The Boring and the Over-Propped
I’m just gonna say it… This past week, there were some dreadfully boring episodes, or portions of episodes, featuring talk, talk and more talk… and dry talk at that. I wondered if it was just me thinking that way but quickly discovered that I wasn’t alone. Legions of fans were complaining and, worse, fast-forwarding. Young & Restless has a significant issue on its hands here. For those not in the loop, this is referring to the scenes featuring a lot of Billy and Kyle complaining and a metric ton of discussion involving and/or about Claire. More on that later. Here’s a sampling of posts on the matter:
Gawd this is a snooze today #YR
— Vickie🐕🐈🐇📚🤬🇺🇦 (@vik1958) December 17, 2024
WARNING: Tomorrows US episode is excruciatingly boring. #YR
— ❤️Jennifer💚 (@YR_JenniferNYC) December 17, 2024
The Abbott house got decorated for Christmas quickly!! Was there a magic wand involved? This episode is a snoozer #YR
— Tanya 🎄🎅 – 9-1-1 in 76 days!! (@tanyawudk) December 17, 2024
Circling back to the Claire problem, not only is the character being pushed to an astounding degree, but she’s not even a realistic character. As I’ve complained many times, there’s no way a person raised as she was would be so free of issues. As others have lamented, she’s also being written like a teenage girl, which would be fine except they want us to believe that this is the person that the thrice-married Kyle Abbott is dating. There have been way too many conversations about her new job, her doubts, her reflections about Harrison, the minuatae of her life… it’s boring. That said, she remarked that her life is perfect and she loves it, which is a sure sign that it’s all about to collapse around her. I can’t wait because we certainly can’t go on like this much longer. Here’s what Young & Restless viewers had to say:
They should just rename the show “Everyone loves Claire”. The level of propping is insane #YR
— Di (@dahtvlover) December 17, 2024
#YR this Claire propping is bringing everyone down.
— Michelle Paden (@mpaden2002) December 17, 2024
Why is Claire acting like she’s in 8th grade? #YR
— MPH (@fastmake11) December 18, 2024
Don’t Look Now, But There’s a Hole In Your Story
The Sharon/Heather/Ian/Jordan stuff is bringing pretty much the only drama, but even it has become frustrating. We finally got an explanation for Sharon’s behavior… but we still have questions. Such as:
Sooo, Sharon’s meds were tampered with causing her to commit insane crimes and act crazy but yet she still had a her senses to act normal in front of her family #yr
— 💙TMC❤ (@TMCforever) December 17, 2024
Anywho, now that we know that Ian and Jordan are behind it all, and Sharon is starting to recover her memories, it should all be over soon, right? Wrong! We were promised lotsa twists and turns in this plot, so it’s not likely to be as straightforward as Sharon remembering that she saw Jordan in the apartment. It’s a sure bet that Ian and Jordan will wreak a whole lot more havoc before they’re caught (or they turn on each other). I wouldn’t be surprised if they make an attempt on Sharon’s life. Can you believe they’re getting romantically involved now?! Be sure to let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Odds ‘n’ Ends
I felt stirrings of emotion when Jack got misty-eyed over Dina, but I also feel like they’re trotting out the flashbacks quite regularly to make viewers feel something. It’s worth noting that the new material is not evoking the same response… I’m looking forward to meeting Nate’s brother, Damien. I hope he’s a real pot-stirrer… Billy plotting revenge on Victor this week just felt so incredibly tired. How is he not exhausted just living in his own skin? We’ve watched variations on the same plot for years with this character. I might actually be up for his revenge scheme if I thought he and Phyllis had a snowball’s chance in hell of besting Victor. That would be something different at least.
The opinions expressed are my own. Please feel free to join the conversation about this week’s Young & Restless in the comments.