KerleyQ

When it was just Ridge and Steffy with her birthday cake, my immediate thought was that she's being given a birthday cake in the office where her father, brother, grandfather, and cousin work, and where her mother stops by pretty much daily, but only Ridge is there? That was odd, but then I thought maybe they were saving money, and it was just going to be Ridge and Steffy in the episode. But then right after she left, Taylor comes in, and then we got Liam and Finn later, so I just do not get why the cake and card were just between Ridge and Steffy. Shallow note - can they not find any better wigs for this show? The one Steffy was wearing today was so beyond obvious. The anvils were flying fast and furious today. We're definitely going to see Liam and Steffy in bed (or on couch) together soon enough. And instead of Liam coming over to tell Steffy how he's been walking on the beach thinking about her, why couldn't he have just been there to pick up the kids for the night, since Steffy and Finn had plans for her birthday? They still could have had their flashback scenes without that lead in. Oh, and Ridge's weirdness about Steffy leaving to spend the evening with her husband was like his own little homage to how his mother was about him. Does nobody in this family have a sense of appropriate boundaries?

Exactly what I was thinking. Liam is spending more time with Steffy, bemoaning his concerns about Thomas and Hope. Hope is distracted by Thomas. Finn is dealing with the Sheila stuff. Perfect recipe for another drunken ONS. Although I will find it hilarious if Steffy, with all the stones she's thrown at Brooke over the years, has her third WTD pregnancy in a row. But it loses all of its oomph if Finn just gets over it in five minutes again. (They should let him get angry. TN is a much better actor when he gets to play anger.)

If Hope is all hyped up to unleash her bad girl side, why is she getting all hot and bothered for the guy who is reiterating that same "you're an angel" crap she's tired of being held to? That should have turned her right off Thomas today. Is everyone involved in this storyline just going to have the same exact conversations every single day? Steffy reassures Hope that, if she gets uncomfortable, just let her know. Hope assures Steffy that everything is fine. Liam displays the only brain in this storyline by telling Steffy/Hope/Wyatt/Thomas that he can't trust Thomas because he always pulls this reformed crap before he does the exact same shit all over again. Thomas reassures Hope that he has nothing but the purest intentions and just wants to save HFTF. Hope stares awkwardly at Thomas, pictures of Thomas, or mental images of Thomas. Everybody talks about how strong and healthy the Lope and Sinn marriages are. Every fucking day.

I'm going with she was hitting on him. 1) We're probably going to be hit over the head with random FC employees hitting on him in front of Hope, so we can see her being jealous. 2) If she really needed to go over the projections with someone, wouldn't that someone be Hope? Because if he's designing and handling sales figures, what is Hope's job?

This. I just can't. He's the one person who should be a permanent "no go" for Hope. All she should need to do is take one look at Beth to remember exactly why she can never trust Thomas enough to be intimate with him. And, like @Anna Yolei said, the timing is shit here. She just shot him down last year, without even looking remotely tempted or like she regretted having to turn him down, if only it wasn't for that darn moral compass and marriage. She was very clear and firm in her refusal. And Thomas's list of crimes against her and the people she love has just increased since then. When he tried to kiss her last year, he'd been (to her knowledge) on his best behavior for a long time. He was the one who helped get Liam and Bill out of jail, so she had real reasons to believe that he had reformed at that point in time. So how the hell is he even more attractive and tempting to her now? Even if the Beth issue isn't at the front of her mind (and how could it not be?), what about his abuse of her other child? He emotionally abused Douglas in service of his plot to end Hope's mother's marriage. And this is after he already had a pattern of emotionally and physically abusing Douglas in his efforts to get Hope into bed. That's the entire reason Hope has had custody of Douglas all this time. It would be unacceptable, to me, at any point in time, but it would have made way more sense last year after the fashion show when they'd been bonding so much both at work and then "as a family" at Eric's house after work, and she was hurt that night by Liam telling her he couldn't stay and watch the fashion show because of Thomas.

Today is where Hope really lost me. I mean, you can't control your thoughts all the time. You can't stop things from popping into your head. But, today, when Thomas was sitting there telling her how he's so happy she's in his life, it should have reminded her of exactly what he was saying and doing last year in the leadup to the fashion show and his attempt to kiss her. Instead of being alarmed, she was eating it up. So, fine, Hope, go ahead and fuck him and get it over with so we can all vomit and move onto another story. Also, I'm not at all comfortable with the amount of time they're giving Liam and Steffy this week. I almost suffered a concussion from that anvil when Steffy told Liam how she and Finn are it for life just like he and Hope are it for life. Go back to fucking your husband in your living room with your doors unlocked, Steffy.

That meeting was obnoxious. I got irritated right out of the gate when Thomas spoke up to tell Zende how his work was important and he's been noticed. Shouldn't that reassurance come from Hope with regard to HFTF or Steffy/Ridge with regard to FC overall? And then Thomas decided to also praise Hope on behalf of the whole team. Like, there's only two other people on the team (well, I guess three, if you count new girl). They don't need an official spokesperson to handle their statements in a 5 person meeting. And I will harp on the timeline for the rest of my days, but how are they getting numbers back on sales when Thomas's designs have only gotten as far as him having samples made of two designs with a third design down on paper? That is not how any of this works, show. I appreciate every time Liam points out to someone that it has happened multiple other times that Thomas has been a new and improved man until he isn't again. And Steffy is sitting there acting like Thomas has done a single damn thing to show he's changed, beyond repeatedly ambushing her at her home, under mommy's protection and cooperation, until mommy browbeat Steffy into welcoming him back into the fold, because her kids not getting along gave her a sad.

What was that bullshit about how Thomas is grateful that his relationship with Hope is finally getting back on track? Finally? It's been like four months, not four years. And his parents should have called him on that, because it's an expression of that same sense of entitlement he always has. His mentality should be that he's grateful she's been able to try to move past his crap so soon. From a viewer's standpoint it doesn't feel much like he got kicked out of FC so much as he took a little vacation from FC. And maybe you could look at that one comment as a one off, just an expression of how he loves designing so much that it felt like he was away from HFTF for an eternity. But, Taylor also just sat there the previous night when Thomas was pushing her to spend time with Ridge again. She should see these comments here and there adding up to reason for concern. Especially since today he also mentioned how he was trying to hurry up and finish the design he's working so he could surprise Hope with it. There are just all these little comments he's made to and in front of Taylor that a world renowned psychologist should be picking up on to show that maybe he's not really over the issues he claims to be over. Credit to Brooke for not being pissed at Hope and trying to be understanding and offer her some advice. I'd still be pissed about her display at my house last night, if I was her.

If you ever stop to think for a minute and compile a list of Thomas's crimes, it's appalling that they're trying to treat him like a leading man when they haven't even had him answer for most of them. I mean, he's literally committed murder so he could get a shot at banging his crush. And does anyone (other than dead Vinnie) know that he drugged Liam to sleep with Steffy? The crimes people do know about, they've whitewashed, like how Douglas was conceived being called "a misunderstanding."

I can't quite figure out what the show is doing with Thomas's part in all of this. Because, on the one hand, we have him agreeing to a potential date with the model. And the story this time seems like it's more about Hope being all confused than about Thomas's feelings. But, then, on the other hand, whenever Thomas is alone, he still seems, just from his facial expressions, like he's plotting. Maybe that's just the face he has, but every time he does that look off towards the camera thing, he looks like he's scheming. Like when he was in the middle of drawing that dress, and he looked up, my immediate thought was "is he imagining another fitting with Hope?" Of course, maybe that's just my existing dislike of the character, and I'm projecting that onto him now, but I just don't buy that he's reformed or remotely ready and willing to move on. And I'm still stuck on that scene back after Douglas chose to live with Steffy, when Thomas was alone in Paris's apartment and vowed he'd do whatever it takes to get his son back. That was clearly a sinister thing, and nothing has come out of that yet. Are we supposed to believe that he just got over that? And especially now that Douglas chose to go back to Hope and Liam's house, he's right back where he started, and he's gotten nothing that he schemed for - his parents aren't together, Hope is still with Liam, and Douglas is living with the two of them. I just don't buy that he's ready to get over all of that. If they do actually go the route of Hope having DID, he's going to use that to his advantage. He'll get Hope (well, he'll get her alter). He can use that to get Douglas (either by getting her alter to come live with him as Hope and bring Douglas with her or by using her erratic behavior against her in a custody fight), and her acting so wildly out of character will take all of Brooke's focus, along with putting Brooke firmly and loudly anti-Thomas again, which will leave his father more available for his mother.

"It's nice to have a new line to be excited about." Is HFTF the only line at FC now? They've had three different new releases for HFTF now over the same span of time when we've heard exactly nothing about any other line putting out any new designs. Can someone explain to Hope that it is absolutely fine and healthy to find other people attractive, and it doesn't mean you're turning into some kind of "slut" or that you have to act on it? I feel like at least half of her distress is her not understanding this pretty basic concept. And it's not helping that everyone keeps bringing it up as an issue to her. Seriously, Hope, go get some therapy. You've been through a whole hell of a lot over the past few years. No shame in getting some help to process it all. Just not Taylor. Even if she is your mother's BFF, she's a deeply shitty psychologist. The Brooke/Taylor friendship writing has really taken a downturn from the moment Ridge reappeared in their lives. It feels kind of fake and passive aggressive now, with Brooke being "transparent" but then reacting when Taylor joked about how old Brooke would have already busted out her lingerie. Then we have Taylor "joking" to Ridge about how it's her turn for a family dinner, and she'll make sure the kids all cancel, too. Like, what is the plan here? We're going to watch them "platonically" fight over him until one or both of them eventually give in and hop back into bed with him? Boring.

When I thought about that story yesterday, it reminded me how much I hated this version of Taylor. She was fully like "well, Hope and her kids are just going to have to hand Liam over because Steffy has a sad, and she'll need a new husband."

I saw a soap column speculating that they're building up to a Hope split personality story. And noble Thomas would be torn between concern for how unlike herself she was behaving around him and the temptation of finally getting what he wanted at the time when he's been working so hard (eye roll) at getting past his obsession with her. God, no. Since soaps like to rhyme their alter names (Viki/Niki, Jess/Tess), what would we get? Hope and Grope? Hope and Nope? Hope and Dope?

Um, Taylor, Thomas grilling you about why you're not with Ridge and whether you're concerned about Brooke spending time with him should be the same kind of warning sign to you as if you had a recently sober alcoholic son, and you walked in on him holding a bottle of whiskey. Instead of giggling about your friendship with Brooke and reassuring him and Steffy, you should have cut him off as soon as he started and reminded him "we've already established that you being invested in your father's relationships with me and Brooke is not healthy for you, so let's drop this." And, sure enough, he's indulging both of his unhealthy obsessions by calling Hope when he believes she's in the middle of a family dinner with Liam, the kids, Brooke, and Ridge. Hope, if you're hallucinating someone else's face when you're having sexy times with your husband, maybe some therapy? Brooke, send him home. Even if you didn't have this pact with Taylor, your behavior was giving me second hand embarrassment.

This reminds me of an advice column letter I saw recently. The wife had cheated years ago, and when they were working past it in counseling, she threw out the idea of giving him a free pass to go have sex with someone once. He said he didn't want that at the time. Then, like 8 or 9 years later, he's like "hey, I want to use that free pass." If you're still dealing with that infidelity years after you forgave the person and opted to stay together, you're not in a healthy place over it. But, most likely, it's just "hey, I want to cheat now, but I know a way to justify it." Personally, I would never have kept getting past the Steffy shit if I was Hope, but that's the choice she made. If you forgive the person, you don't get to bring it back up when you want to do something shitty to them. And, in Liam's shoes, I'd have been asking "so, you're comparing what's going on with you and Thomas to my past with Steffy?" Because that would have been a red flag to me, if I was him, that she's already contemplating sleeping with him. I would have definitely wanted some clarity there. It would be one thing if she pointed out that she sat back and let him pretend to be Steffy's husband when she had amnesia, despite his long history with her, because she trusted him. But, instead, it's "I put up with you cheating, so you need to put up with this."

This part of it would probably be better if she had some kind of lightbulb moment about how her and her mother's sexualities aren't some black and white issue after she inevitably falls on Thomas's dick. Instead, this way, it just feels like she's looking at it as permission, like "oh, well, I'm the daughter of 'the slut from the valley.' What choice do I have?" Add in that she's bringing up Liam's Steffy shit now, and it just feels like she wants to fuck Thomas, and she's looking for all of the rationalizations that make it "OK" for her to do that without tarnishing her self-styled halo. If they're going to just do this awful shit anyway, it would have made way more sense for them to skip the CPS story and just have her do it right after their fashion show when she was riding that high with Thomas and was upset at Liam for not showing up. That storyline all made sense as the leadup to an affair or ONS (when you squint your eyes and forget all he's done to her and her loved ones). This is just straight up stupid. He's been "proving himself" for about five minutes, and she already shut this shit down back then when she was super vulnerable and Douglas was practically begging her to be with Thomas, before Thomas showed he hasn't changed. Again. (Or they could have still had the CPS reveal after she had a ONS with him and drive home what a mistake it was).

Doesn't he know already? I can't remember for sure now, but when Bill started blackmailing Steffy did she tell Finn why Taylor shot Bill? One thing that stood out as an "oh, shit, they're definitely going to do Thope, aren't they?" red flag yesterday was that, while Liam and Hope were arguing, Liam didn't clearly state the obvious - that Hope has, multiple times, told Liam that she was sure Thomas wasn't that man anymore, and every single time, Thomas has eventually shown he's exactly that man. Liam can trust Hope as a general rule, but how is he honestly supposed to trust her judgement about Thomas when it's so obviously clouded by the combination of her optimism, her desire to keep her line, and him being Douglas's father? I would have loved a comment like "did you think he was a changed man last year, right up until the moments he tried to kiss you and then you finding out he faked that call?" And, Hope, get a grip. You're not somehow destined to cheat on Liam with Thomas just because you're Brooke's daughter. You're not magically becoming her or some such shit. You're a grown ass woman who is in full control of her own decisions. If you want to bone the guy who's done some of the worst shit imaginable to you and the people most important to you, then that's your own dysfunction. Go ahead and end your marriage and own that. Don't blame it on your mother. It would be refreshing if that dream sequence got her to get a hold of herself and realize she's playing with fire and doesn't want to be that woman. But, no, we can't have nice things. Instead, I'm going to have to stop watching any scenes involving Hope, who I generally liked before this crap.

I much preferred when Wyatt first came to town, and Liam had to deal with Hope/Wyatt, including her marrying Wyatt over a misunderstanding. That all was Liam getting a taste of his own medicine. But this shit? Hard pass. If it was literally any other man in the world, yeah, Liam's got to suck it up. But this asshole? Nope. He gets to be as angry as he wants, especially now that Hope is acting like he's anything other than the sociopath who would throw Hope's children into a burning building if it advanced his own agenda. But, then, he'd like totally feel a smidgen of bad and make some puppy dog eyes to make it all better.

Show isn't even being subtle with this crap. Brooke's talk about how happy she is that Hope doesn't go for "bad boys" was the biggest anvil possible. Then Hope was acting like she was trying to get Thomas to admit he's still horny for her. I will never understand how "let you think your baby was dead and used that to try to get you into bed" isn't the dealbreaker to end all dealbreakers. Especially when you add in how he just fucking showed everyone, less than 6 months ago, that he hasn't learned, and he's still a manipulative gaslighting douchebag whenever he isn't handed what he wants on a silver platter. And don't even get me started on that dress. When it was on the hanger and Brooke and Hope were gushing over it, I was thinking "OK, maybe it will look better on a human than just hanging there." It did not. It's boring and looked cheaply made in the closeup shots. I don't get how it fits that "young" vibe HFTF is supposed to have. Everyone acting like Thomas has done some major penance is just fucking ridiculous. He only apologized because he figured out apologies would get him what he wants. The second something doesn't go his way, he's going to manipulate and gaslight everyone who stands in his way.

Wasn't Steffy in the room? Or did she leave before Finn actually got around to saving Sheila? (I admit, I was not paying full attention during those scenes, so Steffy could have shuffled out without me noticing.)

I wonder if maybe she didn't actually call for him. From what I remember, the nurse came into Finn's office and told him that his mother had just gotten an emergency patient who she knows, and then said it was Sheila Carter. But, I don't remember the nurse saying Li had asked for Finn. Maybe the nurse thought she was doing something nice by getting Finn to offer her support while she dealt with having a patient she knew? (Although, of course, a better option would have been to go get an entirely unrelated doctor and tell them that the assigned doctor had some kind of connection to the patient, but, soaps.) Damn, Katie. Don't waste any time there. Carter just can't win, can he? Katie wouldn't look so bad if they had just had the two of them agree they were just friends when they had that conversation a couple weeks ago.

Even for a soap, that was an annoying level of "oh my God, would you just spit it out already?!?" And Ridge had to stop and do his hair before going over there? JMW's telenovela reaction faces are hysterically bad. Why wouldn't they also have texted Steffy, Hope, Liam, and Wyatt? I know Finn needs to be at the hospital for the Sheila/Li stuff, but it really makes no sense that none of that generation was pulled in for the big reveal. The three most important people Bill wants to find out are Katie, Liam, and Wyatt, and only one of them is there? And, of course, we're going to have Finn save Sheila's life, because he's a good doctor who won't violate his oath. Especially with the nurse there to witness things, he's not going to let Li get busted for letting a patient die in front of someone. But it's going to be really fucking annoying to get another round of Sheila's delusional "he saved me because he loves me! He wants me in his life!"

They all may have rolled their eyes when Sheila took off running, but they didn't roll them as hard as I rolled mine when they all stood around not cuffing her. You told her she was under arrest, slap the damn cuffs on her, don't sit there and have a bunch of conversations with her. I hope we find out when, exactly, Deacon got on board. Him being involved makes that whole conversation where he urged her to go to Bill after the proposal make more sense than it did at the time. I love that it was all Bill's plan and Ridge actually gave him credit for it. Ridge must really be at loose ends now. Deacon saved Steffy and Finn, and he helped them catch up to Sheila. Bill saved Finn and brought him to Steffy and then came up with a plan that involved huge personal sacrifices, to get Sheila and protect their families. Pretty soon he's going to find out that Brooke and Taylor are BFF's and living together (I think?) while not pining away for him. And his dumbass sociopath son is back at FC.

It looks like exactly the same outfit, except the boots are a little different Caroline's were low cut, and Sheila's appear to go up over the ankle. Same heel, though.

Did the FBI guys stop for a snack on the way or something? And, yeah, why wouldn't they already be close by if they were expecting this to all go down imminently? I just remembered today, when Sheila reminded Bill that they'd had sex, that she told Deacon a while ago (before we knew Bill was setting her up) that the sex wasn't very good. Now we know why - it was because he could barely stomach it. So, the Stallion doesn't really suck in the sack after all. Carter and Katie would be a good friendship, but they're a lame romantic pairing. They come across as liking each other well enough, but there is zero spark.