Days of Our Lives Round Table: Steve's Off-Screen Exit!

Steve Johnson was supposedly arrested off-screen and hauled off to Washington D.C., while Will decided to ditch Paul for Sonny, and everyone in Salem except the Salem PD ended up finding Kristen!

Our TV Fanatics Jack Ori and Christine Orlando are joined by Tinab and Tony from MyHourglass a Days of Our Lives fan forum to debate Steve Johnson’s lackluster sendoff, if Will should tell Paul the truth, are Lani and Eli meant to be a couple, and whether Bonnie really gave birth to Lucas’ child on Days of Our Lives.

Actor Stephen Nichols exited Days of Our Lives. How do you feel about Steve Johnson’s off-screen send-off?

Tony: I feel it was horrible! An insult to the fans and the actor.

The powers that be knew that Stephen Nichols’ contract was coming up, and it sounds like Stephen was willing to negotiate when they weren’t, so the excuse that they had to scramble to think of an ending to his story is ridiculous! The only good part about this was he wasn’t killed off.

Jack: I’m angry and disappointed. Supposedly Steve's exit was "sudden" but the writers knew that negotiations had broken down and there was a chance the actor was leaving so they should have planned for the possibility.

They could have come up with something better than this, like... I don't know... how about Steve decides to help out his best friend by departing for parts unknown to find a miracle cure, leaving Kayla to lament that she didn't get to tell him the truth before he left and debate doing it over the phone?

That would not have been hard to write Steve out in a reasonable manner. And it also would not have been hard to do it on screen!

This bionic eye story destroyed the reality and beauty of the story of Steve and Kayla dealing with his blindness, which they never shared on-screen to begin with, and its ending was stupid, disrespectful to the characters, and insensitive to real-world events

(I know DAYS tapes six months in advance but issues related to foreign spying were in the news when this garbage was written).

Steve and Kayla should have got the same air time that John and Marlena are getting now, and if Steve had to be written out, it should have been done properly. The only good thing about this is they didn't kill Steve off. Otherwise, this was as stupid and wrongheaded as when Paige was killed off for no reason.

Tinab: Even though I was a Patch and Kayla fan years ago, I didn’t enjoy them this time. I am not sad he is gone.

Christine: What a horribly written exit story for a legacy character. The writers dropped the ball with Steve’s blindness which could have been an epic story but was woefully underplayed.

Then they segued into this ridiculous bionic eye storyline just to drag Stefan into it. Now they shipped Steve off with a ludicrous story and without so much as a decent sendoff scene. It’s insulting to the actor, the character and the fans.

Should Will tell Paul the truth about how he feels while Paul is still in his hospital bed?

Tony: Yes. While not entirely convenient, Paul needs to know the truth. Let’s face it, there’s never gonna be a good time to break up with him, and it’s better than stringing him along.

Jack: I have mixed feelings about this. It's not really the right time, but now that Paul has asked I think it would be more cruel to lie to him, and Paul's made it clear that he will not accept having the conversation put off until after his recovery.

Tinab: He shouldn’t tell him in the hospital bed. I don’t think he should keep it in long but kicking him while he is down isn’t right either. Paul was a great character and he hasn’t been used as well as he could be.

Christine: Will needs to tell him. Stringing him along will only make it hurt worse when the truth comes out. Paul deserves so much better than Will or Sonny, and at least he’ll have Brady and John to be there for him and help him through this.

Do you want Eli and Lani to move forward with a romantic relationship?

Tony: As long as it keeps her away from JJ, yes.

Jack: I'd prefer they do it off-screen. Both characters bore me to tears (except when Lani is doing aggravating things like trying to force JJ to be with her over and over and calling it love). At least it keeps Lani away from JJ for now!

Tinab: Eli and Lani are good together and a romance seems like the natural progression.

Christine: The only upside of a Lani and Eli pairing is that it keeps her away from JJ, but it bothers me because I think Eli’s character has potential and she will pull him down into the boredom.

Why is it that Sami, Brady, Eve, and Paul can all find Kristen but the Salem PD can’t locate her?

Tony: The Salem P.D., as written in recent years, are completely incompetent. Plus, it’s better drama if people who have a reason to hate Kristen find her before the police do.

Jack: For the same reason that Steve found "Gabby" while blind -- twice! -- but the fully sighted Salem PD couldn't. DAYS has a habit of making the cops stupid so that ordinary citizens can do their jobs for them.

It's really a shame because there's lots of drama in police investigations that is never seen on DAYS, except when someone is arrested on evidence that does not come close to probable cause.

Tinab: Good question! Hope and Rafe are too busy being irritating to get any police work done.

Christine: The Salem PD have been the equivalent of the Keystone Cops from some time now, but most recently, I don’t think they get anything done because Hope and Rafe always seem to have their own agenda and it has little to do with actual justice.

Do you think Bonnie really gave birth to Lucas’ child or is this another scam?

Tony: It’s a total scam!

Jack: I'm sure it's a scam. Bonnie appears to be post-menopausal, she's desperate to get out of prison, and she has feelings for Lucas.

These writers seem to love stories about lying about the paternity of a child in order to manipulate men into staying or leaving a relationship so why wouldn't they go there for the third time in the last six months?

Tinab: I am excited about this! I am buying it and can’t wait to see it play out. She must mean Mimi right?? But Lucas would have been very young.

Christine: It has to be another con so Bonnie can keep herself out of jail. My guess is that Mimi had a baby and she’s going to try and pawn it off as her own and Lucas’ so that she can either escape or get Lucas to help get the charges dropped.

What, if anything, disappointed you this week in Salem?

Tony: Belle’s crusade against Sami. I get she’s upset because it’s their mother, but she’s going over the top.

Jack: Steve's abrupt exit was the worst. I also hate that JJ is still being used as a background character. Probably nothing involving him will come of his conversation with Abby. He was even given the throwaway line that he had to study, suggesting he changed careers again off-screen.

JJ is one of the most interesting characters played by one of the most talented actors on set, yet the writers are allergic to allowing him to have a storyline! Instead, far too much time is spent allowing Gabi to punish Abigail for having been raped while mentally ill and having Stefan obsess over his love for his imaginary friend.

And why the heck was the Horton House unlocked late at night? That added another layer of stupidity to this Gabi storyline. I miss the days when Julie's hatred of Gabi was misplaced. This does not appear to be the same woman that saved JJ's life.

And I wish Rafe would spend more time supporting his sister and less trying to appease Hope's nonsense. Speaking of which, Hope has been totally ruined and is getting worse and worse all the time. The Hope Brady I used to love wouldn't violate someone's civil rights and then laugh about it just to avenge being cheated on.

Tinab: It was a pretty good week. I was hoping Stefan and Kristen would have bonded more. I also want the year what Kristen has to say about EJ.

Christine: Belle was downright obnoxious. Her mother and brother were both fighting for those lives but instead of consoling her father she was shrieking about how horrible Sami was. I just wanted her to shut up! Also, when Hope answered the phone as Commissioner Hernandez, I thought I was going to be sick.

Was there any story or character that wasn’t shown this week that you missed?

Tony: In general, I miss André, but he’s not technically part of the show anymore. Though he had a storyline, which was completely offscreen, I miss Steve. There’s no reason for him to leave like this!

Jack: Besides JJ, I'd like to see Abe trying to support Valerie as she deals with Marlena's case and also he should have something to say about the way Hope is running the department but for some reason doesn't. Where the heck is he?

Tinab: Of course Victor is always missed and where were Ben and Ciara? I am liking the teen story right now.

Christine: I missed Ben. His interactions with Ciara, Tripp, and Claire had been interesting. I’m already missing Steve and Tripp. They had such wonderful scenes together. It’s a real shame that we won’t get to see more.