The Young and the Restless Recap: Through The Years With Katherine

The Young and the Restless recap for April 27-May 1, 2020, features a dip into the soap’s archive and a celebration of all things Katherine Chancellor.

The Young and the Restless Recap Highlights

If there’s one thing that you can say about Katherine Chancellor (Jeanne Cooper), it’s that she’s a lady who lived a long, full life. It isn’t every woman who can claim that she’d taken five husbands, battled her doppelganger, received life-affirming advice from a ghost, and engaged in a food fight with a woman who vacillated between mortal enemy, and friend, daughter, and companion.

But Katherine Chancellor isn’t every woman. Not only did she do all the above, but she did oh-so-much more. She loved and she lost – and it seemed she did far more of the latter than the former.

Yet, through it all, she remained feisty and fiery. Maybe it was those attributes that saw her through the captivity she endured while that once flame-haired waitress slowly but surely took over her life – and proceeded to decimate it bit by bit.

But even after she was freed, poor Katherine still had decades of heartache left to face. First, she lost her beloved husband, Rex Sterling (Quinn Redeker), thanks to her wide-eyed, easily-conned maid, Esther Valentine (Kate Linder).

Katherine And Jill: Legendary Rivalry

And then there was continued interference from the always-infuriating Jill (Jess Walton). She wasn’t content with wrestling away half the Chancellor estate from Katherine. Oh no, she had to insist on renovating the residence – and stirring up past memories best left buried.

That adherence to “out with the old and in with the new” drove Katherine to drink for the first time in 20 years and an attempted intervention staged by her living loved ones wasn’t enough to persuade her to stop.

Enter the ghost and the…astral projection? We’re not sure was Phillip III (Thom Bierdz) was, but he most certainly wasn’t as dead as Rex was. Anyway, since the “dead” are far more persuasive, Katherine gave up the booze and dried out.

Which was just as well considering the ole gal still had a lot of life left in her. Heck, she even managed to find the time to indulge in some juvenile antics (like the above-mentioned food fight) and a late in life romance (we miss you, Murphy).

Y&R Musings

Given the fact that his portrayer passed away way back in 2015, don’t you think it’s time that this show addressed the passing of Brock Reynolds, Katherine’s son? We know he wasn’t a true storyline-dominating character but think of the possibilities such an event could bring.

We could welcome back Lori Brooks (Jaime Lynn Bauer) and Julia Newman (Meg Bennett) – two women that Brock involved himself with – and Mackenzie Browning (last played by Kelly Kruger), his daughter.

And it could even open up future storylines for Jill – you know, the man’s ex-wife and his presumed sister (don’t worry, they never slept together and it’s not as icky as it sounds). Perhaps she could take up one of his many charitable causes.

That would certainly help explain her frequent absences, which at this point have been excused with conferences, business trips, and the occasional spa weekend. The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS. Check your local listings for airtimes.