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Will soap tackle the criminalization of miscarriage? [1]
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Date: 2023-06-18
The Newman family tree on the soap opera The Young and the Restless is more tangled than that of the gods of Greek mythology. But with last Friday’s episode, a branch was tragically broken, a branch that might never be replaced.
If you’re an avid fan of this soap but haven’t seen Friday’s episode yet, please come back to this article later. For those who are not avid fans, I will try to give the minimum amount of necessary background before getting to some major spoilers.
I started half-watching this soap during the pandemic because of Eric Braeden, known to fans of The Rat Patrol by his birth name, Hans Gudegast. On Rat Patrol, he played Captain Dietrich of the Deutsches Afrika Korps during World II. It was fun to compare his character on the soap to his character on the live action cartoon.
But, as time went on, I found myself becoming interested in the soap’s storylines, though I still don’t really understand why almost everyone seems to hate Diane, nor why Mariah holds Summer in such low regard.
For the past forty years or so, Braeden’s played Victor Newman, patriarch of the Newman family, on The Young and the Restless, outlasting actors for younger characters, including some of Victor’s children. Though Victor’s English is as good as Sergeant Moffitt’s, no one asks why he has a German accent (though it’s much less noticeable than Arnold Schwarzenegger’s).
Victor is currently not liking his children’s choices of romantic partners. His daughter Victoria (Amelia Heinle) seduced Nate Hastings (Sean Dominic) into a torrid sexual affair that has generated lots of rumors.
Victor objects to Nate not because Nate is black (perish that thought), but because Nate has already shown himself to be a ruthless mercenary without loyalty to anyone: he has betrayed his family’s company and he has betrayed his wife. Many think Nate is angling to take over Newman Media and leave Victoria in the dust.
Dr. Elena Dawson (Brytni Sarpi, center) confirms her suspicion that Nate (Sean Dominic, right) is cheating on her with Victoria Newman, on an episode of The Young and the Restless.
Nate used to be a doctor (presumably he still has his medical license), and his wife, Dr. Elena Dawson, M.D. (Brytni Sarpy), is still a practicing doctor, and apparently the only practicing doctor in Genoa City. I’m guessing Genoa City is somewhere in the vicinity of Springfield, where Homer and Marge Simpson live.
Actually, I’m not sure Dr. Dawson is married to Nate, but regardless, he has been very dishonest with her, earning condemnation from other adulterers. In Friday’s episode, Dr. Dawson confronts Nate and Victoria in public yet again, calling Victoria “a Newman princess.”
In a previous confrontation, Dr. Dawson had emphasized that she saves lives as a doctor, whereas Nate in his new career as a businessman is only about earning profit for himself.
Because Dr. Dawson is the only practicing doctor in Genoa City, she goes to the hospital right after her latest confrontation with Nate and Victoria. It’s clear at the hospital that Dr. Dawson is distracted by the end of her romance with Nate.
As for Victor’s two sons, Nicholas (Joshua Morrow) and Adam (Mark Grossman), they’re both in love with Sally Spectra (Courtney Hope). Victor has an extremely low opinion of Sally’s moral character, and he was dismayed to learn that she was pregnant and unsure as to whether Nick or Adam is the father.
Sally had come to prefer Nick, but unfortunately for her, the pre-natal paternity test determined that Adam is the father. There are a few different kinds of pre-natal paternity tests, some of which come with greater risks for pregnancy complications. I’m not sure what kind of test Sally used, it probably hasn’t been specified.
Adam found himself in yet another awkward co-parenting situation. After Chelsea attempted suicide last year, Billy Abbott swooped in to save Chelsea and distance Adam from Chelsea, for Chelsea’s own good, according to Billy. But Adam and Chelsea still have a pre-teen son. Therefore Billy can’t completely cut Adam out of Chelsea’s life.
Adam’s situation with Nick and Sally was looking to be even more awkward. If abortion was ever discussed, I missed that episode. Ultimately, Sally decided to carry the baby the term, and co-parent with Adam while being in a long-term relationship with Nick.
And then last week, Sally was diagnosed with preeclampsia. With the proper diagnosis and treatment, the outlook is good for mother and baby. But in Friday’s episode, Sally feels pains even worse than the ones that led to the preeclampsia diagnosis.
So Adam takes Sally to the hospital, where, like I said, Dr. Dawson is the only doctor, and there are no nurses or receptionists to help the good doctor with intake or triage. The producers can pay an extra to play a security guard for Victor to fire, but can’t afford extras for any other ancillary characters.
Meanwhile, Nick, who is also already a father with children by other women, is dealing with a psycho who kidnapped his daughter, Faith, in a desperate attempt to get back with Sharon, Faith’s mother. Cameron Kirsten strapped explosives to Faith and holds a screwdriver to Sharon’s neck.
Nick finds Cameron’s lair in the nick of time, it seemed, but Cameron was ready to present Nick with a thorny dilemma: choose whether Sharon dies or Faith dies.
Fortunately, Sharon had prepared herself by strapping a knife to her thigh, and is now able to use it to attack Cameron and distract the villain long enough to kick away the explosives’ detonation pedal.
And of course that’s when the whole cavalry, consisting solely of Chance, the only cop in Genoa City, arrives. Faith is not out of the woods yet. There’s no Genoa City Police Department bomb squad for Chance to call on.
At the hospital, Adam likewise has to decide between a mother’s life and a daughter’s life. The main difference being that the mother is unconscious and unable to help herself or her baby.
Dr. Dawson tells Adam that only Sally or the baby could be saved. After much agonizing, Adam makes what I think is the right choice: save Sally’s life. Adam loves Sally, she’s not just a vessel for his progeny (compare Brigitte’s death in Season 4 of The Pretender). It’s a good thing Victor wasn’t the one making this decision.
Previews for next week’s episodes show that Sally does recover, but is sad and angry to have lost the baby. Sally would perhaps have sacrificed her life with Nick to save Adam’s baby.
But in the aftermath of the rogue Republicans on the Supreme Court tossing out the precedent of Roe v. Wade with half-baked reasoning, there are legal repercussions for the soap writers to consider here.
Dr. Dawson does not want be accused of performing dilation and curettage, which now in some states is considered a crime even if it was due to a miscarriage, and even if it was to save the mother’s life.
Sally could be unfairly prosecuted for murder. The death of Sally’s baby might actually be examined more closely than either the death of Cameron Kirsten or the death of Jeremy Stark (killed by Phyllis in self-defense, though without witnesses), two adult men who obviously have opinions we disagree with.
On the other hand, the Republican drive to criminalize miscarriage is aimed at punishing poor women, and Sally clearly moves in the higher circles of society. If Adam and Sally had decided on an abortion, Adam could very well have thought of a business excuse to send Sally to California or to Italy for a cross-over with The Bold and the Beautiful.
Regardless, Dr. Dawson could be unfairly targeted for criminal prosecution, on top of dealing with Nate’s betrayal. Her fate depends on Adam and Sally believing that the good doctor correctly diagnosed the situation and gave Adam all the information he needed to make the decision. But if instead the couple scapegoat Dr. Dawson for the baby’s death, Genoa City might be left without any doctors.
The Young and the Restless airs Mondays through Fridays at 12:30 p.m. Eastern on CBS and is available to stream on Paramount+. However, due to the Writers Guild of America strike, this show might be the first soap to go to reruns. New episodes are assured for next week, though.
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