotten a few talking heads from him. I think that Cheryl's absence was just as much of a hole. I understand the absence since she chose not to be part of it.

I wish JR and Karina danced together. I don't know what went down, but he is one of my most memorable winners. I don't like the idea of using his story as inspirational and then not letting him dance. It would have been beautiful if they had done the inspirational segment and then transitioned into Karina and JR dancing the waltz. It seemed like they only featured a few of the pros - Derick and Mark, the Chmerkovskiys, and Tony. I think that Whitney got the dance because of Alfonso and also because he was the most recent champion. I would have liked to see Anna dance with a partner as well as Louis. I think that who they chose to dance with past partners was based on their road show and internal politics - I don't necessarily fault them for this but wish that it was two hours so that pros who did contribute a lot to the show were featured as well.

I wish this had been a two hour special! We sat through so much filler during past season's results shows and it would have actually been welcome tonight. I needed more cheese and really would have loved a return of the Harold Wheeler Orchestra. I wanted to see more of the pros and have more pro numbers. I would have loved if they had done more group dances like the football players. They could have done an 80s sitcom/movie stars number or a dance by the older competitors. Also, a dance by the olympians. I'm becoming a Sasha fangirl - first with his crab outfit and troupe numbers then stepping in for Derek while he's injured. He's so game for everything and gets attention just by being himself. I loved Tristan - he treated his partners well and could be sassy and firm when necessary. His accent was also a major plus. Tristan humanized Nancy Grace and I thought she was likable during her season. I can't stand to watch the Nancy Grace show, but I loved the dance he choreographed for her to Moon River. I also appreciated his partnership with Gladys Knight. I was disappointed when they kept giving him partners who didn't really have a chance to win their seasons. He was becoming the new Jonathan and I think it was unfair to him as a pro. He didn't need to have a Shawn Johnson or Nicole Scherzinger, maybe a Candace Cameron or Jenny Garth level star that he could develop into a competitor. Warren Sapp was missing from the football player dance as well as Chad Johnson (Chad Ochocinco). I wonder if they were invited and declined or were intentionally left out.

I wanted to put this in unpopular opinions, but it is too spoilery: I feel like Melanie has been wasted this go around and that they are in jeopardy of ruining the relationship base that was built between Brady and Melanie. I loved their friendship and will be sad if the writers burn even more bridges. From the spoilers, it sounds like Melanie was simply used as a vehicle to reunite Theresa with her kid and to serve as a victim to Theresa's scheming. I think that does a disservice to both Theresa and Melanie. This could have been a great Theresa-centric story where there was character growth and she was the driving force in proving she was pregnant and in rescuing her child. Plus, it could have been a Donovan/Brady family centric story, even give Eve a reprieve from the JJ mess. I dislike that Theresa is going to use the baby to come between Brady and Melanie. I'm pro-Theresa, but this will just make her less likeable (even more than the John poker fiasco). I do think Brady and Melanie should apologize to her about saying that she lied about the pregnancy - Melanie, especially, brought it up randomly multiple times to insult and hurt Theresa. That being said, Theresa's character growth is needed to keep the story going and I don't want her to lose her baby to Brady. Also, Melanie could have played more of a role in stories throughout Salem or could have been a sidekick to Theresa in finding the baby without being romantically attached to Brady. He brought her down for me.

I had a question about Theresa's blood test. How was Melanie able to prove she was pregnant? Did Theresa donate the blood/plasma to Eve during the window between the time she became impregnated and the fetus-napping? Is plasma supposedly better at keeping such hormones? I know I shouldn't question soap opera science, but it's been bugging me. Also, did we ever find out why Theresa is so hostile? I'm a Theresa apologist and I love Jen Lilley but there are times when even I think she's gone too far.

She does look like a toddler or like she went to camp and personalized headbands were a team gift. At least she'll never have to share the headband with her sisters. No more communal closet for Jilly! Strange thing is that both Jill and Jessa have worn the black and white chevron maxi skirt. Do they each have one, sharing during the conference or is there a marrieds communal closet? Doesn't really matter- they just love matching!

I'm sad to see Willow go - she had dance ability and good work ethic. Plus, Mark was able to keep Willow's dances age appropriate. I would have liked to have seen her in the top 3 or 4. There was a lot of talk about her age throughout the season, but tonight was the night I felt she really showed how young she is. I don't blame her for having a real reaction, but think it would be better to have an age minimum of 18 or at least 16. Derek was ridiculous tonight - he designed the dance so that he could remain in the spotlight and then all but pushed Sasha to the background afterward. I didn't mind him choreographing the dance, especially if he'll be back as Nastia's partner later in the season. However, let Sasha have his moment with Nastia. Seeing Nastia and Sasha's dance makes me wish they were partners all season. Nastia had personality that didn't seem strained or forced and they were comfortable together. Derek seems to make Nastia too tense. I really likes seeing Artem in the buffer dances. He has such charisma - this season with Patti made me a real fan. I love seeing the eliminated pros in these numbers, though I'm not a huge fan of the troupe members dancing with the competing couples

:) My mom tried in vain to get me to stop eating cookie and cake batter when I was younger. She would warn about salmonella and I would risk it anyway. Also, she warned about not washing fruits before eating them. I listen to that one. I think Josh and Anna let the kids eat unwashed fruit from the roadside stand on their trip to Chicago. I gasped "No, danger!" What our moms say to us sticks, hyper vigilance.

I went to an all-girls Catholic high school and we would wear sweat pants/pajama bottoms under our skirts before and after school during the winter. It was because we were cold and it was easy to just quickly take them off before class. Seems the older girls only wear pants under the skirts when they are doing something physical and don't want to Nike those around them. It's most important that they're comfortable, though I agree it does look awkward. The younger girls are so used to wearing leggings under their dresses that I could see them wearing pants without dresses/skirts over them eventually.

Do you think all of the J'slaves will think this way or just Jill? The sad thing is that noting these things are basic. It comes from just interacting with your kid. Hell, this board has stated that Marcus takes after Keller family rather than the Duggars. I do think that Jill views herself as a part of the mommy club now and she will become more smug. I will be disgusted if she uses Joy as an Aunt-mom for Israel.

Ugh if this becomes a multi-baby quest for her perfect granola birth experience (no disrespect to those who chose a natural birth). Taking into consideration Israel's position and that he expelled meconium early in labor, Israel's birth was perfect. Healthy mama, healthy baby is all that should matter. I know it wasn't her ideal, but it's a success as long as the baby's out. What kills me is that they would be pointing the finger at medical professionals if something tragic did happen. Would Jill be considered high-risk going forward or have to be under the care of an OBGYN for a VBAC? Michelle did quite a number on the kids in various ways. Jill did everything asked of her and it takes childbirth for Michelle to give her some sort of praise. Jill at least has Jim Bob even if it isn't the same as Michelle's approval.