As we waved bye-bye to 2020 and embraced 2021 with hope for a happier year of interacting with our loved ones, another wedding took place before the year was out, ready to be the symbol for more joyous times ahead. In other words, Sharon and Rey got married. Ugh. It was almost too much jubilation and joy, since Abby and Chance had just exchanged their vows a couple of weeks ago. I was practically missing the days of the once-popular non-weddings that soaps had taken pride in doling out in years past. So, Sharon married the guy who considered himself her rock, and the king and his queen could then live happily ever after. The End. Yeah, it was "The End" all right -- the end of all my hopes that Sharon could find a dream man who wasn't so controlling. Oh, well.
So, Sharon and Rey can settle down to their humdrum days of wedded bliss, since the wedding ceremony will probably be the most exciting moment of their dull lives together, especially if they truly are happy. All soap fans know that happily married couples don't normally get too much of a storyline. Just look at Lauren and Michael. We see them pop in from time to time, but it's usually to aid in another character's story. At least, Abby and Chance are still somewhat intriguing, since Abby so desperately wants to get pregnant, and she seems so distraught each time she learns it hasn't happened. She even got teary-eyed just by Arturo mentioning his own son. Abby should want to spend some alone time with Chance because that will become nonexistent once they have kids.
But what do Sharon and Rey have to look forward to except his numerous stops at Crimson Lights to make sure there are no criminals, i.e. Adam, lurking around his new bride? You know, because he can't trust Sharon to be around Adam for two seconds, even if it is for a completely innocent reason. Oh, there are obviously trust issues already, which may be the only saving grace for this couple. Even though their wedding brought Rey's mother and brother back, the verdict is still out on whether that was a good or bad thing. At one time, it appeared that Celeste might be a good match for Jack, who desperately needs a woman in his life, especially with his mother gone. But, alas, Celeste only did a couple of video chats to wish Rey and Sharon well, so Jack will still need to look elsewhere.
At one point, I had considered that maybe Chance was the target of the shooting and that Arturo had been the shooter out of his love for Abby, but unfortunately, that storyline ended with a dull thud in having Alyssa as the actual culprit who had genuinely been aiming at Adam. I mean, who really cared? Wouldn't it have been more shocking to have Arturo or even Rey (hey, I keep trying) be the shooter? Now, that would have had the viewers talking. But, no, Arturo was happy as a lark with Mia and his son, so he carried no grudge against Chance, and he even wanted to make amends with Rey. So, everything was all hunky-dory between the Rosales men, and, in fact, Arturo even got a license so he could officiate his brother's ceremony. How special.
Phyllis bowed out of attending this wedding because she didn't want to upset the bride. Again -- since that was the same reason she didn't go to Abby's. Hey, if that's going to be the case, Phyllis will never have to go to another wedding again. She doesn't seem to be too popular with the ladies in Genoa City. Adam also claimed that he would be staying far, far away from the grand affair, but, come on, we all knew that would never happen. And, sure enough, just as they were ready to begin the ceremony, Adam brought his "dark spirit in the night" to the wedding and watched his one-time love marry another man.
Adam claimed to Phyllis that he had seen what he needed to see to move on, but while Adam watched his past love start her new life, his current love fell to her knees from the pain in her head at home. Adam found her lying unconscious on the floor, and after he called for help, a gorgeous EMT rushed to her rescue. Hey, it was Melissa Claire Egan's real-life husband, Matt Katrosar, again -- only this time, we got to see his face. The paramedics then carried Chelsea off on a stretcher to the hospital. The writers should consider creating a love triangle consisting of Adam, Chelsea, and the good-looking paramedic. If she really was only Adam's consolation prize, as Phyllis claimed, Chelsea might need to heal both her head and her heart, and this hot dude could be her perfect prescription.
Faith was acting strange; however, Sharon was too distracted to notice. The girl was surrounded by a family who loved her so much, yet she had never felt more alone. She believed she hadn't a friend in the world, because the mean kids constantly picked on her through social media, and Jordan took advantage of that by pretending to be her friend. Jordan was only using Faith to get what she wanted and to ruin the young teen's life. Jordan may even be instigating the mean kids so that Faith will look like a fool in the end. Faith's youth blinded her from seeing that a true friend would never expect her to do something that made her feel totally uncomfortable. But it appeared Faith would have to learn the hard way, since, once she stole booze from her house, she was back in Jordan's good graces.
Tessa was back to perform the song for the wedding. It's weird that the songbird had trouble writing romantic lyrics on her own for a ballad in honor of her lover's mother, who had finally accepted her as part of the family. Shoot, all Tessa had to do was to take another peek at Mariah's journal. Tessa's best songs and biggest hits were unintentionally written by Mariah, anyway. Mariah could have written lines in her journal that she believed would make a good song and then accidentally-on-purpose left it out, so Tessa could snoop into it. But suddenly, Tessa had to dash off before the ceremony even started, so she left a recording of her song. It was probably just as well she left -- Tessa had probably forgotten what love was all about, since she was never around, anyway.
Before the wedding, Chelsea and Adam still vowed to leave town forever immediately after her surgery, and Billy was ready to help Adam pack his bags. Adam had a point, though. Billy has been consumed with his hatred of Adam for years, which has indirectly led him to being self-destructive. As much as Billy desired to get rid of the monster, Adam's presence had fueled Billy into making his bad choices, which had, in a way, controlled Billy's life. So, in a sense, both Adam and Billy's own bad acts were Billy's monsters. While he stated that "even in the best horror films, the monster can only cheat death so many times," Billy might not be quite so ready for Adam to depart Genoa City, much less this earth, since that would make his life rather dull.
Thankfully, Lily was around to help keep Billy grounded, and he even claimed after his ordeal that he only wanted to focus on the heroes, not the villains, in his next article. I loved the idea of having his lovely lady be front and center of his piece, although she rejected the idea right off the bat. Their fans would appreciate reading about Lily's brave efforts as she helped her man to regain his freedom. What a romantic story! But Lily approved of the scoop being mainly about Chance, so Billy played along in order to gain her approval to run with it. But judging by the twinkle in his eye, Billy had obviously not given up on his original version of having Lily also be a true hero. Sweet!
Nick seemed to have hit the nail on the head and also to have hit a nerve when he told Victoria that Billy had actually been good for her because, since their split, Victoria no longer knew how to laugh or how to feel empathy for another. Nick declared that Victoria had become the worst version of Victor Newman, but, hey, someone had to take on the role, since Victor has become somewhat of a pussycat these days. Victoria just needs someone like Jack that she can constantly defeat to complete the transformation, and Phyllis ain't it. Instead of constantly singing the praises of Phyllis to everyone he sees, Nick should either maintain a blind eye to his lady's constant schemes or face reality and realize that she was plotting behind his back again, which she was.
Phyllis was not above using anyone who could help her accomplish her goals, and her current goal was to destroy Nick's sister. Even though she denied it to Nick, Phyllis was out to get Victoria, and she was ready to use Kevin to do just that. However, Kevin didn't appear too anxious to play her game. I was so relieved to hear Kevin whisper, "Let's get out of here," to Chloe in Crimson Lights, which indicated that he knew Phyllis was up to something -- and if she could use Kevin's mother to get that something, so be it. While Kevin and Gloria butt heads quite often, he still loves his mother and wouldn't want anyone to hurt her. Kevin had better stick with Michael to help Gloria get out of whatever jam she's in, especially since it apparently involves the Newmans.
Amanda was just like Hilary when she was being so judgmental about her biological mother, Naya, without really knowing all the facts. However, Devon was right in saying that Hilary would have done everything in her power to get the scoop regarding the truth of Naya's past. After all, Hilary had been a reporter. With all the politics and family money, Naya had her reasons for giving up her twins, even if she had kept a daughter by her husband afterwards. Amanda just needed to find out why, so she could move on from wondering and worrying about something she couldn't change, and accept and maybe even love her mother and sister just as they were. Oh, well, at least moping over her family gave Amanda an excuse to spend time with Devon on New Year's Eve.
We got more of Sally's backstory in one day on Y&R than we did the entire time she was on The Bold and the Beautiful. Yes, she and her sister, Coco, had lived with her grandmother, who had cherished them. However, I wasn't aware that her "irresponsible" father and mother had done so much traveling that they never were able to call one place home, which helped Sally learn the importance of family. I doubt that Sally had intentionally meant for Jack to overhear her, but I'm glad he did. While it's true that Sally's very ambitious, she's always had a big heart. If it weren't for the age difference, Sally could make a terrific match with Jack, especially since he tends to favor spitfire redheads. And Ashley was dating the college guy not all that long ago, so anything's possible.
Wow, Sharon really goes all out for the decorations at Christmas. I don't think there was one spot in her house that didn't have that Christmasy touch.
While Nick graciously accepted being Rey's best man at the wedding, he really has been Sharon's "phenomenally giving" "best man" through most of her life as a friend. And wouldn't Nick's new, cool Christmas socks from Christian look perfect with his tuxedo for the ceremony?
Nate looked at the bright side of not being able to perform surgery by reflecting on what he could do rather than what he couldn't do. And Elena hoped to eventually live on her own, so she could learn to be more independent. Oh, those two are growing up before my very own eyes. I'm so proud of them!
Abby decided for Chance that their New Year's resolutions would be to never fight. Since people argue most about money, sex, and kids, maybe they should skip the idea of having kids, after all, to lower the odds of accomplishing this daunting task. Oh, never mind. It's impossible for a newly married couple to never argue as they go through the trials and tribulations of learning more about each other's bad habits and quirks. Those odds can't be beaten.
Wasn't it great to see Connor again, even if it was only through a video call? As alarming as he can be, the little dickens can really stir things up by being so much like his father -- and his grandfather. It's comforting to know that Connor will be around to uphold and carry out the Newman legacy of lying, scheming, and manipulating once Victor and Adam start to slow down. Yes, the puppet master has taught his students well.
The episode from January 2, 2020, showcased the Abbotts and the Newmans celebrating New Year's Eve as everyone hoped for a joyous and successful 2020. Little did anyone know at the time just how scary and traumatizing 2020 would be, with a terrifying villain, even more diabolical than Adam, lurking unseen just around the corner. We can only hope that 2021 will be much better than 2020 was. Happy New Year, everyone!
Until next time, please stay tuned. And please take care and stay safe!
Teddi
What are your thoughts on The Young and the Restless? 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.
