The Devil made off with Ben and Ciara’s newborn son! Craig left town while Leo sought his revenge. And TR tried to lure Paulina away as the walls closed in on him.

Our TV Fanatics, Jack and Christine, are joined by Horizon from MyHourglass, a Days of Our Lives fan forum to debate the Devil’s plan for baby Weston, if Sonny has feelings for Leo, if Abe should give Paulina another chance, and who deserves to be Days of Our Lives’ Performer of the Week?

Devil Allie helped deliver Ciara and Ben’s baby and then stole him. React!

Horizon: No question, the visuals, and atmosphere were terrific. When clueless Ciara finally learned the truth about “Allie,” there was a flame from the fireplace burning behind her.

This storyline has always given me the creeps, but Allie was especially creepy as she pretended to be caring when in fact, she was advancing her sinister plans.

It was cruel of “Allie” to withhold the newborn from mama Ciara, but since the baby thieving plotline has apparently been the Devil’s main motivation for returning to Salem, the possibility of this long and often silly storyline could be coming to an end which is more than welcome at this point.

Jack: Sadly, I’m not surprised by this. I’m fully expecting Ben to lament that this is his karma for doing the same thing to Abby (in the same cabin, to boot!) I only hope that Allie is caught and exorcised before she can harm Ben and Ciara’s baby and that we find out what the Devil wanted with it in the first place.

Christine: This was more compelling than expected. Ciara looked truly devastated when she was told Ben was dead. Then she looked emotionally wrecked as Devil Allie stole her newborn son, while Ciara was too weak and exhausted from having just given birth to do anything about it.

Now, I just can’t wait to see her get her little boy back.

What did you think of Leo’s revenge against Chad and Abigail and Sonny’s reaction to it? Do you think there’s any bit of truth to Leo’s claim that Sonny is still hung up on him?

Horizon: I have no problem with Leo getting back at Chad and Abigail. Chad has been a horse’s ass for some time now, so he won’t get any sympathy from me.

The Sonny twist makes some sense. While it hasn’t been verified, it seems to me that Sonny’s wild sabotage plans directed at Craig and Leo smack of a secret jealous lover out for possessive spite and revenge.

Jack: I’m starting to wonder. Sonny is overly obsessed with messing with Leo. Leo lost Craig. Why isn’t that enough for Sonny?

I found Chad and Sonny insufferable in how they treated Leo. They were so gloat-y and obnoxious.

That said, that story in the Intruder shouldn’t affect Chad one bit. Nobody important should care that Chad was in drag, nor believe what they read in a trashy tabloid like the Intruder.

Christine: Chad and Abigail deserved to get smeared. Nothing Leo wrote was untrue. They went out of their way to wreck Leo’s relationship with Craig, and they did it as publically as possible.

And what is going on with Sonny? His intensity over breaking up Leo and Craig seemed odd from the start. But what bugged me was when Sonny basically laughed over Leo’s revenge against Chad. Chad only did all of this at Sonny’s request, and now Sonny laughs when his friends are publically humiliated.

And perhaps most will see this as a silly scandal, but plenty of companies wouldn’t want to deal with that and would pass Chad over if he came to them looking for a job. So Chad might want to make amends with EJ and get Dimera Enterprises back so he doesn’t become unemployed.

Craig is leaving Salem. Are you sad to see him go? And should Kayla get her job as Chief of Staff back?

Horizon: Very disappointed Craig is leaving town. His elegance was a welcome relief in a town not known for class. And I looked forward to him running the hospital and working with Dr. Tripp etc.

As for Kayla regaining her Chief of Staff position, I say hell no. I hope someone waltzes in at the last minute to preempt her coronation. I have seen enough of Kayla’s incompetence, and frankly, she doesn’t deserve such a lofty position.

It would be sweet if Tripp gets the job. Ha. His dad, Steve’s reaction alone, would make that an interesting proposition.

Jack: I’m disappointed. I like Craig, and I was hoping he would have more interactions with Tripp. It would drive Kayla up the wall if Craig was Tripp’s mentor at the hospital!

I don’t like it when they play musical heads of departments. It was silly when they did it with Hope, Rafe, and the Commissioner position, and now they’re doing it with Kayla and being Chief of Staff. I think she should retire and let someone new come in.

Christine: Previously, I hadn’t liked Craig. But once he was parted from Nancy, I began to enjoy him. Now, I’m sad to see him go, partly because I was rooting for him and Leo as a couple and because I liked Craig.

I was also hoping to see Craig mentoring Tripp at the hospital. With just a few scenes, you could see the actors had a nice dynamic, plus it could have gotten under Kayla’s skin, which could have been all sorts of fun!

I don’t care if Kayla gets the job back or not. It was boring when she had it before, but I don’t know who else could take it with Craig leaving.

Is Julie right? Should Abe take another chance at love with Paulina?

Horizon: I have never been a fan of Abe and Paulina as a couple, and I would be pleased if Days could find another love interest for amiable Abe.

Jack: I think that’s where we’re headed. I don’t mind. Paulina’s lies weren’t as bad as a lot of things that have happened in Salem, and she’s suffered enough for having lied about Lani’s parentage.

Maybe when Abe learns that his suspicions about TR were more than correct, he will understand why Paulina did what she did.

Christine: I’ve never been this couple’s biggest fan, but if he loves Paulina and they make one another happy, then yes. Life is too short. But Abe should make it clear to Paulina that they need to be honest with one another for this marriage to work.

What do you think TR’s plan is for Paulina on this weekend getaway?

Horizon: Since I have never warmed up to the TR as a baddie storyline, I don’t have a lot of interest in what transpires going forward. I will say, though, that with the Devil slyly causing mayhem at the cabin, TR is similarly hiding his sinister plans concerning Paulina.

Adding insult to injury here, and for the life of me, I find it hard to swallow, Paulina is ready to go away with TR at this early juncture. I know he wants to marry Paulina to get a hold of her money, so I am a bit vague on his plans regarding this trip.

Jack: Whatever it is, it’s not good. I have a feeling his plan is to force her into a quickie marriage, then kill her for the money.

Christine: I think he plans to threaten Paulina, or her grandkids, to get her to transfer a large sum of money into his accounts, and then he’ll kill her.

Since Paulina never spoke with Lani, no one will know that TR and Paulina are away together, so that could make it easier for him to cover his tracks.

Pick a Performer of the Week. Which actor did the best job this week in Salem?

Horizon: Xander and his subtlety revealing controlled reaction to Gwen at the police station gets my award.

Gwen deserves the silver medal here. Both have been nothing short of magnificent going back to the giant wedding catastrophe through to the fallout at the station.

Jack: I continue to be impressed by Sal Stowers. I never had much use for Lani before, but her emotional reactions to Eli’s coma saga have been nothing short of amazing.

As much as I loathe Gwen, Emily O’Brien is also doing terrific work showing both her pain and her calculating nature.

Christine: Emily O’Brien as Gwen was spectacular this week. As she sat handcuffed to that chair, Gwen ran the emotional gamut from hurt and devastated to cruel and villainous. O’Brien’s portrayal had me feeling empathy for the broken and twisted person Gwen has become, even if most of it was of her own doing.

What disappointed you the most this week on Days of Our Lives?

Horizon: Craig leaving Salem and smarmy Chloe getting to bask in her righteousness.

Jack: I was hoping the Devil story would wrap up quickly and wish it wasn’t still with us. I also wish Craig wasn’t leaving Salem. And what is wrong with Paulina? Why is she so easily falling back into TR’s trap?

Christine: What is up with Jennifer’s wardrobe? Since she returned, every outfit she’s worn has had me asking, “What is she wearing?” and not in a good way.

And as Kayla lamented losing her job while Marlena and Craig kept theirs, I was struck by the fact that her good friend Marlena hasn’t appeared to fight for Kayla to get her job back. It seems like a pretty unbalanced friendship to me.

What was your favorite quote, scene, or storyline this week in Salem?

Horizon: Unsurprisingly, Leo comes up with another nugget calling Chad and Abigail Jimmy and Tammy Faye for their successful mission to ruin two marriages.

The best scene, without a doubt, was Xander visiting Gwen at the police station. The raw emotional complexity at play here was worthy of a great old-fashioned novel or film. And I was moved when Gwen actually did something selfless for a change by telling Xander where Sarah’s serum was located.

Tailgating off that, the best storyline for me is the afterglow of Gwen and Xander’s break-up, along with the drama between Gwen and her family. I am intrigued and look forward to seeing where these storylines are heading.

Jack: Nancy had some funny lines in her interactions with Chloe and Clyde. I especially liked this one:

Nancy: I take it back. I wish I had broken every one of your metacarpals.
Clyde: Nancy, wait.
Nancy: Why? You didn’t call me. I know why. It’s because you didn’t want to date me but you were too much of a coward to say so.
Clyde: No. My son Ben went missing.
Nancy: I’m sorry. Is he okay?
Clyde: We found him eventually. He was chained up in the Dimera Crypt.
Nancy: The Dimera Crypt? What, did Stefano Dimera come back from the dead again?
Clyde: Not this time. It was the Devil. I know it sounds crazy but his wife is missing and the Devil has kidnapped her.
Nancy: Clyde, if you don’t want to go out with me, just say so. You don’t need to recycle old tales from the crypt!

I also liked Craig’s goodbye scene with Leo.

Christine: EJ talking to Rafe about his perceived failings as a father was a scene I never expected but loved. I don’t think we’ve ever witnessed EJ look so openly vulnerable or insecure.

And Leo and Craig’s final scenes were so heartfelt. I just wanted to hug them both.

Finally, I loved this Days of Our Lives quote between Abe and Julie…

Julie: Can I say one more thing?
Abe: Can anything stop you?
Julie: Of course not.

Okay, TV Fanatics, it’s your turn to tell us. What do you think the Devil’s evil plan is for Ben and Ciara’s baby? Were you rooting for Craig and Leo, or are you glad they’re over? And does Sonny have lingering feelings for Leo?

Hit that big, blue, SHOW COMMENTS button down below to tell us what you think, then check out Jack Ori’s Days of Our Lives review here at TV Fanatic.

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