HOLLYWOOD─Summer is NOT officially here, but it feels like things are kicking off in the right direction on the NBC sudser “Days of Our Lives!” For starters, we have a bit of a mystery in play involving Jake and his past. Goons previously ruffed up Ben, and then accosted Gabi who was later kidnapped. Jake has NOT been forthcoming with sharing all the dirty details about his past with Ben and Ciara, but with Gabi MIA, it has raised plenty of flags. Jake knows the woman who claims to be his wife is in dire straits, and with his kooky ex Gwen, locked in a mental hospital with Claire, that cannot be good news people.

Many of you might be asking why Gwen is so important? Apparently the thugs who kidnapped Gabi are tied to Gwen in some odd way. She has a British accent people, so that in itself is quite intriguing to say the least, and Gwen is not crazy! She has informed Claire that she is ‘acting’ for reasons she has yet to disclose. John and Marlena think Claire is better now and are taking on the responsibility to care for Claire as she re-enters society, just as Shawn and Belle swooped into Salem.

However, Claire has a fixation on Ben and Ciara’s wedding and as fans of the soap we all know that cannot be good news people. There are a lot of weddings underway in Salem with Eric & Nicole, Kayla & Justin, Lani and Eli and Ben & Claire who are looking to take the plunge, but something bad is indeed going to transpire, the question is which happy couple will have their big day blow up in flames?

For starters, we know Sami is heading back to Salem and is not happy that his brother is marrying her nemesis, Lani is preggers, Kayla is torn about her never-ending love for Steve and Ciara is worried about Claire who tried to kill her multiple times people. That is NOT the only drama people; Sami’s daughter Allie has swooped into town with her father Lucas and boy does the teen have a secret: she’s pregnant.

Yes, Allie is preggers and based on teasers (not a good look writers), Allie is going to allow Will and Sonny to potentially raise her child. That’s slightly odd considering Allie is Will’s little sister people. Allie disclosed her secret to Eric and Nicole hoping they would keep their lips sealed. Rafe was dealt a devastating blow in his custody case with David, where Zoe gained the victory she hoped for. The question is rather this is the end of David’s journey with Rafe and more importantly, what role does Hope play in all of this. It certainly looks like Hope and Rafe are warming up to another reunion.

Brady’s dark turn is raising eyes, first with dear ole dad John, but also Ciara who is aware that Brady has an ulterior motive when it comes to Titan. Like I said last week, Brady has been screwed over more times than I can count, people should not be surprised that he is embracing this darkness. The charade with Brady and Sarah continues, even though everyone including Xander realizes it’s a ruse. Xander is desperate to win Sarah back and has implored Jack of all people to help his quest with Sarah. Yeah, Xander, you might as well raise the white flag because I don’t see you penetrating Sarah’s heart buddy.