Victory, your name is Newman

How ruthless, diabolical and brilliant is Victor Newman, and is he one of the most iconic characters ever created on a soap opera?

How ruthless, diabolical and brilliant is Victor Newman? The guy has got to be one of the most iconic characters ever created on a soap opera, don't you agree? This past week, the mustache was at it again. While Jack was consulting with a family attorney and plotting to separate the Abbotts from the Newmans in Adam's lawsuit, Victor wielded his power (with a major assist for super-attorney Michael Baldwin) to finally give Adam a little bit of payback. I say a little bit because, seriously, getting him to drop the lawsuit is a small price to pay for all the nasty stuff Vic Junior has done.

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How funny was it that Adam thought he was insulting his father by calling him Dr. Frankenstein. Come on, Adam is hardly his father's son. Nick's the true Victor II, including the way he treats women. Adam was raised by Hope and has very little Victor inside of him. Victor's the ultimate dichotomy; he's both good and evil, generous and parsimonious, loving and hateful. Adam is just a psychopath. You can't imagine Victor having done what Adam did last summer with the Sabrina haunting Ashley business. Victor has always been more direct in his evil - like locking up that guy Michael Scott in a bomb shelter when Vic's first wife Julia was cheating on him. Remember that?

It'll be interesting to watch how Victor handles the dual attack of Jack and Tucker. I like Tucker and think he's pretty good at his job, although I do think he's made a fatal error with Sofia. Sorry, you can't make me believe this former file clerk is a brilliant business woman. She just seems very obvious and crude. Where's the guile? Where's the art of the deal? Her bold attitude doesn't impress me. Why Tucker would trust her so much is a headscratcher to me.

Jack and Tucker's deal has potential, especially since Jack has figured at angle that would not only get Abby access to her trust fund, but hurt Victor in the process. Jack's idea is to blame Vic for mismanaging Abby's trust. In essence, Jack will be blaming Vic for not making more money for Abby. Will a judge buy it? Probably not, but just the idea that Abby attacks her dad like that will be hurtful. Abby may not want to get her money like that, but she's determined and she does have the Newman blood coursing in her veins. She has an ounce of ruthlessness as opposed to Daddy's gallons of the stuff.

While I enjoyed all the machinations about Adam and Victor and Jack and Tucker, I was really bored out of my mind with Chance, Ronan and the dirty cop story. This can't end fast enough for me. Chance has become such a one-note character and he's dragging Heather down with him. Ronan is completely humorless and cold, and the only character who's keeping her head above water is Chloe. Imagine that, a vapid flirt like Chloe is showing some integrity and class.

So, I was right about Meggie - not that it took a seer to figure it out. She's up to no good. I'm trying to figure out if she's working with someone or if she's simply out to snag Victor from Nikki? It would make sense. She already made a pass at Vic back in Ottawa, and she's been enjoying the money and riches of his lifestyle. Why wouldn't she want to take over Nikki's place as the lady of the manor?

My main problem with the story is that Meggie got the bartender to put vodka in Nikki's ginger ale and Nikki didn't notice it. No, no, no...that's just not accurate. If you're a drinker or if you're not, you can taste the difference between a glass of ginger ale and a ginger with vodka. Nikki sipped that drink and was totally oblivious. Bad writing.The christening was a nice touch this past week, especially for one emailer who pointed out that so many soaps eschew religious ceremonies these days. It was appropriate, I thought, to have it in church and evoke God. As for the surprise appearance by Philip, that was a twist. But here's what I would love to see happen. Cane goes to Tucker and tells him about the danger waiting for Cane in Canberra. Tucker would probably agree to hire a bodyguard for Cane. It wouldn't be out of the question for an executive to need protection in another country. But if Cane doesn't tell anyone and tries to deal with this himself, then I'm going to assume Cane is an idiot. He has too much to lose with Lily and the kids to assume he can handle guys wanting to kill him without help!

There was a lot of romance - or should I say hot sex - on Y&R this past week. Everyone was ripping off blouses and shirts and falling back onto desks and couches. Was it something in the water? Lauren and Michael in the Fenmore office (thank goodness Jill didn't pick that moment to show up unannounced!); Mac and J.T. on the couch; Tucker breaking the French doors with a chair to get to Ashley; Heather and Chance with Chloe listening at the door! Doesn't anybody believe in making love under the covers in bed anymore?

By the way, since we're nitpicking a bit here, Lily's hair extensions were clearly NOT extensions. That was her hair. Chemotherapy patients do not get their hair back that fast. I understand why they did it - for actress Christel Khalil - but it really was a leap in reality. But, then again, so is the super-fast justice that's dispensed on the show. Adam's trial was a quickie, but the Jill is a Fenmore hearing was even faster. You think it's like that in real life? Think again.

And then there's super lawyer Michael Baldwin. I love the guy, really, I do. He's so involved and caring and brilliant. But what attorney do you know that can do corporate, criminal, family and litigation law? There's nothing that's not his specialty. And he's always available, too. If Y&R wants to get smart, they should give Michael some partners. Since Heather's out of a job with the D.A. and Rafe's still independent, why don't they both go to work for Michael? Wouldn't that make sense?

Of course, Christine could return to G.C. and be a full-time lawyer in competition with Michael. But I don't think she's coming back so fast. As it was, weren't you stunned to see her making out with Nick at Jimmy's bar? Is that the real Chris? What about her lingering feelings for Paul? Speaking of which, what on earth was Paul thinking when he screwed up his relationship with Nina for a hot kiss from Chris? I thought Paul was smarter than that.

Finally, I wasn't thrilled with the matching tattoo tale involving Billy and Victoria because I hate tattoos, but it was funny. Even funnier is that house that Billy and Victoria just bought. I don't know whose idea it was to do an homage to "Father Knows Best," but it was very clever. I can't really see Billy as a Jim Anderson type (Robert Young), but at least the house is a step up from the trailer.

Here are some letters from the mailbox -- keep 'em coming, fans!

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