My View From Beyond the Gates: You are a whole wrecking ball

After a week of repeat episodes, Beyond the Gates came back in like a wrecking ball. Bandaged faces, strangled necks, concussions, and bruised egos greeted the residents of Fairmont Crest. Swing on in for My View From Beyond the Gates, a commentary for the week ending July 11, 2025.

We haven’t been given an official statement about why Beyond The Gates aired repeats the entire week of July 4^th, but I think we can step back from the ledge and agree that it was probably a really smart decision.

When holidays fall on a day that might make people take long holidays, viewership is typically down. And with the insanely awesome week of shows we’ve gotten this past week, it would have been criminal to air them during a week when people weren’t around to see them.

As I’ve said in the past, both here in this column and in previous content that I’ve written over the past 30+ years, the key to telling good soap opera story is to not have any storyline be its own little island. Soaps are at their best when stories bleed together, when characters from all corners of the canvas get to interact.

I remember many moons ago when I was doing a Red Carpet interview with an actress from a soap that is no longer on the air. We’d spoken about the storyline that earned her a Daytime Emmy nomination and she stood silent before me for a few moments as she realized that her scene partner had been with their show for about a decade – and her nominated material was the first time that she and that scene partner had ever appeared together (other than in party scenes when the entire cast was present).

You can stand under my umbrella storyline

This is something that Beyond the Gates has not had a problem with. Let’s take the Martin storyline as a quick example [EDIT: After writing this section, I will admit that this section is not a “quick” anything.]. Not only does the story seem to involve more than half of the canvas, but it also has now infiltrated several of the show’s other storylines.

What started out as an innocent affair… I am not sure that I’ve ever written those words in that order in the squillion years that I’ve been covering soaps. Anyway, let me get back to my point. We watched Vanessa have extracurricular fun with Diego at the country club and, eventually, Joey Armstrong. Then the Joey/Vanessa romp took a left turn because of Doug’s gambling debt.

Now, Vanessa has gotten caught up in Joey’s other business dealings by demanding that he not kill Randy. Randy’s life, of course, was in jeopardy because he’d been asked to neutralize that threat that KKKenneth posed to Martin, his family, and everyone else tangled up in whatever happened on the night in question.

Feeling a little Randy

What’s with Randy’s sudden change? Yes, Randy has bucked Joey in the past when it came to Doug’s gambling… but that was, at least as far as I can tell, only because Randy and Doug have known each other since they were children. There has been no other indication that Randy has ever gone against what Joey has asked of him. That’s what makes the situation with Kenneth all the stranger.

How is it that Randy wasn’t able to “take care” of Kenneth? From the look of it, Kenneth only suffered a graze wound to the side of his face. That didn’t stop Kenneth from sporting an oversized bandage on the side of his face…

Based on Randy’s stated fears of going to jail, it almost seemed like this was the first time that Joey has asked Randy to kill someone. Or maybe it’s just the first time since Randy became a father.

Let’s just go with the theory that Randy was a newbie to the world of offing people. Perhaps he couldn’t tell that Kenneth wasn’t dead. That still doesn’t explain why he’d taken $10,000 out of the payoff money and booked it to the international terminal at the airport. Something just doesn’t add up.

Did Randy really believe that KKKenneth was dead and he was simply freaking out about it? If he was worried that he’d get caught and sent to prison (or that Joey wouldn’t protect him), that might offer a plausible explanation for Randy’s odd behavior.

Could Randy be working with someone to try to take down Joey’s mobbish enterprise? If he was working with the Feds, I would hope that the Feds would be able to make Randy disappear into witness protection without him needing to buy his own ticket. Of course, in an era of government cutbacks, maybe informants have to figure out how to make themselves disappear.

Love taught me who was the boss

Circling back to Vanessa. I think we need to start calling her Boss Lady V. I can’t be the only one that saw Vanessa as a cutesy, sex-crazed, vapid blonde who was largely dabbling in real estate for run. That’s how she was painted for at least the first few months of the show’s run.

We got our first hint that there was more to Vanessa when she and Doug spoke openly about their troubled marriage. Vanessa’s sexcapades are a way for her to fill the hole (Stop that right now, you naughty little minx!) left by the departure of their kids and the evaporation of the closeness and intimacy that she once shared with her husband.

Furthermore, Vanessa showed that she was more than just a pretty face when she negotiated the terms of a working relationship with Joey. She quite literally made Joey an offer he couldn’t refuse. Yes, she sealed the deal with a little poker table poke, but, hey, we all celebrate wins in our own way.

More recently, Vanessa’s testicular fortitude was on full display when she refused to back down from her demand that Joey not have Randy killed. Vanessa is probably 5’5” in heels, but she towered over the conversation as if she were an NBA player. I don’t know if Vanessa would ever leave Doug for Joey, but she definitely has some juicy content on her audition reel for the role of Mother Mobster.

Lauren Buglioli (Vanessa) has really been a joy to watch. She gives the character layers and depth that exist beyond the printed words of a script. Whereas the fictional Vanessa showed Joey the dangers of underestimating her, the real-life Buglioli has done the same to me.

What’s the frequency, Kenneth?

It is an understatement to say that I was shocked when Martin returned home and found Tyrell playing chess with a not-dead Kenneth – who I assume plays only with the white pieces. I was convinced it was going to be another one of Martin’s hallucinations, but nope: KKKenneth was there in living color.  It was absolutely terrifying.

What was once a mystery about what happened that night has turned into I Know What You Did Last Summer. Or I Know What You Did Two Summers Ago. Since we don’t know all of the details about exactly what happened, it’s tough to say whether or not Kenneth would really harm Martin’s kids. I’d prefer to err on the side of caution and assume that he would.

Martin sleeping with a baseball bat by his side was not overreacting, but the most important people in his life – Smitty, Tyrell, and Samantha – don’t know that. By offering only a vague “I’m an important Congressman!” excuse, Martin is running the risk that his kids won’t fully appreciate the danger that they’re all facing. Who’s to say that Tyrell won’t sneak out for a chess game with his “friend” from the Internet? And of course, we already saw Samantha talking to a stranger in the park despite having told her pop she knew all about “stranger danger.”

And that doesn’t even address the danger that Martin poses. He could have very easily woken up from his nightmare swinging the baseball bat and done some serious harm to someone. He also nearly mugged the Kenneth look-alike worked as a server at the country club.

Single Estranged White Black Female

Speaking of stranger danger, let’s talk about Allison. Let’s just say that I don’t let my pet bunny in the room when that woman is on my television screen. I don’t know what the Threat Level above “Delulu” is, but Allison is definitely in that category.

Were the sexytimes so good that Chelsea turned this woman out? Is Allison just obsessing over Chelsea because Craig kicked his lady to the curb? Did Allison figure out that Chelsea is kind of a big deal (or a BFD, in Chelsea speak) and become a star intercourser? I don’t know if it’s any of those scenarios, but you don’t need to be Oda Mae Brown to sense that Chelsea, you in danger girl.

Rewinding back to when Allison first horned in on Madison and Chelsea’s date, I have no idea why Chelsea didn’t just get up and leave. Why continue to sit at the table with someone who can’t take no for an answer?!

Two cups of crazy?

I’ve seen some speculation on the Internet that Madison and Allison are somehow in cahoots. I don’t know that I’m buying that. Said theories point to how Madison tries to talk about herself as little as possible and has Chelsea’s photo at the ready on her phone. They also point out inconsistencies in whether or not Madison “understands” how social media works. I’m not swayed, but Chelsea saying, “I am legit fairytale happy” is probably a good indication that bad times aren’t that far off.

I’m more focused on Madison’s aversion to meeting Anita. Madison claimed that she wasn’t in the same league as the Duprees. Ma’am, I don’t know anyone on the planet who has ever been disapproving or upset that their child/grandchild was dating a doctor.

Is it possible that Madison is somehow related to one of the other Articulettes? We know very little about the other women’s lives, so it’s possible. If Anita returns to town and Madison is suddenly busy at the hospital with an emergency, that will be enough to convince me that she’s got a secret. And yes, I know that just two columns ago I said that “I no longer think that Madison has a deep dark secret,” but I followed that up in the same sentence with “though I reserve the right to change my mind at a later date.” I’ve reclaimed my time and reserved my right.

Articu let’s call it a wrap

I am perhaps the only person on the entire Internet that isn’t Team Anita in this whole Articulettes mess. It has been made quite clear that Sharon and Tracy were never thrilled with Anita taking the reins and calling the shots. So why Anita decided to take it upon herself to hire a new choreographer (and someone to do new arrangements of the group’s old songs) without running it by the other women baffles me. At the very least she could have done it in a way that led the other women to think they were making the decision, but in the end it was really Anita that made the call.

Now, that doesn’t mean that Tracy and Sharon (but most Sharon) aren’t still worthy of some blame. Neither seemed to have an issue with Anita ponying up the money for the reunion concert. So, in my view, they cannot then use Anita paying for everything against her. You can’t have it both ways.

Perhaps the reason that I am not coming down too hard on Sharon is because of her winning zinger: “And if we twerk to our old songs is that gonna bring all the kids to the yard?” she snarked. “Or do you want us hanging from the ceiling like Pink?”

If it ain’t broke…

As an aside, I am not always a fan of artists that I liked from years ago releasing new music today and trying to sound hip and cool. I don’t like Mary J Blige because I think she’s a great singer. No, I like her because I feel the emotion when she sings and I like the melodies. I don’t need to hear her record an autotuned trap song because it’s what the kids are listening to.

If I was an Articulettes fan and I went to their concert only to have them perform “reworked” versions of their hits, I’d ask for my money back. I know that they are trying to win the hearts (and ears) of younger fans, but that rarely happens. Let a famous DJ do a remix, get the track used on TikTok, and call it a day.

As for the choreography, there’s a reason Janet Jackson still performs the dance routine from the “If” video. It’s iconic.

I’ve gotten so far away from my original point that I don’t even remember where I was headed. All I know is that if we aren’t getting an actual Articulettes reunion performance on Beyond the Gates then I need to know now. Maybe they are trying to stretch it out until the next Image Awards airs later in the year.

Like that would have been the awkward part

If you’re a regular reader, you know that I watch the show each day with someone who has never watched a soap before. It’s helped remind me that not everyone who is watching Beyond the Gates is as soap savvy as what I’ve come to take for granted from my years of owning and operating “the soap site.”

I was tickled, though, when the opening credit played and Ben Gavin’s (Derek) photo showed and I was asked, “Why is he still in the credits? She broke up with him!” I could have explained that some actors have remained in the show’s credits months after they left the show, but thankfully the credits were over and we got an eyeful of Derek… with Shanice.

I have to say, I kind of like Shanice and Derek as a couple. As the very least, Shanice has made Derek more interesting and alive than he’s been in weeks. It was also wildly entertaining to see Ashley be mad about Derek dating someone else when she was on a date of her own. Yes, the Shanice/Derek/Ashley/Andre chit chat at Uptown was hella cringe (thanks, Tyrell and Samantha!), but it made for great television.

In my midyear Best and Worst of Beyond the Gates column last week, I said that I wanted to see more of Shanice. Ask and ye shall receive! I’ve asked that Pamela’s weird Old Hollywood accent be taken away, so hopefully that will be my next request granted.

Faces of my vintage have limited appeal

Dani had quite the week. She called her father by his first name, baked a pie, crashed a first date, and made some tough business decisions. And she did it all while looking absolutely fabulous.

I don’t know what the residents of Fairmont Crest have against baked goods, but I think it needs to be investigated by the MSB. That’s the Martha Stewart Brigade, which I am pretty sure I just made up. First Hayley’s chocolate chip cookies were rejected and now Dani’s sweet potato pie was turned down.

Whereas the Shanice/Derek/Ashley/Andre conversation was awkward, Dani crashing Andre and Ashley’s date was absolutely hilarious. Karla Mosley (Dani) was brilliant. The dialogue was… whatever is more brilliant than brilliant. When Dani said that Ashley was “someone so basic she makes vanilla look spicy” I nearly fell off the couch.

It was hard for me to tell if Ashley had any idea that Dani and Andre had been “dating.” She was probably too focused on Danice (Do Derek and Shanice have a smooshed couple name?) to even pick up on what was going on.

Did Dani have a right to be upset? Andre did tell her that he wasn’t seeing anyone else… but Dani also told him that she wasn’t really interested in having a serious relationship. To me, that’s called a stalemate. Both are right and both are wrong.

If the slut fits…

For once, Dani wasn’t the Dupree daughter that was laying hands on people. The entire Nicole and LSD (Leslie/Sherry/Dana) conversation was everything, all of the things, and things that haven’t even been invented.

Backtracking slightly, I was also entertained by the Hayley and Leslie interaction. I did think that Hayley might at least consider teaming up with Leslie. Thankfully, Hayley hasn’t stepped so far into Crazytown that she’s unable to find her way out.

When Hayley left and LSD started nibbling on her uneaten food, I chuckled. When Nicole entered moments later and Leslie asked, “May I offer you some toast?” and held up Hayley’s toast, I laughed out loud.

Each woman gave as good as they got. When LSD feigned not knowing who Laura was, Nicole quipped, “Maybe you try to murder so many people that Laura slipped your mind but you did try to kill her twice so maybe that might jog your memory.” Nicole noted that Leslie was caught on tape exiting Laura’s hospital room. Leslie quoted Shaggy and said, “It wasn’t me.” When Nicole insisted that everybody knew that Leslie was guilty, LSD looked around Orphey Gene’s and, while making exaggerated air quotes, asked, “Is everybody in this room with us right now?”

Monica Lewinsky would ne… oh, right

LSD wasn’t done. She toyed with Nicole, was cruelly dismissive of her rival’s miscarriages, and recounted her own love making sessions with Ted. She even went as far as to issue an I-can’t-believe-this-passed-the-network-sensors “I have this cute little blue dress in the closet and it’s covered in” Ted’s DNA.

Then Leslie dropped the bombshell that Kat had caught her and Ted together in his hotel room. Three… two… one. Nicole wrapped her hands around LSD’s neck and pushed her across the restaurant. And since we are now in Daytime Emmys season, I want the award for Best Performance By An Extra With No Lines to go to the man sitting in the booth that Leslie fell on. Sir, I don’t know if we will ever learn your name, but “Bravo!”

Not to be outdone, Leslie then picked up the man’s beverage glass and took a sip.

After Nicole told Ted that she did not want to speak to or even look at him, what did Dumb Dumb Ted do? He agreed to drive Leslie home.

Beyond the Gates Speed Round

Here are some rapid fire thoughts about some of the other action from the week gone by.

Kat and Eva

I don’t understand why Kat would think that jeopardizing her dad’s practice was the best way to stick it to Eva. As Eva listened to Kat tell lies to their dad, I expected her to burst back into the office and set the record straight. But no, she decided to hide behind that ficus plant in the corridor.

Hungry, hungry HIPAA

I give Hayley credit. Going to the hospital for a checkup of your probably imaginary baby’s health proves commitment. Hayley had to sense that something was off about Ashley. I wonder if Hayley knows that Ashley knows that there was no ultrasound performed. Hayley would have to assume that by-the-rules Ashley would honor patient privacy and not spill the beans. Perhaps that’s why Hayley mused that she might invite Ashley to the baby shower. Or I could just be overly suspicious.

Lines of the week

The Beyond the Gates writing team is once again having a little too much fun. Here are some of the lines of dialogue that tickled my funny bone or that I found memorable over the past week (and haven’t already been mentioned in this column).

“You can waste your time with girls or let a woman rock your world.” — Dani, channeling her inner Wanda from In Living Color.

“I got my mom’s smize, not my grandmother’s pipes” — Chelsea.

“The law is stupid” — Junior Detective Katlock

“I bet my garbage man could tell you some tales” — Marcel Malone

“If you have to trap him to keep him, he was never really yours in the first place.” — Nicole to LSD

That’s all I have for this week’s My View From Beyond the Gates column.

I’ll be tuning in and I’ll continue to share my thoughts on Beyond the Gates as long as you’re interested in reading them. Thank you for reading and, as always, please feel free to share your thoughts on my column or Beyond the Gates in the Comments section below.

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Life outside the gates

My former Two Scoops columnists Liz Masters and Tamilu have joined me here on my personal web site — and they are still writing about General Hospital. Liz is on deck with week with a new column called, The hand that rocks the cradle

To read more thoughts, opinions, rants, and raves about daytime television, be sure to check out our Editorial section.

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