Okay, so I watched it - February

I did watch one episode with Philip Spaulding on 'Guiding Light.'

I did not mean to. I was going into work very late and had the tv on for background noise as usual. It was only until I got out of the shower and started to pay attention to the tv, that I discovered that Mr. Philip was in this episode. I could have changed the channel, but figured I'd watch so I would have fodder for a post.

I knew from reading a recap that Coop went after Beth to stop her wedding to Alan Spaudling in that tired old chestnut of a storyline where the damsel in distress marries the evil villain to save her true love. (Gee, I saw that somewhere recently, oh yeah in the movies 'Dr. Zhivago' and 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles, which were set in periods where this idea was quaint even then). Also knew that he got into a car accident and it was Philip who saved him. The man in the red sweatershirt.

So Philip breaks up the wedding of his ex-wife and soulmate and his dad (I always found this pairing disturbing. Not so much for the fact that a man was marrying his former daughter in law, but for the fact that he had to have, especially after years of trying to shoehorn her out of the family in a manner that recalls the phrase 'thee doth protests too much'. I mean, was he lusting after her while she dating Philip in high school?) News of Coop's accident comes to all. Beth is covered in Coop's blood and goes the changes that Beth does. Buzz tries to take out Alan, who doesn't get that once you pay somebody to run over the father of your great grandchild and it results in the death of his girlfriend, people might suspect you when a similar instance takes place. Super Philip is on hand to keep Buzz from going to jail. Even after he receives the news that Harley has left with Zach and that no one really knows where she is, he flies off and goes to Beth's side.

Beth, who can never decide whether she is an independent woman, a bitch or beyond needy, is sitting in her blood drenched clothes feeling guilt and other things. Philip arrives and he gets another happy update on more of his various children. Seldom seen James is in boarding school-a decision Beth and Alan (because his parenting skills are best) made. Lizzie, Lizzie...had a baby, was married, lost the baby because of her grandfather's meddling ('meddling is too nice a word'), hooked up with Billy Lewis as an all purpose assistant, hooked up with Bill Lewis (who is fighting his own demons) and fell in love and got kidnapped and still believes Bill did it.

Super Philip hasn't even gotten to poor little Emma yet, but that's another episode.

Super Philip comforts Beth about her more often then not rotten parenting choices in his absence and helps her change out of the clothes stained with Coop's blood. He then flies off to find the daughter that in his Mr. Hyde days left behind and that has for all intents and purposes still considers dead.

Well, Quasi-repentant Super Philip was not exactly what I expected. The promos for his return would have led you to believe that he was riding in like a Horseman of the Apocalypse and all ye in Springfield better tremble. Then again it is early days. Like Ed Bauer once said, Philip is his own worse enemy. (And if anyone is an authority on that, it's Ed Bauer.)

I mentioned in an earlier post that I did not mind the return of a kinder, gentler Philip, but it should make sense. I get that Bill Lewis got him to return for Lizzie. It seems to me that he should be doing something constructive and away from the nuts that put him on the path to destruction. I joked yesterday that he should take up with Ashley Wolf, who should have him focusing on more worthwhile things. I now don't think that's a bad idea. It would be a more interesting story than the Beth/Alan/Rick retread. I also mentioned that a Leah and James storyline would be interesting.

I don't know in which direction Philip go. I thought that Grant Aleksander was always interesting when he was on-screen no matter what role he did-even that weird turn on All My Children as an almost love-interest of Haley Vaughn and biological father of a Black boy named Jamal in a custody battle that I think wanted to be more relevant than it ending up being because All My Children did not want to go there.

Well Philip is back and all I can do is wish him well.

An Interesting Two Days.

I watched the February 5th and 6th airings of The Young and the Restless with some interest and very little surprise. What surprise I experienced was big.


Nick and Sharon hooking up in the snowy retreat a la Clark Gable and Loretta Young was no real surprise there. I don't even think Phyllis was surprised. I liked that she just asked Nick straight up about it. No use beating around the bush. That Brad Carlton when running after Sharon was no surprise either. Brad Carlton saving Noah's hash when he fell into the water, oddly enough, no surprise.

Brad dying, BIG surprise.


Did the actor want out? Did the powers that be want him out? Or, did the writers concede that they had nothing better for him to do than to mess with Phyllis, Jack and Victor and pine after Sharon and engage in 'do as I say, not as I do' with Colleen-all of which gets old.

In fact, the most interesting storyline that he had in a long time was that he was really Jewish
(I still laugh over the fact that they see this as a big revelation) and that his mother survived the Holocaust by being forced by her Nazi captors into cataloguing their ill gotten art and that they were gunning for her because she knew too much, which then led to the murder of her daughter and her husband.

I can't say that I ever liked the character. I always thought it was funny that he was the Abbot's gardner. I suppose that I didn't think that a character like Brad would get bumped off.

In the midst of mourning and shiva and such, I learned that Abby's been SORASed again so that she is a tween/teen. Victor is clearly looking to her to save his dynasty after the spectacular failure of Adam.

Phyllis did suspect that Nick and Sharon found a way to stay warm and he confirmed it. I shook my head when Phyllis came downstairs before they left to pay their respects concerning Brad. She was badass and awesome when she confronted Nick and told him that they were going to pay call at the shiva. She then begged him to stay even after he gave her that crap about how he loved both of them.

I think this should play two ways-open marriage or terse but amicable divorce. Phyllis should wake up and get crucial. Nick can be cool, but at the end of the day as he keeps showing, he's a spoiled brat. Adam's kinda lookin' good right now.

I am hoping that there won't be a Jack-Phyllis reunion. Jack blew that out the water so long ago. I honestly wish that much like what happened with Tracy, someone would come along that Phyllis could have a relationship with and Nick would just let her be.

Gloria in jail-long time coming.