I called it. You called it. We all called it.
Ciara is still alive.
And on Days of Our Lives during the week of 1-25-21, we’re finally getting our first look at where she’s been since her disappearance.
It was predictable that Ciara would join the ranks of the recently resurrected or the presumed-dead-while-alive club.
Nobody ever found a body, there were no blood splatters to back up Vincent’s claim that he shot her at close range, and he had every reason in the world to make up a story about her fate.
The only question was when Days of Our Lives would reveal the truth, and now it’s about to happen.
A clip in the preview video shows her banging on a glass door and calling for someone to let her out of wherever she’s being held.
This is more or less a rerun of Ciara’s father, Bo, disappearing after Peter Reckell left Days of Our Lives.
For three years, Bo made occasional phone calls to explain to Hope that he was still chasing Stefano in Europe even at times when Stefano was in Salem.
Then it turned out he’d been kidnapped and had been held hostage in a makeshift dungeon, Steve set out on a rescue mission, and Bo came back to town only to die for real a month later.
Hopefully, that last part of the story won’t come true for Ciara, but the question is: with Victoria Konefal (Ciara) only willing to commit to Days of Our Lives on a recurring basis and Kristian Alfonso (Hope) no longer wanting to be part of the serial at all, how are they going to resolve this?
Obviously, Ben needs to find Ciara and rescue her, but then what? And with no Hope on canvas, how will they explain Hope’s continued absence once her daughter has been found?
Let’s hope for some high-quality answers to those questions soon. In the meantime, check out all 11 NBC spoiler photos below and let us know what you’re most looking forward to on Days of Our Lives during the week of 1-25-21.
Philip’s entanglement with the mob turns violent.
I’m so not looking forward to this.
Mob stories are overdone on Days of Our Lives, and Philip has been particularly obnoxious since he returned with his stupid money-laundering scheme.
I could get behind Philip as a gambling addict IF his story was about coming to terms with it and he and Brady bonded over their mutual addiction issues.
Instead, we have a stereotypical and violent storyline that is undoubtedly a vehicle to kick off another Philip/Chloe/Brady triangle. Yawn.
Eli enlists Xander to lure Dr. Raynor into a trap.
Of course he does. But what kind of trap can Xander set?
She’s not working for him anymore. She’s working for Vivian.
A better strategy would be to hire Nicole as a private investigator.
She found Raynor the first time and blackmailed her into confessing. So let her work her magic a second time to get these babies back to their parents.
Brady’s life hangs in the balance.
Brady gets shot thanks to Philip’s mob issue.
This isn’t the first time we’ve been here with him. I can’t remember exactly when, but I’m sure his life hung in the balance after getting shot sometime within the last two years.
In any case, hopefully, the danger to his life will make some people realize how important he is to them. It would be nice if Philip had some guilt or some remorse, but I don’t expect him to be among the ones praying desperately for Brady’s recovery.
After all, Brady’s absence will make it easier for Philip to get Chloe, and nowadays he’s written as a selfish bastard.
Nicole insists on taking Rafe out for his birthday.
Yay! Now, THIS is the kind of spoiler I like to see.
I’ve shipped Nicole and Rafe forever. Besides Daniel, Rafe is the person I’d most love for her to end up with.
These should be some cute, slow, friendship-moving-into-something-else scenes, which Days of Our Lives badly needs to balance out all the violent stories.
I just hope that if Nicole and Rafe do get together, Eric doesn’t suddenly reappear to throw a monkey wrench into things.
Kristen threatens to shoot Chloe!
This is the kind of spoiler I do NOT look forward to.
First of all, there’s too much gun violence on Days of Our Lives. At least once a month, someone pulls a gun on someone else when they’re not getting their way.
And how does Kristen get out of jail and get her hands on a gun to begin with?
I prefer Kristen as a gray character who is mainly reformed and could do without this over-the-top hostage situation story.
Xander rats out Philip to Victor.
It’s about damn time!
Someone should have gone to Victor about Philip’s mob problem a long time ago.
Victor could have handled it without anyone we care about getting hurt, but Philip steadfastly refused to let him in on what was going on.
Ten to one, Victor will lash into Xander for not telling him sooner instead of into Philip for creating a dangerous situation in the first place, though.
Anna gives Abigail marital advice.
Ooh! I love me some Anna!
She is hilarious as well as perceptive.
But I hope that she doesn’t push Abby to go back to Chad so that “Gwen doesn’t win.”
Gwen’s manipulations aside, Chad distrusted Abigail for no real reason and disparaged her mental illness. That’s not a strong basis for a marriage and at the very least, he deserves a time-out for several months while Abigail decides what she wants to do.
Marlena hypnotizes Allie to help her remember the details of her assault.
This also goes under the better-late-than-never category.
I’m thrilled that Allie’s story is finally about her and not about how much Tripp is suffering due to being falsely accused of rape.
I just wish it hadn’t waited until Charlie was revealed as the real rapist.
Either way, though, these should be some emotional scenes. And nobody does supporting trauma survivors like Marlena.
Abigail and Gwen have an explosive confrontation.
Oh good. More slapping people in the Square.
Don’t get me wrong. Gwen deserves it.
But I’d rather someone go to the police about Gwen drugging Abigail’s drink and then work on figuring out what’s true or not true about her claims re Jack while she’s behind bars.
Ben receives a sign to follow his heart…
Here we go. Ben is going to get some sort of sign that he needs to go rescue Ciara.
He’s been spending a ton of time around Claire, so I hope we’re not going to have another Claire/Ben/Ciara triangle once Ciara is back in Salem.
But at least we’re moving past the eternal grief stage of this story.
Rafe opens up to Nicole.
Two Rafe/Nicole spoilers in one week!
Rafe will probably admit how much he’s been suffering since Hope broke up with him to go searching the world for Ciara.
It’s too soon to move into full-blown romantic territory, but some raw emotion and an attempted kiss wouldn’t be a bad outcome for this spoiler.
Your turn, Days of Our Lives fanatics!
What are you looking forward to on Days of Our Lives during the week of 1-25-21?
Hit the big, blue SHOW COMMENTS button and let us know!
Want to chat about already-aired episodes of Days of Our Lives? Check out our latest Days of Our Lives reviews and Days of Our Lives Round Table discussions.
Days of Our Lives continues to air on NBC on weekday afternoons. Check your local listings for airtimes.
Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on Twitter.