Kristen takes the bullet for Rachel and braces for Brady’s wrath: Days of our Lives Two Scoops for the week of August 18, 2025

The trial of Johnny continued. He proved that the video of Chanel was a deepfake. But the big reveal was that little Rachel was the one who shot EJ! My theory last week was right, especially since she was the same height as EJ, because he was sitting. The best part of the trial was when the jury got sequestered and Leo was the foreman. There were some funny antics there, which I’ll cover later. But the big news was that after EJ pressured Kristen to find a way to exonerate Johnny without throwing Rachel under the bus, her only solution was to make up a story that she was the shooter.

She got arrested, and at the very end, Brady showed up scowling at her. She said she wasn’t going to tell him Rachel was the shooter, so he’s probably going to read her the riot act for allowing it to go on so long that Rachel was questioned on the witness stand. Check my random thoughts later for my observation on this turn of events.

Marlena and Julie had a very nice exchange at the bookstore. When Julie said she had considered purchasing it but decided against it, Marlena was shocked that Julie would ever walk away from a challenge. It was a nice moment, and the result was that the subtle challenge that Marlena offered was both ironic and effective. Julie decided to purchase it from Foster, and that’s going to lead to some fun stories.

LOOSE ENDS

Cat mentioned that her mother was transferring to some place closer to Salem. Does that mean we’ll start to see her as a character and delve into her background? And she seemed pretty savvy with a gun, so is she also an ISA agent? Inquiring minds want to know.

Chad and Cat keep getting close and then pull apart. Chad even said that he liked her, but added that she was a good friend. I think she felt like she was friend-zoned by him. But it’s nice to have a slow-burn romance take its natural course.

Brady’s starting to put the pieces together about Sophia’s baby. It was cleverly written because he recalled hearing Sarah tell him that the baby was a boy, but Sophia said it was a girl. That story is big mess that’s gonna get even messier, and that’s how we like them.

EXTRA SCOOPS

REFERENCES

So it finally dawned on me to look it up. When they were talking about Stephanie’s book, One Stormy Night, I wondered if that actually was a reference to a real-life novel. There are several with that title, but DAYS’ version may be based on the 2003 One Stormy Night, written by Japanese author Yuichi Kimura, and illustrated by Hiroshi Abe (Illustrator), with Lucy North translating it. According to its Amazon entry, the book is about: “A goat and a wolf take refuge from a thunderstorm in a hut so dark that neither one realizes what kind of animal the other is, and as they talk, they discover they have a lot in common.” Hmmm…a tale of two enemies coming together when they don’t realize who the other is. Could the novel’s title be a sign or portent of things to come?

Steve was telling Kayla about Alex’s negligible arrest record. Kayla thought it was hilarious and joked that Stephanie was dating a “hardened criminal.” Steve responded, They’re basically Bonnie and Clyde. For those who may (shockingly) not know, Bonnie and Clyde were a notorious outlaw couple during the Great Depression, infamous for their bank robberies, car thefts, and murders across the central United States in the early 1930s. They became folk antiheroes glamorized in the press, but their crime spree ended in 1934 when they were ambushed and killed by law enforcement in Louisiana.

This one’s a reference to the show’s past: Alex told Stephanie that the person who filed the Freedom of Information Act request on Titan-DiMera was named Daniel Lucas. She recognized that as one of her father‘s aliases. Kayla had told her stories of Steve’s exploits when she was a kid.

SHOT OF THE WEEK

When Belle addressed the jury, it was a great shot because it made the viewers feel like they were one of the jury members. She also looked great in her hot pink power suit.

TONY’S OUTFIT OF THE WEEK

Tony is wearing a sharp black suit jacket with a matching black tie. Underneath is a dark gray dress shirt and a dark red pocket square, which pops. As always, it’s a sleek, formal, and sophisticated style befitting a DiMera. But does this dark suit mean he’s going darker and is perhaps…Andre??

LINE(S) OF THE WEEK

When Johnny announced on the witness stand that the video of Chanel threatening EJ was a deepfake, Belle told him that the police had verified its authenticity. He responded, “Well, no offense, Ms. Black, but this wouldn’t be the first time that somebody pulled one over on the Salem PD. My late grandfather Stefano DiMera, for example, made a sport out of discrediting the cops in this town, taught his children how to do the same.” He tilted his head and looked at a disgruntled EJ in the audience.

At the courthouse, a guard was chatting with Leo and said, “Hey, it’s no wonder your head almost exploded, what with that chatterbox roommate.” Leo responded, “Right? Not only does that dude never shut up, but he is a very, very close talker. It’s like that Seinfeld episode where Elaine’s new boyfriend is practically on top of people when he’s talking to them.”

He continued with, “Oh, and his snoring, I swear to you, it could wake the dead.” In Salem, that’s not too hard to do. But the lines rolled on because Leo then said, “So is there any way that I could get a new roommate, maybe one who isn’t so needy and boring and very disrespectful of my personal space, both mentally and physically?” When the guard said they couldn’t swap roommates, Leo then asked for earplugs and aspirin.

In the book shop, Rachel said one of the most horrific things (at least in my mind), “I always read the last chapters of books first!” I could never do that. I’m allergic to spoilers.

Foster was telling Julie that he didn’t want to sell the bookstore to a burger chain or anything like that. He wants it to go to someone who’s going to keep it up. “The problem is, independent book stores are a dying breed,” he said. Julie responded, “Yes. Yes, so they say.” This was the moment she decided to take Marlena’s advice, and she stated, “But in Salem, Foster, dying breeds have a miraculous way of resurrecting themselves.” Was that an omen about Stefano’s return?

"But it’s Salem, Foster. Dying breeds have a way of coming back themselves.“ Julie said. I thought that was awesome, and I also take a double meaning out of that: that Stefano is coming back. Obviously, it’s going to have to be his consciousness transferred into a presumably younger body.

Leo later tells the guard, “Well, you’ll be happy to know that yours most fabulously has been elected jury foreman. And as my first official duty in this capacity, here’s our lunch order.” He hands the guy a piece of paper and continues, “Make sure that Roman Brady doesn’t skimp on my chili cheese fries.”

After Johnny gave his closing remarks to the jury and court went to recess, EJ told him he didn’t do a good job and should have let his old man finish what he started. Johnny responded, “Oh, you mean manipulating the jury into believing that my wife is the one who shot you? Screw you.”

Gabi asked Philip to have lunch with her at the Bistro, and he asked, “I thought you were banned from that place. Didn’t you get kicked out the other night after you kissed Xander, and it turned into a whole scene?” When she asked who told him that, he said, “It’s Salem, Gabi. People talk.”

Leo tells Adam that they need to have a talk, so Adam moves in closer to him. Trying to hold himself back, Leo takes a breath and says, “Adam, do you remember the conversation we had about personal space?” Adam said he did, adding, “You said that when someone gets too close, that you go into, um, how did you put it? ‘Awkward turtle moment.’” When he moved backward ever so slightly, Leo had to tell him to move a few more inches. I, too, can’t stand people who have no regard for personal space.

There were so many good ones by Leo, I’d end up transcribing the whole script, so you’ll have to watch the episodes to enjoy the hilarity better.

REACTION OF THE WEEK

Although there were a few good reactions, Leo wins it this week. Adam had him frustrated because he was the holdout vote, causing the jury’s decision to take forever. Adam insisted that Johnny was guilty and kept making references to Law & Order. Leo had to keep reminding him that that was a TV show, and when Adam started asking Leo if he’d seen a particular episode, Leo lost his cool and started shouting, “Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” Not only was Adam shocked, but the jury was as well.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

So the whole EJ remembering who shot him sequence was well-done. Marlena was yelling at Rachel to stop tossing a glass paperweight in the air. Her words, pleading for the young girl to stop, resonated in EJ’s head. EJ started remembering when she held him at gunpoint. In the present, she kept tossing the paperweight until she missed and it smashed on the ground. That coincided with EJ’s memory of the gunshot and cemented the fact that he was the shooter.

Having Rachel be the shooter is a very interesting turn of events and creates some great moral dilemmas. So far, EJ (who remembered that Rachel shot him), Marlena, and Kristen are the only ones who know. Marlena stated that Rachel had no memory of the incident, and if she were told about her actions, it would be too traumatic. So EJ forced Kristen to come up with a solution, and in a rare moment of selflessness, she sacrificed herself by copping to the crime. Of course, as time rolls on and the characters keep talking about it out loud, someone’s bound to overhear it, and the secret will slowly unravel.

But really, she’s just a kid. She won’t go to jail. And Marlena promised to get her the help that she needs. They need to just face the facts and deal with the consequences, not make up lies which only lead to bad things.

I’m really liking Chad and Cat getting closer. They have chemistry, and they’re cute together. But I am having a hard time because I know that The Young and the Restless’ Conner Floyd will be stepping into the role, so I’m trying to picture him with AnnaLynne McCord. I’m sure they’ll be great together.

PARTING THOUGHTS

This being Salem, it’s highly possible that there was someone behind Rachel who actually did the shooting, and her bullet missed. Maybe someone will notice a bullet hole somewhere in the DiMera mansion’s living room.

The exchanges between Leo and Adam were absolutely hilarious. I’d like to see more of that, so maybe the show will find a way to have them cross paths again. Adam reminds me of one of those people in the Progressive commercials who is becoming like their parents.

There was a cute moment when Alex gave Stephanie a cupcake with a candle in it to celebrate her novel’s publication. I like these two together and hope that they can remain solid, at least for a couple of months.

OUTRO

Thanks for being here again, DOOL-ers! Catch me next week when I try to keep up with the Brady Bunch - which is tough because they have twice as many plotlines as I do.

Days of Our Lives can be found on the Peacock streaming app.