Peanut6711

Well no it doesn't work as a mystery/reveal....although Days did go that route to some degree when Eve showed up in town and later w/Cassie and Rex. Those stories that require a great deal of suspension of disbelief aside, the point was that in the grand scheme of stepchildren and supercouples, the 'heroines' are rarely given the narrative where they lived a life outside the 'hero' and had children with someone else in the process that the 'hero' is now a stepparent too. Kayla, Hope, Adrienne, Kimberly, and now Jennifer all had opportunities to have children with other men, but the writers never left it stick or never went down that road in the first place.

That's interesting about the other soap and kinda makes Days's sexual politics look even worse. Sami and Nicole are one of the few who have kids to other men, but they are both characterized as the "bad girls" and "troublemakers" as opposed to the other revered 'heroines.' I still have to laugh though at Zack's retconned paternity via mime sex. Even without it, you are right that Stefano and John were hardly competition for Bo... well when Hope was in her right mind and not Gina's. I didn't say Abigail did anything to Gwen. What I pointed out was that almost all of the show's major couples (the "true loves") have had children (from the male party) pop up years later to cause trouble. And that any trouble Gwen would likely cause would fail to compare to the grief heaped on Hope when it was apparently Bo and Hope's turn for the troublemaker interloper child to strike. So even if Gwen accidentally runs Abigail over with a car, there are a portion of viewers (see the Abigail Deveraux thread for example) who would probably send her a thank you card in Statesville for taking Abs off screen 😁(call it karma for bad deeds done to others on the show) as opposed to Zack, who I can't imagine any viewers rooted to be killed off since he was an innocent small child. 😢 Bottom line, the Deveraux's story right now is just typical soap writing to throw hitches in major families and keep older couples still relevant. And Gwen is just your typical slightly off her rocker troublemaker with a chip on her shoulder. Her ire towards Abigail isn't much different than those who came before her--she wants what she didn't get and someone else has. See also Charlie in regards to Tripp, who never did anything to him. Or all the many times the 'other woman' did the same to the heroine who never did anything to her. It's not even about whether these type of characters have a "basis" i.e. a good reason for what they are doing to their target; what they have is a motivation, usually psychological and emotional, and that's what's driving the plot.

This brings up a great point. There is a serious sexist nature to these supercouple interloper kids--they are always via the male party. It's always the 'hero' rather than the 'heroine.' Kayla had plenty of time to remarry and have other kids in the years she believed Steve was dead as you mentioned. Same with Jennifer when Jack was either dead or away. Not surprising she never got pregnant while married to Peter Blake. Yet given that Abby was a small child and Jennifer still in her childbearing years it would have made the most sense. Hope's kids always turned out to be Bo's even when she had the gestation of an elephant and the paternity should have been Patrick Lockheart's when Ciara didn't pop out with elephant ears. Kim's paternity with Andrew of course was really Shane and not Victor. Adrienne never had a miracle baby with Emilio. On a Hope note, Ron could actually rewrite part of the Swamp Thing Kills Zack wrong by having Hope (off screen since KA is gone) get a tip that Zack is actually alive. So when Ciara turns up not burnt to a crisp, they can explain why she still hasn't come back to town.

Actually, yes he did. During the Riverfront Knifer case Jack is brought into the police station when evidence points to either him or Harper as the serial killer and it's established that Jack has been frequenting prostitutes. So I suppose Gwen can at least be glad her mum wasn't a murdered hooker who granddaddy Harper knifed to death. Never the less, I agree that this plot as it is speculated to play out has some serious plot holes. Though I'm getting the impression that Gwen was still conceived prior to Jack's '87 arrival in Salem (surely Gwen knows her own age), but that it was several years later (after he and Jen were together) that Tiffany came to town and got paid of by Laura. Of course, that would make Gwen about ten or older by that point since it's established that Jack and Laura never met in person till after their little self-help retreat hook-up. This is laughable! Jennifer married him knowing he was a rapist! Surely the consensual sex he had prior to knowing her shouldn't be a problem, especially considering Jenn was only a teenager in high school dating the star football player when Jack (presumably a college grad) hooked up with Tiffany. Fans of every major couple prefer not to have estranged offspring from an interloper show up out of the blue. People in hell want ice water but it doesn't mean they're likely to get it as the saying goes. The writers (I suppose the devil in this metaphor) from every decade don't care. But seriously... Steve and Kayla have Tripp (though I do like his character and I was a big Steve/Kayla fan in the 80s) via Ava who later raped Steve via some serious dubious consent. Also Tripp was conceived after Steve and Kayla had a child of their own, not before they even met. Justin and Adrienne had the son he has with Angelica. Also after they met, though Justin knew Angelica first. Still I recall the big insult here was that Adrienne was suffering her own infertility. Shane and Kim have Eve via Shane's former ISA partner lover. (Though I always did like Gabrielle better with Shane and she came before Kim). Still Shane and Kim were married when Eve showed up, and Eve's trouble with prostitution lead to a miscarriage for Kim. Bo and Hope had "Dead Swamp Baby" otherwise known as Chelsea via Billie. This has to be the absolute worst insult to Bo & Hope fans. Not only was her retconned stillbirth insulting to viewers who watched Billie rock a dead baby, but then to have the kid who should have been dead herself cause the death of Bo and Hope's son Zack....just cruel. So when you consider the highlights of Day's supercouple history, I can't imagine what Gwen could do that could be worse than that. Her simply existing is just par for the course. And even if she murdered Abs now....well a lot of viewers might thank her for that. After all, Abs is hardly the innocent child Zack was. Same here! Charlie has more potential than a lot of characters taking up airtime. Maybe they should let the fans vote on who they want killed off, kinda like a reality show vote off. 😆

Good point! They do seem to flaunt deadly respiratory virus common sense. Though I must admit, at the time, I was too busy craving a cupcake to pick up on it. Someone should tell them that it's also impolite to show real tasty treats if you don't have enough to share with the audience. 😁 I had to go have a piece of cake after the show was over.

Out of everything that happened today my biggest take-away was...OMG, they got a new set! Holy cow Rafe has a kitchen! 😁 Did he buy a new house or has that kitchen w/back door been hiding in his apartment all along??? While I've seen real-life doctors in white lab coats over nice clothing seeing patients before, so Sara just making rounds wouldn't be out of the ordinary, but at the point she emerged from "removing the bullet" it was ridiculous that she hadn't changed into scrubs. And why is everyone so afraid to tell Victor? Your average dad, I get; but Victor was the Greek mob in Salem for years. Or at the very least he dabbled in that kind of activity. Meanwhile, Mama Kate has married into the Italian mob aka The Dimeras at least twice. These are not parents who should bat an eye at their son's mob indiscretions. They would probably just break out the checkbook. THIS! She didn't even have to hang up on Kristin to do it. She could have just used her own phone! And when Philip said, “I’ll go try to find the shooter!” I had to wonder was he also armed? What good was running after a mobster with a gun going to do other than possibility get Philip shot? He was the target anyways. I was thinking of giving Philip the Dumbest Line of the Day award but then he redeemed himself by pointing out to Sarah, “That idiot boyfriend of yours had to mess around in something he didn’t know anything about. This is all his fault.” It still bugs me that Zander has never paid any legal consequences for the baby switch so he'd better catch some kind of fall-out in this mess from....Kristin....Victor....John....I don't care who as long as it's someone who puts Zander in his place and gives him a wake-up call.

I had to laugh at Sara and Maggie's fear and appall over Philip's mob problems and the debate about telling Victor. Pretty sure at one time dealing with the mob was just a Wednesday business deal for Old Vic. The Kiriakis empire is no stranger to organized crime. Though I still think that cocky Zander is the one who should be worried. If the Vitali's off Philip they don't get their money. They off Zander, then Philip is sole CEO and they're back in business. Was Eli tracing that call to Dr. Rainer? Zander had her on the phone long enough. So it takes Queen Julie to have a medical scare to get Sara called back to work after...what a month? Guess Kayla finally got a day off. In the late '80s (so probably around the time Gwen and Mum made that visit) there was the seedy motel where Nick Corelli ran his prostitution business. Jennifer might remember it as she and Frankie were tied up and held hostage there, I believe. Or she could ask Eve--she worked there. Speaking of hotels, I wonder if getting shot in the hallway will hurt the Salem Inn's impressive business. It would be such a pity for half of the town to have to get apartments of their own due to safety concerns. 🙄 Then again, the reformed serial killer lives there and that doesn't seem to bother anyone.

I can't recall Julie specifically other than she kept butting her nose into Eli and Launi and creepily watching them kiss outside. Doug kept encouraging Ben to do the tree ornaments. I suppose there is a good chance that Harper would be hanging ornaments on the Horton tree. Ben would have a new buddy. Though personally if JC was still alive I think his talents would be better used at Statesville with Rolf and Orpheus. Now there could be some golden scenes and hilarious dialogue.

I wouldn't disagree that Soap Dirt is generally 90% rehash and 10% speculation based off a few show release spoilers. Days Cafe though is usually correct for the 1 week and 2 weeks to come. Either way, we know Laura is coming back in Feb. for a few episodes so she's there for some reason, presumably some role in this Gwen reveal given the timing.

While I should probably move this question to past plot discussion, but just quickly...I wonder if it was the Days writers (who back then didn't usually make villains overstay their welcome in town) or JC himself who was ready to move on? He was a well known actor so I just always assumed he never intended Days to be a long term gig. Especially since they killed him off a year or so later rather than just keeping him off screen in jail.

Totally right. In fact, I'd say you could reword it that the Hortons put up with Ben's shit (his gloomy mood). Bonnie was only tolerated at the K's because they decided not to be Scrooges...after some debate about it.

Interesting....but why would Laura (who was in a sanitarium at the time) pay off Gwen's mother? Jennifer and Jack had never met at this point. Why would Laura care that the senator's single son had a baby with some girl named Tiffany? 🙄 Are we going to be told that Jack and Laura hooked up two different times--both in the 90's and mid 80s??? This is starting to sound like Ron failed Days History 101. Also is that just a bad picture of VK or is Ciara supposed to looking that rough? Edited to Add: Another spoiler site does mention Laura's return in Feb and her "shocking confession." Days of Our Lives Spoilers in 2 Weeks and More! (dayscafe.com) I can see it now... Laura: Call me crazy but I had a vision that my daughter was going to marry Jack some day and gosh darnit I didn't want her to have to raise a stepdaughter. 😆

I'm couldn't agree more! JC did a fabulous job with the role, taking Harper from what appeared to be the innocent victim in an assassination attempt, to a creepy father-in-law, to a misogynist politician serial killer. His reveal as such was a great twist, and his deranged monologue on the rooftop at the climax of the story was top notch acting. Peter Blake is like the name never allowed to be mentioned. LOL Then again, Missy Reeves isn't around soooo...

He's supposed to be, but it would appear he's currently not a very good one. As it played out, even Gabi returning from out of town knew about Chad before he did. Since Steve just solved the Allie rapist 'mystery' I'd put my money to him if I was Jack. Besides, MA and SN generally have good chemistry so it would be good for Days to use the opportunity for some screen time between them on a useful venture. It would give John something to do too beside cry over Christmas movies.

No, Harper was established to be sterile. It's why Jack was adopted, and Angelica's baby was Justin's. Rolf would have had to have worked his magic on Harper's peen and then unworked it. Stranger things have happened in Salem, but with the actor deceased I'm doubtful they'll go that retcon route other than maybe mentioning that he payed Gwen's mom. It does sound like something Harper would have done if he didn't want an out of wedlock baby to a cocktail waitress wrecking Jack's future political career. After all, he poisoned Kayla to shut her up about a secret she didn't even know, and then he went on a serial killing rampage out of his hatred of women.

I wouldn't trust DNA tests in Salem either, but I don't know why they don't just go to another town to have them run. Seemed kinda silly when Jack metaphorically threw his hands in the air and just said there's no way to prove this. There has to be a money trail to follow based off what Gween said about the payments, hospital birth records, other information about Gwen's deceased mother. Good thing Jack's brother runs a detective agency. Now how long will it take before Jack makes an appointment with Black Patch. Or will the Deverauxs just scratch their heads for months. I had the same thought. Tiffany might have raised her and known Jack was her father, but she wasn't the mother. Great point about Harper; I hadn't thought of that but it makes sense. Too bad JC isn't around anymore to reprieve the role for an appearance. Or Tiffany was paid by the real mother, and that's who Tiffany really came to Salem to see that time when Gwen was a child. I wasn't expecting the timeline they gave. Jack showed up in Salem in '87, making Gwen born probably around '85 or '86. Jennifer was just showing up in Salem around then (as in the time Gwen was born) as a teenager in high school. So Jennifer shouldn't be too put out about Jack having another kid since this all went down long before they were ever together. In fact, Gwen's mother, whoever she is, would predate Kayla, Melissa, all the hookers he slept with, and Jennifer's mother.

That foliage was so distracting. Took me a minute to decide if it was a painting or an actual window clouded by plants. Is the Dimera landscaping crew on strike?

Menopause doesn't exist in Salem. 😁

Oh gawd I hope she's not Eve's kid. Unless they are going to bring CR back for the role, Eve's character just needs to be left alone. With Laura slated for a Feb. stint, my money is either on her or it being a drawn out mystery for months.

Chad's mom was a judge who off-screen had hooked up with Stefano at some point. I think Chad's stepdad was the DA. But Chad was portrayed as sort of a rebellious teenager, not an elite child despite his white collar upbringing. He got a girl pregnant and could be smart-alecky. I remember one time he called Stefano out on using everyone's formal name. The original actor did a good job with him, and I liked his character back then. This Chad though, I find a dork.

Nice to see Gwen's story finally coming to it's big reveal. About time. Always good to see Rolf on screen though sort-of disappointed we didn't get his rendition of it. Here's hoping Chad has a flashback tomorrow when he tells it to Abs. Jack doesn't seem like a very good newspaper editor if he's not keeping up with the competition and breaking news. Half of Salem read about Chad sleeping with Gwen, and Jack was only now getting a news tip about Chad's firing. I suppose that's why he and Jennifer looked at Abigail's suitcase like it was a kilo of coke or a rabid dog instead of luggage. Jack is going to have to tread the line carefully when/if he has it out with his son-in-law. After all, they are both in the same doghouse. Just one of these days I want someone to check into the Salem Inn only to be told by the desk clerk, "Sorry we have no vacancies." A significant portion of Salem appears to reside there. Clearly there are no restrictions on the rooms being long term rentals.

Yes! I'm with you 100% on the assessment in bold. I've not seen OLTL, but I did watch Days in the 80s and it's a big part of the reason I can't stand Adrienne so seeing the old shows might actually cement your impression of her even more rather than lessen it. From the day Adrienne show up in town, she was a pain in the ass. Her attempts to get to know her "big brother Stevie" and insert herself and their mother into his life was annoying and often caused problems for him and Kayla. Then she met Justin and was whiney, annoying, and boring with him too. I know they developed a fan base who wouldn't agree with that, but as a 'supercouple' they always put me to sleep. While I can't say I'm a fan of Bonnie's, I will say that if I have to have one of them on screen, I'd take Bonnie over Adrienne.

Amen to this. If I could both 'heart' and 'ha-ha' it I would. Since I went with the love, let me say thanks for a good laugh at the end. *passes out cheap figurines for everyone so we can all smash them when this show frustrates us* 😁

It's even more pathetic when you take into account that he's Stefano's son, the man who used to do all the brainwashing. Chad should probably seek out Gullible Anonymous.... and take Claire with him.

I kinda thought the Bonnie/Maggie thing came out of left field following the Christmas episode with them. I get Maggie's issues with her, but it still felt a bit like contrived drama to give Maggie a scene. And what the devil was the deal with those figurines?!? Have they been there before and I never noticed them or did Ron clean out his grandma's attic and donated them to the set props department rather than have a yard sale during a pandemic? I sorta feel as if they'd have gotten broken in the Kiriakis living room a long time ago given the stabbings, fireplace poker attacks, and other various incidents of struggle and violence that has occurred there. None the less, in the end the biggest take-away I had from the whole scene was that Justin could have avoided the whole thing by simply having his own place. Most 50+ attorneys who want to date and bring women home generally do.