Finally, the truth is out. And it's not a moment too soon because Brooke is about ready to strangle our one-night-standers for their boneheaded decision to follow their libidos. Brooke reminded Ridge of "how flexible" she can be, but it sounds to me like if she doesn't hear some good news soon, she just might snap Liam and Steffy's necks off for the way they hurt Hope.
Some women cheat and get the boot, like Zoe. Some women cheat and get the diamond ring, like Steffy. To be fair, Carter offered to let Zoe keep the ring -- just not on her finger. Steffy and Finn might get their happily ever after if Finn can ever get around to telling her about Vinny's confession, but when Zoe's engagement crashed down around her, she went looking to blame it on her sister.
Let's get two scoops deep into how the discovery of a rigged paternity test turns cheaters into winners and launches Thomas' lifelong friend firmly under the bus to complete Thomas' redemption storyline. Thomas appears to be Hope's paternity test hero, but would Thomas have busted Vinny if Liam had cheated with someone other than Steffy?
All's well that ends with Finn, not Liam, as the father of Steffy's baby, or could it be that Hope still won't be able to cope with the reasons that Liam turned to Steffy in the first place?
Bam! Boom! Kapow! Zonk!
Cue up the Batman sitcom theme music and fight-word bubbles! Finn's routine trip to the lab turned into an all-out brawl for the truth about the paternity of Steffy's baby. Vinny's confession rapidly devolved into a fisticuffs battle, and Vinny, the dastardly villain, escaped the lab, yelling that he wasn't going to jail for this. Punishing Vinny, however, was the last thing on the euphoric father-to-be's mind when Finn learned that he really was the father of Steffy's baby.
As giddy as everyone is to hear the news, will anyone even remember to call the police on Vinny? I've got a soft spot for Thomas' old pal and hope Vinny avoids a prison stint. I mean, come on. It's not like Vinny pretended to be the baby's mother, sold the baby to Hope, and silently watched Finn and Steffy's worlds fall apart for ten months, right?
I'll probably be a little bit miffed if Thomas, who fought hard for his own redemption, doesn't stand behind Vinny and plead for some leniency on his behalf. That is, if they can even find Vinny. Beep, beep! He was moving faster than the Roadrunner when he sprinted out of that lab. He could be halfway to the desert by now. If Vinny gets caught, maybe he has a spare kidney to donate to make things right again. Or he can just wear some short skirts and bikinis around Wyatt until Wyatt decides to plead for forgiveness on Vinny's behalf.
Thomas' redemption story arc comes full circle when he reveals the truth about a baby, even if it means he can't have Hope, when in the past, he'd hidden the truth about a baby in order to get Hope. While it may seem as if Thomas made a worthy sacrifice, some fans doubt that he would have really dug so hard for the truth had Liam cheated on Hope with a different woman. It's a good theory, but I believe Steffy's involvement in the redemption arc is significant, because Thomas also hurt her by keeping the Beth secret. Uncovering the truth about Steffty's paternity test not only redeems Thomas with Hope but with his sister, too.
B&B worked camera magic during the pandemic to give us one hootenanny of a fight scene. The makeup artist even bruised up Thomas and Vinny's cheeks a little. Hope asked Thomas what happened to his face, and he revealed that he'd been in a fight with Vinny. Thomas told her not to worry because Vinny looked worse.
Uh, Vinny might look worse, but not because of you, Thomas. I didn't see you throwing any punches. It looked like you got sucker-punched. As I recall, there were four hits. Vinny hitting Thomas, Thomas hitting the floor, Finn hitting Vinny, and Vinny hitting the floor. Let that be an example for all those out there who think Steffy stores Finn's knockers in her purse. He isn't as wimpy as you think he is when it comes to protecting his baby and baby mama.
Wait a minute. Did Finn forget why he was really at the cliff house?
Finn might not be a punk, but he sure is absent-minded. He had me rewinding and fast-forwarding and rewinding again to see if I missed him telling Steffy that she didn't need to leave town because her gut was right. It wasn't just pregnancy indigestion, after all, and he really was her baby daddy. But nope. Thirty minutes into the show, and he'd said everything but the most important thing: she didn't need to leave because Liam isn't the father.
You'd think an ER doctor can remain focused in a romance, but then again, Finn is a man in command of science, not emotions. He loses his common sense around Steffy. He can't think to formulate the words to tell her anything but his most basic feelings. Oh, Steffy, you're so pretty. Oh, Steffy, you're so smart. Oh, Steffy, you're so perfectly imperfect. Get to the point, Finn, before the baby comes.
Ridge thinks Finn is corny, too. Ridge even tried to give Finn some tips on how to compliment a woman without making her lose her lunch. Finn might be cheesy, but the engagement ring he offered Steffy makes up for it in spades.
Finn's family must be legit rich, and my, do they have taste in jewels! The ring belonged to his mother, and now I'm intrigued about the family that Steffy could be marrying into. I want to know why Mama Finn gave up her ring so many years ago, and I hope it isn't because she's deceased. We could use some mother-in-law drama back on this show.
The cliffhanger for me is whether Steffy will agree to marry Finn while still thinking the baby is Liam's. Brooke never lied when she said Steffy is stubborn. As long as Steffy thinks she's protecting Finn, I suspect she's gonna hold her ground about leaving for Paris.
I also agree with Brooke that it was a big deal for Steffy to try to do what was best for Finn by sparing him the burden of watching her raise two kids with Liam. Lord knows Liam can get on one's nerves, dropping by with pet rocks and spending hours at one's house, watching the baby sleep with just one kid. Can anyone imagine how he'd be with two?
While Steffy was looking out for Finn, was she doing what was best for Liam? She took Kelly out of the country before, but at least Liam knew about it and made plans to visit. This time, Steffy was really going to take off out of the blue with not one, but supposedly two, of Liam's kids without one word to him. It sounded as if she wouldn't be back for a long time. It might be wise for Liam to draw up a custody agreement because transporting his kid out of the country without his knowledge is a little bit over the line.
Are we supposed to continue overlooking the portrait in the room?
Storyline indicators signal that all is well with Finn and Steffy that ends with Finn as the father of Steffy's baby. But how will Steffy and Finn handle Liam and his relationship with Kelly going forward? I have a strong feeling that once Finn puts a ring on Steffy's finger, things are going to be very different for Liam and his portrait around there.
Liam can forget about walking into the cliff house whenever he pleases. No longer will he hold the key to Steffy's heart or home. At least that is what one would think, but then again, look at how marrying someone else's obsession ended for Thorne. Even though Thorne was Katie's husband, he still became the odd man out, even in his own home. Eventually, he left, and Batie reunited. Is Finn setting himself up to become a "Thorne" in the Steam relationship?
So far, the writing -- or rather the portrait -- is on the wall. Until Steffy takes it down, I can't invest in Sinn like blue chip stock. For Sinn to work, Finn and Steffy have to lay down the ground rules for Liam, and Steffy has to start treating Liam like a baby daddy, not a family member. We all know it's possible, because that's how Hope treats Thomas.
The path forward in the marriage is more complicated for Liam and Hope because Hope can't get beyond the underlying reasons that Liam turned to Steffy to begin with. Hope has been telling Liam for weeks that she is struggling with the fact that he didn't have faith in her or their commitment. Instead of coming to her for answers, he sought Steffy's comfort. Marriage is supposed to be for better or for worse, but in Hope's case, I feel that Liam betraying her with Steffy is the worst. I'm not sure they'll make it.
Here's what some of the members of our Soap Central message board have to say about it:
"Bottom line is Hope was right when she told Brooke that even if the baby wasn't Liam's he still turned straight to Steffy. He's a waffling flip-flopper who has used any excuse to turn from one of the women to the other. Both of them deserve better." -- AngieB5070
"Ridge asks Steffy, if everything was perfect, why did you end up with Liam that nite? She needs to be able to answer that question before beginning a life with Finn. Unfortunately, I think it's because her heart really belongs to Liam. Sure, she admires and respects and cares for Finn, but he's not her first choice. Liam is." -- lovely rita
Don't nobody bring me no bad news!
This week, it was hard to tell which swelled more, the attraction between Paris and Zende or the animosity between the Buckingham sisters. As Zoe, Kiara Barnes serves up the best oblivious bitch routine I've ever seen. Zoe's lack of self-awareness and skewed view of reality convinces me that Carter dodged a life sentence with a psychotic sociopath.
Zoe and the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wiz have two things in common -- a penchant for fugly bejeweled dresses and anger management issues. Paris learned the hard way that "don't nobody bring [Zoe] no bad news!" The Evillina-wannabe went on a rampage after Carter broke that rule and informed her that it was over. Zoe took it out on her little sister, but Paris doused Zoe with a bucket of cold truths that left her melting in her sock booties.
Zoe blames Paris for the dissolution of Zoe's relationship with Carter. You see, Paris didn't do enough, in Zoe's eyes, to save Zoe from herself. Somehow, Paris was supposed to stop Ridge from finding Zoe and Zende together at the mansion.
First of all, nobody can stop Ridge Forrester, who gets his stubbornness from his mama. Second, Paris called and texted Zoe. What else was Paris supposed to do? Mind-control Zoe to make Zoe look at her phone? Third, and most importantly, if Zoe hadn't been up to no good, it wouldn't have mattered if Ridge found her in a bikini with Zende.
If you ask me, Zoe is either psychotic or a pathological liar. Maybe she's even both. Telling alternate versions of reality is a way of life for Zoe. She told Carter that Xander had walked out on her when she'd been ready to spend her life with him. That's false. Xander left when Zoe refused to come clean to Hope about Beth's baby-napping. Zoe told Carter that Zende was a shiny distraction because she was afraid of marriage. Again, false. Zoe got the hots for Zende before she was even engaged to Carter. Zoe told Paris that Zoe had left London to get away from Paris. Another falsehood. Zoe left London to stalk Xander all the way to Los Angeles.
And didn't Zoe have a dead cat or something? Harry probably died just to get away from her.
We still don't know enough about Zoe, and I'll bet Carter knows nothing about how she stalked Emma, either. Zoe claims Paris always follows Zoe around, but isn't Zoe always the one seeking out Paris these days? It is a good thing that Carter thinks with his northern brain instead of his southern one, and even though he's heartbroken, I'm sure Zoe will soon show him why he should be relieved that he did not marry that woman.
Besides, I don't know what Carter saw in a brat like Zoe. She's angry all the time, and she's conniving. Hell, I even feel like she tricked me into giving her the woman of the year award on last year's best and worst column. My mama always says pretty on the outside doesn't equal pretty on the inside, and Zoe's insides are ugly.
Hopefully, Carter will steer clear of Zoe, but as her sister, Paris isn't so lucky. Zoe constantly seeks Paris out to use her as a punching bag and therapeutic ear. If I was Paris, I would have snatched the wig off Zoe's head by now.
Zoe once again ordered Paris to resign and leave L.A. Paris was like, "Child, please. I have a good job and a dreamy man. I'm not going any-damn-where." Paris tried to be so nice and understanding to Zoe, even offering to intercede for her with Carter. But when Zoe got on her nerves, Paris finally told Zoe to look in the mirror for someone to blame because Paris is not the one.
What Paris should have done was quip, "I can't possibly leave before the dress Zende designed for me hits the runway. Maybe he'll even ask me to model it, sis." I don't know where this is going with Zoe and Paris, but I can see it ending in a bodice-ripping runway showdown the likes of which we haven't seen since the debut of Brooke's Bedroom.
In a look ahead:
Next week, Liam, the man who is not the father, will be the last one to know it. When Hope finally shares the news with Liam, maybe she and Douglas will paint Liam a nice "You are not the Daddy" T-shirt to commemorate it. Liam may have overcome the impregnation hurdle, but Hope still has probing questions for him about why he did what he did with Steffy. Lope's future will continue to hang in the balance as March Madness preempts The Bold and the Beautiful.
There was no word about Vinny in the spoilers. I'm going to imagine that he's still running. Maybe he's gone undercover as Forrest Gump. Run, Forrest! Run!
Let us know what you think about the antics, the romance, the suspense, and the cattiness of the week. Until we scoop again, stay bold and beautiful, baby!
Chanel
What are your thoughts on The Bold and the Beautiful? What did you think of this week's Two Scoops? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
