A Critic’s Review of The Young and the Restless: The Glory Of Gloria

When it comes to Young and the Restless, 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 Y&R’s week that was.

The Young and the Restless: A Critic’s Week In Review

What was there to like about last week’s The Young and the Restless? Well, the twelve or so minutes that Judith Chapman was on my screen were absolutely Gloria-ous, and what I truly appreciated was the subtle dig that the writer of the episode took at us viewers.

We do take Gloria for granted. We do look at Gloria as a big joke. A most welcome joke to be sure, but a joke nonetheless. How nice it was to be reminded that Gloria is someone who has been through it. She’s survived men walking out on her, men who abused and used her, she’s gone for years at a time with barely two nickels to rub together, and yet she’s still here, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to greet the day’s challenges. If only we could all be a Gloria.

I’m also happy to report that I might soon owe Josh Griffith, The Young and the Restless head writer, an apology – and if I do, you’ll find it this column. It does seem like we’re in for a ‘Victoria Newman Was Scamming Ashland All Along’ plot point, and if that proves true, then I will, metaphorically, eat my words which condemned Griffith for not understanding the character of Victoria (Amelia Heinle). Lulling Ashland (Robert Newman) into a false sense of security so that she can swipe the remaining bribe that he accepted from her family out from under him is exactly the kind of thing that old-school Victoria would do.

Also, can I just admit to you all how I howled every time the camera would cut to a shot of Phyllis Summers (Michelle Stafford) in her “disguise”? If the point was to be inconspicuous, big fail. If the point was to entertain, well done Y&R! I swear that there were times that Stafford was literally vamping for the camera, especially in those scenes where she was eavesdropping on Diane Jenkins (Susan Walters) and Michael Baldwin (Christian Le Blanc). Surely you saw her, standing there one hand on hip the other placed just so on the hat…

Further Y&R Musings

* First and foremost, massive kudos to trailblazer Mishael Morgan! Second, I hope her momentous win will translate into some actual story. Maybe, we could actually see Amanda Sinclair’s visit with her mother. Maybe, we could actually watch the two women reckon with the past, their present, and their very shaky future. Just a thought or two.

* Yay, more scenes of Noah Newman (Rory Gibson) and Allie Nguyen (Kelsey Wang), I believe said no one, ever. Are there fans of this bourgeoning couple out there? If you exist, write me in the comments below and tell me why. Me? I still holding out hope that the Powers That Be at The Young and the Restless get Morgan Obenreder back as Crystal Porter and pair her opposite Gibson. Now there was chemistry.

The Young and the Restless (YR) airs weekdays on CBS. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Genoa City, check out all the latest that’s been posted on Y&R spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.