We always figured Victor and Nikki would get back together on The Young and the Restless. While that hasn’t happened quite yet, we see it on the horizon. It’s taking Victor nearly losing his wife forever to see that life is short and there are things more important than pride and revenge — like love, for instance!
I Can See What’s Mine Now
Not that long ago, Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) was content to let Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott) walk up the stairs at the GCAC even though he knew she wasn’t feeling well. We had money on Nikki, or rather her stunt double, taking a tumble down the stairs as her vision was starting to give her trouble as she attempted to get to the top of the stairs.
Somehow, Nikki made it all the way, but since then, her condition has gotten worse. In fact, it’s much worse. After getting the news from a doctor that she has a mass in her head that required surgery to save her life, but could also end it or leave her blind, Nikki understandably became very frightened.
She has a history of not fessing up to Victor about her medical maladies, either because she’s afraid of losing him or fearing that he won’t be there for her. This time was no different. Victor visited Nikki in her room at the GCAC, where she’s been living since he ordered her off the ranch months ago.
The Bickersons
Nikki wanted to lean into believing that Victor cares about her. Nikki and Victor are one of the greatest love stories in all of soap opera history. They’re also at the top of the list when it comes to bickering! While on one hand, viewers hate seeing Victor and Nikki not loving each other, there’s no denying the fact that their knockdown dragouts are epic and legendary!
Both will fire zingers at each other like nobody’s business! No one can hurt like someone who loves you, right? Victor and Nikki have been at a stalemate for months. He refused to back down from going after Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman), though Jack’s not gotten Victor’s attention since he hired Patty Williams (Stacy Haiduk) to seduce him on a yacht, and he’s remained steadfast in keeping Matt Clark (Roger Howarth) close to him, despite Matt’s many crimes.
By all rights, Matt should be in jail for assault, kidnapping, and a host of other crimes. Victor, however, is grateful to Matt for saving Nicholas’s (Joshua Morrow) life, and he also feels Matt is an invaluable ally in keeping Cane Ashby (Billy Flynn) in check.
Does Cane truly need to be kept in check, though? Cane has everything he wants right now. His machinations as Aristotle Dumas were tied to his desire to re-win Lily’s (Christel Khalil) heart. He’s done that now. She’s given him a company, Chancellor Industries, to run. Cane isn’t fighting any battles right now. He’s in a different place.
Finding Out What’s True
Maybe Victor will be in a different place soon, too, in light of Nikki’s diagnosis and current health status. Victor was devastated to see Nikki in such pain in the hospital room. The irony is that Nikki couldn’t see Victor as her eyesight had worsened. Seeing Victor so concerned about Nikki could have been the best medicine in the world.
Well, after her surgery! They say money can’t solve problems, but Victor is using his considerable wealth and influence to fly a doctor in from New York City on his private jet (or at least he offered to) so that Nikki can get the best care.
Until Dr. Stephanie Simmons (Vivica A. Fox) came back to Genoa City, there wasn’t a regular doctor on the scene. Soaps are famous for having one lone doctor wear different specialty hats, but Nikki’s condition requires a specialist.
There’s a great urgency here. Nikki needs the surgery sooner rather than later. Viewers are hopeful that it will be successful. But there’s more at stake here than Nikki’s vision. Viewers want Victor and Nikki to reunite!
For that to happen, Victor will have to put the torch down when it comes to Jack, and he’s going to have to rethink his arrangement with Matt Clark. Nikki is 100% right with her concerns that Matt, given his past, remains a threat. Sure, Matt remembers what he did, and he feels bad about it, but Nikki is quite correct when she speculates that the old Matt could return at any moment.
Even if Matt has turned over a new leaf for good and forever, there’s still the issue of him having to pay for his past crimes that date back to the 1990s. Matt slipped through the fingers of either the Newmans or the law over the last several months.
Nick thought that he could deal with Matt himself, which led to Matt overpowering him while driving, causing the car to crash, and led to Nick’s current drug dependency.
There’s no way that Victor can control Matt should he regain his evil personality and decide to go after the Newmans again. Matt had no money or resources, yet still managed to kidnap Nick, Adam (Mark Grossman), Sharon (Sharon Case), and Noah (Lucas Adams). Victor froze Matt’s assets using the Artificial Intelligence program, yet Matt managed to employ a drug dealer to give Nick some bad pills, and he managed to obtain explosives and a remote detonator.
Victor’s got the Newman security team keeping an eye on Matt. Um, where was this team when Matt was orchestrating his plans to kill Nick and his family? If Victor drops his vendetta against Jack and his plan to use Matt as an ally against Cane, he just might re-win Nikki’s heart.
A Moratorium on Kidnapping
There is a writing change coming at Y&R, and let’s hope the new regime implements a moratorium on kidnapping! Over the last few years, we’ve seen Martin (Christopher Cousins) kidnap Phyllis (Michelle Stafford) and Sharon, Mariah (Camryn Grimes) kidnap Dominic (Ethan Ray Clark), Claire (Hayley Erin) kidnap Nikki, Cane hold Nick and Sharon against their will, Victor keep Jordan (Colleen Zenk) prisoner, Victor kidnap Jack and put him on a yacht with Patty, and, most recently, Patty and Dr. Markham (Jere Burns) have kidnapped Diane (Susan Walters). (Whew!)
There was also the instance in which nearly half of Genoa City was kept captive on Cane’s estate in Nice, France. Kidnappings, murder trials, and medical maladies are staples of soap operas, but they do need to be spaced out — otherwise, they become predictable!
Dear Diane
Walters, as Diane, is doing a remarkable job as her character plays along with Dr. Markham’s plan to make her think that Jack has moved on with his life with Patty. Markham is using tiny seeds of doubt that may truly exist in Diane and using them to hopefully grow an entire garden or even forest of doubt.
Diane has to be convincing enough to Markham so that he thinks he’s getting through to her without falling into self-doubt, where she’d think that maybe, just maybe, he has a point.
Jack dismissed the idea of calling the authorities to go into Markham’s residence to save Diane. Really? Jack has seen a photo of Diane provided to him by Patty, a woman who has spent time institution. If that’s not enough to involve the police, then what is?
Are you tired of kidnapping stories on Y&R? Do you think Nikki’s blindness will bring her and Victor back together? Sound off in the comments below!
Edited by Michael Maloney