Days of Our Lives (DOOL) Crafts Heartbreaking JJ Tribute

Ever since JJ acted in a split second and shot Theo on Days of Our Lives (DOOL), his life and the lives of his and Theo’s families have never been the same. With that, DAYS has crafted one of its most compelling stories in years.

With every episode, the drama has continued to build as stakes keep climbing for everyone involved. Even when there seems to be a bit of good news, like a specialist is brought in or JJ (Casey Moss) was cleared of wrongdoing, the joy is short lived.

In fact, being off the hook professionally had the opposite outcome – JJ felt worse than ever because he wanted to be held responsible. He wanted to be made to pay for what he sees as a horrible, unforgivable mistake. And it all led to today’s episode where JJ prepared to kill himself.

Part of the brilliance of this is the timing. The holidays are a joyous time for most – but not for all and the writers have tapped into this with a beautifully crafted show that was for those who are struggling right now.

Today’s show was a tour-de-force for Moss, as well as the writers. Each letter that JJ wrote added a piece to the overall motivational landscape that brought him (and therefore us) to this moment where we could understand his pain – and his desire to be rid of it.

Part of that was seeing the debilitating loss of his father Jack and how that affected JJ. Matthew Ashford returned to his legendary role and didn’t miss a beat, as we finally got to see these two interact for the first time.

Jack was a supportive father to his screw-up of a son because he had been the same. He was the father he wished he had, covering for JJ and encouraging him instead of berating him after each mess he created. JJ really needed Jack to tell him he’ll be okay again – but he’s not there.

This episode brought richness to this already incredibly penned umbrella story for DAYS. While it’s still a fictional tale, the show did include a placard at the end with information about suicide prevention, which Moss also shared to Twitter, reminding us that for many the feelings this story stirs are all too real.

Days of our Lives (DOOL) airs weekdays on NBC. Check your local listings for airtimes.