Three Cheers For These Three Young and the Restless Divas

Give a round of applause — give three! — to Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki Newman), Michelle Stafford (Phyllis Summers), and Eileen Davidson (Ashley Abbott) on The Young and the Restless. These Daytime Emmy-winning and nominated vets have been handed one of the worst stories with some of the most ear-shredding dialogue in soap opera history…and they’ve, nevertheless, committed to giving it their all.

Young and the Restless: Murky Motivation

We get that Nikki, Phyllis, and Ashley all have good reason to be furious with Diane Jenkins (Susan Walters). But should it really be dominating their every waking moment? They’ve got children, they’ve got jobs, they’ve got partners, and they have self-respect. Or, at least, they used to. They appear to be ready and willing to give it all up, if it means Diane Jenkins is put in her place.

Y&R: Say What?

And, in order to do that, they’ve been directed to deliver all of their lines — taking turns who hates Diane more and who can summon up more synonyms for her awfulness — at shrieking decibels that put harpies to shame.

These are classy, refined women. Or, at least they used to be. At least, they tried to be. That’s all out the window now. Bringing down Diane means having no shame…and making bargains with the Devil. Nikki and Ashley once fought over Victor Newman (Eric Braeden).

Nikki hates what Phyllis has done to her son, Nicholas Newman (Joshua Morrow). They usually hate to be in the same room together, much less spending hours upon hours in each other’s company, having to listen to each other’s ideas…and agree that they might be right.

Young and the Restless: Team Players

We cheer these actresses’ dedication. We cheer their professionalism and their loyalty to Y&R. But we also beg those in charge to stop torturing them — and us — like this. Write our three divas a story worthy of their talents. Stop making them look like deranged shrews. It’s the least you owe them — and us.

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

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