Theresa Donovan, Steve Johnson, Lani Price.
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. Here, we lead with optimism. Unfortunately, we don’t always get what we want. So here’s a review of the week that was, including lessons on unconditional love and how not to be a hitman.
In Friday’s episode, Theresa (Emily O’Brien), Brady (Eric Martsolf), and John (Drake Hogestyn) visited Tate (Jamie Martin Mann), who now resides in a halfway house in Salem. He’s closer in proximity to his parents and they were beyond excited about it. That is until Brady discovered he was not on his son’s visitation list. How he didn’t know before arriving, I don’t know, but I’m not going to question it too much because these ended up being my favorite scenes of the week. Hands down.
Brady and Theresa arrived at the halfway house and learned Tate didn’t want to see his dad. Brady’s reaction was a bit devastating, to be honest. Eric Martsolf is knocking it out of the park as he deals with his parental insecurities regarding not being around for Tate and Rachel (Finley Rose Slater). Brady told Theresa to go in without him, and he called his dad, who as it turned out, was also on the list to see Tate.
The scenes between Theresa and Tate and later, John and Brady, played out beautifully. First, I’ve wondered why Tate acts so cold with his dad. He wrote that harsh letter, and now he doesn’t want to see him. It all made sense after hearing him talk about therapy sessions at the juvie facility bringing things up. He resented Brady not being there for him when he and Theresa lived in California. That’s when Theresa fessed up about her part in making that a reality. She told her son how she helped falsely implicate Brady in a murder, which resulted in her getting full custody of Tate.
In addition, she also confessed to Tate how she slipped right after he was arrested and that Brady was there for her in every way. Loved Theresa sticking up for Brady.
So, my point is, that man out there that you refuse to see? I have hurt him so much more than he has hurt you or he has hurt me. Your father loves you. He always has and he always will.
Theresa Donovan, Friday, March 1, 2024
And don’t get me started on John when he showed up and overheard Theresa coming clean with her son. In true John Black fashion, he didn’t admonish Theresa for being a bad mom. Instead, he praised her for telling the truth and risking her relationship with him to do so. And pointed out how that was a great example of unconditional love. John being able to tell Brady that Tate wanted to see him was such a satisfying moment.
Admittedly, I have not been on board with this version of Theresa scheming to secure Xander’s inheritance, or her relationship with Alex. However, I approve of any time she’s in mom mode, coming through for her son, or struggling to understand her parenting skills. Emily O’Brien shines in these types of scenes. To keep this love fest going, Jamie Martin Mann and Drake Hogestyn were also wonderful.
Dear DAYS: Please provide more deep, heartfelt, and complicated moments in the future like these. Sincerely, Tina.
Worst Hitman Ever: Stefan DiMera (Brandon Barash). What was Stefan thinking? He didn’t wear gloves. He didn’t try to act a little stealthy. And he let a just-out-of-a-coma cop get the best of him. Now the DiMera finds himself stuck between a rock (Steve Burton’s Harris Michaels) and a hard place (James Read’s Clyde Weston). Have fun with that, Stefan.
What Else I’m Feeling: Lani and Eli’s return. It felt so right when both Lani (Sal Stowers) and Eli (Lamon Archey) walked through the hospital door to see an ill Paulina (Jackée Harry). More importantly, this means Lani is finally out of jail. I’m still at a loss as to why they would have her spend so much time behind bars when other Salemite criminals are released fairly quickly or skirt jail time altogether. Regardless, all is right with the DAYS world when Eli and Lani are present and accounted for. I’m unsure how long they’re sticking around, but I’ll relish every moment while they’re here.
Nice Touch: The new exterior shots of Salem. We see the exteriors of the hospital, John and Marlena’s (Deidre Hall) townhouse building, and the warehouse where Wendy (Victoria Grace) and Tripp (Lucas Adams) are being held prisoner. The first time I spotted one of these shots, I thought we were suddenly in an episode of Beyond Salem. But I like them. Keep them coming, please.
Non, Merci: I get that Wendy and Tripp had to figure out how to spend their captivity distracting themselves, but please don’t let them overdo the speaking of French. They can pretend they’re in Paris, but small doses of French would be preferable.
Interesting interrogation: Jada questioning Bobby and Chad was fun because she was so pissed at her cheating ex. Her insults and side eyes were welcome. Feels like he’s a lying liar that lies, right? And not suffering from traumatic amnesia like Marlena threw out as a potential diagnosis? That’s the way I’m leaning right now.
Burning Soap Questions
Days of our Lives airs weekdays on Peacock+ in the U.S. and The W Network or Global TV App in Canada. For more about what’s coming up in Salem, check out all the latest DAYS spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.
Will Brady be able to help? Read More
B.J. Britt, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Michael Rady, Christopher Russell, Drew Seeley, and Corey Sevier tell us… Read More
It's a very merry Christmas in Genoa City. Read More
Who remembers A Very Salem Christmas, the Days of Our Lives spinoff holiday movie? We… Read More
It's Christmas in Salem. Read More
See the beautiful photos of the B&B cast, crew, and sets. Read More
