Thumbs Up/Down – Soap Opera Digest

Thumbs up!
YOUNG AND RESTLESS – The Company
You Keep
We’re enjoying the slow evolution of Nick’s complicated feelings for his half brother. These siblings have shared a prickly dynamic ever since Adam came to Genoa City in 2008, as they’ve batted for Victor’s affection as well as three different women. But there was a shift when Sally lost the baby she and Adam were expecting and blamed him. Rather than jump on the Adam-bashing bandwagon, empathetic Nick urged Sally to forgive his bro. Then, to make sure that Adam would have someone in his corner, Nick decided to toil alongside him at McCall. Sharon suggesting that they all work together at the company she inherited from Cameron is an intriguing setup; it gets Sharon out of the storyline purgatory that is Crimson Lights and allows the show to explore what Nick and Adam can accomplish away from Victor’s interference. Even though there will undoubtedly be missteps along the way (Sharon working with her two ex-husbands as colleagues is bound to create conflict), the effort could ultimately be just the right balm to heal Nick and Adam’s bond.

Thumbs down!
DAYS OF OUR LIVES – Crime Pays
Add DiMera exec-turned-evil mastermind Li Shin to the long list of DAYS villains who’ve gotten off scot-free. Li’s part in the plot to kill Stefan (his second attempt on his rival’s life, by the way) was conveniently eradicated when the brainwashed Harris was only able to recall Megan and Dr. Rolf’s roles in the sinister scheme. Ever since Li crossed over to the dark side, fueled by his obsession with Gabi, his misdeeds have gotten increasingly worse, yet time after time, there’s no comeuppance, save for Gabi, Stefan and Wendy being given the floor to unleash their anger at him. We get that to keep bad guys viable, they can’t all go to jail, but it’s gotten to the point where there’s barely a need for a police department in Salem. Rafe, Melinda and Co. talk a good game about ridding the streets of criminals, but when push comes to shove, no one ever faces proper repercussions. Even on those rare occasions when a character does go to jail, they’re pardoned or escape within a matter of months. The end result is that the stakes are dramatically lowered in DAYS’s good vs. evil drama, which directly affects story engagement.

Thumbs down!
GENERAL HOSPITAL – Match Points
GH is moving ahead with its reboot of the Finn/Liz pairing, which since its inception in 2021 has evoked a fan response that has largely ranged from lukewarm to cold. What is less clear is why. Yes, there are viewers who root for this couple, but by all available metrics, they are in the minority — and the trouble with “Fiz” 2.0 is that the heavy-handed way the show is trying to sell the relationship (from Finn’s young daughter playing matchmaker to Liz’s gal pals relentlessly pushing her toward him) does not appear to be moving the needle for those who just don’t buy that there are genuine romantic feelings, much less fiery passion, flickering between them. (That goes double for viewers who remain steamed over the starring role Finn was given in the yarn of Liz’s childhood trauma last year and who continue to resent that Liz’s life outside of Finn is rarely showcased on screen. Where are her sons?!) If anything, character-bending beats like Liz — an experienced nurse who has treated countless gunshot victims — needing comfort from Finn after Curtis was shot only make it less likely that fan sentiment will ever turn in “Fiz’s” favor. We want to see Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth) and Michael Easton (Finn) in a coupling that enjoys widespread fan enthusiasm — but since that hasn’t happened for “Fiz” two years in, we suspect it never will.

Thumbs up!/ Thumbs down!
BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL – That’s Hot
On paper, there is nothing about a Hope/Thomas union that we should be excited about. Thomas has not only been obsessed with his stepsister for years, but he emotionally manipulated her into growing close to Douglas, kept mum about the fact that her presumed-dead daughter, Beth, was alive and had been adopted by Steffy, romanced a mannequin that looked like Hope and, oh, ran Emma’s car off the road to her presumed death, smirked and didn’t call for help, to name a few red flags. But all that being said, the timing feels right for a “Thope” romance. The writers slowly rebuilt their connection while the duo worked side by side, and Hope began fantasizing about Thomas in a wholly unexpected way, which culminated in a scorching kiss in Rome that Liam spied. The chemistry between Matthew Atkinson and Annika Noelle is electric, and Hope and Thomas’s love scenes are, dare we say it, hot. The show has long been focused on the Steffy/Liam/Hope triangle; mixing it up this way, with Thomas and Finn now in the mix, is making for some must-see viewing. We just wish B&B would reckon more directly with “Thope’s” ugly history within their relationship so they can build a foundation that truly gives us hope for their future.