Raise your glass

Nicole secretly packed E.J. and Taylor's bags and took them on one hell of a guilt trip. Nicole's not an angel, but it was fantastic to see her swat at Taylor's tarnished halo like a kitten playing with a toy.

Maybe it's the good weather. Maybe it's the fact that I've been able to keep my house clean for an entire week. Or maybe it's because someone reminded the writers that its May Flipping Sweeps and viewers expect deliciously blended plot cocktails to sip into after a long day's work. Yup, I think that's it. For the first time since Crazy Nick dangled Melanie off that balcony, I am loving Sweeps!

SAMI, RAFE, and FAFE I thought the whole safe house showdown was cool. I can't say that I was emotionally invested in it because I'm not a Safe fan, but I appreciated that this meant something to a bunch of fans out there, and I am certainly in favor of a show coming through for a fan base.

Sure, some of the hero worship was a bit over the top for my taste (See: "That's soooo you!") but once I waded through that, I realized that Rafe 2.0 is quite possibly my wish-on-a-star come true. Rafe 2.0 can't be a condescending know-it-all because he doesn't know anything. Genius!

It's too early to speculate on how soon Rafe will get his full memory back, but I hope that the writers use this as a chance to reboot the whole character and give him more depth. I'd also like to see him get information from someone other than Sami. Her account of Grace's life already rubbed me the wrong way as she selectively forgot to mention their scam to illegally adopt the tot. Yes, I know that Sami only remembers the good parts of Rafe, but that's the problem.

Remember Sami's midnight talks with Robo John? She could be honest with him because she wasn't desperate to have his love. Rafe needs the same thing here. My pick is Nicole. (And really, when isn't Nicole the right answer to the question, "What's this storyline missing?") She's already in on the secret. She certainly doesn't want Sami to be single and available to E.J. again. And helping him could be yet another way to poke E.J. in the side.

CARLY Correction, the only time "Nicole" isn't the answer to the above question is when Michael Sabatino is in the house! Lawrence appeared to remind everyone that he's a slimy bastard who ripped out Carly's soul once and is back to make sure that he didn't leave any pieces behind. He's a melodramatic villain, and I love him to bits. I say throw Vivian into Carly's next hallucination and let Lawrence and Viv taunt the doc together. That would be like putting caramel inside the chocolate!

It was a smart touch to use Carly's real name, Katerina, as an element in this storyline. Carly has an interesting past, and bringing that up reminds the audience that Carly's more than just the Bope interloper.

I will caution, however, that I do not want a man (unless is name his Nicholas Alamain) to step in and save Carly. Melanie, Jennifer, Hope, Lexie, heck even Chloe (the girl does owe Carly a lot) are all fine. But no turning this into a story about a man's love. This is Carly's story, and she needs to girl-power her way through it.

JENNIFER and DANIEL Poor Jennifer. If she only knew that she'd break out in a rash all over her arms and face, I don't think she would have stressed so much on which earrings make her look "too flashy." But, a first date that ends in a hospital ER is pretty typical for Jen's luck. I love the playful dynamic between Jennifer and Daniel, and I can't wait to see what they do next. I'm hoping for dinner at the Horton house where Daniel stumbles across Jennifer's senior yearbook. Not everything on soaps has to be serious and somber. I love that this pair brings a little bit of comedy to the table.

CHLOE and QUINN I loved Chloe -- one-night stand and all. And anyone who disagrees with me obviously didn't see Quinn's dimples. Seriously, after her afternoon delight and part two of Chloe's Pub Crawl, she made the decision to move out and get back on her feet. If it takes being treated like a hooker, complete with an envelope of money on the bed, for Chloe to start taking control of her life, I say we put Quinn on stand-by for the entire town of Salem.

Surely, this guy's on the up and up. Tall, dark, handsome men with accents never mean trouble. I remember Sami's nice neighbor who helped her out whenever she needed. His name was something Wells. And that turned out just fine! *wink* EJ and TAYLOR Can someone please bury this dead horse? How about Marco? He's trained at getting rid of things. I say we call him. Then, we don't have to watch James Scott and Tamara Braun out act their material, which is exactly what they're doing now. It's like when someone profusely apologizes for some tiny, insignificant act. You just want to say, "It's okay, really! You don't have to do all that. It's not worth all the stress you put on yourself."

Although this storyline does have me wondering about which situation draws less sympathy. 1) My sister's husband didn't follow through and divorce her for me. 2) The wife that I blackmailed is being mean just because I brainwashed a man. Tough call. LEXIE (Lookie, there! Lexie got her own section!) Bad news first: it was unsettling to watch Lexie console Taylor when E.J. didn't ask Nicole for a divorce. I don't care how fake E.J. and Nicole's marriage may be, lusting after your sister's husband is not healthy behavior, and I kept waiting for Lexie to be a real friend and encourage Taylor to have a little self-respect. That never happened.

On the other hand, I love me some E.J./Lexie scenes. It was great that E.J. let Lexie know that Nicole is blackmailing him. Lexie's tough love response was even better. She basically told him that he made a big mess by playing Captain Gangster and, as a result, he's going to have to setting for dancing with an evil stepsister because Cinderella isn't an option for him. Good job, Lexie! No wonder they let this smart cookie run the hospital.

MEL and DARIO I can't help it. I like these two. They're just what my summer needs -- an awkward doofus flirting with the spoiled daddy's girl. I'm being completely serious. Although, I wonder where Dario got a futon from, considering that he came to town and immediately pawned his sister's jewelry for cash. MAGGIE and VICTOR They kept bringing up the idea of "changing for each other," and I have to say that this is one couple that shouldn't do that at all! Their difference is what makes them work. Their best scene of the week was when Maggie informed Victor that Chloe had decided to leave on her own. The look of reluctant humility of Victor's face was priceless! I love this dynamic, and I want to see more of it rather than...well...(ducks for cover)...anything else Maggie did this week.

Don't get me wrong. I adore Maggie. She got my vote for "Best Mom" in Salem. But she's trying my patience in the girlfriend department. How can Maggie admire how fiercely Victor loves his family yet be surprised when he turns on Chloe for hurting them? I think it's probably the same way that she can admonish Victor for threatening to break up with her if she took in Chloe, when I specifically remember Maggie withholding her dinner company from Victor until he rescued Vivian from that island. Yeah, that's probably it. LOOSE ENDS: The storyline where Brady owns Titan is a little weak. Victor ordered a deal to be made in China this week, and Brady scolded him for it. That's it. I've never really been interested in the "struggle for the family business" plight unless the characters have opposite views on how to run the business. It seems that whether Victor, Brady, or Philip is at the helm, Titan keeps trucking along like normal. Hope and Justin had a really sweet moment of closure. The best part was that Justin admitted he was just as lost as she was. Now they're back to being friends and, thankfully, sharing a foursome table at the Cheatin' Heart. I still like Chad, and I love the chemistry between Casey Deidrick and Joe Mascolo. I hope Chad's internship starts soon because I want to see more of the newest DiMera. E.J. opted not to tell Stefano that Nicole found out about Rafe. More specifically, I think E.J. opted not to divulge the truth that Nicole bested him again. HOT: Nicole is working E.J. and Taylor, and I love it. I may have even done the diva three snaps in her honor when she hugged Taylor and encouraged Taylor to stay in Salem. Nicole's "what, him too?!" expression when she saw Brady hug Taylor was all shades of awesome. And, Ejole has never been hotter than when Nicole manipulated E.J. into sharing a bed with her. The smirk that she had when he told her to go to hell was deliciously spectacular. The evil figure skating costume that Nicole apparently sleeps in didn't hurt either. If I looked as good as Arianne Zucker does, I'd wear the minimum amount of clothing at all times. NOT: I cannot even get into the string of expletives that went through my head when Abigail accused Daniel of forcing himself on Jennifer. Hello! Jennifer was raped before. This clueless brat does not get to trivialize that real crime in order to further her own hissy fit. Ever.

Furthermore (nope, I'm not done), Jennifer had to have two Full House moments with Abigail in one week over the same topic. Get a grip, girl. Having your father abandon you and then being "forced" to live in Salem with your amazing mom, stellar aunt, cool new internship, and hot new guy seems like small potatoes compared to the people who have real problems in Salem. Heck, think about me! I have to watch you do all this bogus shiz! That's real pain! LINE OF THE WEEK: My inner Smirky McSinister made me pick these two lines: Chloe: "Is this two or three?" Ah, math is very hard for Chloe.

Sami: "Seriously, I will shoot!" In other news, I heard Stefano say, "Seriously, I will erase your memories!"

RANDOM THOUGHTS: From Nicole's two-toned blue purse to Sami's beautiful 40s movie star hair to Chloe's awesome 70s throwback dress, the ladies of DAYS looked beautiful. So, I'm wondering what Renee Jones did to tick off the wardrobe peeps enough to put Lexie in a shirt with spider web sleeves. I hope that the writers finally decide to let Sami embrace her attitude the same way Kate and Nicole strut around town proudly wearing their bitch patches. Sami's need to scheme doesn't make her immature -- the constant apologizing for that trait does. If the writers want us to believe that Melanie is mature enough to snuggle up to Brady, how about she not be forced by her father to apologize to another little girl for saying mean things nor pout because she suddenly wants her parents to get back together? I loved that Jennifer was rightfully outraged that someone would jeopardize the hospital's reputation. It does my heart good to be reminded that there is a Horton in a high position at the hospital. It's fun watching Adrienne smirk over Dario's protest of spending time with Melanie. Maggie and Victor watching the same soap was almost as adorable as Henderson being so immersed in it that he didn't notice that Victor was standing right behind him. Equally awesome was Victor's line, "That bad actor makes a very good point." Maybe Sami can go over to the DiMera house and get the Fafe's Brady study guide for Rafe. Stefano probably has an e-version she can put onto her Kindle.

EMMYS: God, I love adding this section to Two Scoops. I remember the times when all DAYS got was a nomination for "Outstanding Lighting of a Fake Tree in the Background of a Scene Also Containing Red Plates" or something like that. But those days are gone, and now we have some things to celebrate and -- ahem! -- discuss. So for the next five weeks, Tony and I will be discussing various DAYS-related Emmy stuff in this section, including nominees, snubs, and party ideas. Of course, you can visit soapcentral.com's Emmy section to get all the latest scoop on all the soaps.

Since I can be a wordy little thing, I moved all the nomination commentary to

Music Direction and Composition: D. Brent Nelson, Steve Erinhardt, Ken Corday (No kidding! He's a composer.)

Technical Direction/Electronic Camera/Video Control: Mike Caruso (no word on whether he's related to Stacey), John O'Neill, John Sizemore, Michael Mecareta, Bill Scott, Hugo Morelli, Ken Williamson, Alexis Dellar-Hanson

Additionally, a few special people deserve some cheers. Dame Crystal Chappell's web soap Venice got noticed for Outstanding Special Class Short Format Daytime. And DAYS alum Julie Pinson received a nomination for her supporting actress work in ATWT. You go, ex-Billie!

That's it for now, my fellow soapers! Time to fess up: who would buy tickets for Chloe's Pub Crawl? Can someone tell me how to do Nicole's twisty up 'do thing? And, just what will Bope do with all of Fafe's messy files? Tony will be back next week to cover all the Salem shenanigans and, of course, share more Emmy madness!

What are your thoughts on ? What did you think of this week's Two Scoops? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.