So, GH has James Franco for sweeps, and Y&R, which has been teasing a recast of Malcolm Winters for months, brings in…Darius McCrary?! (Better known to most people as Eddie, the not-so-bright son on the ’90s sitcom FAMILY MATTERS.) I’m looking forward to seeing what he does with the role, but still…huh? 

This is hardly the first time the show has pulled from that era’s sitcom lineup for its talent. There’s THE FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR’s Tatyana M. Ali as the woefully underused Roxanne (give this fabulous woman a real story!), McCrary’s fellow FAMILY MATTERS alum Bryton McClure as the equally underused but at least critically acclaimed Devon, and BOY MEETS WORLD’s William Russ as new character Tucker. I’d also almost count Yvonne Zima (Daisy) because her sister Madeline was Grace on THE NANNY and they look startlingly similar. And speaking of sisters, Y&R’s sister soap B&B does boast the totally awesome Patrick Duffy (of STEP BY STEP fame) as Stephen — but he has soap background as well, having been on DALLAS. 

So, color me confused. Why the influx of notable sitcom actors? I know Y&R has gotten all loony in recent months, but does this mean it is going to start filming in front of a live studio audience and adding a laugh track? 

I’m not trying to knock the actors; I just think the association is so different. Stacy Haiduk (Patty/Emily) did AMC before this and has a huge backlist of prime-time drama experience.Wilson Bethel (Ryder) came from the lauded mini-series GENERATION KILL. And powerhouse Ted Shackelford (Jeffrey, ex-Will), of course, hails from KNOTS LANDING and DALLAS. Plus, and this is a big one, they all came in with roles that are tied to the canvas but still essentially new! We didn’t learn MJ was Patty until long after the character had been on the scene, so we didn’t have a preconceived notion of how Haiduk should have played her. 

I don’t know how McCrary tracks as Malcolm, of all characters! Shemar Moore made an impact in that role, as both a “hunk” and Lily’s biological father. And with this casting note, all I can think is that Steve Urkel’s going to burst in any second asking Malcolm and Lily if they have any cheese! 

That’s not to say that I don’t think familiar prime-time actors can make the crossover to soaps. Of course they can. McClure did, Ali did, ditto for Duffy. And Joseph C. Phillips went from being Denise’s husband on THE COSBY SHOW to playing GH’s Justus! It just has to make sense. 

For instance, if we’re doing wishful ’90s sitcom casting…how about Jasmine Guy as Drucilla? (I’m going to ignore the fact that she’s playing Bonnie’s grandmother on THE VAMPIRE DIARIES. Oh my God, I feel so old.) She’s gorgeous, she’s a great actress, and she has enough distance from A DIFFERENT WORLD’s Whitley Gilbert that no one would expect her to look at Neil and bust out with “Dwaaaaaynnnne” in Whit’s trademark nasal whine. And how has Nicholle Tom (THE NANNY) not landed on the same soap that both her brother, David, and sister, Heather, cut their teeth on? 

I think bringing in new actors from unexpected places is admirable and applaud Y&R for trying, but they might want to look back at some of the choices they made this year and ask Urkel’s favorite question: “Did I do that?”

originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com

I’ve talked about this before, but it bears repeating: Boy, did YOUNG AND RESTLESS take a wrong turn with Adam. When he sobbed on the stairs yesterday, I objectively bought Michael Muhney’s performance, but subjectively Adam’s manpain did nothing for me. I have no sympathy for Hope’s little boy turning out to be a asshat who jabbed Botox needles in his eyes, caused Ashley’s miscarriage, hired a molester to be Ashley’s OB/GYN for the duration of her hysterical pregnancy and then stole Sharon’s baby. I mean, I thought having downlow “I’m not gay, I’m just desperate” sex with Babyface Torres to cover up his crimes was mind-boggling, but whodathunkit, Adam actually exceeded the batspit crazy of that move. 

And it really annoys me that one of Victor Newman’s kids has been written into such a corner. Because crying his eyes out over his sins isn’t going to make me want to root for him…well, except maybe in the sense that I don’t really like Nick or Victoria either, and anyone who takes them down a few pegs wins points in my book. Adam should be more than this. He should be above this. Observing now that Hope’s baby boy has gone off the rails does no good. This self-awareness needed to be there when Chris Engen’s Adam was running around in a purple dress and a black wig. 

I really wish we could rewind and start the tale of Adam’s revenge over. Of course, the irony therein being we probably wouldn’t have Michael Muhney in the role if things had gone differently. And I’ve probably said this before, too, but I really like the guy. He feels like a chip off Victor’s block. I ppreciated him when he played Sheriff Lamb on VERONICA MARS, but there’s no doubt in my mind that Adam gives him more layers to play and more room to flex his acting muscles. It’s just sad that he’s now flexing them from inside a very small box. 

Adam’s a plain-dealing villain. Do not pass go. Do not pick up a redemption card. And he could’ve been so much more than a, pardon the expression, mustache-twirler. 

In tangential news, Muhney broke his collarbone in Vail last weekend. OW. Get well soon!

originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com

Yesterday I had the completely appalling realization that Y&R’s Adam and Ashley have chemistry. And given how I feel about victimizers of women becoming romantic heroes, I immediately wanted to go shower with bleach. Michael Muhney and Eileen Davidson work really, really well together and are knocking their scenes out of the park. And those times when Ash is leaning on Adam and he’s pretending to be completely sincere … if you take them out of context, it’s like, “Hey, there’s something there.” Unfortunately, I’m a context kinda gal, and context says, “OH, HELL, NO.” 

Can we just help me remember that pithy mantra? “Mala, stop that.” “Mala, don’t go there.” “Mala, he had downlow sex with a dude who looks 12.” “Mala, he’s making her think she’s still pregnant after he DISPOSED OF HER DEAD BABY IN THE FIREPLACE.” 

Maybe if I say those things over and over, this sense of “what a waste!” will go away.

And this goes back to the core problem with this story: Adam’s victimization of Ashley has NEVER made sense. As the one person who believed in him, who was kind to him when everyone was treating him like crap, she is the least deserving of this horrendous campaign of revenge against Victor. And even back when Chris Engen was playing the role, the show could’ve gone the simplest possible route: Have Adam woo a vulnerable Ashley for himself. Back when his biggest ick factor was shooting Botox in his eyes. I think it would have been totally plausible for “poor” blind Adam to seek comfort in his father’s girlfriend and cozy up to her as a suitor…but then realize that maybe he was starting to fall for her for real. And it wouldn’t have sacrificed Victor and Hope’s son in the process. He could’ve come back from that and still had a place as a future romantic character. 

But now? Oh, God, I really hope no one at the show IS plotting an Adam/Ashley pair-up. If that happens, I will do my best impression of the pea soup scene from The Exorcist. 

As it stands, Adam has joined the likes of GH’s Ric and Luke, OLTL’s Todd, and Days’ EJ on my personal ‘No Fly’ list. If he goes full-on villain, I’ll rescind the designation, but as long as the possibility for him becoming a redeemed leading man remains I will have the bleach and the airsick bag at the ready!

originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com

Are Y&R’s Mary Jane and Adam in a competition to see who can be the most irredeemable psycho? Actually, wait, Adam, to me, isn’t a psycho. He’s too cold, too calculating about his crimes, to qualify as someone acting purely from unhinged emotion. MJ, however, done lost her damn mind. Between talking to her stuffed cat, poisoning Summer with a peanut butter-laced kiss, and now slipping Jack roofies and pretending to be Sharon, I am utterly floored by what we’re supposed to make of her. Note to daytime: A woman having sex with a man without his informed (and LUCID!) consent is no different than a male-on-female sex crime. Jack was stoned out of his head and thought he was with Sharon. That’s rape. And whether it’s ATWT’s Julia raping Jack or GH’s Irina raping Jax, this is not something we need to keep seeing. It turns my stomach and any enjoyment I was getting out of Mary Jane and her crazy antics is now as dead as Mr. Kitty. 

Moving from dead pets to dead horses, isn’t it about time Billy quit whining that Jill never loved him best? His scenes with Jill, Chloe and Kay today just made me want to smack him up side the head. I love Billy Miller, but watching his character bemoan Cane getting all the love and then trying to recapture his glory days with Mac from six years ago isn’t holding my attention. However I will admit that it’s entirely possible that I’m just bitter that Billy and Chloe are kaput and Chloe’s now hanging out with Chance…who I still want to see with Rafe! 

It was nice to see Lauren today, though. I’d forgotten she was even on this show. And Tracey Bregman looked so pretty! Stop locking this woman away and only rolling her out to make inane conversation about Amber’s designs. Why isn’t she all up in Paul’s business since he’s about to marry Nikki? And why not use her built-in psycho detector (after all those years of dealing with Sheila) to catch Patty Jane?

originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com

Cutting away from Y&R’s Adam and Rafe kissing isn’t going to make it any less gay and, therefore, more palatable for conservative viewers. Odds are they’ve alreadytuned out because the mere existence of gay characters disturbs them…or because Adam’s story in general is so crazy. A little smooch action isn’t going to make it any worse. Not-so-gay gay content is kinda like being a “little bit pregnant.” The barn door’s open, the horse has fled, and there ain’t no getting it back in the stall.

On a show where Mary Jane’s routinely talking to her DEAD, STUFFED CAT (No, I will never get over Kitty), Sharon played mattress tag with three guys in a handful of days, and Devon is lusting after his auntie Tyra, two guys kissing is a cause for alarm? Please. I think out of all the crazy stunts Adam has pulled, tonsil hockey with Babyface Torres is probably the most benign.

Especially since they’ve already slept together. Again, newsflash: Whoever was going to tune out because of the icky gayness probably did so at that point, when viewers saw even less than they did this week.

Here’s the thing about daytime right now: After ATWT trail-blazed with Noah and Luke and did it successfully, other soaps are jumping on the bandwagon and wanting a piece of the action. But you can’t have your gay cake and then try to eat it as heterosexually as possible. You can’t be all trendy and incorporate two gay characters and one sexually ambiguous one (please page me when you figure yourself out, Adam) only to get all shy about letting them act like regular people. ATWT and ATWT fans fought the kissing battle already; to start Y&R off back at square one is silly. Are viewers really going to have to go through this every single time a same sex duo is featured? Come on.

That’s not to say that I think Adam and Rafe kissing is some wonderful example of equal representation. Unlike with Noah and Luke, I don’t think a slew of fans are going to be writing in for this duo to kiss and be shown making love. This story is not a positive portrayal of gay characters and should not be lauded as such. It’s messed up. It implies that Adam is so desperate that he’s debasing himself, doing something shameful and uncharacteristic, by seducing Rafe, and it makes Rafe look hopelessly clueless. And not showing them at least shirtless after a sexcapade or engaged in a kiss adds an extra layer of offense. It’s like, “OMG, Adam is doing something SO EVIL that we CAN’T EVEN SHOW YOU HIS BEHAVIOR.” So, my rationale for seeing Adam and Rafe be physical is simply this: Straight characters manipulate each other with intimacy and sex all the time and we see it. Why shouldn’t the same rule apply to gay or bisexual manipulators?

originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com

Cue another day of completely inappropriate laughter on my part when it comes to Y&R’s Adam and Rafe. Honestly, I’m trying to figure out what I find so gosh-darned funny. Maybe it’s just Adam, who is so, so ridiculous, especially in the context of a show like Y&R, which is usually “serious business.” 

Michael Muhney’s take on the character has internal conflict like Chris Engen’s version did, but there’s also a very broad, big, soapy quality to him. This Adam fully embraces the insanity of this storyline and that’s kind of fun. I mean, what else are you going to do with a character that is gaslighting his father’s girlfriend, burns towels and fetuses in fireplaces, and claims he was jabbed in the eye with hypodermic needles? It’s so silly that I need an actor to give 110% even when he’s saying the dumbest things, and Muhney does that. I was laughing when Adam practiced break-up speeches but was then forced to chuck them all and go into seduction mode again just to shut up Rafe … who displayed a surprising (albeit brief!) bit of intellect and suspicion. Speechifying about how he’d never done before what he’d done with Rafe…? Bwah! It’s really too bad Rafe’s snarky, “How stupid do you think I am?” moment came before that oh-so-touching confession. Given how all Adam had to do was turn on the puppy eyes and the charm to sway the baby-faced lawyer, it’s clear he thinks Rafe is pretty darn stupid … and he’s right! 

But I will give Rafe some props for turning aggressor at the end of the episode. The way he went in for the kissing kill with Adam was mighty assertive. Too bad we viewers didn’t get to SEE it. If we don’t get a pickup scene in tomorrow’s episode that shows us the scandalous liplock that shocked Nikki, I’m going to be very annoyed…

originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com