It's been Halloween in Salem for about two and a half weeks. I would completely understand if next week's episodes were just a collection of shows where our fair Salemites sleep in, wake up and move to the couch for a nap, and then move back to their beds at night. These cats (too soon?) must be exhausted!
So, it makes sense that this all happened because the devil is in town. After all, my own personal version of hell is a place where there are no naps allowed. Ever. MarDevil got a little too confident this week, and a few more people are getting closer to solving this mystery.
First, Susan arrived to make me miss Celeste warn Ciara and Ben that their Cinnabun is in trouble, though not from Daddy Ben's side. To her credit, it took this daffy one less than five minutes alone with Marlena to realize this creature in front of her was not her beloved Dr. Marlena Evans. I have to admit, I did chuckle when Susan whipped out a cross and told MarDevil she never leaves home without it!
Alas, Susan ended up imprisoned -- first as a cat (you had to be there), then as a co-prisoner with John in the DiMera crypt, and finally as host to the pitchforked one themself. After she prayed for help for Marlena, the devil released Marlena and took over Susan's body! I'm equally interested and terrified of this storyline move.
I find this recent version of Susan extremely one note, so at least this devil possession will give her more layers to play. However, those additional layers could just be further steps down the ladder into more annoying madness. But you know how we avoid that?
We have the devil possess Susan and turn her into Eileen Davidson's Kristen! Gah! What does that mean? How are we going to navigate two Kristens in Salem at once? What are we going to do if someone else needs a red dress in Salem? Good lord, I hope Paulina's wedding color isn't red, because we're going to have a hard time finding dresses!
Sorry, I got distracted.
Next up is Steve. He's convinced that John's "case" is nonexistent, as neither Black Patch nor the ISA has any record of a case. Kayla mentions the contents of Marlena's session with Doug but won't let Steve hear the tape. I fail to see the difference here, but we'll let Sweetness slide on this one. The point is Steve knows John is most likely missing, and Marlena is probably lying. This man tracked down Kristen in a commercial break, so I have high hopes he'll uncover the devil soon, too!
Over at Camp Deveraux, they're all still dealing with the reveal of Gwen's secret. Jack's handling it sort of well. He told Abigail that he'll always love Gwen, but he's not going to insist on her being around, nor will he force it on Jen or Abs to be besties with her. This is fair. Also, I think he'll come around and be there for Gwen, but she did a very terrible thing to his family. He's got to have his guard up around her.
Outside of Jack, I'm throwing varying levels of side-eye at the sisters Deveraux.
First, I'm all kinds of on Abigail's side for exposing Gwen. That lie was a vicious one, done specifically out of anger. It's sweet of Xander to plead Gwen's case and all, but no. Gwen already played the "Abigail triggered me and I irrationally hated her" card for the last round of crappy things she did. So, go on, Abigail. Get that truth out. You're owed it.
However, I have to call slight nonsense on Abigail saying she didn't intend to take Gwen from Jack. That's exactly what she wanted to happen. It wasn't that long ago she gave Jack the ultimatum -- her or Gwen. So, while I grant her she wasn't specifically out to hurt Jack, I totally believe she was fine with it if it meant Gwen was out. There will be no ornament on the Horton tree for Gwen if Abigail has anything to say about it! I can't really blame Abigail, either.
That leads me to Gwen. She must have some magical TV because she must have been watching a different show than I am. Gwen said she's done with "making people love her," which made me wonder....just when exactly did she go out of her way to make people love her? For that matter, when did she try to behave like a semi-decent person? She said Xander is the only person who's put anything on the line for her, but that completely negates Jack helping her out of a jam when there was a dead Laura on her floor, or even Abigail and Chad trusting her with their children. Gwen's nonsense pity party is rooted in a terrible childhood. However, I'm growing tired of watching her claim that was the reason she did something terrible, admit she learned from it, and then repeat the process all over again.
How cool did Raven Bowens look in that Celeste wig? It made me miss Celeste all the more. I love pretty much everything Chanel does, including the glee she took in making Johnny do....what do you call it? Oh, yeah, actual work.
Theo got the unfortunate one-two punch of learning one ex was doing the wrong accent for his grandmother's and learning his other ex is pregnant. Shoot. I hate it when that happens.
After some very, very uncomfortable advice from Marlena, Brady goes to Basic Black and tells Chloe the whole awkward conversation. Chloe forgives him for being very inappropriate with his business partner, and the two go on to talk about Rafe and Nicole. Honestly, I think I might just order a new table, but maybe with COVID cleaning protocols now, it's fine to keep the same one.
Of course, Philip overhears this part of the conversation, which made him go out and rip a tree out of the ground. This was shortly after Victor mentioned Chloe, and Philip made a comment about laughing while Titan burns to the ground. Both of these reactions are very 1-800-Too-Much. It's almost the way Ben acted back in the day anytime he thought Abigail might be cheating on him. This week really made me start to wonder if something is off with Philip. Could he have some sort of split personality?
I'm with Brady on his anger at Kristen when it comes to what he has to explain to Rachel. I hope he sticks to his guns and doesn't go see Kristen. Likening her to a line of cocaine was the smartest thing Brady's said in ages.
But when one Kiriakis man gains brain cells, another must lose some. Xander's in love with Gwen and claims she's the best thing to happen to him in a long time. Okay. Sure. This guy met Gwen a few months ago, and those months have been spent being homeless, blackmailed, and outed as a homewrecker. I would think a sinus infection could also qualify as the "best thing to happen" to Xander in a long time. This accelerated pace has to mean that Sarah is on her way back to Salem soon, right?
The Xander relationship that most concerns me, though, is Jack and Xander. I don't want them to spit! I thought it was unfair of Jack to say Xander hasn't been there for him. I remember Xander being there for Jack when the Kate affair was exposed. There's something nice about these two mates. I hope they work it out!
HOT
I squealed with delight when I saw Eileen Davidson. A few weeks ago, I thought the shocker of Doug being possessed was the best Friday I'd have all year. DAYS topped itself this time! I adore Eileen. She always has such fun with Kristen. I can't wait to see what she does with the role this time!
NOT:
This "not" is more of a "come on, man"... but, come on, Rafe. First, he didn't believe Ava's story about Zombie Charlie when the night before Nicole claimed to see Zombie Deimos. Then, he thought it was some sort of silver bullet that Ava's fingerprints were on a knife from her own kitchen. Ava's done nothing but cook Italian casseroles for the last eight months. You know what's in every Italian dish, Rafe? Onions and garlic. You know what you need to chop onions and garlic? Sheesh. Come on, man.
But perhaps the biggest "come on, man" came when he got all indignant to Nicole saying about Ava, "I'm not going to lie to her!" Right. Because Rafe is such a fine, upstanding partner in this relationship. Cheat on his girlfriend with her best friend? Fine. But lie?! Gasp! For shame!
The truth is I don't sympathize with or understand Rafe's plight here. No one was forcing him to stay with Ava. She wasn't blackmailing him or anything. He's acting like finding out she may have been involved in a crime finally gave him clearance to move on. He could have moved on anytime he wanted. It seems like he was just staying with Ava, using her for company and probably tremendous snacks, until Nicole agreed to be with him. That's a bad look for Rafe. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Clearly Laurisa does not fully understand the power and allure of tremendous snacks.]
LINE OF THE WEEK:
Kate (to Lucas, after Philip professes his love for Chloe): "You know, you can jump in anytime with some words of wisdom."
Lucas: "Nah! I'm okay. I'm staying out of it."
There's something so utterly entertaining about Kate/Lucas/Philip scenes. The three actors have decades of history to draw on. And the whole payoff -- where Kate's sons turn the tables on her and call her out when she tries to meddle -- took decades to achieve. But it's one of my current favorite parts of DAYS.
Susan rubbing Ben's belly and people being put off by it shows exactly why people shouldn't just feel entitled to touch a pregnant woman's body.
Chloe with the disinfectant was funny.
Every time Marena turns around, you know those creepy contacts are coming back.
Seriously, Philip. You can clean up your own glass.
Brandon's not coming to the wedding. Boo.
Huge kudos to Eric Martsolf for not breaking in the scene where Marlena tells Brady to show Chloe how big his feelings are for her. Oh lord...
Wait, did Ciara and Ben just leave their apartment with Shawn and Belle still there? Is this a thing people do now?
There's no way that body outline would still be at Rafe's house, right?
It appears Trask really is going to using Xander's money to set up a legal defense fund for undocumented immigrants to show how she regrets being a terrible mom to Haley before. Because nothing rights the karma in the world like blackmailing someone out of their million dollars. Oh, Trask...
It was funny how amused MarDevil was with her "no rest for the wicked" line.
I loved Kayla yelling through the phone for Kim to come visit Salem. Yes! Bring Theresa, too!
Just who is going to take over Titan? That sound you heard across the Internet was Tony screaming, "Bring back Chelsea!"
That's it for this week, DAYS fans! Tony will be back next week after he's done picking up Abe's pastrami sandwich. Lani may follow doctor's orders, but Tony's on Abe's side, no matter what.
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