Wedding Belle blues

If Kate really wants her children to stop hating her, she might want to quit turning them over to the police as accessories to attempted murder. Just a thought.

Happy belated Thanksgiving, Days fans! I hope that you all had a happy and healthy holiday weekend- full of turkey, stuffing, and getting cranberry sauced. (no?) Anyway, last week's episode highlighted everything that is great about Days- good writing, great acting, and tradition. With only four episodes this week I was worried that the storylines would be slow. I couldn't have been more wrong. Each episode was full of progression and great scenes- proof positive that the great acting talent on Days can handle any storyline that Hogan can throw at 'em!

Brady/DiMera Feud We begin with the investigation into who shot EJ. Bo (via some smart sleuthing by Shawn) finds out that Roman was at the church with a gun but Steve disposed of the gun for Roman. Bo, with a "smart" move (insert sarcasm here) that surely won't tick off the Phoenix, decides to ignore the fact that Roman was at the church. That leaves Kate as a suspect. While being questioned, our favourite meddling mother turns Philip over to the cops. She confesses that she gave her gun to Philip and instructed him to get rid of it. Smooth Kate. If Kate really wants her children to stop hating her, might I suggest that she quit turning her children over to the police as accessories to attempted murder? Just a thought.

EJ/Sami/Lucas Sami returned to the hospital to put on an "I love EJ" show in attempt to give EJ a reason to live. Her trick works and EJ finds a new hope for a life with Sami and Johnny. I can just picture the Thanksgiving dinners now. Sami: "Little Johnny, will you please pass the potatoes and hemlock?" Little Johnny: "No mother. Your're a Brady. There's no way you can understand the meaning of potatoes. Grandfather says that you foolish Irish women still think that potatoes are the source of life itself." EJ: "Little Johnny, don't speak to your mother in such a fashion. I quite fancy her." Sami: "Shut up EJ." Just gives you that warm fuzzy feeling, doesn't it? Back to the storyline. I've always been a James Scott fan, but I do not like wimpy EJ. Call me crazy, but I prefer my British villains tall, dark, and unbelievable pompous. The whole "I can't live in a wheelchair" act is not a good look for Mr. Wells. If fans are supposed to get behind Ejami, the writers need to stick to what makes each character great. For EJ, that is his confidence, charm, and wit. I know that TPTB are trying to show a "different side" of EJ. But really, EJ had tons of fans already. Why change him?

One gentleman who needs a change is Lucas. Make room on the bandwagon folks, because as of this week, I officially don't like Lucas. He is a twit. This week he came across as a vindictive little twerp who doesn't know how to deal with problems without scheming and plotting to save his own feelings. Heaven forbid that there is more to life than something that affects him! Wait....Who does that sound like? Oh yes....I'll give you a hint. She wears black nail polish and has an affinity for frosted blond tips. That's right. It seems like Lucas has a lot more Mama Kate in him than he wants to admit! First, he sends Will away without even consulting Sami- a decision which took him all of about 10 seconds to make. It didn't matter if Sami was across town or in the bathroom, she would have been aced out of that decision either way. Then, he draws up papers for sole custody of Ali without talking to Sami first. Finally, he freakin' named their daughter without even asking Sami!

I completely understand that Lucas is hurt. And, Sami would be an idiot to think that her marriage to EJ would go over peachy with Lucas. But last time I checked, a divorce means that you're no longer married. It does NOT mean that you're no longer a parent. Triple shame on Lucas for using his children to hurt Sami and not allowing her to be a mother. She discussed every single one of her moves with Lucas before she went through with any actions. Lucas made his decisions behind Sami's back and then just let her find out about them.

The terrible tragedy in this whole situation is that Lucas is loosing sight of what's best for his children. Truth be told, Lucas should have sole custody of Ali, and Sami should agree to it. If Sami wants to marry EJ, fine. But she doesn't get to take Ali with her to be raised by the DiMeras. The problem is that Lucas has made the custody issue about himself rather than Ali. Once EJ hears that Lucas is suing Sami for full custody, EJ will do everything that he can to keep Sami from being hurt. Ali is going to be the victim in this whole thing because Lucas is too stubborn to work it out with Sami. Lucas is better than this. Send in Dr. Evans; send in Dr. Phil! Someone needs to set these two parents straight before they ruin all three of their kids' lives.

Salem U The sorority storyline is moving along pretty well. I still love Max and Morgan. Both of these actors have a great, yet subtle, comedic timing- which keeps Max and Morgan from becoming the stereotypical Rebel meets Princess. I'll even go further to say that Morgan should stay around- even if it's not with Max. She's a refreshing change to the "Belle and Stephanie" girls that have been way too prevalent on Days. Chelsea can't be the only girl with courage in Salem.

Morgan and Chelsea spearheaded a campaign to blanket the campus with flyers that advertise "Ford the Rapist". I'm pretty sure that Papa Decker can slap them with a defamation lawsuit. Hopefully Uncle Frankie has some experience with freedom of speech cases. But Ford is such a creep that I can't wait to see him choke on that silver spoon in his mouth. As if raping girls isn't enough, he wants to brag about it too. This chump needs to be brought to justice- even if it is Chelsea style justice.

Finally, Stephanie comes to see Kayla with a pregnancy test. Stephanie is worried that she is pregnant from a one-night stand. Luckily, it was a false alarm. Stephanie was tested for STDs and she's clear there too, but she will go back for another test in six months. We get some great interaction between Steve, Kayla, and Stephanie. It was the first time in a long time that the three of them really seemed like a family. Furthermore, we get confirmation that Ford was the one who raped Stephanie. Ford comes to Steve and Kayla's home and yells, "You better not tell anyone about our night together". Ford had no idea that Cordy was staying with Stephanie. Those threats were meant for Stephanie. Unfortunately, I wonder what proof Stephanie will have of the rape when she does remember it was Ford who raped her. Unless someone witnessed the rape, how is her story be any different from Morgan's story? It will be her word against his. I guess Cordy could testify that Ford threatened Stephanie, but then we're back to Cordy testifying against Ford. Still, there's potential for a great storyline here. Who better to help Stephanie through dealing with a rape than Kayla? Hopefully this storyline will help Stephanie mature a little. I'm more than ready to see the end of Stephanie Johnson, "Super Ho Barbie" and watch the growth of Stephanie Johnson, "Strong Brady Lady."

Philip/Belle/Shawn Did you ever watch a baseball game where you really didn't care who wins because you don't like either team? That's how I feel with Belle and Philip. Both characters are so despicable at this point that I don't care to see either of them happy until they change their attitudes. Belle can't stand to have someone be mad at her and Philip wants to win the competition more than he wants to win Belle's heart. While I love Jay Kenneth Johnson and Martha Madison, the scenes between Belle and Philip are laugh-out-loud ridiculous. Regardless of the white hot chemistry between the actors, this storyline makes no sense. Someone please book Chloe on an earlier flight. As far as I'm concerned, Chloe can't get back to Salem soon enough.

I do feel sorry for Shawn. Not only is Belle lying to him, but Hope is making sure that everyone knows about it, but him. Pretty soon Ciera's first words will be, "Belle slept with Philip. But, don't tell Shawn!" Hope needs to just demand that either Belle tell Shawn or that Hope will tell him herself. I'm tired of watching Hope turn into Kate and if Hope keeps this secret much longer, that's who Hope is going to become. Checking Belle's voicemail and justifying it because she was "doing it for her son" is a classic Lady Roberts move.

As for the fun wedding details, I absolutely loved Belle's wedding dress. It was a perfect fit on Martha and beautiful for an at-home wedding. I'm glad that Maggie, Doug, and Julie made it back for the wedding. It's always great to see the vets! I also appreciated the conversation between Shawn and Chelsea. It was good to know that these two have buried the hatchet. Chelsea catching the bouquet was funny, considering the fact that she was the only single girl over the age of 4 at the wedding. But by far, the highlight of the wedding was Doug's toast at the reception. He mentioned Abe and Lexi's reconciliation, Sami's twins, and Steve's recovery; as well as paying tribute to John's memory. In case you missed it, here is a list of random wedding trivia : Best man- Max Matron of Honor- Sami Flower girl- Claire, escorted by Chelsea Old- I missed it. Anyone catch it? New- A necklace from Marlena, made from Shawn and Belle's high school purity rings Borrowed- A ruby bracelet from Alice, to symbolize the ruby that Shawn and Belle brought back from Puerto Rico Blue- Forget-me-nots in Belle's bouquet, symbolizing John and Zach Song- Edwin McCain's "I'll Be" (great song!)

Hot and Not

Hot It was such a great week for the ladies of Salem that I can't decide on just one. Time to pull out my Spice Girl CD because there was some serious girl power in Salem this week: 1. Chelsea decking Ford right in the face. Not that I'm advocating violence, but there is something funny about a 100lb girls punching a 200lb boy in the nose- and drawing blood. It looks like Ford may come after Chelsea again, but something tells me that she can hold her own. She's no stranger to trouble. 2. After Philip spouts off some crap about how Billie is miserable because she doesn't have a man in her life, Billie says that she is, "single, sexy, and fabulous" and that does not mean that she's a miserable human being. Sure, she could use a little romance but she insists that when the time is right, it will happen. Her speech was the umpteenth reason why the character of Billie needs a good juicy storyline. 3. Marlena said, "That's a fact" to Stefano. She delivered the line with the same mix of confidence and smirk that made us love John Black. Nice job, Doc!

Not Can Shawn Brady please get married with both of his parents there? Hope missed the Shimi wedding and now Bo missed the Shelle wedding. While I'm at it, WTF is up with Roman, Caroline, and big Shawn missing the wedding? I hope the writers have a better storyline planned than just a tummy ache. After all, this is a wedding that we've been waiting years to see! I'm just sayin'!

Last Minute News

Lines of the week: Bo (talking about Philip), "I'd like to bitch slap that brat one of these days." AND Belle (during her vows), "I can't do this if you keep interrupting me." At least she learned something from her first marriage!

Parting Thoughts Philip has a serious, for real job. He is the Bluetooth grim reaper, bringing down major corporations with the help of his trusty, ever-faithful cell phone ear piece.

Finally, is Marlena going to go with Stefano to Italy? When will Stephanie finally remember Ford's face? And, who the heck is the lady in black?

Happy viewing! Laurisa