bantering

I thought Michaela killed Sam when she hit him with the trophy.....or something. OR maybe it was Laurel? Or a combination of people accidentally whacking him upside the head? Or, er, yeah. Nonetheless, I do think the whole reason everyone landed in this mess is because of Wes's obsession with Rebecca. Had he not insisted they defend her, the killing of Sam likely wouldn't have happened. There have been so many murders on this show, I can't really remember who did what to whom anymore. This show was more interesting when they also included law cases, as in the first season. Does anyone still go to class? They might as well have kept Wes alive if Gabriel was going to be his substitute.

And there it is! Her sex-face is like her trademark so it's hard to forget!

Now that Kate Mansi is back, am I actually expected to forget that Abigail slept with EJ? I was able to forget this indiscretion when Marci Miller was in the role, but EJ and the cabin and the shower and the closet is all I see when I see Kate Mansi. Ugh.

Was it ever explained why he left the first wife? I guess I was surprised when he declared his love for the ex-wife in the letter. That was more surprising to me than his desire to be with his son, although I'm also baffled as to why he couldn't maintain a relationship with the son even with a divorce from the ex-wife. (I assume the rest of the back-story will be explained later on, but he's the one character on the show who is difficult to understand. I even get why Frank and Bonnie are the way they are but Sam baffles me. There really isn't a good reason as to why he sucks so much. Is it the acting? I have no idea. People complained about Wes's acting, but I understood why he was the way he was too). Because Sam had the affair with the student, I figured he was one of those guys who couldn't really stay faithful to one person, regardless of when times get tough or not. I also think the majority of the murders have been reasonably explained as to how they could happen (whether by accident, or out of rage, or to protect Analise or someone else, or because Frank got guilt-tripped by way of his own blind loyalty). Why Layla was murdered by Frank through Sam's orders just because Sam couldn't tell Analise he sucked as a husband still confounds me. So, yeah, Sam continues to baffle me. I'm sure Analise would have forgiven him for his indiscretion -- we've seen she's a forgiving person even when she has to scrub blood off of her floor, so Sam's refusal to tell her about the student is just weird to me. Seriously, Sam, did she really have to die just because you had sex outside of marriage? Yeah, you're dumb.

Eve makes 16 year old Sami look mature. Goodness gracious. She's an attractive woman physically but is also proof-positive how someone's whiny personality can kill any objective appraisal of her beauty. Why is Ciara surprised that Ben tried to break her and Tripp up. Duh, he's a former serial killer. This is actually low on his list of indiscretions. The former I can forgive. The latter, not so much.

Every time I tune in to this show after an absence, Abigail still remains boring. I just don't get it. (I don't even dislike Marci Miller. She's pretty and can act, but, man, this character). Don't even get me started on Ciara...even the most fabulous hair can't make this lady seem interesting to me...

Oh that's right. I made a mistake. He killed the girl Sam wanted murdered. Anyway, when Frank and Bonnie and the rest of the kids are doing the killing, I guess that seems more tolerable to me. But I'd prefer Analise and Nate aren't tainted like that.

How many people is Bonnie going to kill? I also don't like that they compromised Nate's character like this. Not sure I get the point of any of what's happening this season. Sam's death was tolerable because Frank (A HIT MAN) did it. No one cared about Rebecca, so in a way maybe Bonnie did viewers a favour. And, er, well, it's Bonnie. I mean, she's friends with Frank. Killing probably comes naturally to her. But who wants to see a guy like Nate, a police officer and generally someone who has a "clean" record (by, er, this show's standards), get compromised to the point that he has a direct hand in someone's death? Hopefully, Miller turns out to be guilty. Edited: I meant to say that Frank killed the girl that Sam wanted murdered. Other people killed Sami -- so many murders happen for stupid reasons on this show, I can't keep who killed whom straight.

I was upset after this episode. Really, really upset.

That's what I noticed yesterday - that they looked the same age. It was a bit jarring because we know Belle is supposed to be a lot younger. At what point I was trying to assess if Sami might look younger depending on make-up and styling. On another note, John seems way less cheesy as an older guy in his senior years and with get hair. Go figure. He was always handsome, but also extremely cheesy. Now he just seems like a handsome older guy acting appropriately dignified for his age. Is EJ being recast? I think part of the difficulty in recasting EJ is that James Scott has a distinctive physical presence in terms of his height. It's not simply that he's good-looking, but his physical presence is notable. I think even his mannerisms are a bit unique to him in terms of how he speaks. It's not so much the British accent itself, but the way he'd use it. You can either hate or love his acting -- regardless of either, his physical presence commands your attention. Like, it's hard not to notice him physically, even if you think he's unattractive (i.e he's not your type) or a bad actor. It would be weird to see another actor in this role -- especially if he's under 6 feet.

Ugh, Chad, just give up on Abigail. Not one of her many personalities is interesting. She can't even give a black wig life. Not to sound cruel (but I probably do anyway -- it happens when I need to be blunt and I have no other way of sugar-coating my question), but why exactly does Abigail want this baby?

How is it possible for Abigail to be the most boring person alive (or, heck, dead), even with multiple-personality disorder?

Abigail is so boring. OMG. I have no words. No wonder the serial killer seems more entertaining.

Eve always seems...desperate? I think that's why I don't get Brady's attraction to her. I know he's the dumbest man alive, but I feel he should sense how much she oozes it.

Hope is a lot more patient with Ciara than I would be.

What was Ben diagnosed with?

Yes, but there's no indication Ciara is mentally ill herself. Unless maybe that's where this storyline is going?

I wonder if people thought it was weird that Marlena was a serial killer, but we didn't have message board forums to go WTF. To be honest, I forgot (or didn't know) Marlena was a serial killer (was she possessed by the devil? Was it during that time?) I could forget Ben is a serial killer if the show would make me forget like they did with Marlena, but when he's being confronted by people like Eve for killing the daughter, it's hard to forget.

The thing with Ben is that the serial killer stuff is actually referenced, so you're reminded of it constantly. Everyone on this show has killed by accident or unintentionally or because of some other weird defence, but to serial kill requires a different level of suspension of disbelief. I think you also have to believe that mental illness can cause serial killing, which I don't, so that's another reason why it's hard to suspend disbelief. Mental illness may lead some individuals to kill one person where they're pushed over the edge and snap, but to do it in a serial fashion isn't usually connected to mental illness, but something else altogether (i.e sociopathy?). There's too much required of me as a viewer to think any woman wouldn't run screaming from Ben. The easiest way to make this storyline work is to have never made Ben a serial killer in the first place, if they intended to bring him back.

A woman falling for a serial killer is too unrealistic, imo. Especially someone who is the daughter of a police officer. Maybe they should make it so that this guy is Ben's long-lost twin brother who thinks he's Ben. I realize the Dimeras have done mob hits, but it's so rarely referenced I forget that they kill for a living. But with Ben they're explicit about his serial killing. I'm just like "Why" every time Ciara in his vicinity. She KNOWS he's a serial killer. When Sami fell for EJ, he was going by a different identity and no one knew he was a Dimera until it was too late to get rid of the feelings. Here, I'm thinking to myself "Why would you fall for a serial killer who everybody knows is a serial killer?" And when Sami did find out who EJ was, she had the good sense to look scared. She probably would have kept running if she had not fallen pregnant by him -- she had no choice but to make her relationship with him work. But here you're willing to be alone in an apartment with a guy who has killed multiple women in gruesome ways, and you DON'T actually have to be alone with him? WTF.

Oh, so I guess there's a precedent for this. This is all bizarre to me.

Has a serial killer ever been redeemed on a soap opera before? I feel like this is a new rare first on a soap opera. Like what am I watching? They should have never made Ben a serial killer, because I feel this is one of the weirdest storylines I've ever watched.

Why is Eve so hell-bent on seeing the worst in Teresa? Did Teresa do anything to her? I think I'm only watching this show for Chad's face at this point.

I figured maybe she just wanted Brady because he had been with Teresa. I have no idea how these two fell in love with each other as I wasn't watching when they first got together. But I know something isn't clicking right when I see these two together. I actually think Eve worked better with JJ, even though he was her daughter's ex-boyfriend. Pretty much everyone gets more annoying when they're stuck with Brady. Except for maybe Nicole. But that's only because it's Nicole.

What does Brady see in Eve? I don't get it. All I see is one cranky lady. (Before she had the hair, but now that's gone).