She has been a polarizing character since her arrival in Salem, with some fans screaming Gwen is sucking up too much airtime. HOWEVER, the performances by Emily O’Brien (Gwen) show an actress on top of her craft who can play, as Gwen called herself, “A miserable, vindictive bitch”, or a young woman so deeply-emotionally wounded that you might just come around and eventually feel some empathy for her.
Last week, while the soaps were pre-empted for most of the week due to the senate impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump, DAYS posted all of its weekly episodes online on NBC.com, the NBC app, or on the Peacock streaming platform, and O’Brien’s work was a standout.

Photo: JPI
It all came to a boiling point when Laura (Jaime Lyn Bauer) and Gwen have the long-awaited confrontation in Gwen’s room at the Salem Inn, where O’Brien goes from Gwen baiting Laura to tell her dirty secret of her long-ago affair with Jack (Matthew Ashford), to her utter anger at how because of it, Laura trashed Gwen’s entire life.
Laura reveals the guilt she felt for sleeping with Jack, so much so, that she would do anything to save Jennifer (Cady McClain) and Jack’s marriage. In delight at getting to the root of the truth, Gwen responds: “You slept with Jack? That is just perfect! My father slept with his mother-in-law!”
Then, Laura shares how it happened. They were both at the “Meadows” finding their ‘truest selves’ and they were both using other names – she, Monica and he, Clark, and Laura had never seen a photo of Jack before to know it was him! Gwen wants to burst out in hysterical laughter, but then she becomes filled with rage knowing that if Laura hadn’t bought off her birth mother, Tiffany, her own life would have been very different. She goes on to say that she and Abigail (Marci Miller) might even be close as sisters, but instead of “borrowing her clothes, she borrowed her husband” alluding to sleeping with Chad (Billy Flynn). Next, Gwen wants to make Laura pay and lets Laura know that, “All the damage that you did, can’t be undone.” When Laura tries to leave, Gwen stops her and says in no uncertain terms, “I want revenge, because you ruined my life and you’re not going to get away with it!”

Photo: JPI
Next, we see that there had been a struggle with Laura dead on the floor bleeding out of her head. A freaked-out Gwen does not know what to do. She realizes she will be accused of murder. With no one in town to call, she decides to call her father, Jack. When he shows up at the Salem Inn, Jack is shocked, and grief-stricken to see his mother-in-law, dead. Gwen swears to Jack this was an accident and that she did not kill Laura, and that he has to believe her. Jack decides he will stand by his daughter. Gwen wants to get rid of the body, Jack says he can’t be involved in a cover-up, so he calls Rafe (Galen Gering). When Rafe arrives at the crime scene he is very suspicious of Gwen, and takes her down to the station.
Scene after scene, O’Brien layered her performances with venomous and ominous undertones, illustrating a woman with so much emotional baggage who becomes desperate to save herself. For all these reasons, Michael Fairman TV names Emily’s work, The Power Performance of the Week.
What did you think of Emily O’Brien’s key scenes? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.
LOVED it and have waited 7 LOOOONG years for this day!!!Im sooooo happy!! #EJAMI #DAYS
This was soooooooo romantic and I have been waiting for so long for this and it was very sparkly and beautiful. EJAMI are so good together that they light up the screen. I love them so much together and Im hoping they are together for a very very long time.
yes finally i can’t believe we waited all this years for this ,is so romantic they are so good together ,perfect for each other may their relationship last for ever!
Finally and so romantic! I love these two together!
This show is ridiculous… does everything have to happen at the Brady pub or Town Square?? Why do I even watch this crap anymore.. cute proposal, I guess – at Brady Pub. Doh.
Im just wondering how they keep clean what looks like a white sofa in the middle of the town square…obviuosly the birds dont poop in Salem! Also the Horton mantel clock is always set at 7:10…time stands still in Salem! lol
hahaha!! Hadn’t ever thought about that. I’ll have to check out the clock.. Also, does Jennifer have OCD because sometimes the mantel is full of family photos and the next day it’s wiped clean, then next episode, they are conveniently all back!
The sofa does have grey sides and not pure white but still who would put that sofa looking thing, and with pillows, in the town square? I didnt notice the mantel pictures thing…ill have to check that out…guess i pay too much time(pun) checking to see if the hands have ever changed on that clock! lol
spend not pay…
maybe it’s because the dialouge and storyline is so frigging boring that we have to look at other things to amuse ourselves 😉
What drove me nuts about the set is how they use elements of one set to make up parts of another set. For example, the old police station office had the same cupboards as Rafe’s and Carrie’s law office, and then they use them in a hospital room. They could at least attempt to make them look different. As for the soda in the square, I agree it was an odd choice for a public space, wooden benches seem more practical- but to be fair they did say the square was covered, which means, no snow, no rain, no birds… Read more »
Mary: Oh yeah, the docks!! I loved the docks!! So much action down there with Frankie & Jen, Britta, Steve, Bo, Kayla, Hope .. John & Doc’s reunion… geez, that place was awesome for Days!!
yes, dumb that Rafe & Carrie’s office pieces are everywhere. I don’t see GH or Y&R reusing sets this badly.
I remember Marlena’s exorcist comforter showing up a few times too 😉
The show needs new writers…i miss the 1970s when the late William Bell was the headwriter, and when it was mostly about the Hortons! Ive watched DOOLs since the 1960s and the stories from 1966 to the late 1970s were the best character driven stories ive ever watched in daytime and so was Another World, when written by the late Harding Lemay, and about the Mathews family, during that same era! If we had some brilliant writers like them again working in daytime i bet the ratings could be twice as high! On Days id bring back Bill and Laura… Read more »
I totally agree with you that it’s too bad Ron Carlivati couldn’t write both shows. That man comes up with more crazy ideas than anyone and that is exactly what Days needs – a shot in the butt!! Days writers are sleeping thru each episode and so am I.. Absolutely NOTHING is happening on this show unless you want to count repeat performances Nicole/Daniel/Jen was the same crap as the current junk Chloe/Daniel/Jen….I’m not sure how much more I can take of this show.. It has rich characters but it’s duller than dirt! Loved the stalker, slasher storylines of the… Read more »
I loved the 4/16/2013 proposal! EJ set up the rendezvous with Sami in mind (not over the top at all!) and his emotional proposal was icing on the cake!
This has been a long time coming and I can’t wait for today’s dialogue so EJami can finally “seal the deal” FOR REAL!
EJAMI – THEIR CHEMISTRY/LOVE/PASSION IS UNDENIABLE!
So happy that EJ and Sami finally get there happy ending! True Love prevails!
i know this is unpopular but i don’t want ej & sami to get married – i believe he is really ready but she is definitely not……………
Loved the proposal, of course. And I’m sure Sami and EJ will bring on the soap in this afternoon’s episode. So happy Days finally “went there” with these two. I couldn’t adore them more. 🙂
Things are different this time, Sami will give into her heart and say Yes!
Really– the Brady Pub? Surely Salem must have somewhere more romantic than that for a proposal? Frankly I was disappointed by the whole thing. And we know she will say yes- there has to be a May sweeps wedding someone can interrupt, it wouldn’t be springtime in Salem without one. Perhaps a double wedding with Kristen and Brady- double the drama. But frankly I rather they not get married. Stay together, yes, but married?– they just don’t strike me as the happily ever after traditional couple- so why pretend that you are by getting married? I rather see them in… Read more »
ditto on the Brady Pub. Lame!! Why not Chez Vous – is that right? LoL!
I don’t see this marriage happening and I believe Sami still has unresolved feellings for Rafe as does he.
Chez Vous would be your house, but I get where you’re going. The Chez Rouge set is probably in mothballs, so it’s got to be the Brady Pub. Just like the rest of us, Days is on a budget.
Well, EJ is rich so taking her to Brady Pub is lame. Days Budget or not…this is make believe and Sami has a great job so.. even their bedroom would have been sexier than Brady Pub.
Had to reply here…the offices for Hope, Marlena, Jen, and Rafe are the same…it was also used for Brady as a examing room after he was attacked in the park. Instead of the town square, which reminds me of the town square in the Christmas movie Snow Globe or something that looks like the background of a 3rd grade stage play, they shouldve kept their outdoor mall instead which looked more realistic with those outdoor scenes. They couldve honored Dr. Tom and Alice with a hospital plaque instead since both worked there.
Thanks Michael for your great comment regarding James and his acting abilities. He is by far the most romantic man in daytime soaps. One can read his thoughts just by looking at his facial expressions and his eyes. We Ejami fans have had to endure the Safe crap for way too long and deserve to have Ejami and appreciate TPTB giving Ejami a decent coupling. Sami and EJ are fantastic at making every other actor in their orbit just fade into the background. What I find difficult to deal with is the lack of time James has been on our… Read more »
Wow, this was acting at it’s best I’ve said it before but will say it again James Scott has a stage presence that is worth gold, and he is a phenomenal actor and EJami is the hottest duo in Daytime, if Days is wise? This duo can drive a story and Dimera family, would like to see more bussnies story with them, adventure, family drama yes lots of story quite simply.
I agree totally! JS is simply phenominal. I hope Days can hold on to him because like you I think that EJ and Sami can drive the soap. Love that we are seeing more Dimeras!
Loved the proposal – it was so sincere and heartfelt. Sami will say yes, even if she has to think it through a bit first. Sami and EJ were meant to be together.
Finally. Love them. Can’t wait for todays show. 🙂
Did you see EJ eyes when he look at Sami when he kneel down..This man LOVE Sami SO MUCH….She’s IT for EJ..James did such a amazing job so did AS I can’t wait for the answer today ALL TEAR UP!
7 long happy/painfull/dark years..I couldn’t asked for anything more for EJAMI..GO EJAMI!!!
As someone that has been a fan of the good, the bad, and everything in between, and I do mean everything, I loved it! But what’s not to love about Ej and Samantha. They for me represent the under dog of Soap Couples. They may have taken seven long years to get to this point, but it was worth the wait. Ejami is best Days has ever had for me and I know it will only get better.
Loved it! Team EJami all day, everyday! 🙂
loved every second of it and I can’t wait to see what happens next
OMG EJAMI is getting ENGAGED!! SQUEEE!! Totally having a bit of a fan girl melt down with this one! I mean its been 7 LONG torturous years but its finally their time and their story!! Jamison just brings this duo to life on screen and has earned EJami a special place in my heart that was also residence to Luke and Laura back in the day. So happy for them, for us and for Days!!
I’m squeeing like a fangurl, Michael. It was everything I’d hoped for and more. I’ve waited 7 long years for this to happen. At last it has and I’m rocking and rolling! I love Ejami. They’ve captured my heart. And James and Alison bring their finest performances to it. They are definitely the next Super Couple on Days. #EJAMI #DAYS
I think the proposal and the romantic lunch was sweet!!! I think Sami is amazed and I think she will say Yes!!! This is a long time coming and as an Ejami fan I’m ecstatic !!!
This is a long waited event. EJami is the hottest couple on daytime tv. Days needs to definately be behind EJami LSB. I am waiting to participate in the live twitter session with James Scott and Alison Sweeneythis afternoon. This is a win win for all EJami fans.
I cannot stand to watch them together so I have been fast forwarding their scenes. So sad because James Scott is one of my favorite actors. The writers at Days seem to enjoy alienating a huge part of their audience with all these new, and oh so wrong, couples. I am giving this show 6 months to get back on track with some good story telling and couples with chemistry. If they can’t do it, after 45 plus years, I will be a former Days fan.
I agree completely
I agree as well.
I also fast forward through the Sami and EJ scenes. I can’t stand the two of them together. The show rewrites history so much that many new comers have no idea about what really has gone on between the two of them through the years. Give me the old Days like I’ve watched since that very first half hour show. There was real romance back then. There were also real super couples with relationships built on love, trust, respect, and chemistry. Super couples happened over time instead being manufactured like the ones that are now being shoved down our throats.
EJAMI is not your typical soap couple, and that’s why I love them. I think that the proposal was perfect, because it showed just how much EJ loves her. Yes, he could’ve taken her somewhere like Paris, but it would’ve been more about the location than the proposal. The point for EJ was to let Sami know he loves her, and accepts that her family will be a part of the package. EJAMI is a different kind of super couple, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.
OMG…it was the sweetest, tenderest most loving proposal ever. I don’t know what Sami said, but I was screaming yes, yes, yes!!
I can not get enough of these two! I need more Ejami on a daily basis!
JS could make proposing to a paper bag romantic. EJami is the reason I watch Days. They are the most compelling couple on not just daytime, but all of television.
The show was wonderful. EJami is the real deal this time. James Scott and Alison Sweeney have great acting chemistry and romantic chemistry. I could watch them everyday. EJami is engaged.
I have only been watching Days since AMC was cancelled..but I luv EJ & Sami..I love two people who are not perfect but really sexy together..hate couples that are too perfect..noone is like that ..unless they are lying…
Best line today
Lucas: “You really outdid yourself EJ, a proposal at the Pub”
LOL
Sweet, sweet Ejami scenes these last two episodes! They were beautiful. Ejami were honest, tender, vulnerable, funny, and sexy as hell. Thank you to TPTB for finally bringing us to this wonderful place with them. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
OMG these scenes were amazing and beautiful. The acting was flawless, as Ej said “perfect”. I can’t think of any other scene on TV that has ever been that romantic. I was in tears, and holding my breath the whole time. Gorgeous writing and acting. Sami’s insecurities were so true to character that it didn’t feel like a set up for tension, just a woman discovering true love. And Ej’s impatience and illusions to how long he waiting were breathtaking and heart wrenching. I LOVED IT. I can’t imagine it being any more perfect. This is a scene I’ll remember… Read more »
IT WAS FANFUCKINGTABULOUS!!! I cried, laughed, held my breath, sighed cried some more and smiled –and even though I had to wait HOURS to see the ending on Soapnet I felt like this one was perfect -it was beyond perfect and I applaud the writers, James & Ali for giving us this wonderful gift!
Congrats all EJAMI fans. Hope they make it this time.
I loved it! You could tell EJ was nervous, he really wanted everything to go right this time. It was so sweet how Sami was having a mini-meltdown and then apologized for ruining his moment…LOL! I just love these two, and it shows how even though they have had a rocky past, their feelings were never indifferent. Hatred is a passionate feeling too, and so even when they had their issues it came from a place of passion. I’m anxious to see them develop more as a couple, because if I know my EJami, things will be bumpy! But I… Read more »
I totally agree! Seeing EJ nervous was so cute! Just when I think JS can’t get any sexier there he is again…
Hate EJami. Happy for the fans of the couple, but I find them painfully boring. Sami is just a slut. Her saying no other men have loved her? The writing is very forced and these two are on too much, like Dannifer. Sorry, but will not be watching. I’d rather see the vets in some stories than more EJami crap.
Agree
Totally agree.
Loved it! They belong together. If they can get through what they been through before marriage they should survive being married. Love there love scenes.
Barf! This is the sickest coupling the show has ever done. A rapist and his victim should never be put together romantically. The second slap in the face was the twit telling EJ he was a good father to Ally. He put an imposter in her house to rape her mother and terrorize her. Lucas going along with Ally living in the mansion is equally as sick. They need to force Will to man up and not sacrifice Ally in the process. Then again tptb have ruined so many characters for this story it’s almost unwatchable.
I agree.
Totally agree SarahBeth!!!!!
Didn’t watch…This show isn’t worth my time and energy to say what I really think!
I’m not watching anymore either.
Hated it! The writers at Days and their selective memory irritate the heck out of me. The lock, stock and barrel couple’s true history is completely erased and Rafe and Lucas get thrown under the bus to prop them. If Elvis and Samantha have to be a couple then just do it without writing lies about Samantha’s history with Lucas and Rafe.
History gets shoved aside for every character. What about Lucas sending Sami to die on death row? Every couple has done awful stuff to each other. That’s how most soaps create angst for them. I say that if you looked at this couple without obsessing about their past, you’d see the chemistry and the great dynamic that exists. Get over it….
If Sami and EJ were such and “it” couple, there wouldn’t be a need to trash the Rafe/Sami relationship with the utter falsehood of her being with Rafe only to please her family. There wouldn’t be a need to shut Lucas out of the storyline involving his son and grandchild in favor of propping up the Sami/EJ relationship. That’s not “obsessing about their past”; that’s just two examples of how the writers have lazily slapped this storyline together just to appease a particular fanbase instead of focusing on true storytelling and good quality writing. To address the re-written history…yes, history… Read more »
He didn’t send her to death row, Kate framed her. Lucas didn’t set out to harm Sami like EJ did, he only meant to save his mother’s life. Lucas lost his memory in a car wreak while she was on death row. When Lucas remembered Kate told Lucas she found someone who would confess to the murder and free Sami. Lucas didn’t say anything because he believed her. He returned when he found out Kate was lying and Sami would be put to death. It took years for Lucas and Sami to work through everything and forgive each other, that’s… Read more »
Well Polly I don’t think I will “get over it” as you so eloquently put it.
If you read my post you should have seen that it is all of the character’s history being forgotten or trashed that I referred to – and in addition as I wrote – I do not give a rats patootie if Samantha and Elvis are “together” so you just enjoy your honest and truthful couple.
Loved. Every bit of it. These. Two actors just work so well and flawlessly together. What a gift James Scott is to the acting world. Its been a. Long difficult wait. But oh how. Sweet. It is. Thank you Days for giving this couple the green. Light.
We DONT CARE… Can we talk about something else now.
#Love! Yes, Yes, Yes! I’m over the moon happy that Samantha accepted EJ’s proposal to marry him and is now wearing his ring. I’m pleased it happened at the Pub and had significance (as EJ explained to both her and, most especially, to Caroline- the scenes of which I thought were sweet, him kissing her hand). EJami! Yes, Indeed.
It is really too sad to see Sami reduced to an amnesiac, who has forgotten the cruelties heaped on her and her family by the DiMeras, but in particular to her by EJ. Kidnapping their daughter, taking her children away, making her tell them she no longer loves them, faking deportation, pretending to inject her IV with poison to kill her children. Please note that the elephant in the room is still the manner in which Johnny was conceived. And to hear Sami claim no one else really loved her!!! Yep, she is suffering from a huge loss of memory.… Read more »
Not to mention Sami shooting EJ in the head. Both have amnesia. These two do not belong together in any way shape of form.
One word : Disgusting.
The rapist and the tramp….a match made in hell!!!! I can’t even watch this train wreck of a show anymore. These two are taking the ratings into the toilet….goodbye Days!!!
give me Lucas Horton.
I wonder if the writers and Corday is afraid their nose might grow from all the lies they tell us fans LOL
I loved the proposal scenes. EJ’s proposal was simple and heartfelt, and Sami’s reservations were realistic and understandable. James Scott and Ali Sweeney always bring genuine emotion to these big moments between EJ and Sami. Wonderful payoff for Ejami fans after waiting for 7 years!
loved it ratings are up and that because of Ejami days and NBC know what most people want to watch and that couples like Ejami last year when Safe did nothing but tank the ratings along with Ecole and even Lumi when they is alot Ejami your always see a bump for example grief sex all time high for Days. Sami is finally with a man that truly loves her and Ali and James simply magic together so looking to the Ejami love story the proposal was so romantic i knew she say yes.
ratings rose for the wedding reveal than fell again. Ratings always fall when ejamie are on. There was a freefall of ratings when ejami was on in 2008 and over 400,000 thousand people have stopped watching since the olympics cliffhanger
Yes Days lost 400,000 viewers when they put Rafe back in Sami’s orbit and viewers thought they were going to reunite. Then week after week while it looked like Safe was heading back together, ratings dropped. It was an obvious bait and switch. Viewers thought they were going to finally see EJ and Sami together, but instead they got a wet sock to the face named Rafe LOL. The week after the cliffhanger Days had great ratings, and EJami were making out and making sexy eyes at each other and viewers tuned in. So no, Ratings don’t always all when… Read more »
Days ratings this week are up and Ejami was on alot there no Safe or Lumi they are the wealk links when they not on the ratings go up just leave Ejami in peace and if give them a story and take that Lucas and rafe away from them no one wants to watch those boring characters.
Paul ignore those who claim EJami are killing the ratings. They don’t deal in facts but make belief. They think if they say it enough that TPTB will listen to them and give them what they want. What they don’t seem to understand is that TPTB actually have sense and know how to read ratings LOL. EJami was on screen and ratings went up. That’s the complete opposite of killing ratings, in fact Days actually gained viewers. I guess some need to learn how to read ratings instead of making up nonsense.
the engagement was everything I hoped and beyond. We ejamis are very excited for our couple. Ej made me cry the way he poured his heart out to Sami, the love of his life. So sweet and heartfelt. When Sami finally said yes, she made Ej the happiest man in the world. Ej finally gets the girl and We are celebrating. Congratulations Ejami.