They say that the more things change, the more they stay the same. It's true for Thomas, who went from designing in the CEO's office to coloring Vinny's takeout menus. I exaggerate, but Thomas' life has completely changed -- and not for the better. Unfortunately, when faced with losing his career, his child, and his family, Thomas reverted to the same old lies, manipulations, and bullying that got him ostracized in the first place.
The more things change, the more they stay the same for Ridge, too. He still believes that Thomas can be redeemed, even though Thomas and his manipulations have destroyed Ridge's relationship with Brooke at least three times. Thomas also had the foul taste to design that sea monster gown for HFTF. For that alone, he should be permanently banned from Forrester.
Remember when Ridge forced Hope to toast to Liam and Steffy after that hideous mountain wedding? Just like when Ridge pressured Hope to get over that wedding betrayal, he now expects Steffy to take that same type of deep, cleansing breath regarding her brother. The pain is still raw for Steffy, and Thomas has done zero penance. In fact, he just gets angrier because forgiveness is becoming so inconvenient. Will Ridge ever listen to his family members or just smack them over the head with Thomas until they go brain dead with acceptance?
Speaking of smacks, judging by Shauna's post-slap smile, it appears that the Slut from the Desert (SFTD) likes pain. If she goes near Ridge again, she'll earn herself another delicious smackdown from the SFTV. Brooke is on a slapping rampage that rivals Stephanie, who I lovingly dub the Slut from the Hills (SFTH). From Brooke to Stephanie, it takes one to know one, and Shauna is definitely one.
Let's get two scoops deep into whether Ridge will feel the same way about forgiveness once he learns that Thomas exposed Ridge's secret to Brooke. Will the SFTD take all this "smack" off the SFTV? We'll ponder how Brooke's self-righteous stand about Beth, Hope, and Douglas turned so "self-wrongeous" when she forced her man to choose between his wife and his son this week on the Bold and the Beautiful.
This week, Ridge has got ninety-nine problems, and a bitch is one. A punk bitch of a son, to be precise. I can think of stronger words to describe Thomas, but I'm trying to not offend people any worse than Thomas has done himself. What has Thomas done now? Terrorized women and children, intimidated Forrester employees, scared the mousse out of Vinny's hair, and set Ridge up to lose his wife.
Thomas did all of this while claiming to be making amends, folks. Imagine what he will do if he is after you. Just ask Emma. Oh, wait...we can't, can we?
Thomas has the audacity to be frustrated at Steffy for still being mad at him. Like a child, he complained that he'd already tried with Steffy, and she just wasn't ready. When she spit facts to him about his treatment of Douglas, he tried to walk out of her house. Maybe Thomas is the one who isn't ready, Ridge. Thomas isn't ready to rejoin the human race.
Ridge has got to be blind and deaf not to understand that Thomas isn't sorry, Thomas hasn't changed, and Taylor shouldn't even be hired as a dog therapist. It's disheartening that Ridge neglects to listen to Liam about Douglas' fear of his father. It was ludicrous for Ridge to ask Brooke to just let him handle Thomas. It's baffling that Ridge's idea of healing his family is to pressure Steffy into forgiving Thomas.
Forcing siblings to face each other, say they are sorry, and play nice worked when Steffy and Thomas were kids and Thomas had just popped the head off Steffy's Barbie doll; however, letting Steffy cling to a baby and family that he knew belonged to Hope, just for a shot at Hope, was selfish and despicable.
Just imagine how much worse it would be if Steffy knew that Thomas pimped her out to a drugged Liam just to seal the deal! The information probably wouldn't faze Ridge, who protects Thomas to everyone's detriment. If Ridge knew about the pills, he'd probably tell Liam, "It's not so bad. You enjoyed it, right?"
For Ridge to achieve true healing with his kids, he should start with getting Thomas to understand the pain he caused Steffy, not by pushing Steffy to accept Thomas' excuses. Her pain stems not from what strangers did to her but from what the person she loved and trusted did. Thomas must discover empathy for his victims, something sociopaths sorely lack. Maybe he can learn some empathy if Hope keeps his son from him the way he kept her child from her.
Maybe Ridge takes forgiveness for granted because he has had to give and receive it many times in his life. Ridge is numb to it. For him, forgiveness is a formality in the pursuit of normalcy. That's probably why he readily forgave Brooke for pushing Thomas and assumed everything should be good between Brooke and Thomas as a result of Thomas clearing her in the cliff incident.
Will Ridge react predictably when he realizes that, while he's been putting himself on the line to redeem Thomas, Thomas has been throwing Ridge and his marriage under the bus to gain an advantage over the Logans. The story of Thomas using Douglas to get what he wants is incredibly tragic, and it comes as no surprise that Thomas would abuse Ridge's trust just as flagrantly.
Ridge is keeping an explosive secret for Thomas, and that is Thomas' confession about Emma. It's nothing short of vile that Thomas used power that does not belong to him to pressure Danny into outing Ridge's secret about Shauna. We can only hope that, unlike many of Thomas' sins, this one will be exposed and finally cause Ridge to see Thomas for what he is, a recalcitrant sociopath.
On a different note, the aftermath and forgiveness storyline is disconcerting because it's segmented. Characters involved rarely interact in isolation. For example, Ridge and Brooke make decisions about Hope, Liam, Steffy, and Thomas' lives without even consulting them. Ridge hears about Douglas' anxiety but doesn't personally talk to Douglas. Brooke expresses fears about Thomas but fails to mention to Ridge that Thomas was at the house, threatening her and her family.
Perhaps in some twisted way, Brooke and Thomas did each other a solid with their silence. Brooke didn't rat him out about his threats against the Logans, and Thomas didn't squeal on her for slapping him even more crazy. Will Shauna do Brooke a solid, or will Shauna flounce over to Forrester -- where Brooke ordered her not to go -- and tell Ridge all about the slut slapdown fest between her and Brooke?
Remember when I said last week that Brooke was protecting her family one slap at a time? Shauna Fulton became the next person on Brooke's slap list. Will Shauna take Brooke's slap as a warning or a provocation?
Move over, Brooke. There's a new slut in town. She's from the desert. She's parched and looking to quench her thirst with a tall drink of Ridge Forrester.
This week, Brooke defined a slut as a woman who doesn't know who the father of her baby is without medical confirmation. That makes Stephanie Forrester the OG slut. With love, I crown her the Slut from the Hills. The wise SFTH proclaimed that Brooke was the Slut from the Valley. Keeping with tradition, Brooke has named the newest blonde to threaten the Forrester dynasty the Slut from the Desert.
When Stephanie passed the Forrester Matriarchy and sluttery to Brooke, she also gave Brooke the power of the slap. This mighty power, if left unchecked, can knock the earrings off the receiver. The question is, upon receiving the sacred slut-shaming slap, will Shauna bounce back like a true ho and land in Ridge's bed? Or, for her daughter's sake, will she refrain from bedding her baby uncle-in-law and thereby adding to the tabloid fodder?
A slut's gonna slut, and to be worthy of the SFTD title, Shauna is obligated to, at the very least, get caught crawling all over Ridge. She could wind up accidentally in the steam room or lock herself in an elevator with Ridge. A good start in her new job role would be to gloat to Brooke about this kiss. If Shauna refrains from kissing and gloating, it might garner her some sympathy from this scooper. She has won over many viewers already just by calling Brooke out for her hypocrisy.
Here's what some Soap Central fans think about it:
"I don't necessarily want a Ridge/Shauna hookup; but I would love for Brooke to get a taste of not having everyone rushing to her defense. I want Shauna to get to throw shade and stand there innocently while Brooke claps back as Ridge and Eric are walking in. The way it always used to work for Brooke with Stephanie and Taylor" -- nykarenb
"I am TOTALLY LOVING Shauna! Her OTT trashiness cracks me up and the things she said to Brooke today had me howling!" -- veryoldatwtfan
"I just think it makes good drama, like the old days of the show, so I enjoyed it. I like Brooke 85% of the time but she has been being sanctimonious lately with calling Flo a tramp and now Shauna "a slut from the desert." That sounds pretty amusing actually. I don't dislike Shauna either because we need a bad girl on the show" -- Creata
I love Brooke all the time, but I have to agree that she has been laying it on a little thick with the slaps. I remember feeling the same way about Stephanie. The name-calling wasn't what irked me about Brooke this week. For me, Brooke went a bit far by virtually asking Ridge to choose between his children and his family with her.
I agree with Brooke on most issues, but it was a little hard for me to stand by her when she asked Ridge to go to Thomas and return with custody papers, signing Douglas over to Liam and Hope. I'm a fierce advocate for Douglas, but if Liam and Hope want custody, they need to file for it or talk to Thomas about it themselves.
It's not like Hope doesn't have grounds as Thomas' wife. I felt for Ridge when Brooke expected him to -- in addition to everything else he had to strip his son of -- ask Thomas to sign his child over, too. Instead of putting Ridge up to it, Brooke should have told Hope to go after custody of Douglas in a proper divorce.
Ridge wanted Brooke to stand behind him, let him straighten Thomas out, and have faith in her husband. On these issues, I empathize with Brooke. Ridge can't expect her to have faith that he and Taylor will finally find the solution to make Thomas stop nutting up. Right now, she can't even trust Ridge to sit straight on a bar stool, let alone straighten out Thomas.
Maybe Thomas is destined to roam the country like David Banner until he can finally find a cure for his crazy. He sure can't get the help he needs from Ridge -- or Taylor. Therefore, it is probably best that Ridge and Brooke separate until their families heal -- but Douglas does need to stay with someone other than Thomas. Of that, there can be no dispute.
In next week's preview video, Holding out for Hope, Katie reaches the end of her live donor list, and no one is a kidney donor match. Can we talk about what viruses Donna picked up to disqualify her? Ew. I got itchy just thinking about it. You can look forward to scooping on the gripping and poignant scenes next week with Mike.
In other spoiler news, Flo finds out she is a donor match and makes a decision that Shauna finds puzzling. Flo's choice might lead her back into the Logan fold. Katie finally finds a donor who chooses to remain anonymous, but after the surgery, Katie wants to meet the person. Who will the mystery donor be? Here's a hint: no viewer will be surprised during the reveal.
Thanks for scooping with me this week. We look forward to hearing what you think in the comments section below. Until we scoop again, stay bold and beautiful, baby!
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