Gwen came clean (sort of) and still got blackmailed by Dr. Snyder, Abigail left town, Ben and Claire kissed, while Kristen used Chloe as her bargaining chip with the Salem PD.

Our TV Fanatics, Jack and Christine, are joined by LumiForeverAndAlways and Silvananoir from MyHourglass, a Days of Our Lives fan forum to debate Gwen’s options, Ben and Claire’s future, the possibility of an EJ return, and what Brady will do if Kristen gets what she wants.

Gwen admitted that Abigail didn’t push her down the stairs (only a partial comeuppance). Were you surprised that Jack was so willing to forgive her? Will he forgive her if he knows the whole truth?

LumiForeverAndAlways: To be honest, I was not surprised at all because ever since Jack found who she was he has put everyone else on the back burner and showed favoritism towards Gwen.

Silvananoir: I'm not surprised. I think he's disappointed in her but he has a lot of guilt, for something that isn't his fault, and because of that he's willing to give her way more leniency than if he had raised her.

I think he'd be really angry if he knew the whole truth but still not enough to cut her out of his life.

Gwen's childhood is going to be a card that is going to work for a while on Jack especially with Jennifer not there to help balance him out.

Jack: I wasn't surprised Jack was willing to forgive her based on what she said. She presented it as an understandable mistake. I wish Jennifer was there to tell him how Nicole wreaked havoc with her life with a similar lie, though.

I think that learning that she lied about when she lost the baby might be a bridge too far for him, though, only because these stories always end explosively. Abigail didn't kill the baby nor have any consequences imposed for Gwen's claiming she did, so what difference does the timing make, really?

Christine: No. Not only does Jack feel guilty about not being there for Gwen growing up, I think he feels a connection to her. Jack was always the black sheep, and he's done some horrible things in his past.

He's been given a lot of second chances and shown a lot of love, so I think he's paying that forward with Gwen.

What should Gwen do about Dr. Snyder blackmailing her into being a drug mule?

LumiForeverAndAlways: She should mention this to Jack or Chad as they both have connections to the hospital through Kayla and the board and then they can help her with reporting this to either one of these connections.

Silvananoir: Tell Jack. She knows that he has her back and he'll support her. Jack is her best option here.

Jack: She should take that envelope straight to Kayla and report everything Snyder says and threaten to go public if Kayla doesn't do something about it. Gwen's father owns the Spectator, for God's sake.

Snyder and Kayla do NOT want the kind of publicity Salem's best investigative reporter could put on the hospital if something isn't done.

Christine: At this point, I think Gwen is scared of losing Jack's love if the whole truth comes out. If she turns to Jack, Chad, or Kayla, she'll have to tell them why Snyder is blackmailing her in the first place and there will be consequences she doesn't want to face.

But I think telling Jack is her best option. It will hurt any trust she's built with him, but he's likely to still have her back and help her take Dr. Snyder down.

Ben and Claire kissed after Ciara sent him divorce papers, but Ben pulled back. Were you surprised that Claire didn’t? Do you think these two will end up together? Do you want them to?

LumiForeverAndAlways: If I'm telling the truth, I kind of do as I am not a big fan of the whole Cin pairing. To be truthful, I think feelings are developing between them but they are keeping them quiet hence Claire not pulling back.

Silvananoir: I'm not surprised Ben pulled away. He still loves Ciara and the comfort that Claire offers feels good but not enough to get him to stray.

I'm not surprised that Claire didn't. Ben has been there for her, they've grown close since the Charlie saga and trying to find Ciara. I think she loved how much he leaned on her and how much he listens to her.

I don't think it's an obsession but I think that when Ciara pushed Ben away, Claire allowed herself to start thinking of the possibilities. I like the idea of them and I like that they didn't fall in bed together. A slow build would be nice before the inevitable Ciara return to blow it all up.

Jack: Oh, I wish they would end up together. Ben and Claire have a relationship in which they actually communicate, support each other, and have common interests. It's not just sex, bad guys in their way, and being unable to spend 5 seconds apart.

But DAYS has decided that true love looks like the clingy, unhealthy nonsense that is Ben and Ciara, so I'm sure that Claire is a temporary diversion at best.

Christine: Ben still loves Ciara, so it makes sense that he was the one to pull back. But I just don't feel much chemistry between he and Claire and I prefer them as friends.

Personally, I'm hoping that Claire eventually gets paired with Chanel because that could be a lot more fun.

If EJ manages to make his way back to Salem, would you like to see him paired with Sami, Nicole, Abigail, or someone else?

LumiForeverAndAlways: I am not excited to see EJ as I am a massive Lumi fan as you can detect from my username so that rules out a pairing with Sami. I liked Abigail and Austin so that rules her out too and as much as I do like Eric and Nicole he's not coming home anytime soon.

I always did think Nicole and EJ suited each other so I think he should be paired with Nicole.

Silvananoir: I'm not sure. I hated the Ej/Abby saga and would not like a revisit.

I loved Ejole but a lot of that had to do with the chemistry of the original actor. I would really need to see the recast, which has been announced and I'm not feeling it but could be convinced to get back on the EJole train.

Jack: I'd like to see him be the town pariah that nobody wants anything to do with. He raped Sami and abused Nicole, and Abigail is unstable and whiny enough without EJ to obsess over.

EJ and Xander getting up to mischief together would be a lot more fun than pairing him with some woman he's going to mistreat.

Christine: It's hard to say if the original actor isn't returning. EJ had chemistry with all three. I liked EJ and Sami because he never judged her and their bad boy/bad girl sides meshed. Plus, he seemed to really love Allie and Will as much as his own kids.

I loved Nicole and EJ together before she lost their baby and the show decided to break them up. Once Nicole and Eric implode, an EJ/Nicole pairing could fun.

Abigail has enough drama in her life and I just don't see Marci Miller's version of Abby having the same edge as Kate Mansi's Abby and that's the version that paired well with EJ.

It appears Chanel may be sticking around Salem for a while? What do you think of her so far? Any ideas of what type of job she should get to support herself?

LumiForeverAndAlways: I don’t normally like to say bad things about characters unless warranted but in Chanel's case, I don't like her at all. As for a job, who would know? She's pretty happy to freeload off her family.

Silvananoir: I don't care about Chanel. I'm pretty neutral but it's always nice to see another woman of color on the show. I just wish I liked her more.

I'd like to see her work at the pub maybe? Get her interacting with the people her age and working a regular job like her mother would want.

Jack: I actually have started to warm to Chanel. Her scenes with Allie and Lani lately have been a lot more human.

I think Chanel should pursue acting or some other type of creative career where her penchant for drama would be an asset.

In the. meantime, maybe working at the Horton Center would help her see that she is pretty privileged and there's a lot worse out there than a mom wanting her to have a job.

Christine: Chanel is growing on me. This show needs a more diverse cast and I like that Chanel is a young woman of color and bisexual. Not to mention, she walks that line of bad girl with the possibility of doing good.

I'd love to see Chanel and Allie team up on some sort of a passion project. They're both a little lost right now. I'm hoping they find something they can work on together that could turn into a career.

I just hope they don't make up a position for Chanel, like working at Basic Black or Titan or even Gabi Chic or having her work at the hospital. And I think she'd be a horrible waitress. There have to be more interesting options in Salem.

Kristen turned herself in but is holding Chloe hostage as a bargaining chip to get herself out of prison. Do you think Kristin will walk free, and if so, will she and Brady reconcile?

LumiForeverAndAlways: There is no way she will walk free, but then again, it is Salem and I really don't want her and Brady to reconcile at all. I feel like she brings him down and he is way better suited to Chloe (Team Broe all the way).

Silvananoir: She and Brady are over. But Kristen won't walk. I also don't see her staying in prison. Dimeras never pay for their actions. She's going to go on the run and leave Brady and Rachel behind for a while. I wish she'd take Brady with her.

Jack: This is so ridiculous. The cops should put Kristen in solitary confinement until Chloe is found, either with or without her help. There is no reason she should walk free on multiple attempted murders and kidnappings because she knows where her latest victim is.

But this is Salem, so she probably will walk free. Hopefully, attempting to mess with all the people Brady cares about will get him to finally realize that he cannot have a future with Kristen.

Christine: Oh, this is Salem so she'll probably walk free, but I don't think Brady will ever see her the same way again. If Brady does cut her off, Kristen might grab Rachel and head off to one of the Dimera islands.

As for Brady, I'm not a fan of his. I actually liked him best with Teresa. I just hope they don't pair him with Chloe. I've always found that pairing snooze-worthy.

What did you find most disappointing this week in Salem?

LumiForeverAndAlways: A few things the fact Nicole and Xander slept together, Xander working for Kristen, and Jack forgiving Gwen.

Silvananoir: The Chad and Abigail scenes are draining. I just don't care about their drama. I honestly wish the two would have a real conversation about the state of their marriage. They feel like a stay together for the children marriage. Friday's episode was a major fast-forward point.

Jack: That the writers think we're going to buy Lani's claim that she and Kristen are "just friends" when five seconds after she makes it, they're holding hands, pledging eternal fidelity to one another, and talking about how they wish they could raise their children together.

Also, Gwen should not have given into Snyder's lame blackmail threat, and Sami should not have called EJ. She should have called Rafe and pretended she was calling EJ so that she and Lucas could get help and Xander could get caught. Where is the smart Sami of yesteryear?

And why on Earth did Shawn and Belle go for this stupid plan instead of having Claire pretend to forgive Jan so that Jan would confide in her about killing Charlie?

Also, it would have been nice if there'd been some mention of Belle knowing that Brady was in the hospital before she happened to call John to visit him there, and a scene of Belle with Brady would have been appropriate too.

Finally, I'm sick of everyone acting like Abigail is 100% pure and innocent when she's not. She STILL hasn't made the connection between her bad behavior and Jack and Chad thinking Gwen's lie about Abby pushing her was plausible.

Chad even listed all the horrible things Abby did to Gwen but quickly backpedaled into "Gwen deserved them" as if two wrongs make a right and Abby's unhinged behavior somehow doesn't count.

Christine: Shawn and Belle's plan to trick Gwen was horrible. He's a detective and she's an attorney and that's the best they could come up with?

I also didn't love that Xander was willing to kill Sami and Lucas. He's done a lot of bad things but I don't remember him killing anyone before. I was glad he took the payoff and let them go, but I'm wondering how he'll explain his newfound wealth.

Lucas making fun of Sami's weight was annoying and distasteful. If it was meant to be funny, it backfired.

Also, why did Lani think Chanel wouldn't be attracted to Eli. Although Chanel didn't want to use the bisexual label, she just finished explaining to Lani that she's attracted to both sexes. How did Lani misunderstand that?

What was your favorite quote, scene, or storyline from this week’s Days of Our Lives?

LumiForeverAndAlways: My favorite storyline is, without a doubt, the Lumi story and them kissing again which brings me to my favorite scenes for the week: the Lumi kiss and them talking about the history they have shared together.

Silvananoir: I honestly enjoyed Lumi this week. It's always surprising how charming they are together. Their banter is fun and the scene with Xander was pretty great.

Jack: I had to laugh at Gwen asking Snyder how he missed Jan coming out of her coma.

She [Jan] woke up weeks earlier and you didn't notice? Didn't they teach you that in med school?

Gwen

• Permalink: She woke up weeks earlier and you didn't notice? Didn't they teach you that in med...

I've been saying that for weeks -- how does Jan wake up, sneak out of the hospital, and return to fake a coma without her doctors knowing?

I also have to admit that as much as I found Abigail's goodbye scenes tedious and lacking, I liked Chad's response to Jack telling him that Gwen lied. www.tvfanatic.com/quotes/you-thought-id-be-shocked-that-gwen-lied-about-abigail-for-the-3/

Christine: Lani and Kristen's conversation was oddly satisfying. But I had to laugh when Kristen told Lani she never meant to hurt anyone just moments after paying Xander to go kill Sami and Lucas!

And I love that Jack consistently tries to do the right thing by Gwen. It makes me love him all the more.

I also appreciated Gabi being understanding about Jake worrying about Kate in the hospital. Kate and Gabi have been through a lot and I'm glad that their relationship wasn't completely destroyed by this silly triangle. 

Now it’s your turn! Hit that big, blue, SHOW COMMENTS button down below to answer all of our round table questions.

• Gwen admitted that Abigail didn’t push her down the stairs (only a partial comeuppance). Were you surprised that Jack was so willing to forgive her? Will he forgive her if he knows the whole truth?

• What should Gwen do about Dr. Snyder blackmailing her into being a drug mule?

• Ben and Claire kissed after Ciara sent him divorce papers, but Ben pulled back. Were you surprised that Claire didn’t? Do you think these two will end up together?

• If EJ manages to make his way back to Salem, would you like to see him paired with Sami, Nicole, Abigail, or someone else?

• It appears Chanel may be sticking around Salem for a while? What do you think of her so far? Any ideas of what type of job she should get to support herself?

• Kristen turned herself in but is holding Chloe hostage as a bargaining chip to get herself out of prison. Do you think Kristin will walk free, and if so, will she and Brady reconcile?

• What did you find most disappointing this week in Salem?

• What was your favorite quote, scene, or storyline from this week’s Days of Our Lives?

Want to chat more about the happenings in Salem? Then check out Jack Ori’s Days of Our Lives review here at TV Fanatic.

C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.