This article was written by Tony S. for SoapCentral.com. To view the original article, click here.
As I was watching DAYS last week — a little anxious and distracted, like nearly everyone at the moment, I suspect — Justin made me feel better. It wasn’t just his dreamy dimples or innate Wally Kurth warmth, either. He said of Adrienne, “[She] would want us to go on living, and loving, and finding joy wherever we can, and being good to each other.”
I doubt Team Carlivati knew how meaningful those lines would be right now, but I’m sending him a cyber hug across the interwebs, nonetheless. We needed that encouragement. Thank you, Ron. With that, I hope this finds everyone feeling healthy and safe. And let’s regard Justin’s wisdom and find a little joy by discussing DAYS, and I think I know just the place to start.
It’s a happy Hattie Adams place! I adore her. She makes me smile. We all need smiles right now. And a strong female character who realizes her self-worth is the beginning of a beautiful future. You see…
Hattie basically asked her Mr. Roman, “Is you is or is you ain’t my baby?” He answered her by channeling his very best reality TV show host. That is, he kept giving her the runaround until after this commercial break. Fed up (preach, Sister Hattie), she declared she’s done with him. Actually, she said, “I’m dumping your ass.” Boom. It was precious. It was very Grease 2 when Dolores Rebchuck “broke up” with Michael so she could pursue Davey. Oh, don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about, but I digress.
I love that Hattie did this, especially when she proclaimed, “I’m fine without a guy.” Yes, Hattie. Yes, you are. Sure, soaps are vehicles for supercouples, but it’s refreshing to see a super single lady (or gentleman) who knows their own worth rather than feeling they’re completed once in a relationship. Maybe now that Hope’s been DeGina-ed, she can explore life outside of relationships and find her inner independent woman Fancy Face like our Ms. Adams, who stated she’s complete without a man. Again, preach, Sister Adams — coupledom is super, but so is feeling super fine flying solo.
For his part, Roman was a true gentleman, sans the mixed signals in the beginning (and those misleading smooches weeks ago). He had nothing but praise for Hattie. His “special woman” speech was sweet and sincere without being condescending. I do believe he was impressed by Hattie, and I think because of that, he respected her enough to encourage her to move on. Yep. We’ll all miss Hattie, Mr. Roman, but I can’t wait to see what she does next, as long as one of those things is visiting Salem often. And an Internet cooking show and advice blog. Those, too. They would be amazing. I am certain of that.
And from certainty to, well, let’s say, “uncertainty,” we travel to Maison Blanche Two: The Blanchening. Or is it The Squeakquel? Oh, Attack of the Clones. Yep. I think that works best. Anyway…
Look, Marlena must be faking this, right? Like, right? She has to be. She was possessed by the devil, so a microchip lite can’t keep her down. Though Stefano messing with Mar originally led to her being possessed, so are we looking at a sequel of that, too? Hmm.
So, Stefano wanted to know if Marlena was his or if her heart belonged to John. I would say she gave him a definite, “Yes!” but Mind-Controlled Chad married Stefano to Marlena (who’s really Steve and Mind-Meld Mar) in front of held-hostage family members, so, was there anything real there? Like, did Chad even get ordained online? Right. That’s probably not the biggest takeaway there. It was, well, an uncomfortable mess.
The one “real” thing I have the biggest problem with is that’s really Marlena’s body under all that mind-melding madness. She is not of sound mind. She cannot consent. Shut. It. Down. It’s, well, uncomfortable and messy, and I don’t like it one microchip.
Oh, and for the love of all things holy in Soap Land, please say that Dr. Rolf didn’t give Marlena the same fertility treatments that he gave to Kristen. I don’t have the energy for a Fauxnix/Mind-Meld Mar baby in my life, nor can I trust Rafe’s recommendations for nannies anymore. Plus, we still might have an Adventures of Young Marlena/Alex North hybrid out there somewhere. Again, shut it down. Shut it all down.
The only, we’ll say “fun” to come of all this was Gabi and Kate being locked in a room together. They even got the room with the booze. Well, one bottle, anyway. I guess Steffie had all the rest shipped to Maison Blanche Two. Either way, Gabi and Kate are always a good time — add in Abigail and Anna, and I was sort of in love with that foursome.
Okay. Truth be told, the scenes with Stefano and his children were not that bad, either. The snark level was off the charts, and it was nice to see Kristen not cry for a scene or two. Chad being mind-controlled is also very DAYS de jour. Billy Flynn is fantastic to watch. There’s that, too. I enjoy a good dig into the history books and characters reflecting on when Andre did this to his younger bro years ago. I’m sure Abigail and her Post-Paris Awesomeness can snap Chad out of it as soon as she spots him again. If not, maybe she can use Gabi’s wine bottle.
All in all, I’m ready for these chips to be deactivated and to move on to the next storyline. It’s been generally fun, clever, and well acted and written, but it’s starting to feel like the end of a trend where everyone is wearing that once-cool piece of clothing or listening to that song, just, in Salem, everyone is chipped or mind-controlled or kidnapped. Let’s toss out any crocs still lurking about and take “Happy” off our playlists (Pharrell will understand) and look forward to the next chapter, Hattie Adams style. Deal?