Soap Hub Performer of the Week for DAYS: Marla Gibbs

We had high hopes that sitcom stalwart Marla Gibbs – the most recent recipient of Soap Hub’s Performer of the Week honors – would be hoot and a half come her Days of our Lives debut…and we weren’t in the least bit disappointed.

Marla Gibbs – Performer of the Week

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Paulina Price (Jackée Harry). She’s wasn’t in the least bit happy to find her mama hovering outside her door; in fact, she didn’t even want to let her inside the apartment.

But let Olivia inside she did. And within minutes, she lived to regret the decision. Big Mama found lots to complain about, including the amount of sugar in her sweet tea – but the biggest bone of contention between the two women was Paulina’s insistence on staying put in Salem.

Wise woman that she is, Olivia knew that the longer her daughter interacted with Lani Grant (Sal Stowers), the harder it would be for her to keep mum about a long-buried family secret – namely, that Lani is Paulina’s daughter; the result of Paulina’s relationship with brutally abusive “Ray.”

Gibbs hit the ground running with a sure-to-be-controversial storyline, and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that even at age 90, she still possesses the ability to deliver a perfectly nuanced performance. One moment, Olivia’s issuing threats to Paulina, and the next she’s commiserating with her over the painful decision she made to provide for her baby girl and keep her safe.

To quote a much-beloved sitcom’s theme song, “With family around, you’re never alone.” It’s an aphorism that’s great news for lovers of Marla Gibbs and her DAYS character, but not so much for poor put upon Paulina.

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.