Soap writers sometimes get lost in their own creations. They will follow one storyline down the wormhole and lose sight of some of the players in the vast canvas on which they are working. Talented thespians are placed on the back burner twiddling their thumbs, aching for a juicy story that their character can step into the spotlight for. Here are a few characters who are most in the need of a Young and the Restless storyline in 2022.
Young and the Restless: The Winters Family
One of William J. Bell’s finest accomplishments as the series creator of The Young and the Restless was the addition of two core African American families to the Genoa City canvas. The Barber family and the Winters family were introduced in 1990 and 1991, respectively. Fans loved the fiery Drucilla Barber (Victoria Rowell) and were thrilled when she met and married the ambitious business executive, Neil Winters (Kristoff St. John), marking the beginning of the Winters family story. But with the loss of Rowell’s Drucilla who fell from a cliff in 2007, series creator Bill Bell in 2005, and Kristoff St. John in 2019 forcing the loss of his tentpole character Neil, the Winters family seemed to have lost their mojo. In the current climate, there is no better time to resurrect the clan, have them step out of the shadows of other characters, and invest in the next generation.
Jack Abbott
The complicated and mercurial character of Jack Abbott has riveted The Young and the Restless fans since arriving on the small screen in 1980. While both actors playing the character, Terry Lester and Peter Bergman, managed to put their own signature on Smilin’ Jack, the junior Abbott held the audience spellbound with his evolution from spoiled rich playboy to business tycoon and father. Sadly, he’s been relegated to Zoom calls, searching for Abby, and counseling anyone who will listen. We will take a love story, mystery, boardroom war, another Victor/Jack feud…anything. Just give him a real story! In fact, throw in sisters Ashley Abbott (Eileen Davidson) and Traci Abbott (Beth Maitland) and we would really be happy.
Traci Abbott
Speaking of Traci, we would like to see more of Beth Maitland. From the moment she returned to Genoa City from boarding school, Traci’s journey was every woman’s journey. Whether she was struggling with her weight, addicted to pills, jealous of her rival Lauren Fenmore (Tracey Bregman), grieving the loss of her ex-husband, daughter, and father, or off somewhere writing books, Traci was and is the character we most see ourselves in. Merely popping up around the holidays is a disservice to us and the character. The Young and the Restless writers need nothing more than to dig deep within themselves for a storyline worthy for Traci that we connect with again.
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The Baldwins
In the brilliant hands of Christian Le Blanc, the evolution of the character of Michael Baldwin has been extraordinary, and we, the audience, couldn’t be more grateful. Michael’s appearance in Genoa City back in 1991 was a rocky one with the sexual harassment/stalking of Christine Williams (Lauralee Bell), a deserved prison sentence, to his kidney donation to Danny Romalotti (Michael Damian) and marriage to Lauren, the character has enthralled us. When The Young and the Restless introduced his family, bad-boy half-brother Kevin Fisher (Greg Rikaart) and mom — schemer Gloria Fisher (Judith Chapman), we were all in. The one thing we know for sure is Genoa City is much more colorful and interesting with the Baldwins/Fishers in it.
The Young and the Restless Honorable Mentions:
When something is broken, fix it. And there seems to be a lot broken at The Young and the Restless. There is a need to craft umbrella-type stories that involve most of the canvas and utilize a majority of the cast. What about a high-profile case involving several characters, which also pits lawyers Christine and Michael against each other, while Paul Williams (Doug Davidson), Rey Rosales (Jordi Vilasuso), Chance Chancellor (Conner Floyd), Kevin Fisher (Greg Rikaart), and others are drawn into it to try to get to the truth? Would that be too much to ask?
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.
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