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The Young and the Restless finally put Cane's enigmatic AI program to good use while Audra Charles blasted Claire with some truth about Holden, pointing out to the world how wrong it can be to fall for someone with charm!
The Young and the Restless, Jack schemes against Victor -- and maybe, Jabot
Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman) shared with his family his unorthodox plan to protect Jabot Cosmetics from Victor's (Eric Braeden) AI program. The senior patriarch suggested taking his family company offline, effectively shutting it down. If the company can't be found, how can AI attack it? At least that's Jack's reasoning. Well, sure that makes sense on one level, but has Jack ever heard the expression "the operation was a success, but the patient died"?
We MUCH prefer the idea Ashley (Eileen Davidson) threw out when she reminded everyone that she has a long, personal history with Victor. Instead of sending the company into potential financial ruin, why not send Ashley in to talk to the mogul about holding off on attacking Jabot? It certainly worked once before when Ashley approached Victor about getting an extension so that the Abbott clan could regain control of Jabot about 25 years ago.
Victor resisted, at first, saying that he didn't need to do that. He wasn't obligated to do that. Ashley approached him on a deeper level. She said if he didn't do this for her -- and specifically, her late father John Abbott (Jerry Douglas) -- then what they had meant nothing. Victor gave Ashley what she wanted. Was it any wonder that years later, these two would give marriage another shot?
Victor and Nikki are the endgame. They're the war, if you will. But if the "battles" along the way, and that's what Ashley and Victor were, one of the great battles of Y&R in the love story department, are to mean anything, then viewers have to be invested. Plus, Ashley and Victor share a child, Abby (Melissa Ordway).
It would be far more enjoyable to watch and far more romantic if we were to see Victor and Ashley share scenes and have her plead her case to Victor, and watch him recall their epic romance. The alternative is what? Watching Jack shut down the company? Where is the drama in that? Where are the emotional dynamics at play that viewers love to watch?
Victor to the rescue
Victor's arrival in Los Angeles turned the tide in favor of Nick (Joshua Morrow), Sharon (Sharon Case), and Noah (Lucas Adams). Before we saw Victor pull the ultimate power play that we did not see coming, we got to see Victor drop by The Shadow Room and confront Matt Clark (Roger Howarth). Of course, Matt denied, denied, denied that he was Matt, which prompted Victor to smile.
Then, Victor did something totally unexpected, but it also made perfect sense at the same time. He unleashed Cane's (Billy Flynn) AI software on Matt. Matt probably doesn't have the type of money that Jabot, Chancellor, Winters, and other companies have. Still, Matt was counting on keeping all those financial resources he'd amassed from means that were both legal and illegal, we imagine.
Victor gleefully informed Matt that he'd be ruining him. It was like watching the Road Runner beat Wile E. Coyote in a Warner Bros. Bugs Bunny cartoon. Watching Matt conclude that Victor wasn't just bluffing was glorious! For weeks, we saw "Mitch" deny that he was Matt as he tormented his wife, Sienna (Tamara Braun), Noah, Nick, and Sharon, while ordering Det. Burrow (Matt Cohen) around like he was a lackey.
The AI program isn't something we want to see used on other characters. It's bad enough that it's shut down Cane and made him so contrite, and that Jack is jumping through hoops. Heck, Victor doesn't need the program to attack his enemies. He's known how to deal with them for decades!
Plus, Diane is 100% correct when she pointed out that Victor would be criminally liable if he used AI against Jabot. Speaking of Diane, if we've seen her go up against Victor in an adversarial way (this bears repeating), why not have Ashley go in with a much softer touch?
Realistic relationships
We've come to anticipate showdowns between bitter enemies Claire Newman (Hayley Erin) and Audra Charles (Zuleyka Silver). Claire resents Audra because she tried to break up her and Kyle (Michael Mealor). And while Claire tries to point out that Audra failed in her attempt, Audra counters that she and Kyle are indeed living in splitsville right now, so maybe she succeeded.
It's par for the course that Audra will call Claire out on trying to kill her family, which she did thanks to brainwashing from her evil Aunt Jordan (Colleen Zenk). But, let's face it -- Claire willingly went along for the ride, didn't she? In turn, Claire will blast Audra for having no job, no boyfriend, no life.
This time, however, Audra upped her game. And while she was the first to take things physical, the real damage she did to Claire was getting inside her head while she went after Holden, who may or may not be guilty of what Audra went on to describe. But she got inside Claire's head, that's for sure.
Also, even if Holden isn't as Audra described, some people most certainly are. And that's why we're thanking you, Audra Charles, for ruining (or, perhaps, "ruining") any relationship someone has with a person who's as charming and as good-looking as the charismatic Holden is.
In this exchange, Audra clearly found a new way to go for Claire's jugular: "It's his smile, isn't it?" Audra rhetorically asked Claire. "The way he looks at you as if you two share a secret -- the way he smiles at you as if you've just said something so clever!
"He'll probably hate me for telling you this, but that's how he got more tips from the ladies when he was tending bar [back in Los Angeles]," Audra continued, hastening to add, "and we all know, Claire, you have the fattest bank account."
Thank you, Audra. Thank you for planting seeds of doubt in anyone who witnessed this exchange that the charming, smiling person with you, who laughs at your jokes, and looks at you as if you're sharing a secret, is nothing more than a big fat liar. Thanks, Audra, for pointing out that we're just a bunch of suckers who are so desperate for love that we'll believe those fake smiles, knowing glances, and false intimacies. Thank you for telling us that we're wasting our time being with that person!
Now, we're not saying that Holden falls into this category. He may very well genuinely care for Claire. However, he did interject, "That's enough!" as he was able to get you to stop your insightful rant.
Of course, Audra may want to pull back on her digs. Sure, she struck Claire first, but then Claire wrapped her hands around Audra's neck! Audra would do well to heed her own words that Claire is capable of great harm!
She's Got Bette Davis Eyes
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Diane Jenkins Abbott (Susan Walters) didn't need to go on the attack with Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott) when she came upon Victor's wife, as she was having lunch with Jack at the Genoa City Athletic Club. Diane pointedly thanked Nikki for keeping "my husband" company. Sometimes, remarks that are subtle and tiny can be just as entertaining to watch. Bonus: the way Diane glared at Jack when he asked if Nikki had to run off or not was a nice touch!
Catch all-new episodes of The Young and the Restless weekdays on CBS and Paramount Plus.
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