Current Plots Discussion II: Discussing Today's Episode and Current Storylines

[Artsda]

Sloan's brother seems  abusive. His language, the "listen and listen the good."  Now wanting her to use her body to hurt Chanel.  She left her career for this too. He knows how to manipulate her and what to say to get her to do what he wants.

I don't get what Talia sees in him. But she deserves responsible for what sges doing. 

So that apartment everyone is fighting for is Ciara and Ben's. 

Leo wasn't wrong with the demon child comment. Brady needs to go spend more time on that and parenting than fighting Xander over Chloe. 

Can't stand Paulina. She can go anytime. 

[Frozendiva]

Was that apartment missing a fridge? It did look like Ciara and Ben’s old place. Why were all the prospective tenants in the apartment without the property manager? Leo, you are right about Rachel. Maybe Brady can look at an actual house that has a yard. Can Gwen and Leo even afford that unit?

I did like some of Alex’s self realizations. With some decent writing, he could become interesting.

The actress playing Talia looked uncomfortable in the lingerie. Colin also came across as controlling and abusive. He and Sloan sure had a good impression of their dad - the dad is the home wrecker and not Chanel. He was the adult and had the power in the relationship. I doubt that Chanel was the first student for the dad. The other woman is not always to blame - the dude can tell her anything. Now Colin wants Talia to seduce Chanel?

Jada has the Salem Brain today - Talia had access to Paulina’s office key. Yeah, things are not adding up.

Why is Allie sending Rafe NZ photos?

 

[DaphneCat]

Did Brady seriously just use the term "kept woman"?  Is this 1957?  Is Brady auditioning to be the new misogynistic Victor?  

I wonder if they're going to keep Talia around after this all comes out.  I think she has potential to be a really good actor.  She really communicated by her facial expressions that she had doubts about what Colin was doing, even though she was going along with him.  And she played the reluctant seducer of Chanel really well.

[boes]

Sloan's brother looks like his day job is bellringer at Notre Dame Cathedral.  He does "evil" with all the over-emphasis of a silent film star.  Talia seems way too smart to be with someone who is so obviously using her.

I can't wait to hear why Sloan speaks like she's never eaten an English muffin, much less lived in England while he talks like he's an old timey chimney sweep pal of Mary Poppins.

Edited May 3, 2023 by boes

[4evaQuez]

I'm just completely in love with Broe. Every Days Supercouple, or Supercouple adjacent relationship like Broe, has its brand. I see original Broe's brand being their art and singing and performing. I think this Broe's brand is their maturity and unique relationship development for a Soap. Their uniqueness being both were able to move on from each other, spend about a decade apart, and then come back as very different people who still fundamentally complement the other. While they still fall into common Soap Opera Tropes and have villains, I do think the fact that they spent years apart in other relationships and have had other great loves - Chloe has. I'm not certain I'll call Theresa or Kristen a great love of Brady. But he loved Kristen, at least, at the time - gives both a pretty sensible idea of love and loss. I thought it was in character and in keeping with Chloe's teenage history, that she wouldn't want to cause Rachel any more anguish and would even feel responsible for Rachel's pain. Chloe was a teen who had to strike out at a lot of people - including Nancy and Craig - because of a history of several abandonments. I thought NB really carried the scene, and EM responded beautifully. I know people often say NB isn't a great actress, and I don't completely disagree. However, I do think NB sells tragedy and heartbreak well. I was honestly scared because Chloe's goodbye to Brady almost felt like a goodbye to Salem. I was happy to see that she's still staying in town.

Lastly, something I love about Chloe is that she's a core character with a lot of connections on canvas, but you can still realistically do stories about her feeling isolated or lonely. With someone like Eric after Marlena's death, the show often has to ignore the characters' core relationships to fuel their spiral or loneliness - like where were John, Roman, and Belle the entire time Eric was spiraling. Does Johnny even know Eric is his uncle? Chloe has people who care about her, but she's also not related to anyone on the cast right now. It seems more realistic that she'll find herself alone and making destructive decisions with no one really noticing than Eric who is drinking in the family bar, yet Roman doesn't seem to realize or care.

The Brady and Gwen scene was odd. I liked it, but I think Chloe (and sometimes Nicole) brings out a very specific version of Brady. It was odd going from Chloe's Brady in the apartment to a Brady that reminded me of Theresa's Brady. One that seemed a little more belligerent and unpredictable. It's a Brady that I actually don't think we've seen in a while. Even his scenes with Kristen seem a little more controlled, for Rachel's sake at the very least.

I'm surprised Rafe isn't telling Jada to just cover up the evidence for her sister. Lord knows he's covered up enough crimes.

I've found Chanel more likable these last two episodes.

Maggie and Alex felt pointless.

[CanaryFan98]

Gwen/Kayla have interacted before when she went to the hospital after she fell down a flight of stairs. 

[Artsda]

It's pretty low to pretend to be bi just to get revenge. Talia isn't coming out sympathetic. Chanel looks dumb. 

Why is Chloe taking responsibility for the demon child? Brady should be taking the responsibility. He covered all of Kristen crimes and let Rachel get away with everything. 

Brady going to tell Gwen after all she's done that she's too good for Xander? She tried Sarah's brain. 

[norcalgal]

28 minutes ago, Artsda said:

Brady going to tell Gwen after all she's done that she's too good for Xander? She tried Sarah's brain.

I can’t be bothered to try and figure out if Brady is related to Sarah but will assume so because….It’s Salem!  But why would he take the side of Gwen over his cousin?  Sarah.  Being mad at Xander is not a good enough reason.

[Frozendiva]

Vacation time for Maggie? She will give Alex yet another chance?

Xander and Colin were rather antagonistic neighbors. Colin has no idea that Xander has a not so great history, but also likes to play private detective. It is likely that he will blab about Talia and the aggressive British motel guy. Even placing his accent.

Talia, surely you are better than this in terms of hooking up with Chanel as someone else’s revenge. The hardware guy was very helpful in recognizing Talia.

Still didn’t see a fridge in the apartment.

Brady, you have some tough parenting to do in order to keep Rachel from being nasty to any new lady. When she is older, she will understand that both her mom and dad love her, but they all can’t live together as a family. Your effort and not Chloe’s. No one needs that hatred and poison. And now you are sorta commiserating with Gwen?

Lady Whiatleturd or whatever Chanel called Leo?

[KBrownie]

5 hours ago, CanaryFan98 said:

Gwen/Kayla have interacted before when she went to the hospital after she fell down a flight of stairs. 

So once two years ago when Gwen lied about Kayla's actual niece being the reason she lost her baby?  Point still stands.  Gwen's "Aunt Kayla" was just random, clunky, and unearned.  Plus, their interaction then was more about Kayla being the only, all-purpose doctor in Salem at the time.

Brady better be careful.  Gwen will drug and poison Chloe if she really sees her as any kind of threat.  

[DisneyBoy]

Gwen is just awful.

If Jack thinks she's so great, why not move her to whatever he is?

Edited May 4, 2023 by DisneyBoy

[WendyCR72]

3 hours ago, norcalgal said:

I can’t be bothered to try and figure out if Brady is related to Sarah but will assume so because….It’s Salem!  But why would he take the side of Gwen over his cousin?  Sarah.  Being mad at Xander is not a good enough reason.

As far as I know, Brady and Sarah are not related. Miracle of miracles. (Brady and Xander, on the other hand, are second cousins or something on the Kiriakis side!)

And thank God Brady/Sarah are not related, because how soon we forget the short-lived (hallelujah!) arc of Sarah/Brady getting "revenge" (forget on what or why) and almost but not sleeping together.

But Brady was sympathetic to Sarah during the Mickey/Rachel mess, so his commiserating with Gwen still makes no logical sense.

Still trying to fit square-peg Gwennie into a round hole!

[4evaQuez]

I liked Sloan telling EJ about Ericole.

I didn't care about anything else. 

[brisbydog]

12 hours ago, Frozendiva said:

 

Xander and Colin were rather antagonistic neighbors. Colin has no idea that Xander has a not so great history, but also likes to play private detective. It is likely that he will blab about Talia and the aggressive British motel guy. Even placing his accent.

I liked that detail. Nobody from the UK would say "are you are from England", they would go for the detail of what region

9 hours ago, WendyCR72 said:

 

But Brady was sympathetic to Sarah during the Mickey/Rachel mess, so his commiserating with Gwen still makes no logical sense.

Still trying to fit square-peg Gwennie into a round hole!

I am down for Brady and Gwen just because I want to see Rachel go at it with Gwen. That could be fun

9 hours ago, WendyCR72 said:

As far as I know, Brady and Sarah are not related. Miracle of miracles. (Brady and Xander, on the other hand, are second cousins or something on the Kiriakis side!)

 

Isabella and Bo are first cousins, so that makes Brady some sort of first cousin once removed to Xander

[peachmangosteen]

7 minutes ago, brisbydog said:

I am down for Brady and Gwen just because I want to see Rachel go at it with Gwen. That could be fun

I didn't even think about that but yea I would enjoy that lol. I am down for a weird little 'friends who kinda hate each other' thing with them.

[WendyCR72]

6 hours ago, brisbydog said:

Isabella and Bo are first cousins, so that makes Brady some sort of first cousin once removed to Xander

That part, I did know! Was in my post! 😎

[CanaryFan98]

18 hours ago, KBrownie said:

So once two years ago when Gwen lied about Kayla's actual niece being the reason she lost her baby?  Point still stands.  Gwen's "Aunt Kayla" was just random, clunky, and unearned.  Plus, their interaction then was more about Kayla being the only, all-purpose doctor in Salem at the time.

Brady better be careful.  Gwen will drug and poison Chloe if she really sees her as any kind of threat.  

I agree I was responding to the other poster who mentioned them not interacting before and that's not the case.

I don't entirely hate the idea of Brady/Gwen only because the alternative is Kristen and at least Gwen isn't a rapist.

Edited May 4, 2023 by CanaryFan98

[brisbydog]

On 5/3/2023 at 1:25 AM, boes said:

Sloan's brother looks like his day job is bellringer at Notre Dame Cathedral.  He does "evil" with all the over-emphasis of a silent film star.  Talia seems way too smart to be with someone who is so obviously using her.

I can't wait to hear why Sloan speaks like she's never eaten an English muffin, much less lived in England while he talks like he's an old timey chimney sweep pal of Mary Poppins.

Maybe he stayed in London after Mum died and Sloane returned to the States to get her law degree? Perhaps she goes all cockney when she's back in Blighty; I have one accent for most of my life but around my Brit parents I swap back 

[Frozendiva]

9 minutes ago, brisbydog said:

Maybe he stayed in London after Mum died and Sloane returned to the States to get her law degree? Perhaps she goes all cockney when she's back in Blighty; I have one accent for most of my life but around my Brit parents I swap back 

That is fairly common. Some people do love their accent in a different country and it comes back when they go back.  She may have spent a lot of time in the US. One nitpick I do have is surely she would still use some British phrases/slang.

[SouthernChick]

Colin and Talia make my skin crawl.

Nicole is starting to make my skin crawl, being all up in Eric’s business about Sloane. Just like she was when he was with Jada.

[Artsda]

Talia acting all offended to her sister isn't doing the characters any favours. Any conscious she briefly has is wiped by her actions. She should be best friends with Gwen. 

Sloan telling EJ is why it was so stupid for Nicole to lie when someone saw.

 

[Frozendiva]

Colin should do his own dirty work. At some point, Talia will realize she is being used. Sloan should be wondering if her brother is in town, she should possibly know that he is involved with Talia. Unless they don’t talk to one another.

Yeah, tell EJ about Eric and Nicole. It didn’t bother her that much, and Nicole would be embarrassed about a nothing. She is right that she and Eric go way back and she will care for him.

Jada, you are far too trusting of your sister. She has been a bit shady.

Gabi, all this will end up biting you. Of course you think Nicole is faking her stomach pain.

Creepy Colin has to show up at the Bistro to watch his plan? Chanel should be seeing a field of red flags - her employee is a little too close for comfort. My alarm bells would be ringing.

Two emergency alerts during the viewing of the recording - fires in the province,

[Your Aunt Tilly]

13 hours ago, brisbydog said:

I liked that detail. Nobody from the UK would say "are you are from England", they would go for the detail of what region

I am down for Brady and Gwen just because I want to see Rachel go at it with Gwen. That could be fun

Isabella and Bo are first cousins, so that makes Brady some sort of first cousin once removed to Xander

Isabella and Bo are brother and sister. Well, technically half brother and sister - Victor was their father. I don’t remember where Xander fits into the family tree.

[WendyCR72]

3 hours ago, Your Aunt Tilly said:

Isabella and Bo are brother and sister. Well, technically half brother and sister - Victor was their father. I don’t remember where Xander fits into the family tree.

If I remember correctly, Xander is the son of one of Victor's brothers. So he would be first cousins with Bo, Isabella, and Phillip.

[brisbydog]

4 hours ago, WendyCR72 said:

If I remember correctly, Xander is the son of one of Victor's brothers. So he would be first cousins with Bo, Isabella, and Phillip.

Yes. And Justin. The son of Victor's other brother

[tribeca]

Jada looked so pretty yesterday and she was not really believing her sister.  Wonder if asking her all those questions was the right way to go.  The one I see to trusting is Rafe.  He knows nothing about Sloan or Tulia but automatically believes one because he wants to sleep with her sister.  
     Glad Gabi did not become a nurse lol 

Colin is creepy and not charming at all.  Why that random lady in the bar believed him I don’t understand.   
  Eric was cute with the rose.  

[norcalgal]

So what do we think?  Is Eric the baby daddy or is it EJ?

And I do think DOOL should have gone with the menopause theory Kayla first floated. Would have been interesting to see how a woman like Nicole who relies on her attractiveness and sexuality/sensuality deals with a big life event for most women.  Missed opportunity…

If EJ is the dad, maybe third time’s the charm for an Ecole baby, since Nicole miscarried the other two.  The loss of number two was especially heartbreaking when Nicole folded away the baby clothes she bought and said goodbye to her “little dude”.  (But then she blamed Jennifer for the miscarriage of her already deceased baby!  😤 😡  oh Nicole, not above using her dead baby in her schemes). 

[Artsda]

So Kate recognizes her captor and not someone she likes. 

[Frozendiva]

A menopause story where a woman like Nicole becomes invisible to a lot of men would be interesting. Reality where some women hit the incel wall of being unmarried at 25 and apparently face non existent romantic prospects. Nicole is in her mid to late 40s and having babies at that age can bring issues and the chance of more abnormalities.

Eric was right about EJ flying off the handle. Both he and Nicole were drugged and did not make a decision based on anything except being high. Guess Eric will need a steak for his eye.

Gabi was kind to take Nicole to the hospital but leave her there alone.

Wonder who Kate’s captor is

Alex, you really don’t need a PR person.

Nice of Kayla to go back to work the minute she gets home. No doctors!

[CanaryFan98]

13 hours ago, norcalgal said:

So what do we think?  Is Eric the baby daddy or is it EJ?

And I do think DOOL should have gone with the menopause theory Kayla first floated. Would have been interesting to see how a woman like Nicole who relies on her attractiveness and sexuality/sensuality deals with a big life event for most women.  Missed opportunity…

If EJ is the dad, maybe third time’s the charm for an Ecole baby, since Nicole miscarried the other two.  The loss of number two was especially heartbreaking when Nicole folded away the baby clothes she bought and said goodbye to her “little dude”.  (But then she blamed Jennifer for the miscarriage of her already deceased baby!  😤 😡  oh Nicole, not above using her dead baby in her schemes). 

This show would never let EJ have a kid with someone that wasn't Sami.

 

I do think Nicole being invisible to men would be a far better storyline for her than what she's had the last few years tbh. However I would need someone other than Ron to write it.

[4evaQuez]

12 hours ago, Frozendiva said:

A menopause story where a woman like Nicole becomes invisible to a lot of men would be interesting. Reality where some women hit the incel wall of being unmarried at 25 and apparently face non existent romantic prospects.

 

1 hour ago, CanaryFan98 said:

I do think Nicole being invisible to men would be a far better storyline for her than what she's had the last few years tbh. However I would need someone other than Ron to write it.

Honest question - as in I'm not being snarky or sarcastic at all - why would Nicole become invisible to men because of menopause? Kate is still a femme fatale and she's the great-grandmother of a preteen (Arianna Grace). 

In Days' world, women don't lose their appeal because they're over 25. Hope, Jennifer, Kayla, Sami, Carrie, Chloe, Nicole, Belle, Maggie, Caroline, Marlena, Kristen, and Kate have all had men pursuing them past 25. We even still see Marlena in sex scenes and John obviously still sees her as sexually arousing. 

I think one of the few things Days does well is not promoting the narrative that women are no longer viable after 25 or...gasp!...30.

[CanaryFan98]

3 hours ago, 4evaQuez said:

 

Honest question - as in I'm not being snarky or sarcastic at all - why would Nicole become invisible to men because of menopause? Kate is still a femme fatale and she's the great-grandmother of a preteen (Arianna Grace). 

In Days' world, women don't lose their appeal because they're over 25. Hope, Jennifer, Kayla, Sami, Carrie, Chloe, Nicole, Belle, Maggie, Caroline, Marlena, Kristen, and Kate have all had men pursuing them past 25. We even still see Marlena in sex scenes and John obviously still sees her as sexually arousing. 

I think one of the few things Days does well is not promoting the narrative that women are no longer viable after 25 or...gasp!...30.

You have a point there it might not make a difference with Nicole at least on this show. However it is in large part because she's a vixen character(like Kate) that before GV's Eric wasn't associated with a pairing. The classic heroine types like Hope, Kayla the show doesn't really care for them beyond their popular pairing.  Jennifer is an exception for this as Jack is the one that gets that treatment.

[DisneyBoy]

And yet, Kayla/Steve are arguably the show's hottest couple. Seriously. Their love scenes? Yowsa!

[Desperado]

On 5/6/2023 at 8:49 AM, CanaryFan98 said:

This show would never let EJ have a kid with someone that wasn't Sami.

True, and WTFD stories are so overdone. I don’t want another tragedy for Nicole and I don’t want to see her tied to Eric forever. Lose-lose-lose proposition here.

I also would’ve loved a menopause story for Nicole, but only if it included good information. Yes the average age of menopause is 51, but perimenopause can start a decade earlier. Many women suffer in silence over some many things during that time, a little information sharing especially linked to a woman as gorgeous as AZ, defying the stereotype that post-meno women are dowdy old hags, would’ve been appreciated.

I’m skipping the Talia/Sloan’s brother storyline because I’m not in the mood for any type of intimate partner violence. It’s too bad, because I really like the actress’ work so far.

Edited May 7, 2023 by Desperado

[4evaQuez]

Nicole has become quite the blabbermouth.

The Stefan and Gabi scenes were weird. The line about "Latinx" and the way the camera focused Gabi's face without giving her a verbal response to it was confusing. There's also nothing interesting about seeing people type on a computer for an episode. Stefan also doesn't look like someone who would listen to Lizzo. 

It's so odd how focused the show is on showing the Brady family as working class. Roman's daughter, Sami, is a millionaire. Roman and Kate's grandchildren Allie and Will should be wealthy via Sami and presumably Kate. Carrie and Austin, Kate's son, should also have access to large sums of money. Rex, Kate's son, has also been described as wealthy. Roman himself just traveled internationally to Ireland and last-minute to Greece. That's not someone who's working class or doesn't have access to money.

Why did Kate call Frankie and Carly low lives? I don't remember Kate interacting with either very much during either one's 2000s-ish returns. I know Frankie wasn't a fan of Max and Chelsea, but that doesn't seem like something to hold a grudge over more than a decade later.

The new guy with Kate was kinda hot.

 

[norcalgal]

2 hours ago, 4evaQuez said:

Why did Kate call Frankie and Carly low lives?

Yeah that was weird and nuts! I was re-watching some old clip of Carly/Bo/Lawrence (thanks YouTube!) and Lawrence was talking to Nicky about how Bo didn't grow up living in a huge house with servants, unlike him and Carly! Just exactly how much more bougie is Whats-His-Name von Leuchner (sp?) supposed to be compared to Carly & Frankie?  (And I have vague memories of Carly's dad in full formal dress, with ribbons/medals and sash at some ball and I think he was a Baron...?)

And there was some other plot where Carly was forced to sign over her family's fortune (in the millions of dollars) to Lawrence. Doesn't sound low life to me...

[Irlandesa]

That is strange.  Carly was very well off and was set to be married in an arranged marriage to Lawrence as a merging of two powerful and wealthy families. 

Frankie was an orphan so maybe that makes sense from a classist POV but Kate was a prostitute so maybe she shouldn't be talking.

[DisneyBoy]

5 hours ago, 4evaQuez said:

The Stefan and Gabi scenes were weird. The line about "Latinx" and the way the camera focused Gabi's face without giving her a verbal response to it was confusing. There's also nothing interesting about seeing people type on a computer for an episode. Stefan also doesn't look like someone who would listen to Lizzo. 

I agree the Latinx thing and the "they" stuff in the performance review was oddly written. I also don't think it was suggested Stefan should listen to Lizzo, but that he should know who she is as a celeb.

It's sad this is one of the few instances in which we see Nicole's work, and yet it didn't seem to be written in her voice at all.

Wait - what happened to Li? Has Gabi cut him loose already? (Mistake)

Nice seeing Whatizname back to torment Kate. A decent enough idea. I'd have been disappointed if he never returned after Beyond Salem because he got so much screentime there and was then revealed as a baddie at the last second. He also has a good look. Too soon to call him the new Xander but there's potential. He does have a bit of that blank energy that Andrew exudes though.

I'd enjoy Billie coming to her mama's rescue as a follow-up, but I doubt we'll get that. Kate has interesting kids. Also some nice "ship at sea" effects would be cool - crazy winds, sea spray, tilting ship, fog, etc - but this isn't the 80s anymore. It'll be static sets. I miss when Days had budget.

Speaking of which...doesn't Kate have enough money to buy her own freedom? Why would Roman or Chad need to cut a cheque? She's loaded!

I hate the "oh THIS shit again?" tone of this pregnancy storyline. Eric, Marlena, Nicole...they all seem fed up with the mere idea. Disappointing. Let US be tired of the merry-go-round - you guys get into it! 😄

...I was really expecting the emphasis from Nicole to be about having to potentially lose another baby, or fall ill during the pregnancy and die. I mean....why would she think this would work? This is a fluke pregnancy and nightmare scenario. In her dialogue, she was forced to emphasize the WTD aspect...but realistically, she's looking at a painful, triggering mess that is almost 100% guaranteed to result in her losing another kid and surely suffering from complications. Why wasn't that the reality she was grappling with immediately? "I can't go through this again...! Oh God, this is going to wreck me, isn't it?!" Etc

[4evaQuez]

3 minutes ago, DisneyBoy said:

Wait - what happened to Li? Has Gabi cut him loose already? (Mistake)

...I was really expecting the emphasis from Nicole to be about having to potentially lose another baby, or fall ill during the pregnancy and die. I mean....why would she think this would work? This is a fluke pregnancy and nightmare scenario. In her dialogue, she was forced to emphasize the WTD aspect...but realistically, she's looking at a painful, triggering mess that is almost 100% guaranteed to result in her losing another kid and surely suffering from complications. Why wasn't that the reality she was grappling with immediately? "I can't go through this again...! Oh God, this is going to wreck me, isn't it?!" Etc

Gabi and Li decided to separate after she recovered from the biscuits. They had a mostly good conversation, and it ended with seemingly the two on good terms. (Gabi makes a joke about Li giving her his Dimera shares and Li smiles and says no. I think it was supposed to show they are both okay with the separation, especially Li).

I agree with your thoughts on Nicole. I also wish the show had allowed Eric to have some internal strife regarding the biscuits. The last time Eric was unknowingly drugged and had sex under the influences was with Kristen. This then led to him accusing Nicole of raping him and losing the priesthood. There should have been more with Eric and (Brady or Marlena) regarding his conflicted feelings with being drugged and Nicole somehow being involved again. (Note: Nicole was not responsible for either but she was unknowingly involved in both. I'm saying the similarities should trigger some lingereing trauma in Eric and not him blaming Nicole as she obviously did nothing wrong). I feel this is a missed opportunity.

I also agree with you regarding Nicole. She discovers she's pregnant, and she seemingly has no fears regarding whether she can deliver a living and healthy baby? Even after Kayla shows concern, Nicole seemingly has none? Her last two pregnancies caused her strife, turmoil, scheming, and even her freedom in the Grace/Sydney case. It seems Nicole main concern should be whether she has to go through another experience of a potential lost child and not whether EJ or Eric is the father.

[chediavolo]

On 5/6/2023 at 10:21 AM, 4evaQuez said:

 

Honest question - as in I'm not being snarky or sarcastic at all - why would Nicole become invisible to men because of menopause? Kate is still a femme fatale and she's the great-grandmother of a preteen (Arianna Grace). 

In Days' world, women don't lose their appeal because they're over 25. Hope, Jennifer, Kayla, Sami, Carrie, Chloe, Nicole, Belle, Maggie, Caroline, Marlena, Kristen, and Kate have all had men pursuing them past 25. We even still see Marlena in sex scenes and John obviously still sees her as sexually arousing. 

I think one of the few things Days does well is not promoting the narrative that women are no longer viable after 25 or...gasp!...30.

As long as she goes the plastic surgery route like the rest of them, you are correct. But for real women especially those that do not rely on plastic surgery and hormones, menopause is literally hell.

[Frozendiva]

2 hours ago, 4evaQuez said:

Gabi and Li decided to separate after she recovered from the biscuits. They had a mostly good conversation, and it ended with seemingly the two on good terms. (Gabi makes a joke about Li giving her his Dimera shares and Li smiles and says no. I think it was supposed to show they are both okay with the separation, especially Li).

I agree with your thoughts on Nicole. I also wish the show had allowed Eric to have some internal strife regarding the biscuits. The last time Eric was unknowingly drugged and had sex under the influences was with Kristen. This then led to him accusing Nicole of raping him and losing the priesthood. There should have been more with Eric and (Brady or Marlena) regarding his conflicted feelings with being drugged and Nicole somehow being involved again. (Note: Nicole was not responsible for either but she was unknowingly involved in both. I'm saying the similarities should trigger some lingereing trauma in Eric and not him blaming Nicole as she obviously did nothing wrong). I feel this is a missed opportunity.

I also agree with you regarding Nicole. She discovers she's pregnant, and she seemingly has no fears regarding whether she can deliver a living and healthy baby? Even after Kayla shows concern, Nicole seemingly has none? Her last two pregnancies caused her strife, turmoil, scheming, and even her freedom in the Grace/Sydney case. It seems Nicole main concern should be whether she has to go through another experience of a potential lost child and not whether EJ or Eric is the father.

I would be worried sick about being pregnant in my mid to late 40s and wondering if my child will have special needs. I assume she will have various tests for abnormalities. Wonder if the writers will have her interact with Jada about keeping the child, realistic fears for both the baby’s and her health. 

[Frozendiva]

I would probably miss quite a number of current pop culture references. Don’t keep up with a lot. Gabi’s editing is not the best idea since documents do have a record of editing (depends what is turned on to track changes) and if Nicole saved the document at 2 pm and it was edited and sent when she was at the hospital, there may be some questions of how. The review did not seem like Nicole, but maybe she has two different voices - work, and non work.

Mom has to take Eric to get a couple of stitches?

Nicole, you were right how EJ would react to your nothing with Eric. Once he does find out about the baby, he will want to know the paternity. You also don’t need to tell Kayla your entire tale but she may appreciate the gossip.

So Kate is being held captive by a VonLeuschner? The pretend ISA person?

Why can’t Chad and Roman or at least Chad, go home? He has kids!

[tribeca]

Kayla seemed so judgmental at that doctors visit.  
EJ is usually very cold but he did seem to care about Nicole.  For now anyway. 
 Nicole’s review was odd. Including someone saying wish he stayed dead was not professional.   What is Dimera enterprise?  Why did their clients care about Lizzo?

 

[DisneyBoy]

3 hours ago, Frozendiva said:

Mom has to take Eric to get a couple of stitches?

Aww, I thought that was kinda sweet. Marlena actually helping one of her kids out and being maternal. Was it just an excuse to have him bump into Kayla and nearly see the folder? Of course, but it felt warm, and Doc is so rarely warm these days. Heck, honestly I thought her performance could still have been warmer...

 

1 hour ago, tribeca said:

Nicole’s review was odd. Including someone saying wish he stayed dead was not professional.   What is Dimera enterprise?  Why did their clients care about Lizzo?

Yeah...the scriptwriter tried for something there, but it didn't work at all. It was Nicole being absurdly petty about Stefan's job performance (what IS his job anyway?) when I'm not even sure what Nicole's job is anymore. I thought she was running Basic Black...? No...? Now she's DiMera HR? Or something? Whaaaaaatever....

1 hour ago, tribeca said:

Kayla seemed so judgmental at that doctors visit.  

Again, it's the writing. For the flow of the scene they needed a back-and-forth, so Kayla suddenly becomes nosy and asks personal questions and gives Nicole these looks to underscore the drama of her situation.

If they were writing the scene realistically, Nicole probably wouldn't have said a peep about the parentage and just asked about how to safely terminate, given her history.

I'm wondering if this is set-up for Kayla to become involved with the plot (though, honestly, I don't see why she'd need to be, and considering how sloppy the plotting is, she probably won't even be woven back into this.)

Hopefully Chloe and Holly are brought into the loop on this pregnancy, as Nicole's BFF and her daughter by surrogacy.

 

[4evaQuez]

7 hours ago, DisneyBoy said:

Yeah...the scriptwriter tried for something there, but it didn't work at all. It was Nicole being absurdly petty about Stefan's job performance (what IS his job anyway?) when I'm not even sure what Nicole's job is anymore. I thought she was running Basic Black...? No...? Now she's DiMera HR? Or something? Whaaaaaatever....

Hopefully Chloe and Holly are brought into the loop on this pregnancy, as Nicole's BFF and her daughter by surrogacy.

 

I truly hated that letter. I actually went to sleep thinking about how all over the place it was tonally and morally. I have no idea what they were going for, and I think neither did Ron.

EJ hired Nicole as a way to get back at Stefan and Gabi. Gabi and Nicole are both consultants for Dimera, and Gabi is evaluating EJ's work performance while Nicole is evaluating Stefan's work performance. No one has honest intentions and it's all childish and petty and boring.

It would make sense for Chloe to be involved, but it seems the show is ignoring their friendship right now. While I'm enjoying Chloe's friendship with Xander, Nicole's interactions with the Dimeras have been excruciating. 

9 hours ago, tribeca said:

Kayla seemed so judgmental at that doctors visit.  

Kayla is always judgmental and rude in doctor mode. I've been commenting on it for at least 2 years now.

[peachmangosteen]

10 hours ago, tribeca said:

Kayla seemed so judgmental at that doctors visit.  

She was and it was hilarious. I feel like usually the actress playing Kayla barely puts in any effort but she did in those scenes and it was fun.

[boes]

I didn't blame Kayla one bit for the occasional eye roll yesterday.  Nicole went in for cramps and then, apparently, got diarrhea of the mouth.  Nicole's the one who decided to lay all her personal details out there, most of which Kayla didn't need to know, especially the whole "who's the daddy" bit.  

Kayla was there to treat Nicole's physical symptoms - her insanity is beyond Kayla's ability to heal.

[Retired at last]

Was anyone concerned about the baby being conceived under drugged circumstances? I absolutely HATE this storyline. And I hate the fact that Nicole keeps lying. If they find out that she is carrying twins from different fathers I think I will stop even reading recaps.

[boes]

44 minutes ago, Retired at last said:

Was anyone concerned about the baby being conceived under drugged circumstances? I absolutely HATE this storyline. And I hate the fact that Nicole keeps lying. If they find out that she is carrying twins from different fathers I think I will stop even reading recaps.

I've liked Nicole more than not over the years, but enough with all the constant lying and self-justification already, enough.  She told Kayla, who didn't need to know, the truth and then lied about everything to EJ that she could get away with and still lied about her medical condition.  And as many of you have already said, her primary concern should be the unviability of this pregnancy, since we've watched her sad and poignant pregnancy storylines before.  

Personally, I've enjoyed her interactions with this EJ and think they both have chemistry with each other but apparently she'll blow that up again, and for what?

[DaphneCat]

2 hours ago, boes said:

Personally, I've enjoyed her interactions with this EJ and think they both have chemistry with each other but apparently she'll blow that up again, and for what?

For round 846 with Eric.  Which, even if it works, will still be the most boring relationship on the show.