The Bold and the Beautiful Recap: Aly Flips, Liam’s Marriage Flops & Zende Returns

It’s officially summer on The Bold and the Beautiful and you can tell that simply by how many storylines were featured this week. The 30 minute soap has recently taken to featuring only one story at a time, but this week there was a little something for everyone and I couldn’t be more pleased.

Welcome to Forrester

I have to admit that under Ridge as CEO, I have found the actual work aspect of Forrester Creations to be rather underwhelming at best. It seems like there’s been more gossiping than productivity. That changed rather quickly this week. First with this summer’s new batch of interns. Among them sat a hidden Forrester. Last seen briefly in 2005 and played by another actor, Zende Forrester Dominguez returned home to learn the family business. When this casting news was first announced, I was ecstatic. Not just because the actor they chose to reprise the role, Rome Flynn, is incredibly easy on the eyes, but also because I so vividly remember this storyline from 2001 of Kristen and Tony adopting the orphan upon meeting him on their honeymoon. I was also excited at the potential cuteness that would ensue when Zende met Maya’s little sister Nicole. And that’s exactly what happened.

While Zende was going along with Ridge’s idea of not telling the rest of the interns he was family, Nicole took it upon herself to help the clueless prospect. After pleading her case to Ridge for a second chance, she defended Zende for not knowing much about the business or the family. Ridge decided to let all five of the applicants stay on much to their excitement. Also a shock to Nicole was finally being let in on the secret that Zende was family. Personally, I thought this was something that maybe could have been dragged out a bit longer. It may have raised the stakes with this budding romance. Kind of the way Maya met and fell in love with Rick before knowing who he was. But I understand the need to integrate him into the family immediately. Zende and Nicole spent the rest of the day getting to know each other. He told her all about his childhood and adoption aided by some very poignant flashbacks, and she told him all about her mistakes since she hit LA. Amid all of that honesty was some heavy flirting. Things were definitely looking up for the youngest Avant sister. That was until her mother, Vivienne crashed the Fourth of July party to drag her home.

California Freedom

Nothing says freedom like a quickie annulment to a quickie marriage, right? After being married all of a few days soap time, Liam and Ivy signed papers to wipe it from the books. And in what can be described as a complete turnabout, Steffy practically leaped for joy that Liam was free again. Except he kind of wasn’t. Liam was quick to tell Steffy that his marriage was over, but never once said he was done with his relationship to Ivy. Ivy noticed this as well but still did the right thing and signed away her new last name. A relived Liam did the same after flirting his way back into Steffy’s good graces. Somewhere in the middle there was Wyatt playing devil’s advocate practically insinuating to Ivy that they could each come out of the situation as winners if the played their cards right.

Also freed this week was the animosity between Caroline and Maya. In what was easily my favorite scene on the week, the two ladies came face to face for the first time in months to air out their grievances with one another. It started out on a sympathetic note as Maya expressed her shock over hearing about Caroline’s freak accident in New York. The conversation quickly turned to Maya’s timing in disclosing her truth to Rick. Caroline let Maya know she still thought she was a hypocrite and Maya let her know she’s couldn’t possibly understand that kind of pressure to be honest about who she was. Caroline didn’t back down from her belief that Maya’s lie was bigger than hers, but said that at the end of the day, she was happy with Ridge and also happy that Rick found love with Maya. She told her that she admired her, respected her and liked her just as she was. I was in a bucket of tears. Linsey Godfrey and Karla Mosley continue to show us why they are the stars of this show.

Poisonous Branches

Hide all of the sharp medieval weaponry. Aly Forrester is back on the crazy. Yes, 2014’s meltdown and rehabilitation meant nothing as this week Aly regressed back to seeing her dead mother’s head floating around. She decided once again to become the moral police with a side of manic when she learned that Ivy’s marriage to Liam was kaput. First by confronting Liam and a barely dressed Steffy in her office. She proceeding to call Steffy every name under the sun and beg Liam not end his marriage. I will give Liam one thing, he did what Hope didn’t do when Aly’s focus was on her last year. He told her she was out of line and to bring it down a notch. He also told her that none of this was any of her business. And for that, I was a Liam fan for 2 whole minutes. One of the most baffling things about this was the revisiting of Darla’s death and its effect on Aly. I really thought this was over and done with. Not only does Aly have her facts about her so called saint of a mother wrong, she’s now deflecting it on people who had nothing to do with her death. But what does sense matter in this storyline?

After basically telling Aly to either calm herself or stay away from her, Steffy retreating to a business meeting with the young Carrie hot on her heels. I will always ask why Aly is allowed in these meetings and what her official title is. True to form, Aly had another melt down at Ridge killing The Hope For The Future line and replacing it with their idea of sex masked as freedom. She even went as far as to tell Ridge that he wasn’t a Forrester. I’m am not sure why everyone seems to just be brushing off these outbursts but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t entertaining. Aly’s psychosis carried over to the Fourth of July festivities by scoffing at everyone having a pool party/photoshoot wearing… *gasp* bathing suits. Her anger turned to Steffy and Maya for… I don’t even know. Just existing, I guess. She had another meeting with her mother’s floating head who told her to do what she needed to do to rid the family of the impure. While amusing to watch, I hope the writers going down this road for the second time leads to an actual mental health storyline. Because otherwise, what’s the point?

This week, Maya and Nicole’s father arrives, Aly continues to rage and Liam is stuck in the middle.

Photos courtesy of CBS.