A Critic’s Review of Young and the Restless: Setting The Record Straight

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

Since it doesn’t seem to be clear, in spite of the title and my frequent use of, “I,” please allow me to use this first paragraph to state categorically that which you are about to read and have been reading since these Critic’s columns first starting appearing some time ago is but my humble opinion about the goings on on The Young and the Restless.

I’m not speaking on behalf on Y&R fans around the world or even Y&R fans who flock to this site, and I am not scouring through the polls conducted on this wonderful site to see if my opinions align with the majority. I am merely offering up my own personal take in the hopes that it might entertain you, perhaps change your opinion on a particular matter, or, at the very least, spark some tantalizing discussion.

So, when I write that the Diane Jenkins (Susan Walters) storyline is the best thing that’s happening on The Young and the Restless, that’s what I think. You can agree, disagree, or straddle the fence and reserve judgment for a later date.

Now, with that hopefully cleared up, let’s move on.

What I’m desperate to find out is why there are so many stupid characters on this soap. And yes, that might come off sounding a little harsh, but bear with me while I present some particularly egregious examples.

We’ve got Victoria Newman Locke (Amelia Heinle) screeching at the top of her lungs, “Why doesn’t anybody in this family trust me,” when she knows good and darn well that they don’t trust her because she let the fox into the hen house merely to stick it to them.

We’ve got Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott) and co. wondering, “Can we really trust Adam,” when Adam Newman (Mark Grossman) has done nothing in the past several years but prove just how trustworthy he truly is. He saved Nicholas Newman (Joshua Morrow) and Faith Newman’s (Reylynn Caster) lives; he saved Victoria’s wedding day; he’s letting himself be used and abused by Victoria; what more do this ungratefuls want?

Then there’s Ashley Abbott (Eileen Davidson) telling Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman) to keep Kyle Abbott (Michael Mealor) out of the loop where Diane was concerned. Huh?!

And what can be said about Rey Rosales (Jordi Vilasuso)? Not only is he looking forward to spending quality time with the woman who nearly killed him, but it looks like he’ll be keeping that from Sharon Rosales (Sharon Case) and all because…because she makes nice with her former husband and the father of her children?

I also began to profusely worry about Allie Nguyen (Kelsey Wang) when she was all, “But Jack, maybe Diane has changed. Maybe she does deserve that 100th chance.” I thought, surely The Young and the Restless hasn’t conjured up this legacy character and gone the extra mile of not giving her a brain. Luckily, she seems to have a good head on her shoulders given that she denied Diane her request for a meet up.

Further Y&R Musings

* A special shout out and a plethora of kudos to actress Kate Linder who celebrated 40 years as Y&R’s Esther Valentine on April 16!

* Really, The Young and the Restless? Isn’t this Billy “Avenging Podcaster” Abbott (Jason Thompson) storyline just a retread of the Phyllis “Dirty Laundry Airing Blog” storyline? And just FYI, it’s Lollipop GUILD not Lollipop Gang.

* Since Noah Newman (Rory Gibson) is practically planning the wedding single handedly, why doesn’t he just go ahead and marry Tessa Porter (Cait Fairbanks) while he’s at it. This is clearly his storyline and Terriah fans be damned.

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.