What's in a name?

What's in a name? Turns out, a lot! This past week on Y&R: Diane became an Abbott (again); Tucker was falsely(?) named as Mamie's business partner; Nick named Adam as the reason for his breakup with Sally; Victor confused his sons' names (but was it a mistake?); plus, is Nikki's new assistant being truthful about her real name?! Read on as our Two Scoops columnist breaks down the latest Genoa City drama!

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet." That quote is, of course, a famous line from William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. I think that if Shakespeare had known Victor Newman, he might have said "That which we call Victor by any other name would be just as ruthless!"

So, what do we think, folks? Was that a slip of the tongue Victor made when he called out Nicholas' name while he was speaking to Adam? Just a simple case of a parent calling a son by his sibling's name? If so, why would he later tell Nikki that it was "just a joke"? That "admission" to Nikki is either an indication that Victor is playing mind games with Adam (maybe even all his children?), or he is covering up his mistake so that his mental status is not called into question any further.

I'm a little torn on what I think is actually going down, but I think my official opinion is that it is a little bit of both. I think Victor may have really gotten confused when he called out to Adam using Nicholas' name; then, when Adam called him out on it, Victor began to cover his tracks and act like it was nothing. When Nikki mentioned it to him, Victor acted as though it was all some sort of master plan to get the upper hand on his children. Could that be true? It certainly wouldn't be the worst scheme Victor has ever pulled, so it is not outside the realm of possibility.

Victor did make a convincing argument when he spoke to Nikki and told her that he wasn't sure who was going to backstab him. However, he knew that someone was out to take his empire from him, and he was trying to draw them out. Could Victor be faking this confusion he had with his sons' names to see which of his children tries to "stab him in the back" by trying to declare him mentally unfit? Yes. Yes, he could.

Whether Victor is faking a mental decline or not is yet to be determined; however, based on the "Next Week on Y&R..." preview at the end of Friday's episode, there does seem to be some sort of health crisis coming up that involves "The Mustache." But that preview very well may be a way to throw viewers off of what is really happening; in that case, his "mental health crisis" is likely nothing more than a manipulation. I can't wait to see how everything unfolds next week, and I hope we are let in on the truth soon!

But let's not get ahead of ourselves and start talking about next week because there is plenty more to dissect from this past week on Y&R. What (else) is in a name? Well, Diane was certainly happy enough about becoming an Abbott -- so much so that she decided to do it again! The Abbott name certainly holds value to her after how long she has wanted to be Jack's wife over the years. Plus, she now shares the same last name as her son, Kyle, so it is no wonder that it means a great deal to her.

Having said all that, their vow renewal ceremony still bored me to tears, and I didn't really care enough to pay too much attention when it was happening. Don't get me wrong, I have been a fan of the Diane/Jack pairing since Phyllis torpedoed her relationship with Jack, so I am not being a hater.

I must admit, though, that I was excited for the Diane/Phyllis feud having been reignited after so many years -- more so than I was about which woman would end up with Jack. When it was first revealed that Diane was still alive, though, I was on Team Phyllis as all the drama started to unfold between the three of them. I will always love Jack and Phyllis together on some level because they are not only one of my favorite Y&R couples, but also one of my favorite soap opera couples in general. I loved watching them fall in love and try to build a life together all those years ago, and they will always hold a special place in my heart.

And having said all that about Jack and Phyllis, I am still a fan of the current pairing of Jack and Diane. Maybe it is just because I am a fan of Susan Walters (and "villain" redemption storylines), so I'm enjoying the way her character's story is being written so far this time around. I am really thrilled that, in her latest return to Genoa City, Diane is not just being treated as a short-term villain in some other character's story. I really empathize with her desire to make her new life the best it can be and maintain that happiness she has found. Mrs. Abbott has certainly come a long way.

And she's not the only one. The beloved Winters family's Aunt Mamie has come a long way, too (as I discussed in my last Two Scoops column about her "triumphant return"). But how far has she gone? Devon (and others) are questioning whether or not she might be working with Tucker in some way and if that is why she was so secretive about becoming a major investor and stakeholder in their family company. Could Mamie really be in cahoots with Tucker in some plot to take over Chancellor-Winters (or at least to maintain a large amount of control of it)? If so, I suspect that Tucker misled her about his intentions -- but I hope that is not the case and that Tucker is just a red herring.

As much as I love Tucker and would love to see him turn out to be the mastermind of such a coup, I don't want to see Mamie's triumphant return take a nosedive and turn into a story about how she is just some sweet old lady that was duped by a greedy man because "she didn't know any better." Her return to the show has worked so well because of the power she holds now in her relationship with Jill (after all the years Jill held power over her), so it would be a waste to see the impact of that turn in their relationship lessened.

I was not pleased when Devon said that Jill had left town, because she should absolutely be integral to how the rest of this story plays out. Hopefully, she will be back soon, and their characters' history together will be the strong backbone of this story. The writers would be wise to highlight Mamie and Jill rather than turning this into some story about another failed plot of Tucker's that gives everyone in town an excuse to belittle him again.

But if not Tucker, then who was Mamie talking to on the phone when she stated "they don't have a clue" about what was going on and that "everything went perfectly"? Some online rumors indicate that there is a possibility Victoria Rowell is about to make a return as Drucilla, but I am not convinced that is true. If Dru turns out to be alive after all these years (her body was never found, after all), then I doubt she would reintroduce herself to her family secretively through some business takeover plot with Mamie. It just doesn't make sense. I would love to see Dru back, but not like this. I'm stumped on who Mamie might have actually been talking to (tell me your thoughts/guesses in the Comments)!

I'm also curious to hear what you all think about the end of Nick and Sally's relationship this past week. I know there are a lot of Nick/Sally fans that are rallying behind them, but I have always found them to be boring and much prefer Sally with Adam. I feel that the writers made a mistake by turning Nick and Adam against each other for the sake of a woman (again). It would have been far more interesting to see Nick and Adam continue to grow the brotherly bond they began to build after they got stuck in the tornado together. It would be really rewarding to see them come to depend on one another and find value in their familial connection. Instead, Nick has dumped Sally because of a kiss she shared with Adam, and he's getting drunk and telling Adam he doesn't wany anything to do with him ever again, which is not so rewarding. I hope all this is leading to a good conclusion (and soon).

As for Adam and Sally, I never felt that they needed a third party, like Nick, to come between them in order to make their storylines interesting. The story of two damaged souls who haven't always done the right thing but are always walking that line of trying to be better (and holding each other up to be better), would have also been far more interesting than another recycled love triangle -- especially since said triangle further divided the Newman brothers just as they were starting to get close.

But now the Newman family is more divided than they have been for a long time. Nick is blaming Adam for all his problems, Adam blames pretty much everyone but himself for his own problems (but mostly Victor), and Victoria blames all her problems on their father. To be fair, Victor does deserve a lot of the blame for how he has been treating them all lately, so they are not completely unjustified in the way that they feel.

By week's end, Victoria finally showed her true feelings about her father taking back the reins from her at Newman Enterprises when she smashed a photo of the two of them together in the middle of his office (formerly her office) for him to find when he returns. Yikes! But also, "Yes"! It was nice to see Victoria stop pretending to not be fazed by the demotion her father gave her. She certainly has shown us now what she's really been feeling (and it won't be long before Victor knows, too)! I'm very curious to see what Victor's reaction will be upon finding the broken photo frame.

With all this Newman infighting, they may not see it coming when someone new within their ranks turns out to be the real threat in their lives. Yes, I'm talking about Nikki's new assistant at Newman Media, Claire Grace (portrayed by Hayley Erin, who once was in the role of Abby on Y&R). I'm thrilled to see Hayley Erin be given another chance to shine on Y&R. After she was replaced as Abby on Y&R, it was great to see her grow so much as an actress during her time on General Hospital (as Kiki Jerome). I was sad to see her leave GH when her character was killed off, so it's exciting to see her pop back up on Y&R in a mysterious new role!

I don't know who this Claire Grace woman is going to end up being, but I can already tell that she has not just come to town for a job at Newman Media and that she likely is not as nice as she appears to be. Hayley Erin is doing a great job of portraying Claire as someone who seems innocent and sweet while also giving off some creepy vibes at the same time. The creepiness isn't super noticeable, but some of the things she says feel like they will have more meaning as we learn more about her past and who she really might be.

What we know about Claire is that she was apparently raised by her aunt after her parents were killed in a car accident, she supposedly grew up in a small town in Oregon, and she claims that she had a college friend in Genoa City that she stayed with in town for a couple of summers. And while that is all very interesting, none of those clues (if they are clues) are helping me to figure out who she might be. Could her parents' deaths be connected to someone in Genoa City somehow, and she is looking for revenge? Or is her past less sinister than that and the big reveal will just be that she is related to someone already on the show (or something like that)? Maybe it will be both those things, and her familial ties will be the root of her sinister plot. I am really enjoying the way her introduction is being handled so far, and I am excited to see what her character is all about and what the writers have planned for her. It's been awhile since we've had a good mystery, and I'm here for it!

Before I close out, I just have a couple quick thoughts about some other storylines from this past week.

Regarding Daniel and Heather: No, thank you! Is anyone interested in seeing these two get back together? It looks like the writers are moving forward with the Heather/Daniel/Lily love triangle storyline that they've seemingly been building to, and I'm not really looking forward to it. I really like Daniel with Lily, and I'd be much more interested in seeing Heather run into Adam at some point now that she'll be back in town for good. It's crazy to me that these two haven't bumped into each other once or shared any scenes together since Heather started coming to town so regularly over the past year or so. It would be interesting if seeing Adam with Heather might make Sally jealous enough to admit she wants to be with him and not his brother.

Regarding Phyllis and Danny: What is going on here? While it is nice to see Danny taking an interest in Phyllis' well-being and checking in on her, it's also a bit odd to see the two of them interact as they navigate a new "clean slate" relationship between them (and Christine). It was pretty clear to me that the show has been building up to a Danny and Christine reunion, but might they be reigniting a Phyllis/Danny/Christine love triangle?! If Danny thinks that Christine is trying to fix things with her marriage to Paul in Portugal, then it wouldn't be surprising to see him open himself to other romantic possibilities -- maybe even with Phyllis. In the end, I wouldn't want to see Danny and Phyllis as a serious couple, though. It would mostly just be fun to see the claws come out between Phyllis and Christine again! Their rivalry is classic Y&R so what better year to revive it than the show's 50th anniversary?

Well, that's all from me for this week, folks. Don't forget to hit the Comments (here on the site and throughout the week on social media) to share your opinions, too. I'll see you there!

Until next time,Vance

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