Days of Our Lives Round Table: Should JJ Head to China?

Xander surprised Maggie and Sarah with a moment of kindness, JJ offered to follow Haley to China, while Kristen had to silence Ted before he ruined her plan.

Our TV Fanatics Jack Ori and Christine Orlando are joined by Stephanie from MyHourglass a Days of Our Lives fan forum to debate, Xander’s real feelings, if JJ should head to China for Haley, if Jack will try the serum, and who’d they like to tell off this week in Salem

Was Kate right, should Maggie have held off telling Will and Sonny about the diary?

Stephanie: I think it was fine for Maggie to tell Will and Sonny about the diary. Hope often helps people get through tough times, and with Will having a diagnosis of only days to live, he and Sonny need every ounce of hope they can get.

If they aren’t aware that there is a possibility of the tumor being cured in time, then Will might give up fighting and succumb to death sooner.

Jack: I didn't see any reason for her to hold off. Kate was being overbearing and jumping on the "save Maggie from Xander" bandwagon.

Besides, even if Xander turned out to be a false lead, it seemed to me that it would mean something to Will and Sonny that someone was trying to do something.

Christine: As much as I wouldn’t want to give them false hope, there’s still the chance that the diary could produce a cure in time, so I think it was better to give them that sliver of hope so that Will might find the strength to hang on.

Also, I couldn’t tell if Kate really thought it was a bad idea or if she was just upset that Maggie got to deliver the news.

Does Xander have real feelings for Sarah, and if so, does he have any chance with her?

Stephanie: I think Xander’s feelings for Sarah are real. He is fully accepting of who she is as a person and isn’t looking to have a relationship with her just so he can “fix” her.

As it stands right now, I don’t believe he has a chance with her because she is too hung up on Eric. However, if she eventually realizes that Eric will never love her the same way he loves Nicole or decides that she wants someone who isn’t going to judge her, then Xander might have a shot.

Jack: I'm not sure if Xander has real feelings for Sarah -- or for her mother! Either way, Maggie's kindness towards him seems to have sparked something in him that has been long buried.

He might have a chance with Sarah eventually since that hate-flirting she did was similar to what Gabi did with Stefan. But I'd hate for Sarah to insist he give up all of his darkness altogether.

Christine: I think Xander does have feelings for Sarah. I don’t think it’s love but I think it’s more than just lust.

Sarah tends to act impulsively when she’s been hurt so it wouldn’t surprised me if she ended up back with Xander if she lost both Rex and Eric. If that were to happen, how long it would last is any one’s guess.

How will Kristen deal with Ted now that he knows Holly is alive?

Stephanie: More than likely, Kristen will make Ted disappear somehow. Maybe she’ll lock him in the Dimera tunnels or ship him off to one of the many private islands owned by her family.

Jack: Well, Stefan already knocked Ted out and sent him to an island once while all of Salem thought he was dead/disappeared, so I wouldn't be surprised if Kristen did the exact same thing.

The current writers seem to love stories where someone appears to have been killed by a blow to the head, the "killer" disposes of the body, and then the person turns up alive later, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if this goes that route too.

Christine: I doubt she’ll kill him outright, but Ted might end up in the Dimera tunnels for quite a while, or maybe stranded on one of those Dimera islands.

Is JJ following Haley to China an incredibly romantic gesture, or one of the dumbest things he’s ever considered?

Stephanie: Considering that JJ and Haley are barely in a relationship, I don’t think this is a wise decision for him.

If they had been together for years before this point, then the idea of giving up his whole life for her might be romantic. However, I think he stands to lose more than he would gain if he actually goes through with this plan.

Jack: If I believed at all that JJ had any feelings for Haley, it would be romantic. But as it is, it's obvious that he never got over Paige's death and has talked himself into thinking he loves Haley when he is really just trying to replace Paige in his life the way Lani tried to replace baby David in hers.

Unfortunately, the writers don't realize it and think that if they put words in JJ's mouth about how Haley is the love of his life viewers will believe it.

Christine: This was so dumb! It’s not like they’ve had some great romance. In the scheme of things they barely know one another so all the pretty words about love didn’t mean very much.

And JJ moving to a county where he has no credentials, knows nothing of the culture, and doesn’t speak the language, simply to be with his new girlfriend was absurd.

Now that the serum is available, will Jack chose to take it or remain in the dark about his past?

Stephanie: I think that Jack will eventually take the serum, especially if he keeps having memory flashes that make him curious about his past with Jennifer.

He will definitely hold out as long as possible though since he is very stubborn and also has Eve manipulating him. At the same time though, I think part of him knows that Eve doesn’t truly have his best interests at heart. As a result, he could be convinced to take the serum.

Jack: I think the bigger issue will be that Will developed a near-fatal brain tumor from taking the serum. That might give Jack pause more than the possibility of recovering his memories.

Jack is convinced that once he gets his memories back he'll still want to be Eve's partner-in-crime and his problem seems to be that he feels like he's nobody because he has no past, so he will probably be eager for the serum if it can be given safely.

Christine: Jack is almost scared to regain his memory because he’s not convinced he’ll like who he was but at some point, his innate sense of curiosity will overwhelm him. If they can make the serum safe to use, eventually, he’s going to try it.

If you could have told off one character in Salem this week, who would it have been?

Stephanie: I would have told off Victor. Instead of going home with Maggie after she shared the fact that she had had a lapse in her sobriety, he decided to remain at the town square and whine about how he hoped he could still have cocktails in the house.

At one point in time, Victor truly loved Maggie and was willing to do anything for her such as moving out of the mansion with her when she was paralyzed. Lately, though, he is acting like he doesn’t care about her at all. Somebody needs to shake him and get him to lose the attitude he’s developed recently.

Jack: Eve! What good is it for her to get revenge on Ben for Paige's death by protecting a different crazed would-be serial killer from the consequences of her actions? And stop playing at being a cop when you don't know what you're doing.

I also wasn't happy with Eli's abuse of power to try to force info out of Rory, who was the VICTIM of Ben's threats, not the perpetrator of anything.

And Victor, go be with Maggie and stop listening to Kate -- and put the alcohol in the living room away before the next person to relapse uses it like the last three have.

Christine: Victor. I love him but he needs to do a better job of being there for Maggie. He also needs to pack up the bar in the living room. No one is saying he can’t have a drink in his own home, but it’s time to put the booze away so it’s not a temptation to the multiple addicts in the house.

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

Stephanie: My favorite scene was Xander handing the diary over to Maggie and Sarah. It was great to see him do something out of the goodness of his heart rather than to try to manipulate a situation for once.

I also enjoyed seeing Maggie experience some true happiness and hope after being so depressed by all of the pain that she’s experienced recently that she started drinking again.

Jack: I loved Jack finally beginning to question Eve's motives.

Also, to my surprise, I enjoyed Lani's realization that her life with Rafe and baby David was a fantasy. Not a Lani fan, but that was some great work by Sal Stowers.

Christine: Definitely Xander deciding to do the right thing and hand over the diary. Granted, he’s hoping to gain Maggie and Sarah’s goodwill, but for Xander, this was a huge step in the right direction.