Too Little, Too Late

The writers of The Young and the Restless must have had JoJo's 2006 single "Too Little, Too Late" playing on repeat while writing this past week's episodes! Throughout the week, Chelsea, Nate, Tucker, and Adam all received negative reactions to their attempts at trying to make things right with the ones they love. Join our Two Scoops columnist as he breaks down all the drama from this past week in Genoa City!

"You say the words, but boy it don't feel right; What do ya expect me to say? You know it's just too little, too late. You take my hand and say you've changed; but boy you know your begging don't fool me. Because to you it's just a game; you know it's just too little, too late" -- JoJo

That's just a snippet of the lyrics from JoJo's single "Too Little, Too Late," but you get the idea. You could literally insert each of those lines into Elena, Ashley, or Sally's dialogue as they shut down Nate, Tucker, and Adam this past week. Ouch! It was a tough week to try to rekindle the dwindling flames of love for the men of Genoa City! But more on them later.

Let's talk about Chelsea first. She may not have been trying to rekindle the flames of a past relationship, but Billy certainly told her in as many words that she was giving "too little, too late" in her attempt to try to make things right with Johnny when she confronted him about being his biological mother in the park earlier this month. I understand that Billy was only being protective of his son by confronting Chelsea in the way that he did, but I really felt for her during these scenes. Melissa Claire Egan knocked it out of the park with her performance, and even though I have never been (and will never be) pregnant, she really made me feel how much pain she was in and understand that she still feels connected to Johnny even though she hasn't had a hand in raising him.

The second that Chelsea ran into Johnny at the park and confronted him about their "familial bond," I knew there was going to be trouble coming her way. However, I was expecting that the reprimand she received would come from Victoria rather than Billy (although I am sure Victoria will give her a talking-to soon, as well, which I'm not looking forward to). I get that Chelsea overstepped a little, but I don't feel as though she did anything entirely wrong. She did run into Johnny by chance, and I agree with her that it would have been worse if she didn't mention it at all when the two of them were talking. Even though Johnny was combative when they spoke, I think he needed to have that conversation with her to process some of what he is feeling about the situation.

Billy didn't see it that way, of course, and Chelsea was livid when he, like Adam, implied that she was trying to use Johnny to fill a void in her life. I don't think Adam and Billy are totally off the mark, but Billy could have been a little nicer in his approach and shown more empathy when confronting Chelsea about her interaction with Johnny. In the end, though, I'm glad that Billy let up a little and said that he would try to be respectful of her feelings and what she was going through.

Later in the week, Billy was involved in another confrontation; this time, he was going head to head with Nate (along with Lily, Devon, and Audra) after Nate confessed to his insider trading scheme that would give him control of Chancellor-Winters. Nate's confession actually shocked me because I thought he was going to see his plot through to the end, but I am happy with how everything went down. Lily, Devon, and Billy were absolutely warranted in their outrage toward Nate (especially Lily and Billy). Although I agreed with Devon on many of his points when he was berating Nate, I hated seeing him feeling justified in his holier-than-thou attitude that he loves to strut out on any occasion he can (especially in regard to Nate).

But as much as I loved the plot twist of Nate teaming up with Victoria, Nate definitely was in the wrong here, and the outrage that his family and co-workers showed him was deserved. I would have been livid with him, too, if I were in their shoes. I just wish Jill were in Genoa City so that we could have seen her confronting Nate, too -- that would have been an epic takedown (something that Jill excels in doing)! Fingers crossed that she will visit again soon and cross his path!

I am torn about the interaction between Nate and Elena when he told her that he had confessed as a means to win her back, though. Overall, I am happy with how their scenes went, but I didn't like how she insisted that it wasn't her intention for him to confess when she interrupted his meeting at Chancellor-Winters to tell him she was leaving Genoa City. I mean, really?! How else was he supposed to interpret that? She couldn't have waited until he was done with work for the day so that they could have an actual conversation about it rather than bursting in like she was all but giving him an ultimatum?

But I do have to commend the writers because, even as a viewer who is not a fan of this couple, I was nearly rooting for them to find their way back to one another as they got more and more emotional about ending their relationship. So, kudos to Y&R for those scenes because they were truly heartbreaking and relatable. In the end, though, Elena stuck to her guns and told Nate that she was leaving him -- and Genoa City.

As happy as I am that Nate and Elena's relationship is over, I will not be happy if Brytni Sarpy is exiting the show. I have enjoyed her as an actress since I first saw her over on General Hospital, and I was glad that Y&R brought her on board. She is a great actress and still has a lot to offer the show as Elena, outside of her relationship with Nate. I haven't seen any official casting news of her leaving, which I think we would have seen by now if her last scenes were this week, but I guess only time will tell.

Nate wasn't the only Genoa City gent to receive bad news from the woman he loves this week. Tucker's attempts at convincing Ashley he was a changed man after his near-death experience fell on deaf ears as she rejected his advances toward her. I really enjoyed their scenes this week, and I am thoroughly enjoying Trevor St. John in the role of Tucker (even though I miss Stephen Nichols, too)!

Ashley is very set on not opening her heart to Tucker again, but methinks she doth protest too much. These two were always great together, and I would love to see them reconcile -- especially if it means we would be seeing more of Eileen Davidson on our screens again! I must say that I was shocked that they dove right into the Ashley/Tucker dynamic because I thought we would have to wait awhile for those scenes, since Eileen is not on contract with the show as Ashley.

Speaking of Ashley, I wish that Jack hadn't seemingly talked her out of using Tucker's weakness toward her to get information out of him about Diane. I appreciate that Jack wants to see the best in Diane (for Kyle's sake, supposedly), but I thought Ashley had every right to manipulate Tucker in that way, given their tumultuous past (and I was hoping it would ultimately lead to a real reunion with them). Ashley didn't say she was giving up on exploring the Diane/Tucker connection, though, so it will be interesting to see where this goes. And I was happy that we were treated to more scenes with Nikki, Ashley, and Phyllis working together to get rid of Diane in the meantime! I'm open to letting this storyline surrounding the Tucker/Diane connection be a slow burn if it means we keep getting more fun scenes like this. Abby's reaction to seeing the three of them together was hilarious!

While we're on the topic of Tucker and Diane, I am very curious to learn what their real connection is and what Tucker's endgame is. Sure, he is back for Ashley, but he clearly has some interest in Chancellor-Winters, given his interactions with Audra this week when they discussed their mysterious plans for the company once it goes public. What is Audra's endgame in working for Chancellor-Winters while also working for Tucker? Like Tucker told Devon, he wouldn't want to do something that ultimately hurt his son; but if Tucker has his sights set on taking over Chancellor-Winters, then that will certainly have a negative impact on Devon. The writers are spinning quite the web with Tucker's return, and I am loving it!

Something I am not loving so much, though, is how much the writers seem to hate Adam and Sally fans! This week had me both ecstatically happy and incredibly frustrated with the developments in their story. I got my hopes up too high when they started showing all the old Adam/Sally clips from their relationship, which reminded me how much I love them. I really thought the writers were finally going to give us some payoff for this tortured couple! But, alas, just as things were getting good, it all started to go bad.

I get why Sally wanted to leave right away after being tricked into dinner on the rooftop with Adam when she thought she would be meeting Nick, and I would have understood if she'd left right then. But she decided to stay and hear Adam out, which speaks volumes about how much she still cares about him. Their conversation and dinner together was such a treat to Adam/Sally fans... until it wasn't, of course.

Adam was doing all the right things and saying all the right things as he explained to her how he felt and why he deserved a second chance (I love to see a vulnerable Adam). But I think Sally overreacted a bit too much when he brought up Nick. That really threw me. She is absolutely valid in her feelings about being hesitant to give him a second chance because of the way he dumped her "for the sake of her career," but I don't think she was valid in the way she reacted when he brought up Nick. Immediately, she assumed that the romantic dinner he planned and all the things he was saying were just so that he could "win" her away from Nick? Ugh!!! So frustrating!

I get that it was the "Friday cliffhanger" and a way for them to keep viewers hanging until Monday, but I really hope that their night doesn't end in an argument over his intentions toward her. He clearly loves her and wants to be with her, regardless of what is going on with her and Nick. Sure, Sally's dalliance with Nick may have opened Adam's eyes to what he would be missing out on if he didn't act right away to win her back, but I don't think for one second that he is only doing this to "claim her as a prize" in a war with his brother. Is she forgetting that he was trying to win her back before he even knew about her and Nick?

Ultimately, I think Sally is just wary about opening her heart to Adam again, and that is why she is looking for any excuse to run the other way and hide her feelings for him. Nick and Sally do not have the same chemistry and compatibility that Adam and Sally do, and I think it scares her (just like it scared Adam) to be that vulnerable with another person because of how much she has been hurt in the past.

What do you all think? Will Adam and Sally be able to move past the "Nick issue" and finally give in to their feelings for one another? Or is their dinner date and reconciliation ruined now? And what about the other lovelorn couples that were featured this past week? Do you want to see Ashley give Tucker another chance? Would you like to see Nate and Elena reconcile, or would you prefer to see them with other people? Don't forget to hit the Comments (both here on the site and on social media) to share your opinions! I'll see you there.

That's all from me this week!

Until next time,Vance

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