Right off the bat this week on Days of Our Lives, we saw a fun scene where Cat was on the phone in Horton Square, and we saw the feet of a nicely dressed man creeping up on her. As if she had ESP, she sensed it! It demonstrates that her skills as a former ISA agent are still sharp. Turned out it was Shane who confirmed (for the viewers), “What? No ‘hello’ for your old boss?” We learned that Kate was a former ISA analyst, and he basically told her she had no choice but to go back to work for them. This is going to lead to some cool stories.
But one of the big things this week was that we finally got an explanation about Johnny’s involvement in EJ’s shooting. Roman and Marlena confronted him and asked him point-blank if he did it. Roman mentioned that he knew Johnny had taken his gun that night. Essentially, Johnny went to the mansion, pointed the gun at EJ, but ultimately couldn’t pull the trigger. He gave the gun to EJ and left. Somehow, somebody got hold of it and used it to shoot EJ, then dumped it in the planter. Roman noticed that one bullet was missing when he found it. The plot sickens…I mean, thickens!
Also, Johnny and EJ got closer to reconciliation. Jonny revealed to EJ that he wasn’t the one who shot him. EJ was saddened, confused, and happy all at the same time. When Johnny realized the lengths his father went to in order to protect him from getting charged with attempted murder, you could see his attitude toward him soften through teary eyes. Then, they hugged, and it was an outstanding moment.
The other big thing was Rafe encountering Cat, who was at the ISA meeting spot. He introduced himself as her new partner. I was like, “Whaaaaat?!?” He joined the FBI, and they’re working on an inter-agency task force. They’re looking into how EJ was able to fund his offer for the hospital, suspecting that he used illegal funds to do so.
It was great seeing Philip and Xander come to a tenuous ceasefire. Xander claimed to have felt sorry for losing control, and Philip wanted to get their father’s company back on track. I’m glad they were able to get past Xander’s egregious blunder, and now Philip’s going to be on his guard all the time. But hopefully, they’ll work well together once again and might actually truly become brothers. Maybe they needed Philip to screw up with the whole Versavix thing and Xander to beat him to a pulp for them to realize they’re stronger if they’re united.
One nice thing was the wedding of Andrew and Paul. It was bittersweet because John couldn’t be there, but it was a happy, uplifting time after the iconic hero’s demise. No one got shot or gassed, and no explosions went off, so I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not. Paul got to wear John’s treasured watch, which was a nice touch. It made Marlena happy to know that he was wearing something his late father loved. But, afterwards, Shane offered Paul a job in DC so he and Andrew could be close. I’m hoping that means we’ll get to see them more and watch them work together with Cat and Rafe!
And despite Xander’s best attempts, the hospital board approved EJ’s proposal. However, the week ended with Johnny getting arrested because Rafe shared his intel with Jada! Oh no!
LOOSE ENDS
Alex told Stephanie that they could publish her book under a pseudonym. She asked him if he thought they could really keep it a secret. It’s a soap opera. The secret won’t stay secret for very long.
EJ said to Johnny, “If you didn’t shoot me, then who did?” A question that will take some time before it’s answered. With Johnny now a prime suspect, folks are going to have to act fast to clear his name! I wonder if whoever shot him is connected to the dude taking photos of Doug’s women friends? It’s doubtful, but if they’re that good at taking bribe-worthy pics, maybe they took pics of the shooter, at least.
I love how John and Gabi are standing there at Gabi Chic, having a brainstorming session. Wouldn’t you want to sit at a table so you could take notes? I mean, I know it was an informal meeting because Johnny walked in and explained to her that he’s now in charge of that division, but come on.
Nicole was mentioned as being at the wedding, but we didn’t see her. What’s the deal with that? They need to rehire Arianne Zucker. Her character growth was amazing, and it was nice taking the journey with her.
We got a brief shot of Gabi, standing outside the DiMera mansion, hearing EJ and Johnny talk. Even though there’s a whole foyer between the door and the living room, you could hear them as if they were just on the other side of the door. I know it’s a nitpick, but really, folks. It seemed like a lazy plot device. They weren’t yelling that loudly and were a whole room away.
REFERENCES
Xander told Alex that he considered him the ‘Hand of the King.’ This was a term used in George R.R. Martin’s series, Game of Thrones. According to a fan on Quora, “The Hand appears to be a person who can sit on the throne and act like a king, whenever the king is off having fun — in a brothel or on a hunt.” It didn’t exist in real life, but in Medieval times, there weren’t Prime Ministers, so this position was somewhere between that and the King.
Johnny was being very pragmatic and frugal with Gabi Chic’s budget. That made me think that the filmmaker in him has studied famed director Roger Corman, who made millions by shooting his films on ridiculously low budgets. His creativity was so good that his movies are still loved generations later.
Alex referred to Johnny as ‘little Fincher,’ which I assume is a reference to director David Fincher. He’s well-known for the films Se7en (1995) and Zodiac (2007), among many others.
In a flashback, Johnny’s holding the gun at EJ and says, “Isn’t it obvious? I’m here to kill you.” That reminded me of the Doors song, The End, released in 1967. In it, a killer is walking through his house and comes upon his father. It goes, “And he came to a door, and he looked inside. ‘Father,’ ‘Yes, son?’ ‘I want to kill you.’ ” Creepy, but every time we see that flashback, it’s what I think of.
SHOT OF THE WEEK
Philip told Xander about how Kate explained that the guard in his room got mysteriously sick, walked away from his post, and Xander entered the room. Xander called it a coincidence, and Philip replied, “And was it a coincidence that when I woke up, you were standing over me holding a pillow? Certainly not trying to make me more comfortable.” He then made the kind of face one makes when they talk to a dog using a kiddie voice and said, “You were gonna smother me, weren’t you?”
LINE(S) OF THE WEEK
Cat was explaining to Shane what she went through after the accident that Clyde caused. “I was almost killed,” she said, adding, “Do you know how many surgeries I had to go through to reconstruct my face? To rehabilitate my entire body?” He replied, “Oh, of course I do. The ISA footed the Bill.”
Shane and Cat were talking about John, and she remarked that while she hadn’t met him, she knew he was a great man. Shane replied, “Oh, the world is a darker place because he’s not in it. That’s why the rest of us have to step up in his absence.”
Jennifer told Thomas that Uncle JJ probably had better things to do than play games with his parents and nephew. Thomas said, “No, he doesn’t. Gabi dumped him.”
“As we joined our hearts together now, and for all the days of our lives…“ That’s what Paul said when he was putting the ring on Andrew‘s finger, and it was another self-referential line. They seem to do that every couple of weeks or so.
Xander briefly spoke with Melinda about hiring her for his custody suit. He tried getting her to think outside the box and even asked her for “A Melinda Trask Special.” That just speaks for itself.
Gabi and Johnny tried figuring out how to work without a budget. She said, “[sighs] I swear, ever since those two morons took over, they’ve been out to get me. It’s like they want Gabi Chic to fail.” The morons she was hilariously referring to were Xander and Philip, obviously.
When EJ tried getting Kayla to call off the vote redo, she said, “Too late. Sorry. Not sorry.” I laughed out loud at that.
At one point, Philip said to Xander, “Fraud and attempted murder are not the same thing.” He’s not wrong.
REACTION OF THE WEEK
There were two good reactions this week. In the first one, Rachel inadvertently said Johnny‘s name when she was being probed about what she saw the night of EJ’s shooting, and Marlena said, “What does Johnny have to do with this?” Whoopsie!
Next, Johnny and EJ both had great reactions when each realized that EJ thought Johnny shot him. Johnny was suitably horrified by the accusation, and EJ was tremendously shocked and relieved when Johnny said he didn’t do it.
RANDOM THOUGHTS
Tony returned at the top of the week, so hopefully we’ll get to see the Count get embroiled in a juicy storyline.
So now it’s one secret on top of another secret, as Phillip’s not going to reveal to Sara that he’s the one who told Xander that she knew all about the forgery. Are you keeping score?
There was a cool intercutting scene where Sarah was talking to Justin on the phone (although we didn’t see him), and Xander was talking to Melinda. They were talking about going for full custody of Victoria, and the conversation intercut between Sarah and Xander, who were essentially having a nearly identical conversation with their attorneys. That was very creative and made the scene more interesting. And think about it, it saved a little time because we didn’t have to watch Sarah’s conversation only to have it repeated with Xander.
It was so cute when Xander — well, when Sara allowed Xander to see Victoria, who’s now almost 3 years old. It was nice the way he talked to her and made her smile. This might be a sign that reconciliation is not too far down the road for them.
PARTING THOUGHTS
I’m very excited about the fact that Cat’s being pulled back into the ISA. She’s almost like an older version of General Hospital’s Josslyn Jacks (Eden McCoy), who’s a rookie spy and is navigating her way through keeping a dual lifestyle. I’m looking forward to seeing what adventures she goes on. Ultimately, what I would like to see is Cat saving Salem, and Jack and Jennifer realizing what she did and changing their tune about her.
And having her and Rafe team up is going to be exciting to watch! I believe I was just saying in last week’s Days of Our Lives 2 Scoops that the show needs to infuse new, younger spy blood into its stories, and that’s exactly what’s happening! Bravo, DAYS!
OUTRO
Thanks for joining me once again, DOOL-ers! Remember, don’t burn your bridges at both ends! Until next time!
