By 
This was not at all a bad week in Salem, USA! It’s always the big reveals that this show does well, even when they’re thinly veiled plot driven developments; it always makes for an entertaining show. Days of Our Lives this last week centered on the town coming together for a fundraiser only to be shaken up by a paternity shocker – unfortunately, that reveal wasn’t the biggest highlight of the week for most, though it will certainly be driving story this coming week. The developments in relationships were what stood out the most as the side stories began to take new turns while the main story sped along towards its apex. Let’s check out what happened on Days of Our Lives last week!
A betrayal for betrayal
Not too long ago, audiences were fighting the urge to coo over the adorable chemistry between Lucas Horton and Adrienne Kirakis. On one hand, we wanted to be loyal to one of Days’ only withstanding super couples but with Justin Kiriakis off playing in Dubai (or Port Charles), it was difficult not to be charmed by these… in-law in-laws? Something of that sort, right? Rooting for Lucas and Adrienne became even easier when Justin flew back into town and confirmed his infidelity as Adrienne had feared for months now. But a lightspeed leap into bed this last week put a sour taste in mouths of a few fans of this developing couple.
Lucas and Adrienne run into one another at Horton Town Square earlier this week where of course, the topic of their sons’ marriage comes up. After mutually choosing to deny their feelings for one another, discussing their sons is really all that they have left in common – well that and their current distaste for Justin. The two of them get into a bit of a tiff when it comes to Will Horton and Sonny Kiriakis, namely whether Will’s cheating meant anything. Lucas is positive that his son simply made a mistake by sleeping with Paul Narita but Adrienne thinks otherwise considering she found out by chance after walking in on a conversation between the two men in Paul’s hotel room. Before it escalates too far, Lucas stops with hopes that their sons’ issues don’t come in between what he labels as a friendship.
Adrienne is unsure noting that her son was extremely hurt by his son so they part on that note, not meeting up again until later in the week when Lucas learns from Will that Adrienne knew of Paul and Sonny’s past all along. Knowing that Paul and Sonny were nearly married before probably would not have stopped Paul from trying to seduce Will and I doubt Will would have held back either, not when his marriage was in such a ragged state. Lucas thinks the exact opposite though and heads over to the Kiriakis manor to let Adrienne have a piece of his mind but only after a little argument then reconciliation, Lucas let’s her have a piece of his body too!
And that’s exactly where I feel like their love story took a wrong turn! What Lucas and Adrienne had going for them was something that Days of Our Lives just doesn’t do anymore and when they try it, it’s never right – and that’s romance. They had little moments here and there, a healthy kind of push and pull between their similarly stubborn personalities mixed with warm flirting so to have them suddenly jump into the sack didn’t feel right. Fans were enjoying the buildup and even likening it to Days gone by where romances were actually fleshed out and expanded to tug at viewers’ heart strings. What this show has done wrong in the romance department for a very long time was either elongate a couple’s storyline to unbelievably annoying lengths (Hope and Aiden – who were adorable with their children at the fair) or immediately have them performing Kama Sutra tricks (Abby and Ben); Lucas and Adrienne felt different from all of that. I just couldn’t get into them getting it on in her marital bed, especially with Justin’s betrayal hanging over her head and their sons’ messes. Like a lot of the story on this show, it just felt too plot driven and forced as if the writers needed to think up another scandal to throw at the viewers now that Sonny and Will’s cheating story was reaching its climax. The progression from arguing over whether they could have saved their sons from this ordeal to lamenting over Justin’s affair right down to sex just did not feel natural. The scene could have very easily culminated in just that kiss on the Kiriakis sofa which they’d pass off as a mistake or a friendly kiss. Adrienne just doesn’t seem like the vindictive type who’d answer her husband’s affair with one of her own; Lucas definitely but not Adrienne. Let me know what you think in the comments below! Do you think it was way too soon for Adrienne and Lucas to get horizontal? Or are you still rooting for them?
Father-Son Bonding
The saying “father-son bonding” usually evokes images of lazy weekend afternoons of a boy tossing around baseballs with their old man but in Salem’s Dimera family, the phrase takes on an entirely new meaning. Chad Dimera hasn’t been a Dimera for very long and a true Dimera for an even shorter amount of time, but with master puppeteer Stefano Dimera as a father, that’s all set to change. With Jordan Ridgeway finally out of town, Stefano has something cooking against Abigail Devereaux and he’s using his youngest son to go for it. But what exactly is his endgame?
Throughout the week, Abigail again had two men vying for her love and attention though without her knowing, one was being extremely two-faced. Chad literally bumps into Abigail at work in classic soap opera fashion, sending her important work files flying through the air which he helps her pick up. Sparks fly as Abi refuses to let him walk away without thanking him for piecing together positive quotes on her father’s book and then setting up a time to go rollerblading with Theo Carver, which Chad in turn thanks her for. The conversation is undeniably bland as they continue to drone on about work and board meetings (typical young adult chat), but no one could deny that Abigail was slipping deeper and deeper into Chad’s baby blues. Little does she know, this is exactly what Stefano wants her to feel.
On a phone call later, Chad relays an update on the seduction of Abigail to his father who is utterly pleased after setting it all up. The next step in their combined effort is to make Chad come out looking like a shining star for Abigail’s charity, giving him permission to donate a larger amount under his name. The only people suspicious about Chad’s motives are Ben Rogers and Hope Williams-Brady, but Abigail is of course unaware. The young couple get into a fight when Ben notices that the quotes were compiled by Chad, his jealousy and uncontrollable temper raising its head again (no wonder Abigail won’t move in with him), making him lash out at his girlfriend who admits her disappointment that he hadn’t even bothered to read her father’s book. Not thinking, he promptly asks if EJ Dimera read it as a low blow attack which sends Abigail rightfully stomping off. They make up later after Ben admits to being wrong. Abigail admits that EJ had read the book but only to manipulate her and that Chad was not like that, not in the beginning, but she still could not trust him after the medical scare he faked to get back in her good graces. Ben finally and rationally states that he’ll never trust Chad but vows to keep himself in check to which Abigail wrongfully claims that she sees Chad for all he is.
Unlike she’d promised earlier, Abigail slips back into Chad’s unavoidable tractor beam when they come to work together for the town fundraiser. They banter over coffee cup lids – yes, coffee cup lids – which alerts Hope’s super-cop instincts. After unashamedly wondering why Abigail isn’t with Ben, she shoots Chad a warning that she’s watching him around Abigail. Ben proves later on in the festivities that he’s doing his best to change, simply moving on when Theo gets confused that Abigail and Chad won’t both be taking him rollerblading. Chad has to explain to his autistic nephew that Abigail is dating Ben now and the he can join the two of them if he choose, then apologizes to Ben in another nice guy move. Maybe the fact that he’s wearing t-shirts and jeans instead of business suits is what gets Ben to accept the apology. It was still a calculated move but he didn’t look the part, so it was easy to trick people otherwise. Nice one, Chad.
I won’t lie and say I did not enjoy the Chad and Abigail scenes this last week. Even when talking about medium versus small sized coffee cup lids the two of them had more chemistry than Ben and Abigail have ever had. In a sense, it’s kind of sad that Chad is doing this all as a part of his father’s mysterious master plan because even in this incarnation, Chad and Abigail could work out as a couple that’d be enjoyable to see on screen. They clearly care a lot about one another regardless of their rocky past. Then there’s that insistent part of me that would love to see Abigail get dragged through the mud for constantly being so self-righteous and nosy. But I highly doubt that Stefano is phoning in from wherever he is in the world to get back at the town’s up and coming busybody.
What could be Stefano’s motives for getting Chad to seduce her? The only thing I can think of is that he has finally figured out Clyde’s role in EJ’s death and is picking apart his family until he gets to him. Abigail is no doubt going to turn to Chad over volatile Ben someday soon which would leave poor Ben broken and lonely. But a broken heart is not enough of a payback for murder. What I’ve always wanted to see from the Ben and Abigail relationship was a descent into abusive territory and being dumped for his longtime nemesis could be that straw to break his back. Ben’s constant flare ups and jealousy could easily turn into him wanting to control Abigail to entrap her. The framework is already there for the storyline, the writers just have to go for it. It’d no doubt make the couple more interesting than what we’ve seen so far. Unfortunately, the writers will probably continue with the same back and forth love triangle that failed two years ago with Chad and Cameron. So what do you think Stefano really wants out of Abigail? If you have any theories, leave them down in the comments below so we can discuss!
Once again, these recaps are not always blow for blow recaps and contain a lot of my own feelings toward the storylines this week. Use my points to kick off a conversation. Comment here or tweet me if you agree or disagree with me, I want to know what the readers have to say. Your input is what makes this all the most fun. See you next week!
Comments