Oh, Ashley. Ashley, Ashley, Ashley, Ashley... what are we to do with you? She has not had the best of weeks, has she? I'm truly not sure whether I believe she has had some sort of mental break or if Tucker is gaslighting her. I remember watching, horrified, years ago when Adam gaslit Ashley while they were living at the Newman ranch together, and he caused her to have a hysterical pregnancy. It was too convoluted of a storyline to go into all the details now, so I'll just say this: "if you know, you know" (and if you don't know, you can check out the Recaps section of Soap Central for all that craziness)!
Now, all these years later, Ashley is convinced that she is being gaslit once again -- this time by Tucker. I mentioned in my previous column that I am torn on where this storyline is going and where I want it to end up. I want to believe this storyline is meant to correct and/or explain the sudden U-turn that their storyline took last year when the newlyweds broke up off-screen; unfortunately, I am not confident that I won't be let down. The writing just feels as if there is no clear direction, so it's hard to have faith that there will be a satisfying conclusion, which is a shame because Ashley and Tucker -- and their fans -- deserve so much better. But maybe I will be wrong. In this case, I want to be.
If Tucker really is gaslighting Ashley, he's doing a great job of gaslighting me, too! I don't know what to believe. I was really hoping Ashley and Traci would get video confirmation of what happened between Ashley and Tucker in Paris when they visited the café where it all went down (and maybe they still will -- they haven't left that horribly green-screened version of Paris yet, after all).
Could Tucker have really paid off that waiter to lie to Ashley about what he remembers happening that day? Yes, he probably could -- but it is a little too much to assume that he did. What, did he pay that waiter to hang around all day until Ashley showed up so that he could have him lie to her? Is there no one else working at that café? What if Ashley and Traci had spoken to another employee instead? Or did he pay off every employee in the place? It's all just a bit too convoluted and outrageous when you start to think about it (but, to be fair, convoluted and outrageous is Tucker's style).
I just really don't want it to end up that Tucker is gaslighting Ashley. That just takes his actions to a whole other level and crosses a line that will be hard to bring him back from. For me, it would cement him as a villain rather than an anti-hero. There are so many more interesting stories that could be told for Tucker's character. We were reminded of that again this week when he ran into Nate and Devon having lunch. Sure, Devon wants nothing to do with Tucker but there are ways they could have put them in each other's orbit to give them a storyline. I'd much rather see them navigate their tumultuous father/son relationship and let that be the drama rather than the mess that's currently being written for Tucker. It was great having Ashley in Tucker's corner, rooting for him and Devon to mend fences.
Tucker and Ashley truly are a great couple. They are popular with the fans, and the actors have great chemistry, too, so it's a shame to see the writers butcher their relationship in such a way that makes it difficult for their fan base to keep rooting for them to be together. If it turns out that he really was violent toward her and has been manipulating her to make her think it never happened, that would likely be something they can't recover from (and likely no fans would be rooting for them to be together after that, either). But maybe that is the point?
I don't know the particulars of Trevor St. John's contract, but if his time in the role of Tucker may be coming to an end, then perhaps Tucker is being given the same treatment Ashland was by the writers, and he will be exiting as a villain. Losing him from the cast would be a big loss for Y&R, so I hope that is not the case. But the writing really needs to improve for his character because he is all over the place.
Take Tucker's relationship with Audra, for example. That certainly took another interesting turn by the end of the week. Audra told Tucker to prove himself to her by letting go of Ashley once and for all, and if he couldn't cut Ashley out of his life, then he would never see Audra again. I was surprised that Tucker chose Audra over Ashley and that the two ended up making love (but I won't be surprised if he goes back on his word and is obsessing about Ashley again in no time).
Tucker choosing Audra does throw another wrinkle into the mystery of whether or not Tucker is gaslighting Ashley, though. If he went to all that trouble to make Ashley doubt herself, clear his name of the accusations that he was violent, and win Ashley back, then why would he suddenly change course and throw it all away for Audra? Tucker can be fickle at times, and I'll admit that he and Audra have a strong enough connection for him to be swayed by her, but it casts doubt that he is gaslighting Ashley. Perhaps Ashley could have subconsciously twisted what happened with her interaction with Tucker? I hope that we find out the truth soon so that we can move beyond this storyline!
I'm sure it's no surprise (and I'm sure I'm not the only one), but I would prefer that Audra and Tucker do not become a couple. Their "friends with occasional benefits" vibe worked well for them, and that was because romance was never part of the equation. They were both just friends helping each other get what they wanted at that moment, which is similar to how they operate in business together. For him to now be choosing Audra over Ashley as a romantic interest seems off to me.
I was really starting to enjoy what was being built between Audra and Nate recently and now, all of a sudden, she is giving Tucker ultimatums to be with her instead of Ashley. What is going on?! I hope this was just another "romp in the hay" between friends and that Audra isn't really meant to be Tucker's love interest (even if they do probably deserve each other). If that is the direction this takes, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Audra is still secretly operating with revenge on her mind and that this is part of her plot with Nate to get revenge on Tucker and take his new company, Glissade, from him. That might make this storyline worth it in the end if that's the payoff! Audra deserves a big win like that at Tucker's expense, so I'll be cheering her on until I'm convinced otherwise that that is not what she's up to.
Before I move on, I just want to give a shout-out to Zuleyka Silver, who does such a great job of bringing Audra to life and making the audience want to root for her as a character (even when we probably shouldn't). She has been given a lot of material lately that has been a little all over the place, but she has made me believe every single thing that her character is going through. I hope that she isn't written into an awkward corner by being thrust into some twisted love triangle with Tucker and Ashley. I'd much rather see her in more scenes with Nate and Nikki.
Speaking of Nikki... Oh, Nikki. Nikki, Nikki, Nikki, Nikki... what are we to do with her? I understand that she is trying to overwork herself so that she stays busy and doesn't think about drinking, but she really is doing way too much. On top of managing Newman Media by herself after having fired Audra this week, now she's making her steps toward recovery fraught with more unnecessary stress by "sneaking around" behind Victor's back with Jack as her A.A. sponsor.
I found it interesting that the writers made a point of having Jack and Diane comment on how strange it is to think that he used to be married to Nikki and she used to be married to Victor. It stood out to me because of how much Jack and Nikki's sneaking around has had the same feel as a storyline about an affair. Could this perhaps be foreshadowing of some romantic entanglements planned for this foursome? Might each of their marriages be headed for trouble this year? And might they find comfort in the other's spouses?
It could be interesting to see more scenes between Victor and Diane. If I am remembering correctly, most of Diane's storylines involving Victor were with other actresses in the role. It could be fun to throw them into some sort of storyline together as Nikki and Jack grow closer at the same time. Of course, Nikki certainly doesn't need one more thing to worry about right now...
It seems Nikki's year of torment has only just begun now that Jordan is unaccounted for after a fire at the prison where she was being held. I don't believe for a minute that Jordan died in that fire; in fact, I'd bet Jordan was the "Unknown" caller on Nikki's cell phone that she ignored at the end of Friday's episode. As much as I feel for Nikki, I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited that Jordan's reign of terror hadn't quite come to an end yet. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that we learn about a deeper connection between Nikki and Jordan that hasn't been revealed yet.
In any case, I'm excited by the prospect of seeing Colleen Zenk pop up again soon as the nefarious Jordan. I'm betting she'll be giving us some more thrills just in time for February Sweeps (just like she did during November Sweeps -- funny how that works out)! At least, I hope so. The show can certainly use some jolts of excitement because a lot of the storylines are just not really hitting the mark (at least for me).
Heather and Daniel continued to be a complete snoozefest this week as Lucy spied on them talking about having admitted to still having feelings for one another and all but getting back together. I am glad that they have decided not to act on their feelings again until Lily returns to town and Daniel can officially break things off with her. But I hate that the writers are splitting up Lily and Daniel, and I am not looking forward to more Daniel/Heather scenes. If that's going to be the case, just have the three of them (Daniel, Heather, and Lucy) have their happily ever after and move out of town again (I hope the door doesn't hit 'em on the way out)!
And if Heather and Daniel weren't enough of a snoozefest, Y&R was featuring a number of equally boring storylines and moments this week, like: Summer and Chance's first date; Kyle trying to do his mother's work during her first week as co-CEO at Jabot; and some intense parental conversations about Connor and his declining grades between Adam, Sally, Chelsea, and Billy. Is this really all that the writers can come up with for this group of characters? It seems like a big waste of time and talent -- and it's enough to make me want to grab a bottle of something strong to drink to help me get through it all!
Summer and Chance may have some potential, but the writers just aren't making them all that exciting or worth rooting for. Maybe Y&R needs a shake-up behind the scenes similar to the one that was just announced over at General Hospital? Some fresh and exciting ideas in the writers' room are just what Y&R could use right now.
It's not all boring in Genoa City, though. There are still a lot of fun storylines and moments that hit just right, like the scene at Society with Victor and Jack this past week. I always love seeing these former enemies putting their past grievances behind them and having a bonding moment together over the people they both care about. Nikki's latest struggle with alcoholism has been a catalyst for some great moments like this so far, and I'm looking forward to what we might get next.
That's all from me for this week, folks! Don't forget to hit the Comments (here on the site and on social media posts throughout the week) to share your opinions, too!
Until next time,
Vance
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