A Critic’s Review of Days of our Lives: Put On The Kid-Gloves

When it comes to Days of our Lives, every fan has their own opinion – and Soap Hub is no different. For five days we sat and watched the good, the bad, and everything in between, and now we offer you a handy review, and a cheeky critique, of the Days of our Lives week that was.

Days of our Lives: A Critic’s Week In Review

I’m not going to mince words here. What happened to Shawn Brady (Brandon Beemer) on Days of our Lives was rape. Belle Brady (Martha Madison) standing in front of him, yelling at him, and making the situation all about herself was disgusting.

If a man were to ever shout at a woman, I’m not mad at you for being sexually assaulted, I’m mad that you didn’t tell me exactly how far the violation went there would be hell to pay.

Belle is most certainly allowed to feel a certain way about Jan Spears (Heather Lindell) being pregnant – every single one of us would feel a certain way. To take Shawn’s trauma and throw it up in his face is just all kinds of wrong, and I, for one, cheered when Shawn threw Belle’s purposeful adultery right back in her self-righteous face.

It’s clear, painfully so, that Days of our Lives is setting the stage for a Belle/EJ DiMera (Dan Feuerriegel) affair, which I once called for in this very column. But now that I see it’s coming about because Belle’s angry that Shawn hid the true extent of his sexual assault – like many a survivor before him – I’ll no longer champion it.

Furthermore, Days of our Lives needs to never again tell a rape storyline, because they are patently incapable of treating the subject in the delicate manner that is called for.

Further DAYS Musings

* Leann Hunley continues to be the gift that keeps on giving. Here’s hoping that Days of our Lives knows what they have in this sensational lady.

* When it comes to Gwen Rizczech (Emily O’Brien) I no longer see any redeeming qualities or a way for her to remain a viable character on the canvas; her villainy has been too compounded.

* Nice shout out to Liz Chandler/Gloria Loring and the song Lovers and Friends!

Days of our Lives (DOOL) airs weekdays on NBC. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Salem, check out all the latest that’s been posted on DAYS spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.