The Young and the Restless Review: School a Newbie, Part 1

Dear Y&R fans, welcome to our new feature, The Young and the Restless Review–with a little twist. As part of a new series, SoapHub cordially invites you to teach a new YR fan why your soap has been number one since the 1988-89 television season.

Fans have lost a lot of soaps over the years, because soaps have lost fans. If daytime dramas are to survive, they must attract new audience members. We are donating The Young the the Restless viewer to your fandom’s laboratory, to learn how fans are made. Please school this newbie on why your soap is number one.

I started watching Y&R on February 1st of this year. I don’t love it (yet), but will be commenting on the show through a new fan’s eyes. That’s my job. Here is yours: Tell me off. Correct my errors. Fill me in on back story. Make me love your show!

Without further adieu, here is The Young and the Restless review from a newbie. Last week, Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott) overheard Jack (Peter Bergman) tell Neil (Kristoff St. John) that Victor (Eric Braeden) brought Jack’s doppelgänger, Marco, to Genoa City. Do you think Nikki and Adam (Justin Hartley) will succeed in taking Victor down a peg? Do you want them to?

Phyllis (Gina Tognoni) was devastated people now know she never caught on to Marco. Y&R offered some great scenes between Bergman and Tognoni, by the way. I love it when accomplished soap actors get to bring it. The pain between these two might have been my favorite scene of the week. What about you?

While Y&R is new to me, I’m a lifelong soap fan (Days and GH), so I’m familiar with this type of story. Was the doppelgänger story a departure for this grounded show? How did it go over with the fandom? In telling this story, did Y&R do anything to distinguish itself from more fantastical daytime dramas?

Moving on, why did Adam let Victor hold Christian’s paternity over his head? I know Nick (Joshua Morrow) and Adam are half-brothers. Since Chelsea (Melissa Claire Egan) knew Adam was possibly father and everyone thinks Christian died, why was this such powerful leverage? Why did Adam even switch the paternity results in the first place? What am I missing?

I was interested in Dylan’s (Steve Burton) reaction to seeing Sharon (Sharon Case) and Nick together. Do you think that when the truth about Sully comes out, Nick and Sharon may end up back together? Do you want them to?

Finally, do you even care about the Pass Key story? I’m tempted to fast-forward through it. However, I am kind of digging the chemistry between Summer (Hunter King) and Luca (Miles Gaston Villanueva). Can she reform him, or should Summer run the other way?

Please tell me what you think on these storylines and more. What should every new Y&R fan know? Tune in next week for The Young and the Restless Review: School a Newbie, Part 2.

Y&R airs weekdays on CBS. Share your thoughts, leave a comment in the section below. Additionally, for more The Young and the Restless spoilers updates, recaps, and news, like Soap Hub’s Facebook fan page and join the conversation about all your favorite soaps! Follow writer Cindy McLennan on Twitter, too.