Critic’s Review Hits and Misses: The Week of September 16-20

Soap Hub looks at the Hits and Misses for the week of September 16-20 in the worlds of Days of Our Lives, General Hospital, The Bold and the Beautiful, and The Young and the Restless.

Hits and Misses

What we think worked and didn’t work.

The Young and the Restless

HIT: Sharon Case and Linden Ashby. We still don’t understand what’s going on with Sharon. Is she off her meds and having a psychotic break? That aside, Sharon Case and Linden Ashby are crushing each of their performances day in and day out. Some of these scenes are difficult to watch because the actors have committed to being scary, edgy, unpredictable, loud, and in-your-face. Ashby’s manifested version of Cameron is practically haunting our dreams. And Case is making a case for Sharon pretty much running Daniel and his family out of town. Plus, the actors play off each other so well.

MISS: Billy’s heightened ego. Billy (Jason Thompson) is confident, and he has something to prove. We totally understand why. But does he have to talk about everything he does in such extremes? There is such a thing as overhyping oneself. It’s no secret that many people around him doubt his abilities and humility and, well, everything about him. Yes, there are other characters in the town who are even more egotistical than he is. But with Billy, it seems like he’s trying too hard.

HIT and MISS. The Billy / Lily / Phyllis confrontation. Billy needed somebody working with him. After all, everybody deserves an ally. This sudden Billy/Phyllis (Michelle Stafford) combo will keep their enemies on their toes, that is, until Jill (Jess Walton) gets back to town. So until then, it’ll be interesting to see if Phyllis can adhere to the rules Billy has set for her. Plus, she provides much-needed lighthearted moments to break up the drama. On the miss side of things, Lily (Christel Khalil) deserves better than having to face someone who cries betrayal when he has betrayed her over and over again.

MISS: Victor attempting to fend off Cole. Victor (Eric Braeden) needs to stay out of Victoria’s (Amelia Heinlie) love life. She is a grown woman who can make her own choices. Victor doesn’t have to like Cole (J. Eddie Peck), but he does have to respect his daughter’s wishes. Having said all of that, Victor going off on the losers that Victoria dated was one of the most hilarious moments of the week.

READ THIS: Find out what happens next week on Y&R.

Days of Our Lives

MISS: Connie’s homemade bomb goes boom and then fizzles. Connie’s (Julie Dove) final plan was a bit like the homemade bomb she set to go off in the DiMera secret room. It fizzled. There was no structure, no finesse, and no stakes when everybody walked away mostly unscathed.

HIT: We are Gabi and EJ curious. What Connie’s plan did do was create a couple of different scenarios. First, there’s a chance Stefan (Brandon Barash) and Ava (Tamara Braun) could potentially fall for each other for real. While we’re unsure of their viability, we’re more curious about the second option: the dynamic between Gabi (Cherie Jimenez) and EJ (Daniel Feuerriegel). He carried her out of the secret room, and then when she woke up in the hospital, he was at her bedside. And Gabi showed real vulnerability as she and EJ held hands, and we may have fallen for it a little. We’ll see how things will develop between the former enemies.

HIT: Xander going after Brady with a bat. We love it when Xander (Paul Telfer) wallows around in the grays of the world. After all, he has this vicious past that we can’t forget. So, as sorry as we felt for Brady (Eric Martsolf), Xander going after him with a bat was one hundred percent in character for him.

MISS: Name a permanent DA, please. When Paulina (Jackée Harry) fired EJ — again — we were tired. This position is a revolving door of two, EJ and Melinda Trask (Tina Huang), and it has to stop. Let someone new take over, preferably someone who won’t commit any crimes while acting in Salem’s best interests.

READ THIS: Find out what happens next week on DAYS.

The Bold and the Beautiful

HIT: Steffy saves Hope for the Future. Confession time. We can be as much of a waffler as Liam (Scott Clifton) or Ridge (Thorsten Kaye) when it comes to taking sides between Hope (Annika Noelle) and Steffy (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood). But when it come to Hope for the Future, we’re happy that Steffy didn’t cut the cord on the fashion line. And we love even more that she had ulterior motives for doing it. If it keeps Hope away from Finn (Tanner Novlan), we’re good.

MISS: Ridge’s waffling behavior with Taylor and Brooke. It feels like when he’s alone with Taylor (Rebecca Budig), Ridge is in an actual couple with Taylor. And then, when he’s alone with Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang), they are soulmates. But when they’re all in the same room together, he can’t make a definitive statement about anything. We get Ridge not wanting to hurt either woman. He’s just so wishy-washy sometimes.

MISS: Taylor assumes Brooke is giving Hope bad advice. Taylor is a therapist, and she loves to lean into her therapist’s voice with Brooke even though they’re not sitting down for a proper, professional session. Brooke’s beyond imperfect, and most of the things that everybody says about her are true. Yet, one thing she’s been doing is calling her daughter out on her behavior towards Finn. Yet Taylor doesn’t hesitate to tell her how to deal with Hope. It’s a bit condescending and frustrating.

HIT: Taylor turns to Li for help. We now know Taylor is in heart failure. As a result, we love that she turned to Li (Naomi Matsuda) for medical help. With Luna (Lisa Yamada) in jail, we were hoping we’d be able to continue to see Li, especially since she’s softened recently. But she’ll undoubtedly have to keep this a secret, and it’s cool that she’ll be part of the action.

READ THIS: Find out what happens Monday on B&B.

General Hospital

HIT: Ric and Sonny finally interact. Rick Hearst and Maurice Benard were so good in the scenes where Sonny finally “reconnected” with his brother Ric at Ava’s (Maura West) gallery. What’s great here is that Ric never backs down from Sonny. Not when it comes to their daughters or their respective childhoods. Ric isn’t afraid of Sonny. And he will push his interests just as much as Sonny does. Each scene with them felt refreshing and elevated, which is why we’re happy Rick Hearst returned to GH.

MISS: Alexis lies her way through her statement to the police. Before we start on Alexis (Nancy Lee Grahn), how great was it to see Calvin (Kendrick Cross)? More of him, please. What we were stunned at was how Alexis completely lied her way through the night in question. Didn’t she just get her law license back? Is she about to lose it again? Because she’s in Pentonville awaiting trial now. And thankfully, Martin (Michael E. Knight) is on the case. The woman needs help. She needs to listen to someone other than herself.

HIT: Dante and Rocco. Dante takes on the world every day he leaves his and Sam’s place. It’s effortless for him to try and take care of everyone. Chaos goes on around him while he’s the solid center of all the madness. This week, we adored the scenes he shared with Rocco in the hospital halls and by Lulu’s bedside. Dominic Zamprogna and Finn Francis Carr have the father /son dynamic down. Kudos.

HIT: The Davis Siblings. Sam, Kristina, and Molly supported their mom during the trial, which was enjoyable. They acted out based on their sibling order. The eldest, Sam (temporarily Lindsay Hartley), made sure to be there for Kristina (Kate Mansi) like their mom would want. As she stepped into more of the maternal role, she expressed concern about Molly (Kristina Vaganos), too. Like Alexis, she knew Molly could stand on her own, so she didn’t pay as much attention to her. Kristina, whose chaos is wrapped up in their mom’s case, was dead focused on the judge’s ruling and screamed out in horror when he denied Alexis bail. Plus, when it came time to sit down in the courtroom, Molly took the independent, isolated position behind Kristina and Sam. It was a fun look at the siblings even as they dealt with such dire circumstances.

READ THIS: Find out what happens next week on GH.

Beyond the Gates

HIT: The first three roles cast are fire. We’re beyond happy the casting announcements for CBS’s upcoming new soap, Beyond the Gates, have started. And they kicked it off huge. Tamara Tunie as the matriarch and then Daphnee Duplaix and Karla Mosley — all three actresses have such great daytime credits to their names. Now, we can’t wait for future announcements, may they come quickly and fiercely.

READ THIS: Check out the actresses already cast on BTG.

What are your hits and misses for the week? Let us know in the comments!