Do I detect a change in things in Oakdale? I saw some things that astonished me; references to history and different people interacting. It also looks like stories are moving in directions that are not as predictable. Sophie was not as boring this week, I just have to wonder if I am getting my hopes up about a turn in the writing - however, these are temp writers during the strike.

The Farm Gets Another Guest
Does Emma's farm have more rooms than the Lakeview? There are more and more people coming to the farm and staying: Jack's family, Holden's family, Brad, Meg along with the non-family members Noah and new resident, Ameera. It is sort of hard to keep track as they are never shown on the same day.

Who is Ameera? She is someone who had positive feelings towards Noah's father. Noah's father is the same man who killed his first wife, tried to kill Dusty and Luke; now we find out that while in Iraq he was a compassionate and loving man to people that were different than him - what a contradiction? I may need to not think through things so much and just watch how this story progresses. This is an opportunity to watch the next stage of the relationship with Luke and Noah; let's just hope this is not a way to separate them.

Who Murdered Sam?
We know that Parker did not do it because he only fired one shot into Sam's shoulder. We know now that Kit did know that Sam had feelings for Carly and she knows how to use a gun. So it is obvious that Kit is probably the culprit. What if there was someone else who knew Sam that we did not know about? We also this show has a habit lately of making the culprits be newer residents to town like Matt, Casey's friend and Gray, the guy who is kind of shady. It would nice to keep Kit around as Lauretta Vaughn is doing a good job as Kit; by the way her role has lasted longer than the guy who won Inturn2.

Mick Hazen is such a great young actor. He can hold he own against all of the adult actors on the show. The way his character is written; it is so easy to see how he is the son of Carly and his directness shows shades of Hal Munson. It was good to see his siblings giving him some support this week; it's little touches like that which give hope that things could be changing.

How long before Jack and Carly are back together again? How quickly did Jack forget about Carly trying to take Parker out of town? If he were still with Katie, there would have been a shouting match. It is good to see Jack being kinder to Carly and they are good together so let's hope they continue this positive relationship after Parker is cleared.

How funny was it when Jack was attempting to gaslight Kit with Cowboy Jack? I know a lot of people think that Cowboy Jack was as dead as Sam. Carly and Jack are doing whatever is necessary for their son.

Holden and Lily
It was just recently that Holden was determined to divorce Lily and now, they are in bed trying to repair their troubled marriage. He is giving Lily the benefit of the doubt no matter what she does like getting the jet for Carly to leave with Parker. This time though she did tell the truth quickly.

Brad and Katie
Brad has been very honest with Katie about how he feels for her; in turn, she is hiding her feelings for him. She has not been too successful as she shows her jealousy every time she sees him with Bonnie.

Since Bonnie and Holden did not work out, now she is Brad's friend until Katie comes to her senses. It is working as Katie cannot mask her feelings very well. Bonnie and Vienna also can't be in the same room together much before they are hair pulling and fighting; what happened in their past to cause such antagonism?

I like that Brad has been a good friend to Henry by alerting him about Gray and Vienna. It looks like Gray is not giving up on trying to get Vienna in bed - he started with giving her jewelry. How is she going to get him to give up the diner back to them? It is good to see Henry and Vienna have a story of their own.

Craig is Gone Again
It is sad to see Scott Bryce leave the show and Craig did leave with a bang - blowing up Paul's car. Why did Paul only have minimal injuries after that explosion? If it had been anyone other than Super Paul then they probably would have died; I don't see anyone surviving that.

Craig had some good parting scenes with Lucinda - it showed their love and hate relationship over the many years that only could have been achieved with Scott Bryce and Elizabeth Hubbard. The same can be said of his last scenes with Margo. The question is: who will be playing Craig when he returns again? It would have to depend on who is writing and producing the show when that happens.

The Custody Battle
Sophie was almost likable this week as she is starting to befriend Chris and Paul. Actually, Chris seemed out of place with Emily though he does have chemistry with Sophie. Watching these two together makes me think she could be around for awhile longer. What are her motives for going into Paul's room?

Aaron is the hero for Will and Gwen - he told the truth about everything that she did. I do not believe that she would be a good mother either to Hallie. The friendship between Aaron and Sophie is definitely over.

Why isn't Barbara telling her children about her illness? I hope that she does not forego her own treatment because of what is happening with the baby or Paul - we know Paul will survive yet again and Gwen and Will will be fine as well. She is the one that needs their support right now.

It was great when Barbara was speaking with Chris about Paul that she mentioned that Craig has done this before to Steve Andropoulos - finally a reference to the vast history of this show. We need more of this.

Here are some recent thoughts from some readers:

Beatrice said, "Luke and Noah are the BEST thing about ATWT! Their frank discussion on sex and relationships was simply wonderful to watch. I look forward to more from these two, and dare I hope a real love scene???

Count me amongst those extremely upset with the firing of Scott Bryce, this man is a class act and he was a perfect Craig! I loved his chemistry with all those he came into contact with. And even though the quad story left a lot to be desired, his screen presence with Roger, Marie and Cady was sizzling! I just wish they allowed Craig more familial scenes and time with Lucinda!"

Joellen said, "My husband and I used to look forward each day to watching ATWT. We are going to stop. The good characters are gone or going and that leaves us with Sophie and her boring storyline. What in the world is wrong with the writers."

Sharon said, "I finally took ATWT off my TIVO. I am as disappointed as I have been watching for over 20 years. They have wasted wonderful talent and ruined what is left of the cast by boring stories and dialogue. The Sophie character kidnapping her baby and now wanting to fight for custody is just too much, haven't Gwen and Will been through enough? Now Henry might gamble and put Vienna up for the bid? That is just disgusting!"

Joseph said," First, I have to start off with the most disappointing aspect of ATWT: the double standard regarding Luke and Noah. The Valentine's Day episode was literally the breaking point--we saw every other couple on the show kiss, but NOT Luke and Noah. I appreciate that we are seeing more of them, and their discussions the previous week about how much they want to be with each other were wonderful, but an affectionate kiss every once in a while would be greatly appreciated.... Aside from Mick Hazen's performance, probably the best development on the show this past week was the introduction of Matt O'Connor, Casey's former cellmate, who has now weaseled his way into the Hughes home; Eric William Morris made an immediate impact as a smoothly effective con man with issues, so much so that I'm hoping TPTB don't make him into just another psycho of the month. With Craig gone, ATWT is currently without a major villain, and Morris' marvelously scheming portrayal could be just what the show needs."

Finally, this was not a bad week in Oakdale - let's hope it gets better and better!

That's all I have for now.
Reggie Jackson