The Highlights and Lowlights on BTG, B&B, DAYS, GH, and Y&R for the Week of June 16–20

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THE BEST

Bold and Beautiful: Nick Returns — for Brooke
Brooke was caught wearing lingerie in the office when her tenth husband, Nick Marone, walked in. “Some things never change,” he said admiringly. The exes caught up on Nick running Marone Industries and their son Jack, who’s apparently grown and working at Forrester International in Paris (who knew?). Their conversation turned to Nick’s half-brother Ridge and his reconciliation with Taylor — which seems to be why Nick returned to L.A.

“You deserve so much better,” Nick told Brooke, criticizing Ridge for not treating her right and not choosing her. Brooke welcomed Nick’s compliments and his heartfelt comment that being with her “feels like home,” until he kissed her and she pulled away. Cue flashbacks to their courtship and wedding, accompanied by Jack Wagner’s 2005 hit “Going Back Again,” the soundtrack of their romance 20 years ago.

Unsurprisingly, Nick’s comeback unsettled Ridge. Ever the insecure type, Taylor noticed right away, and Ridge tried to mask his jealousy by joking, “Everyone’s favorite sailor is back in town.”

Ahoy!

General Hospital: Port Charles Sets Its Sights on Drew
Every soap needs a villain or two, and General Hospital has crafted Congressman Drew Cain as a true antagonist. He’s destroyed Willow’s life — who is now a shadow of herself after losing custody of her kids — and she’s likely to turn against him hard when his lies come to light: bribing a receptionist in Germany, telling Wiley Michael doesn’t want him, cheating with Nina… the list goes on.

The rest of Port Charles is onto him. Nina and Portia teamed up to take him down (unsuccessfully), Tracy is out for blood, Curtis and Michael are working against him, and Trina is ready to fight. It’s shaping up to be a mystery, especially with Jason on the case.

“Michael may have taken those kids from their mother, but he’s not keeping them,” Drew spat at Jason, daring him to “Quote me.” Jason fired back with an uncharacteristic tirade, calling Drew poison to Wiley and Amelia and vowing no compromise until Willow realizes the truth. Drew countered by claiming he’s always there for Sonny’s family, then threw a low blow by questioning when Jason last checked on his own kids, Danny and Jake. Jason didn’t bite, instead leaning in to taunt that Drew will never get Michael’s children, ending with a sharp “Quote me.”

(And we’re quoting!)

Young and Restless: Dumas Is Cane and Lily’s Having None of It
Recasts are common in soaps to take characters in new directions. The latest Young and Restless shocker is Lily’s ex, Cane Ashby, who went from a 50-something Australian conman to a 40-ish American billionaire named Aristotle Dumas, played by Billy Flynn.

It’s a stretch, so it was clever to have Lily call him out on secretly becoming a billionaire while co-parenting their kids offscreen. “You have a double life?” she asked incredulously, berating him for lying every time they spoke — just like when he first came to town pretending to be Jill’s son. Dumas/Cane claimed there’s a reason for his six-year deception and promised all would be revealed after he met “the other guests.” Lily scoffed, “You know everyone!”

Cane has been manipulating the Genoa City elite for six months, luring them to Nice under false pretenses to meet his secret persona. Lily accused him of creating a fake identity to cover illegal deeds, but Cane assured her, “The name is a lie, but he is all me.”

Lily—and viewers—may need time to accept that.

Days of Our Lives: Honoring Steve
Salem needed a celebration after John’s farewell, and Steve’s retirement from Black Patch was the perfect occasion.

The episode opened with Steve dreaming of his late sister Adrienne, who joked about “back-from-the-dead miracles” before delivering a message: “John is healed. I’m watching out for him. What are sisters for?” Feeling comforted, Steve was persuaded by Kayla to go to dinner at The Bistro, where Stephanie, Alex, Jack, and Jennifer awaited with a surprise. Jada also arrived, representing her late father Marcus, Steve’s childhood best friend.

Stories of Steve’s life unfolded with flashbacks to the Patch and Kayla’s love story, Adrienne’s entrance, and Steve giving Jack a kidney. Jack toasted Steve as the “original anti-hero,” and Jennifer noted his 40 years in Salem—celebrating Stephen Nichols’s 40th anniversary on Days. The screen read “Happy 40th Anniversary Stephen Nichols.” Kayla concluded, “We are lucky.”

Congrats to Steve, Patch, and Stephen!

THE WORST

Beyond The Gates: Andre and Ashley? No Thanks.
There’s undeniable chemistry between Andre and Dani, so why is Beyond The Gates pushing a romance between Andre and Ashley? Andre already faces challenges with Dani—like being her sister’s nephew—so adding Ashley into the mix feels unnecessary. Every time Andre tries to go public with Dani, she shuts him down.

“Can we cut the BS for a second?” Andre recently said. “This is about Bill breaking your heart.” Dani is scared to be hurt again and worried someone “closer to his age” might take Andre away if she lets him in.

That “someone” is supposedly Ashley, but no amount of scripted longing between Andre and Ashley can convince fans that Dani isn’t the real endgame. Dani is in Andre’s heart just as much as she’s been in his bed.

Besides, why would Andre want Ashley? She annoyed her boyfriend Derek over silly things, got offended at an engagement ring, and then accused him of playing her. As Anita might say, “What’s love got to do with it?” With Ashley, nothing. With Dani, everything.

So let Andre start singing that tune.

General Hospital: Kristina Hires Cody to Seduce Ava
Are we seriously getting a storyline where Ava Jerome is fooled by Cody Bell? The fun-loving prankster is entertaining in the pool or trading barbs with Tracy, but a Casanova he is not.

Kristina paid Cody a “small fortune” to seduce Ava and sabotage her relationship with Ric. If the goal was to mess up Kristina’s life further, mission accomplished. Kristina already got away with trying to kill Ava (thanks to Alexis paying off Ava and Ric, and Liz and Lucky mostly staying silent out of pity for the Davis family), so this latest stunt shows she’s 1) ungrateful and 2) hasn’t learned her lesson. Using Cody also hurts Molly since he’s the first man her brokenhearted sister has shown interest in since TJ.

But the real problem? Ava Jerome, savvy and tough, would never fall for a silly gigolo’s tricks. The last man to fool Ava was a twisted genius serial killer, Ryan Chamberlain (posing as his twin Kevin Collins). Most of Ava’s lovers have been powerful men—doctors, mobsters, princes, lawyers. The idea of her falling for this ruse just doesn’t add up.

Here’s hoping the “plan” backfires, with Ava catching on and Kristina finally facing consequences for the psychotic break that caused her to sabotage Ric’s car.

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