I had really high hopes for Friday's episode, the voice-over Adam show where he was supposed to explain how he set up Nick for his murder. Yeah, that was what it seemed like it was going to be, but -- alas -- only about a third of the show dealt with Adam's plot. The rest of the hour was a wallow in Amber's overemotional goodbye to her friends in Genoa City, some nonsense with J.T. and Victoria (really -- again?), and a little Jana/Kevin drama. Frankly, I was disappointed. Based on the setup, I thought we were going to really get into Adam's murder.
So now we have the one-man Genoa City police department -- Chance -- deciding that Adam was killed by Nick. One question, though, how did Adam actually die? Was it the Jack Abbott handkerchief down the throat that choked him to death? Was it the über-expensive pen that Victoria gave to Nick as a gift and was found plunged in Adam's chest? Or was it being burnt to a crisp like a French fry? Have you noticed that we haven't heard from a medical examiner about his corpse? Oops, I guess that's expecting too much.
The way I see it, we're all CSI experts these days. We've all watched enough crime procedurals to know that the evidence of Adam's death is not being served up. Okay, Nick's jacket had Adam's blood, but were there fibers that link someone else to the crime? What about DNA evidence? There should be connections that make certain that Nick is the killer, but all we've heard about is circumstantial evidence. That doesn't cut it anymore. There were just as many prints and just as much suspicion to label Victor as the killer, but he was released.
Then there was the cell phone. How contrived was that? We're really supposed to think that Adam was yapping on the cell phone when Nick approached with murder in his eyes? Why didn't Adam say that Nick had a pen in his hand or a handkerchief to shove down his throat? Also, who was Adam talking to... was it an outgoing call? Very suspicious to me and it should be to Chance and Owen, too. By the way, isn't it interesting that Owen is now a character? Never knew him till this case.
While we're talking about things just popping up out of nowhere, Madame Maria Arena Bell has vanquished the Sarah Smythe story pretty fast. I guess she got the vibe from the fans that the Lauren/Sarah switcheroo was a dud. No, it was worse than that. It was ridiculous. Evil personified with so little motivation and so much instant power is just bad writing. Sarah had influence on Deacon, Ryder, and Sarah, making them do her evil, but it was never explained how she wielded such power?
Fortunately, the lame story has wrapped up quickly, and Lauren and Michael are reunited. Of course, the bad final shot on Daisy was meant to leave the door open for the next reign of terror. Daisy is going to come back some time down the road with an evil plot yada-yada-yada. Don't soap writers think we deserve better than that garbage?
Daisy's exit was inevitable, but what's the deal with Amber. She's worried about Eric and wants to raise him, but why does it have to be in California? There's some value to the argument that Daniel doesn't want to follow Amber because they want different things in life, but how come none of that ever came out before they were married? Amber has done everything to be with Daniel, but she can't find a way to reconcile living in GC with him and Eric? And is Daniel really so down on being a surrogate father that he would give up the love of his life because she has a child? Doesn't that make him seem like a shallow person?
What can I say about Jack? He finally discovered this past week what a dolt he's been. He didn't know that the woman he married wasn't Emily. He didn't recognize that she was Patty or Mary Jane, the other two variations on the same lady that he'd slept with. What kind of attentive sexual partner does that make him? He couldn't tell the difference? Maybe Jack finds any woman in his bed pretty much like all the others? All I can say to that is "yeech!" Take some sensitivity training, Jack. Get to know your lovers!
Patty continues to exhibit the super-human skills of a mythological goddess, even though she's not a college grad and has been institutionalized for years. Nevertheless, she has managed to keep Emily locked away without any visitor privileges. Patty's also fooled the world into thinking she's a psychiatrist -- a doctor with the knowledge and expertise of an M.D. -- despite the fact that she's a fraud. And we also saw her genius at hair coloring this week when she dyed her hair one more time. Maybe that could be her next career because she's clearly skilled at matching colors better than most colorists in beauty shops.
The one good thing about the Patty situation is that it looks like it's coming to a head. Like the Lauren/Sarah story, Ms. Bell seems to be on wrap-up mode. Unless some bizarre twist occurs and Jack is even dumber than he's already proven to be, Patty's been painted into a corner and the charade is over. Please tell me that Jack isn't so dumb that he's going to continue to be fooled by the bleached blonde bimbo. And shouldn't her head stink of peroxide? He should have gagged when he hugged her at the mental hospital!
My heart does go out to Jana and Kevin. Their romance has just really been shipwrecked by her latest illness. Of course, they've had no storyline for a year, so at least now they're going to have something to play. Good for the actors!
Before wrapping up, let's check out the mailbag...
