The all-knowing, all-powerful Victor Newman appeared to be fully recovered and was back -- as villainish and dastardly as ever. "Watchdog sees and Watchdog knows. Watchdog keeps us on our toes." That line from the little ditty featured in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas reminds me so much of Victor. Strangely, because he seemed so weak and frail after his tumble down the stairs, everyone underestimated Victor. However, his fiendish ways and his hatred for "everything Jack" gave him the necessary strength to heal from his wounds and gain the power he needed to triumph over his archenemy. It was just too bad that Jack didn't even know there was a fight.
It was sweet to see Jack beaming at his mother's memories, which was "a wonderful, magnificent, larger-than-life experience for Dina." Break out the popcorn, and let's behold the masterpiece, the essence of Dina. That would be the right title for it -- "The Essence of Dina." It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? And what a delightful way to celebrate the amazing and colorful life of Dina Mergeron, as the Abbott and Winters families gathered together at a theater to listen to the star's tales. Dina sure was enjoying her time in the spotlight. They were all so happy, which was as it should be. Only they didn't realize there was a big black cloud hovering over the horizon, thundering with malice, and its name was Victor Newman.
But Victor was only able to be in the position to threaten them because of one of the Abbotts' very own. Kyle was a watchdog of a different kind of diabolical nature when he prowled around at Jabot, attempting to get any kind of evidence Victor could use against Jack. And Kyle finally thought he hit the motherload, when he found the video of Dina claiming that John was not Jack's father, which he promptly turned over to Victor. But Victor only showed Kyle the door, leaving the memory card behind. It was tragic that Kyle turned against his own family in such a sneaky, underhanded way. Kyle must not know Victor very well at all if he thought the Mustache would crown him "Prince of Newman Enterprises." But all Kyle ended up getting for his efforts was nothing.
Was Kyle the only one in Genoa City who didn't know that Victor is all about family? There was no way that Victor would promote Kyle over one of his own daughters at the family business. Even Ashley's level at the company was equal with Victoria's, just so Victoria couldn't boss her around, but Ash had to get Victor to agree to that in her contract. The brief time Ashley was working at a higher level, it was as a punishment to Victoria for not playing nice. Since Victor has always been about family in every claim he has ever made, why on earth would Kyle think he could score points with him by turning against his own family? What was even more hysterical was that Kyle used Ashley as his justification for doing so. I'm not sure Ashley would appreciate that.
And I'm almost positive that Ashley wouldn't appreciate Victor doing some warped editing of his own to Dina's story. The uninvited, mustachioed guest smirked in delight as the footage of Dina revealing that Jack was not John's son played out for everyone to hear. Shoot, Victor could guest in Dina's memoirs as the villain. He might want to even grow out his facial hair so he could twist and twirl the ends of a handlebar mustache for each time he laughed diabolically in glee. What he did was cruel, and he showed that he didn't even care whom he hurt with the footage that he had taken from Kyle. Victor had the means to get back at Jack yet again, so he used it.
But Jack wasn't the only one affected by Victor's devious act. Recording and editing the story of Dina's life had been a labor of love for both Abby, Victor's daughter, and Charlie, the grandson of Victor's good friend Neil. Abby and Charlie had joined forces and their talents to tell a beautiful narrative, which had started out as a masterpiece. But Victor butchered the screening, harming anyone who had to bear witness to it. Victor made a point of completely stripping Jack of his identity. As he told Neil, although Jack had always loved and respected his father, Jack was never like John. Oh, yes, Victor knew exactly what he was doing. Our hero was crushed.
The look on Jack's face at the theater said it all. Jack had lost his entire world, because that's what his dad had been to him. But Billy reminded Jack that John had glowed with pride over his firstborn son and had always given Jack his love. Jack was the son John had always wanted, and Jack needed to remember that. Yes, Jack was the golden boy and Billy the black sheep of the Abbotts, but when it came down to it, they loved each other as brothers. And that's exactly what they still were, no matter what some DNA test said. But Jack should take Billy's advice and do another test. There really could have been a mix-up with the results.
I am so sick of hearing Kyle go on and on about how he's always been on the outside, looking in when it comes to the Abbotts and about how he had never gotten the chance to be a part of a loving family. Good grief, Charlie Brown. Quit making yourself out to be the victim. Kick that football and become a true member of the Abbotts, for heaven's sake. And the first step in doing that would be to stop being Victor's mole at work and his partner in crime personally. If Kyle wants to be "a real Abbott," whether by blood or not, he needs to start showing them and Jack some kind of loyalty. Grow up, little boy. The whining is becoming very, very old.
When he finds out that Kyle armed his enemy with the knowledge, Jack could turn against his own son forever. Kyle learned way too late that family comes first. Kyle needs to man up and take responsibility for his actions, but that will never happen. But at least Jack discovered that both Ashley and Abby had known and had the paternity test done. Ironically, if the results were true, Jack and Ashley would have the fact that they were both not blood Abbotts in common, but that's one thing that Jack never wanted to share with his sister. Still, Jack was also the one who always considered Ashley his sister, despite the knowledge that she wasn't a blood Abbott. To heck with the clause at Jabot.
So why, when Ravi admitted that he had been able to recover the file from the memory card for Kyle, did Ashley not put the pieces of the puzzle together? She knew that Kyle idolized Victor while he scorned Jack. Even Neil had no problem putting two and two together to get the sum of Victor. It was just so obvious, especially since Victor had shown up unexpectedly and without invitation to Dina's premiere, that he had done "the fast, clumsy edit" so he could witness the destruction. Even though she believed Kyle wouldn't sabotage Dina's film, Abby suspected that Kyle had handed the footage over to Victor. What a relief! Abby knew better than anyone the hatred her dad had for her uncle.
Always loving to kick a dog when he is down, Victor must have followed Jack and Billy to the Athletic Club so he could get in a final nasty shot to his archrival. Victor was thoroughly entertained as he watched Jack go through the pain and anguish of feeling lost. It was like some cruel torture, and Victor enjoyed every second of it. If another paternity test were to prove that Jack was truly John's son, I could almost picture Victor snarling and crying out, "Curses! Foiled again!" in the manner of a villain in a melodrama. Hey, if the cape fits.
Neil tried to convince Jack to end the speculation and to be proactive by taking a test that wouldn't be so flawed. Jack was right that using the strands from his and Traci's hairbrushes was a sloppy way to do the test. But seriously, the first thing Jack needs to do is to stop drinking. He will need a clear head for making any necessary major life decisions. While Peter Bergman is getting his chance to shine as Jack in these scenes, his light can be just as bright without Jack turning into a lush. But it was realistic for Jack to turn to drink, although Neil was right that Jack would never find the answer at the bottom of a bottle.
Thank heavens Jack had another test done to prove, once and for all, the truth about his parentage. Sadly, since he was mad at Dina for the past, he felt the receipt of the test would make a great Mother's Day gift to her. I'm so glad he later got past his anger for what could very well be Dina's last Mother's Day. He would have always regretted it if he hadn't. Actually, if anyone had the right to be angry, it was Traci, since her mother never could remember that Traci was her daughter. How horrible for Traci and how sad that she had the best gift ever when Dina remembered who she was "for one brief, beautiful, perfect moment." Happy Mother's Day, Traci!
First Phyllis and then Sharon. What's going on with the women in Genoa City suddenly proclaiming themselves as the watchdogs over Victoria? Seriously, does Victoria really need someone to guard her every move? And just how far do Phyllis and Sharon think they can go to protect her? I mean, I can understand Nikki wanting to shield Victoria from harm, since that's her daughter. But Phyllis was really taking it way too far. It got to where she was practically following Nick everywhere to prevent him from questioning his sister. If she felt Victoria might cave, Phyllis remained glued to her side. Phyllis even convinced Victoria to go on a retreat to ensure Victoria wouldn't talk.
When I saw Phyllis follow first Nick and then Victoria all around town, the term I immediately thought of to describe her was "Watchdog." She was like a mutt on the prowl, keeping the two apart so they couldn't speak to each other. "No exceptions to the rule. Watchdog ain't no fool." Shoot, Phyllis was almost as big of a pest as Melvin P. Thorpe was in this classic musical. And she decided to make sure that Victoria, Nick, and everyone else would tow the line. Yes, Phyllis' light would shine on anyone who dared mess up her plot to cover J.T.'s death.
Okay, Phyllis had a lot invested in trying to keep Victoria safe, because, after all, the former Red was the one who started the cover-up to begin with. Sure, she didn't want her future wardrobe to include a black and white striped jumpsuit, but she only had herself to blame if that happened. Her conspiracy pretty much turned J.T.'s death from being an accident into an act of crime. Nikki was only trying to stop J.T. from hurting her daughter when she slugged him with a fire poker, and I'm sure Paul would have acknowledged that she had never meant to kill him. The intent was not there. But when Phyllis decided that she, Nikki, Victoria, and Sharon should cover it up, then it became criminal. The lie will probably be what gets them in trouble, not hitting J.T. with a poker.
How could Paul not be more suspicious by the foursome's newly formed friendship? He seemed clueless, even as they busted their gut doing whatever they could to cover for each other. Why has it not even dawned on the chief of police that J.T. could have died on that fateful girls' night out party? Why has no one questioned that, especially since Victoria kept saying, over and over again, that J.T. was never coming back? How could she possibly know that for a fact, unless the father of her child was no longer a living member of this world? You could see why Phyllis felt it necessary for Victoria to have a watchdog, just to help keep her lips zipped.
I had hoped that, since Phyllis was out of town with Victoria, Sharon might spill to Nick about that night. But sadly, Sharon suddenly became the new dog in town and took over safeguarding Victoria by keeping the truth from Nick. He was absolutely right when he pointed out to Sharon that she had never trusted Nick enough to be honest with him. It's a shame that she still hasn't learned that lesson after all the lies between them in the past. If Sharon could just be forthright with Nick, he might be able to find a way to help them all. But she chose to keep silent by pressing her mouth against his. Even if they grow closer, as Sharon desired, the lie will only tear them apart again.
So, while Sharon and Phyllis believed they were the watchdogs guarding over Victoria and the entire territory, that couldn't be farther from the truth. Their deception has already been messing with their happiness and could very well end up destroying their future. Victoria has been a nervous wreck and totally wracked by guilt over what happened to J.T. and by not being able to let J.T.'s children, including her own son, know about their father's demise. And Sharon's nightmares had her asking for solace at J.T.'s grave. It's hard to believe they would choose to go on living that way, filled with guilt and with the fear that the truth would be discovered.
But Sharon took it even one step further by making love with Nick -- numerous times. Okay, even if they insist to themselves that it was only for sex and that they both weren't ready for another relationship, how long does Sharon think their sex romps will last when Nick finally learns the truth? It will be just another lie stacked upon the big heap of her past deceit. That mound is getting larger than the dirt piled up on J.T.'s grave.
Man, Nikki sure has killed a lot of people throughout her life, whether in self-defense or in defense of another. Diane, J.T., and even her own father. It's especially amazing when most people go through their entire life without killing a single soul. Apparently, Kyle was still upset that Nikki had caused his mother's death and demanded that Nikki accept responsibility for it. That was certainly the pot calling the kettle black, since Kyle had yet to own up to the damage he had just done to his father. Hang in there, Kyle. Nikki may still have to own up and pay her dues for what she did to J.T. if the truth is unburied at the gardening ceremony. "Relax -- Reflect -- Renew." Nikki may have plenty of time to do all three if she winds up in the slammer.
Someone really needs to get a watchdog to save Devon from himself, but honestly, I think it's a hopeless case. Devon was obviously in denial, because everyone else in town knew he was still in love with Hilary. The dorky contract was drawn up just to cloak himself from the truth. He had wanted a baby with her all along, so they could forever be tied together. Just be careful what you wish for, Devon. Hilary doesn't know how to be selfless, honest, or loyal. Even after he learned of her plot to get artificially inseminated behind his back, all Devon felt for her was sorrow that she hadn't been pregnant, after all. Well, now he only has himself to blame. The escape hatch had been open to Devon, and he was foolish enough not to make a wild dash through it. The fool.
Devon then promptly rushed out to dump Simone, which caused him to lose her both personally and professionally. Anything for Hilary, I guess. It's no wonder that schemers scheme and manipulators manipulate. They always win, and Hilary sure looked like the cat that swallowed the canary. She was licking her chops, ready to chow down on Devon and get him to put a ring on it. Hilary will have Devon jumping at her beck and call in no time -- throughout her entire pregnancy. But judging from her expression when Abby innocently flirted with Devon, Hilary will be more controlling than ever. Oh, joy.
Didn't the ladies all look gorgeous in the evening gowns for Dina's premiere? Lily was especially stunning.
Lily and Sam were so precious together as mother and son. I knew she would grow to love him as her own. Here's wishing a happy Mother's Day to all of the loving mothers.
"What the mind can't remember, the heart never forgets." What a touching tribute that anyone would cherish.
Until next time, please stay tuned.
Teddi
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