Days of our Lives Two Scoops For the Week of February 16: Holiday Roads With Chad 'Clark' DiMera

For the last decade, Days of our Lives and Chad DiMera seemed to go hand in hand. For the last four decades, Days of our Lives and Stefano DiMera also seemed to go hand in hand. So, isn't it fitting that just after finally (FINALLY!) burying Stefano for good (we hope!), his youngest son decides to leave Salem...for a vacation road trip across America with his two young kids. Chevy Chase and Chad DiMera, who knew you both had Clark Griswold in common?

So yes, Chad is gone in dramatic road trip fashion, but he will be back. Still, you'd never know it from his long, long, over-the-top goodbye, so that is where we begin digging our two scoops into the Salem week that was.

It's a vacation, Chad...a VACATION

Why did Chad have to say goodbye to Belle? | Image: Peacock

Have you ever seen anyone make such a big deal about taking a road trip for a few weeks? From the way Chad treated this trip, the only reason we know it's just for a few weeks is that Jeremy only gave Thomas a few weeks' worth of school assignments to do while he was away. But that didn't stop Chad from embarking on a farewell tour before hitting the road with some Alice Horton Donuts.

From visiting Belle (?) cause he couldn't fulfill his dating app commitment (?) to his tearful goodbye at Abby's grave and his dramatic moments with Jack and Jennifer, we'd never seen anything so ridiculous for someone heading out of town for some fun in the sun. Chad spent more time away from Salem last year when he was trying to find Cat's mother than he plans to spend in Arizona with Will and Sonny.

While we know this was also a farewell to Billy Flynn, a beloved actor who made Chad the character he was, we needed a better premise for his departure than a brief family vacation in Arizona if the farewell was going to be done with such fanfare. That said, Billy Flynn will indeed be missed, but we look forward to seeing what Conner Floyd can bring to the character. (Don't forget to "tune in" on April 21st to find out.)

It's still a Days of our Lives Valentine's Day...Sigh

Stephanie and Alex had an announcement to make | Image: Peacock

Not only did DAYS present us with the longest goodbye for Chad, but it also gave us a Valentine's Day we thought would never, ever end. It started a week earlier with Marlena decked out in red, seeing patients in her living room, and ended in Miami with Gabi and Philip. In between, we got a VERY awkward Galentine's Day lunch featuring Marlena, Julie, and Maggie, in which Marlena barely acknowledged Maggie's presence. We also got an elopement, some Sweet Bits baked goods for the pregnant Sweet Bits owner, a stolen kiss between Sarah and Brady, some golf (golf!?) with Xander and Gwen that ended with more than a stolen kiss, and let's not forget Rachel's Valentine's cards, which brings us to...

Kristen, WHAT HAPPENED?!?!?

Kristen is right back to making a fool of herself for Brady | Image: Peacock

Kristen was fast becoming our breakout fave. She sacrificed it all for her daughter and was still willing to sacrifice even after learning Rachel remembered shooting EJ. She finally moved out of the DiMera mansion after deciding she'd had enough of the dysfunctional family she was adopted into without her consent. And she finally told Brady that she was done begging for his love after he'd spent years treating her like dirt under his fingernails.

Welp, here we go again, cause Hello, Old Kristen, we guess you're back. She's manipulated her way into Brady's new home and is planning on staying well over a month. When she smiled that Kristen smile over mimosas and told Gwen that she had a road back to the only man she'd ever loved, we wanted to gag. Here we go again. Rinse. Repeat. And sigh.

Jada, he's just not that into you

Jada has no idea that Theo is into her buddy Gabi | Image: Peacock

Oh, Jada, where do we begin? Your love life is a mess. As always. You can't solve a crime to save your life, which means you're most certainly in the long line of work. And now you can't tell when a man is so clearly thinking of someone else's cleavage when he is looking at you.

We almost felt secondhand embarrassment watching a coquettish Jada, still decked out in her elopement maid-of-honor get-up, bat her eyes at Theo while he imagined she was Gabi, low-cut sweater and all. In fact, he was looking down more than he was looking at her face. When Theo looked up, it was Gabi's face he saw and dopey Jada didn't suspect a thing.

Meanwhile, poor Gabi had the time of her life in Miami with Philip while worrying that he would learn what she did for Tony. Since Theo knows and Theo wants Gabi, we're pretty sure that Philip is about to learn the truth soon. Maybe Jada can match with Philip next, since apparently, any man will do. (Jada really, really wants a boyfriend.)

Alamania mania

Dimitri and Leo made it to Alamania | Image: Peacock

We still laugh every time we hear, say, or type the word Alamania because it is such a silly word with such a silly concept. Vivian has her own country with hotels and everything. Now, how dumb is that? Well, as dumb as it's been since Alamania was developed as a concept decades ago.

This week, we didn't get Vivian, but we did get Ivan, which we guess is a good substitute, but there is nothing like Vivian and Ivan together, so we feel we were gypped. We're not even sure what the heck is even going on in Alamania because this EJ-Gwen-Cat-Rafe-Dimitri-Peter-Secret Lab plot is so all over the place that nobody can even follow it or has any idea what the heck it's about.

But Leo and Dimitri are determined to find out. We were a little confused about how Leo thought he could get that ankle monitor off Dimitri by using lube when there was an entire foot in the way, but we'll ignore that silly plot point that brought them to the ER. At least they made it to Alamania, where Dimitri continued to make sexual innuendos and Leo continued to love Javi. Keep loving Javi, Leo. Like Chad, he WILL be back soon. He may look a little different and talk a little differently, but soon those holiday roads will lead them both back to Salem, where they belong.

Catch all-new episodes of Days of our Lives weekdays on Peacock.