I had high hopes for Young & Restless’ pairing of Cane and Phyllis. His nonsensical approach to proving himself to ex-wife Lily and their

kids made a reunion for them a nonstarter. And Phyllis hadn’t had a believable love interest since her last split from Jack. (The whole re-

obsessed-with-Danny thing never made sense.) So I was rooting for Cane and Phyllis’ hookup to work.

So far, Cane is mostly coming off pathetic. He’s sulky that his loco plan to win back Lily wasn’t successful and doesn’t want to do anything logical to prove that he can go a few days without lying or hatching a harebrained scheme. Dude came back to the canvas full of big ideas, none of which were achievable and none of which, obviously, were achieved.

As for Phyllis, I know that she’s a forceful presence. Often, I love that about her. But her sniping at Lily is just obnoxious, and it makes Cane seem too weak to stand up for himself. Which it appears that he is, but having Phyllis do it for him is yet another bad look.

Perhaps most unfortunate of all is the fact that so far as I can tell, Cane and Phyllis’ relationship isn’t based on love, lust or even like. It’s just another business storyline with some nookie thrown in. He wants her to help him achieve his goals like a business partner with benefits. And she wants him to make Genoa City see her as a star. (Did anyone else flash back to Michelle Stafford’s Halloween costume when the character was going on about how brightly she wanted people to see her shining?)

So in the end, how do we feel about Cane and Phyllis? I’m ambivalent. Maybe it will turn into something romantic, but right now, it’s feeling less like the start of a hot romance than a corporate restructuring. Hit the comments with your take.

I had high hopes for Young & Restless’ pairing of Cane and Phyllis. His nonsensical approach to proving himself to ex-wife Lily and their kids made a reunion for them a nonstarter. And Phyllis hadn’t had a believable love interest since her last split from Jack. (The whole re-obsessed-with-Danny thing never made sense.) So I was rooting for Cane and Phyllis’ hookup to work.

So far, Cane is mostly coming off pathetic. He’s sulky that his loco plan to win back Lily wasn’t successful and doesn’t want to do anything logical to prove that he can go a few days without lying or hatching a harebrained scheme. Dude came back to the canvas full of big ideas, none of which were achievable and none of which, obviously, were achieved.

As for Phyllis, I know that she’s a forceful presence. Often, I love that about her. But her sniping at Lily is just obnoxious, and it makes Cane seem too weak to stand up for himself. Which it appears that he is, but having Phyllis do it for him is yet another bad look.

Perhaps most unfortunate of all is the fact that so far as I can tell, Cane and Phyllis’ relationship isn’t based on love, lust or even like. It’s just another business storyline with some nookie thrown in. He wants her to help him achieve his goals like a business partner with benefits. And she wants him to make Genoa City see her as a star. (Did anyone else flash back to Michelle Stafford’s Halloween costume when the character was going on about how brightly she wanted people to see her shining?)

So in the end, how do we feel about Cane and Phyllis? I’m ambivalent. Maybe it will turn into something romantic, but right now, it’s feeling less like the start of a hot romance than a corporate restructuring. Hit the comments with your take.