A Critic’s Review Of The Young and the Restless: Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad

When it comes to The 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

Agnes Nixon once proffered that good soap opera leaves an audience in stiches, in tears, and waiting on tenterhooks. This week, The Young and the Restless had me laughing out loud and watering about the eyes — two out of three ain’t bad.

Let’s begin with the emotion wringing tale that is Chelsea Lawson’s breakdown. Kudos aplenty to Melissa Claire Egan and Jason Thompson for their deft handling of this all-to-important storyline.

Is this a perfect plot? Hardly. I bristled when Billy Abbott saw fit to phone Sharon Rosales (Sharon Case) of all people to lend a hand, and it bothered me that it wasn’t for her own sake or even for the sake of her children that Chelsea agreed to seek professional help but for the memory of the man she poisoned and nearly killed and then grew obsessed with, but as far as being an exploration into a broken psyche and the helplessness felt by outsiders looking in, I have to give serious props to Y&R.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t spotlight the plethora of humor-tinged moments — be they intentional or otherwise. There was:

* Nicholas Newman (Joshua Morrow) flippantly instructing Adam Newman (Mark Grossman), “Man, shut up,” out the side of his mouth.

* Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott) literally clutching a string of pearls when it was suggested that Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman) may be inclined to give Diane Jenkins (Susan Walters) the benefit of the doubt.

* Summer Newman Abbott’s (Allison Lanier) and Kyle Abbott’s (Michael Mealor) actually pouting their lips upon being surprised of Diane’s and Phyllis Summers’s (Michelle Stafford) subterfuge.

But the funniest of the lot had to either be: Billy telling Chelsea, “I believe anything is forgivable,” — paging Adam! — or Phyllis declaring, without a hint of hypocrisy about her, “I never did anything as bad as Diane.” Methinks that Phyllis has forgotten her attempt to literally squash Christine “Cricket” Blair Williams (Lauralee Bell) like she was a bug; and the jury’s still out on whether or not she outright murdered Sasha and got away with it.

Further Y&R Musings

* Funny how The Young and the Restless chooses to remember Neil Winters (Kristoff St. John) and Victoria as merely “friends” when, at one time, they were planning on marrying and raising a child together. Sure, it was no great love match — though it certainly was leaning that way — but Neil was there for Victoria at one of her lowest ebbs so you’d think that would be something that would be addressed.

* Is it just me, or is the normally grating Devon Hamilton (Bryton James) downright charming opposite Abby Chancellor (Melissa Ordway)? If it takes breaking up ‘Chabby’ — or whatever ridiculous portmantua the fans have conjured up — to keep Devon this appealing, then I’m all for it.

* Why would Billy have Adam’s contact info programmed into his phone?

The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS. For an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.

The best place for true soap fans to be is our Facebook groups. Have you joined? If you love soap spoilers, gossip, and fans as dedicated as yourself, check out Days of our Lives Fans, General Hospital Exclusive, The Young and the Restless Fans, and The Bold and the Beautiful Fans.