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THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS: Jack and Nikki Hit Rock Bottom with Riveting Performances by Peter Bergman and Melody Thomas Scott

By Michael Fairman

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Photo: JPI

If you caught the Thursday, May 2nd episode of The Young and the Restless, you witnessed an extraordinary episode filled with two unforgettable performances, that without a doubt will be remembered for 2024’s year-end accolades and next year’s Daytime Emmys.

In what at times reminded us that we were watching a two-person stage play or Y&R’s version of the classic motion picture, Days of Wine and Roses, two addicts hit rock bottom.

The episode only featured Melody Thomas Scott and Peter Bergman. The set-up, Nikki has gone on a massive bender alone in a GCAC suite, with booze bottles everywhere, slurring her words, sweating, the works. Jack, who is Nikki’s sponsor, ex-husband and friend, finds her and tries valiantly to get her to stop drinking and to sober up. He wants to get them to an AA meeting, he wants to get her to rehab. Throughout, while she is self-loathing on herself, Jack is reciting to her all the things she has to live for including Victor, her children, her charity work, etc.

Photo: JPI

All of this is falling on deaf ears because all Nikki wants is for Jack to leave, so she can continue drinking and be left alone with her vodka bottles.

At one point, she shoves Jack and says, “You have to want to get sober, but I don’t.”  Nikki throws an empty vodka bottle in disgust and tells him to stop with his damn positivity. She wants him to leave and smugly says,“You really think you can fix me?” She finds another bottle and opens it, but it’s empty. She smashes the bottle on the floor and runs into the bathroom.

Jack continues to plead with her that she is not to blame about Jordan and for Harrison being kidnapped. Trying to distract her, he talks to her about happy times with her family, orders food and coffee and water to help sober her up, but nothing is getting through to Nikki.

Next, Nikki says all his talking is making things worse, as he tries to grab the vodka bottle from her hands, but she won’t let it go. “I’m sorry I picked you as my sponsor,” Nikki angrily says to Jack. That moment stings Jack.  She tells him he ‘failed’. He couldn’t help her and now Victor can say, “I told you so.”

Slowly, Jack is losing his grip, with all the frustration and hurt Nikki has thrown at him. Nikki tells Jack to join the party or get out. Jack says, “Fine. I will.” He grabs a bottle and pours a drink. “Wow, that’s smooth. I see you sprung for the triple-distilled.” Nikki sneers, “Do you really think you can get me to stop by drinking half of my supply?” Jack suggests they order some vermouth. “Let’s see if Ol’ Smilin’ Jack can have fun again.”

Next, in a harrowing moment, Jack dials his former drug dealer, Kieran, to make a delivery to the suite. Jack tells Nikki she’s right. “I’ve been wound too tight for too long. It’s time to get loose!” Nikki is shocked at what she is seeing.

Photo: JPI

Now, Nikki is trying to to get the vodka bottle out of Jack’s hands but he won’t let her take it. Jack pours another drink and says he’s been a failure as her sponsor so to hell with it. “Don’t you try your reverse psychology on me,” Nikki spouts. After doing a toast to their marriage, friendship and Jordan, Jack tells Nikki, everything is not all about her.

He goes into the hell he has been through with Harrison, Ashley, Diane and Kyle and Nikki.  He wants some relief! Nikki reminds him alcohol was never his problem. Jack says he needs something stronger. Just then, a knock comes at the door. Jack pushes Nikki away and a delivery comes from Jack with a bag of pills. Jack says ,”Now, this is what hits the spot.”

Nikki is freaking out, but Jack says he has to remember what it feels like. When he holds the pills in his hand, that gives him comfort. Jack is grateful for their bond. “I would do anything for you.” He says he will go to rock bottom with Nikki, so they can climb out together. Jack remembers Diane was worried that helping Nikki might tempt him back to the pills. He told her there was no chance. He says, “It would help everyone else if they didn’t have to deal with Mr. Uptight.”

Even after all that, Nikki wants Jack out of the room. “Too bad, you’re stuck with me,” Jack says. He pours another drink and takes a pill out of the plastic baggie. Jack puts the pill in his mouth as Nikki shouts, “No!” Jack wonders how it feels to know you’re unable to help someone you care about. With that, he takes a drink to swig down the pill.

Nikki thinks he faked taking the pill, so Jack takes another one “There’s something liberating about just giving up.” Jack sadly says he let her down as a friend, and as a sponsor. Jack now blames himself for her massive bender. As he continues to down the pills, Nikki says she’ll get sober and will have something to eat.

However, Jack says this feels too good to eat. He takes yet another pill. Nikki tells him to give her the pills, because he can’t mix them with alcohol. Nikki’s phone makes a noise, so Jack grabs it and pretends it’s Victor on the other end, and then does his impression of Victor raising his eyebrow. Jack wants to continue his party, as he gets higher on the pills. Nikki says she does need a meeting. Jack pulls her close and says, “Dance with me.” As Nikki, pulls away, Jack passes out on the sofa. Nikki screams and we fade to black.

All we can say is, what towering performances by Peter Bergman and Melody Thomas Scott, and a great script for them to play these scenes in. It was gut-wrenching and raw, and one of the best episodes on the soaps in a long time.

So, what did you think about Jack and Nikki hitting rock bottom? What did you think of Peter and Melody’s performances? Do you think Jack will now be back with a drug habit, while Nikki will finally sober up? Comment below.

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You’ve got to be kidding! What an insult to recovery and those who work hard to stay sober one day at time. Done with Y&R!

Bye bye

I’m sure both actors were great, but I hated that the entire episode was taken up by this storyline. Once (my recording) hit the 20 minute mark, I figured it was a stand-alone, and FF’d through the rest of it.
Can this story end now please since you have Peter & Melody’s Emmy reel for next year? Such an obvious ploy!
Today’s episode better be putting Nikki in rehab for the next month and getting Jack back on track.
Obviously this is JMHO, so please don’t jump all over me!

Honestly, it came across more like a budget dictated episode, reducing the overhead and trimming the cast even more than they usually do from day to day. With a B and C plot thrown in, better pacing would be achieved.

Onyx

I agree! I watched this episode today and it was riveting! I, and people I love, have had issues with alcohol/drugs and I think their performance was spot on. When Nikki called Jack out for still having his dealers number and he called her out for keeping vodka at the ranch, they pointed to their failures of coping with their addictions. Their love for one another was truly felt and I have never seen these two actors nail a scene like they did this whole episode. I hope to see them both get Emmy nominations for this, they deserve it.

I agree with your assessment and it’s too bad some of the other viewers couldn’t appreciate it. They just didn’t get or understand what it was all about, or what message they were giving and I say it was their loss.

The storyline of Jack taking narcotics to save Nikki is VERY IRRESPONSIBLE. How dare the writers glorify this !!! Y & R have sunk to a new low.

Sharon case the most popular actress on this pathetic show no where to be seen ! Pathetic but yet we see these people five days a week. Now wake up call if you have an alcoholic in the home you don’t have booze sitting around. Recovering means recovering you never tempt a alcoholic they are one drink away from it going back again ok anybody with a brain knows that so stay away from these stories you are too ignorant to know anything about this terrible disease

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THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Katie Kicks Bill to the Curb … for Now

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Bill and Katie

The future isn’t looking so bright for longtime loves Katie Logan (Heather Tom) and Bill Spencer (Don Diamont), when on the Wednesday, November 11 episode Katie wants Bill to leave and give her some space, and to stay away from her!

Katie explains she wanted none of this, but now her insecurity and fear of Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) and Bill has made it impossible. Bill pleads his case, “I was just trying to help” by speaking with Brooke. Katie tells him, well he didn’t, far from it, it’s all backfired in his face.

Bill insists to Katie that everything he did was for her and her sisters. Katie isn’t buying it. In her mind, Bill has always wanted to stick it to the Forresters. So what changed? She then asks him point blank, if he is still attracted to Brooke? Bill says “no,” but Katie said she wishes she could believe him. He tries to explain that him getting together with Brooke was to broker peace between the Logan sisters.

Katie

Courtesy/CBS

THE TRUST IS BROKEN

Katie speaks to how she is building her own company, making something of herself, and Bill says to her, “You don’t have to lose the people that you love to prove that you can win.”

Next, Katie is convinced Bill was flirting with Brooke because he texted Brooke a Stallion emoji (she has a point, no?). That reminded Katie of the worst time in her life when he was having an affair with her sister!

She points out how Brooke destroyed her life and took Will away from her and he was sent to boarding school, so why shouldn’t she strike back? Bill tries to point out again, that Katie is going to lose her sisters. But, a defiant Katie fires back, “If they can’t accept me for who I am … so be it!”

Next, Bill says he doesn’t buy it and becomes very emotional calling his wife, “my Katie”.  However, now in a puddle of tears, Katie says those words can’t fix everything. Seeing he is not getting anywhere, Bill walks towards the door and says, “I will hate being apart from you, but I’ll do it for you.”

He vows to never stop fighting for them. Katie’s says, “Goodbye, Bill.”  The music swells, Bill exits, and Katie crawls into a ball on the couch in a dramatic overhead shot to end the episode.

Photo: JPI

WEDDING BELLS?

In the same episode, it should be noted that Taylor (Rebecca Budig) asked Deacon (Sean Kanan) to re-propose to her, and this time she accepted.

It looks like Taylor or Deacon are headed down the aisle at some point, but not so fast, because Sheila (Kimberlin Brown) was flirting with Deacon, and she won’t take this news lying down.

Check out the emotional scenes featuring Heather Tom and Don Diamont below.

Now weigh-in: were you touched by the moments when Bill left his house to give Katie the space she says she needed over her feelings of betrayal by her husband and her sister, Brooke? How does this all end? Will Katie end up destroying everything in the process on her way to the top? Will she have a mental or physical crisis in days to come? Let us know your thoughts via the comment section.

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Dancing with the Stars

DANCING WITH THE STARS: A Shocking Elimination on Grammy Night Leaves Ballroom Silenced

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In what could only be the stunner of this season of Dancing with the Stars, the Tuesday night, November 1o episode saw one of the heavy favorites Jenna Dewan and pro partner Val Chmerkovskiy eliminated right before next week’s all-important semi-finals for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy.

Week 9 was Grammy night, where the contestants performed routines related to the Grammy Awards with songs that have either won or been nominated for the music industry’s highest prize.

After each couple performed their usual routine, they had to dance a second time vs, another couple doing the same dance style. Only Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson earned immunity from having to participate in it.

Dancing with the Stars

Photo: ABC

THE RESULTS

When all was said and done during the results portion of the show; the following couples were deemed safe and will dance another day: Shum Jr. and Johnson, Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov, Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach, Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas, and Connor Wood and Rylee Arnold.

That left former Y&R actress Tatyana Ali (ex-Roxanne) and Jan Ravnik and Dewan and Chmerkovskiy in the bottom two. It was then revealed that Jenna and Val would be going home. The ballroom fell silent and Dewan said her “thank you’s “in the most gracious way about her dance journey.

Dewan is a dancer, having worked professionally with the likes of Janet Jackson (who also popped up in a special message to her former back-up dancer in the episode) while currently being an actress, and appearing as a series regular on The Rookie. Chmerkovskiy has been controversial figure all season especially after being suspended one week after comments made towards judge Carrie Ann Inaba.

BREAKING THEIR SILENCE

This begs the question: did America want the couple gone, because they had an unfair advantage with Dewan’s dance prowess, or did the show want the couple booted off too?

Later, Jenna and Val broke their silence on the elimination to Extra. Chmerkovskiy shared “It’s’ definitely a sad result. I thought we had a great season.” Dewan admitted, “I know this was a particularly tough week for a lot of the online noise … but I know that we went out there and had the best time of our life.”

Val is married to pro dancer, Jenna Johnson, who remained in the top slot on the leaderboard during the competition with Harry Shum Jr. However, she also had a bad week breaking her nose in rehearsal!

Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET and next day on Hulu.

So were you happy, or sad to see Jenna and Val voted off of Dancing with the Stars? Of the remaining couples who do you hope make it from the semi-finals to the finals and hoists the Mirrorball Trophy? Weigh-in via the comment section.

 

 

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Recaps

‘The Bold and the Beautiful’s’ Heather Tom Delivers the ‘Power Performance of the Week’

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Heather Tom

Six-time Daytime Emmy winner, Heather Tom, while not taking the gold at the recent Daytime Emmys for Lead Actress, which would have been a record-breaking victory for an actress; should be prepared that in 2027, she has to be near to a lock take that award home!

In the last few months Michael Fairman TV has named her weekly performances as Power Performance of the Week, and for the week of November 2-6, she has done it again!

How did she earn the honors? Well, quite simply, this version of Katie Logan that is being written and portrayed beautifully, has given the character infused live, a backbone, a woman so tired of being put-upon and wronged, that she is firing back in such major ways that her own family doesn’t recognize her behavior.

Katherine Kelly Lang

Photo: JPI

KATIE AND BROOKE HAVE A SEISMIC SHOWDOWN

Longtime viewers of The Bold and the Beautiful can make a very compelling case that the behavior is justified. Then, on the November 4 episode, Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) and Katie have another major confrontation. Katie is irate that Brooke phoned Bill Spencer (Don Diamont) in an effort to help Bill get through to her to back off the way she is destroying Forrester Creations, in what appears to be Katie’s poaching of the design team, and her ramped up vendetta against Brooke.

However, let’s not forget, Brooke and their sister, Donna (Jennifer Gareis) disowned Katie from the family just a few months ago too! Now in this showdown, Katie rips into Brooke after Brooke attempts to reason with her. Brooke even pulls out the “Stormy” card, reminding viewers that Katie has Storm’s heart. She snipes, “Do you really think he’d be proud of you right now?”

In that moment, Katie chokes up and is struck by that statement, but defends her actions and says Storm would be proud of her. Brooke goes in on if Storm would approve of the way she has gone about building her Logan fashion house design team, which to many seem like cutthroat tactics, Brooke even tells her “Bill is worried.”

Katie snaps after that comment and begins to show her disgust and emotional wounds from how Brooke slept with Bill years ago, especially when she goes in on the the text message Brooke sent to Bill and the use of a stallion emoji. Brooke claims it meant nothing, but Katie shuts her down and shuts her up! Reminding her sister, how she destroyed everything.

Heather Tom

Photo: JPI

KATIE NEVER FORGOT HOW BROOKE SLEPT WITH BILL

Brooke reminds Katie that she had postpartum depression at the time, and she “pushed” her and Bill together. Katie begins to cry, “How could you not know something was profoundly wrong?”

Katie says while she was suffering, Brooke was off in Aspen having sex with Bill. She says of her sister, “You take what you want, and it doesn’t matter who gets hurt and whose life gets destroyed.” She then snipes what was her sister’s excuse the second time?

Then, in the masterful moment in the performance, as sister Donna walks into the showdown, Katie warns Brooke to not EVER talk to her again about morality, or ever accuse her of stealing anything from her, when “You are the master!”

BROOKE’S PAST WILL ALWAYS BE THROWN IN HER FACE

Next, Katie throws down the line Stephanie Forrester called Brooke all the years of their feud, “You are just a slut from the valley.” She punctuated it to both her sister, “We all know she’d sell her soul for a little male attention.'”

Katie tells Brooke she will never apologize to Bill, adding, “And I will never forgive you for this. I am so done with you, and if you’re going to stand next to her (aimed at Donna), then I am done with you too.” As the scene came to its conclusion, Katie told Brooke and Katie to, “stay away from me, stay away from my family, and stay away from Bill.”

Throughout all the scenes, Heather Tom displayed why she is one of the fiercest actresses in daytime drama. This storyline has afforded Tom the opportunity to show all of Katie’s inner rage built over years as she finally lets it out on those who wronged her. For anyone who has been made to feel the weaker sibling in a family, Tom is showing the cause and effect of what can happen to someone after years of feeling put down.

For all the reasons stated above, Michael Fairman TV names Heather Tom our selection for Power Performance of the Week. You can check out part of Heather’s emotional turn in the video clip below.

Now let us know, do you agree with our pick of Heather Tom for the Power Performance of the Week? What do  you think about how Katie is being written in this storyline? Do you think Heather has secured the Lead Actress Emmy in 2027? Weigh-in via the comment section.

 

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