Y&R Report (May 17, 2025): The Latest on The Young and the Restless

Hey Y&R fans, every second Saturday TV Banter discusses the latest happenings and provides commentary on your favourite daytime drama. Note to U.S. readers - SPOILER ALERT: Here in Canada, I watch the show on Global TV, which is one episode ahead of CBS.  I will inevitably refer to incidents you haven't seen yet.  Read at your own risk.  If you are the curious type, though, you may prefer to discover some things in advance.

Hi fans

Talk about foolish decisions!  Chelsea and Sally left jobs they loved in the fashion industry.  Why?  They both chose to support boyfriends who can't be trusted.  Chelsea was so thoughtless that she failed to inform Chloe, her best friend and colleague, about her decision, leaving poor Chloe in the dark.  Both women will end up regretting what they have done.  Adam will always give in to daddy Victor's demands and Billy will never stop trying to get revenge on the Newman family.

It's great for a soap to have mysteries and keep the fans guessing.  However, Y&R takes far too long to reveal the answers.  The Aristotle Dumas mystery is a case in point.  The identity of AD will eventually be revealed, but will we still care by then?  Also, the storyline about Cole's mystery illness has been dragging out for too long.  Y&R leaves things on the back burner for far too long.

Nevertheless, I do have one theory about the identity of the enigmatic Dumas,  I may be completely wrong, but here it goes. It is assumed that the business mogul is a man, but what if Dumas is not a man at all?  What if Dumas is a powerful businesswoman?  What if Dumas is Jill?  Why else would Dumas be so interested in Billy Abbott?  Could Jill be trying to repair her damaged relationship with her son?

How naive can a character on a soap be?  Claire Newman takes the cake in that category,  Does she actually believe that she can sway Victor?  Does she really think that her grandfather will  change his mind about her and Kyle when he sees how good they are together, how they support each other, how happy they are?  Claire should know how Victor operates by now.  He'll never support her relationship with Kyle.  As Victor himself would say, "It ain't gonna happen!"  Why does it matter so much to Claire anyway? 

Claire's plan to hold a party in the hope of winning Victor's approval of her relationship with Kyle has no chance of succeeding.  I can say with the utmost confidence that Kyle and Claire are toast.  Claire was uneasy when Kyle told her about his plan to get closer to Audra in order to get more information about Audra's new company, Vibrante.  He says he needs to uncover her plans for a new product to compete with Jabot.  Claire's not so naive that she doesn't realize the danger of that.  She is suspicious because she knows that Audra spells nothing but trouble for Kyle.  It looks like Kyle will be falling right into Victor's trap.

Phyllis tried to form an alliance with Victor in order to take down Billy Boy.  She is fortunate that the Black Knight turned her down because he knew she was bluffing.  She doesn't really have any valuable information on Dumas. Victor is toxic.  He only does what's convenient for him.  Victor would have thrown Phyllis under the bus.  He'll do the same with others who have made deals with him such as Audra and Michael.   

Eric Braedem is a master a playing the tyrannical Victor.  He seems to relish playing his character.  I really enjoyed Victor's scenes with Phyllis when he thought she was playing him.  Phyllis accused Victor of being arrogant and behaving as if he was in control of everything.  Victor replied, "That's because I am in control."

CAST NEWS

Mishael Morgan has returned as Amanda Sinclair

It's great to see Mischael Morgan back in Genoa City as attorney Amanda Sinclair.  So, why has Amanda returned to town?  According to Mishael, her character is going to "make waves while she's there."  Mishael said that "Amanda is coming back to represent somebody very mysterious, definitely high-powered."  We now know that that somebody is Aristotle Dumas.  Amanda refuses to disclose much about Dumas except that his focus is on Chancellor Industries, which is owned by Victor Newman.  Nikki is the CEO.  That means that Dumas is targeting the Newmans.

Amanda is definitely hiding something.  She has been Jill's counsel.  However, she informed Billy and Sally that she parted ways amicably with Jill and is now representing Dumas.  What if she never really ended her association with Jill?  What if Jill is Dumas?  Amanda uses the male pronoun when referring to Dumas, but that may just be a cover.

Given Amanda's past with Devon, it will be interesting to see what will happen when she runs into Abby.  There's been bad blood between those two ever since Devon dumped her for Abby.  Amanda certainly noticed the wedding ring on Devon's finger.  So, she knows that he and Abby have tied the knot.

Y&R REPORT READERS' POLL

Jess Walton (Jill)

Could Jill Abbott be the mysterious Aristotle Dumas?  Does she regret her deal with Victor?  Is she trying to make amends with Billy by getting the Chancellor company back for him?  Is that why Dumas keeps delaying meetings with Billy and Phyllis?  What do you think, fans?  Do you think Jill is Dumas, or could Dumas be somebody else?  Reply to the poll below and let me know

Do you think Jill is Aristotle Dumas?

Yes. It makes sense.

No way. It's somebody else. Dumas is a man, maybe Tucker McCall.

It's a possibility.

I don't know.

Other

 

pollcode.com free polls

NOTE TO READERS

I really need your feedback.  If you have any comments on Y&R, please email them to me with "Viewer Forum" in the subject line. I will be happy to publish your comments and reply to them  You do not have to use your real name.  I really need your input.  I really need to hear your opinion.  I want to know if you agree or disagree with me. 

My email address:  jmadden16@yahoo.ca 

That's all for now.  Please remember that the next edition of Y&R Report will appear on this space on Saturday, May 31, 2025.

Take care,

Joanne

Y&R Report (May 4, 2025): The Latest on The Young and the Restless.

Hey Y&R fans, every second Saturday TV Banter discusses the latest happenings and provides commentary on your favourite daytime drama. Note to U.S. readers - SPOILER ALERT: Here in Canada, I watch the show on Global TV, which is one episode ahead of CBS.  I will inevitably refer to incidents you haven't seen yet.  Read at your own risk.  If you are the curious type, though, you may prefer to discover some things in advance.

Hi fans,

My computer crashed and that is the reason why I am late with this edition of Y&R Report. My apologies.

Well, Diane's renovations to the Abbott mansion have been revealed.  Apparently, some fans have been critical.  The house has been compared to a funeral home by online commentators.  Billy was certainly not impressed with the changes. Yet, the renovations may lead to a mysterious new Abbott family storyline.  I'm referring to that artwork over the fireplace.  It was discovered in the attic and it relates to John and Dina's history.

There are rumours and much online speculation concerning Sally Spectra (Courtney Hope).  The speculation is that Sally's mother will arrive in Genoa City.  That might be a fascinating storyline for the character of Sally.  There is also speculation that Sally's mother might be played by Gina Tognoni, who portrayed Phyllis for a while.  Gina and Courtney resemble each other and would make a good mother and daughter combination.

Michael Baldwin is acting quite foolishly.  He just can't seem to break his allegiance to Victor Newman, even though Victor has treated him disrespectfully.  Lauren and Diane are absolutely right.  Michael can't have it both ways.  He can't protect both Jack and Victor.  Michael is too intelligent not to know that it's not worth putting his life on the line for Victor.  The Big Man would through him under the bus in a second if he knew that Michael's loyalties were divided between him and Jack.  Lauren is definitely right to tell Michael he should break all ties with Victor.  He won't, however,  because then there wouldn't be any conflict.  I must commend Christian LeBlanc for some fine acting lately in his role as Michael.

Things do not look good for Cole (J. Eddie Peck).  He has a terrible cough and a mysterious illness. On a soap, that usually means that a character's death is imminent.  Is Cole  really ill or has he been poisoned by Ian Ward as revenge for Claire's part in Jordan's death?  I don't think that Victoria and Cole will live happily ever after.

J. Eddie Peck (Cole)

What has happened to Ian Ward and why has Y&R still not followed up on that storyline?  After a showdown with Victor Newman, Ward was pronounced dead.  Viewers then saw him open his eyes in an ambulance and gasp for breath.  What was the point of that?  He was pronounced dead, so why wasn't his face covered.  Why didn't the writers just let him die?  Are they planning to have him turn up again to cause more havoc for the Newman family?  Maybe they realized it was a mistake to have him open his eyes.  Maybe they hope that viewers will just forget about that scene as if it never happened.  Well, we won't.

Mariah is keeping a dark secret from Tessa. She's been on some kind of guilt trip about her association with the villainous Ian Ward.  She confessed to her mother, Sharon, that she did something horrible.  This means a rough road ahead for Mariah.  It could also lead to an involvement between Tessa and Daniel, who are growing closer.

CAST NEWS

Allison Lanier (Summer Newman) is leaving Y&R

Allison Lanier has abruptly left her role on The Young and the Restless after three years on the show.  She wrote the following on social media: "I've loved the journey and learned so much but it's time to grow in a new direction."  Still, her fans are shocked and disappointed.  Her departure from the show was so abrupt that I wonder if she was fired for some undisclosed reason.

Allison has portrayed Summer, the daughter of Nick Newman and Phyllis Summers, since the departure of Hunter King in 2022.  In 2024, she received her first Daytime Emmy nomination in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. She lost out to Y&R castmate Courtney Hope (Sally Spectra).

What will happen to the Summer character?  Will someone else take over the role?  According to an online spoiler, Summer will head to Europe to find replacements for Sally and Chelsea.  I expect that when she returns from overseas, she will look different because a new actress will have taken over the role. I think Allison will be replaced since the role of Summer is too important to be cast aside, especially with Kyle and Claire in the spotlight.

Michelle Stafford, who plays Allison's onscreen mother, Phyllis, had this to say about Allison on Instagram: "You walked into this role and immediately made it your own.  The only unfortunate thing is most of the time, and particularly during the first year and a half, our characters were at odds."

Y&R REPORT READERS' POLL

Well fans, do you like Diane's renovations to the Abbott home?  Are you impressed?  Respond to the poll below and let me know.

Do you like Diane's renovations to the Abbott home?

Yes, the changes look great.

No, I don't like the renovations. The place looked better before.

I don't know.

Other

 

pollcode.com free polls

DAYTIME EMMYS WIL BE HELD IN OCTOBER THIS YEAR

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Soap fans will have to wait for the fall to watch the 2025 Daytime Emmy Awards  The ceremony has been rescheduled.  It will take place in October rather than June this year.  This is due to an adjusted timeline for the New & Documentary Emmy Awards.  

NOTE TO READERS

I really need your feedback.  If you have any comments on Y&R, please email them to me with "Viewer Forum" in the subject line. I will be happy to publish your comments and reply to them  You do not have to use your real name.  I really need your input.  I really need to hear your opinion.  I want to know if you agree or disagree with me. 

My email address:  jmadden16@yahoo.ca 

That's all for now.  The next edition of Y&R Report will appear in this space on Saturday, May 17, 2025.

Take care,

Joanne