The Young and the Restless - Her name is Beth Maitland

Friday's episode was mainly about Colleen's memorial service, with the additional drama of Lily being unable to attend due to her compromised immunity system due to cancer. Personally, I wished that those plots were the whole of the show, but naturally, the writers had to insinuate the Newmans into this storyline, which remains a very sore subject for me. I don't give a rip about Sharon grappling with her 'lost' baby; I don't give a rip about Nick's divided loyalties; nor do I care about Victoria feeling isolated because JT isn't toe-dancing with the news that Victor isn't rejecting Colleen's heart; and I really don't care that, yet again, Nikki allowed herself to be pulled into Victor's personal drama. I would've been perfectly contented if Friday's show was solely about the Abbotts and the Winters because they were the source of the emotion and heart of the episode.

To be honest, I cried throughout the whole memorial, except when Victoria wanted to read Victor's letter. Her presence was like a cold bucket of water in an otherwise very emotional ceremony. The performances were phenomenal; unfortunately, I don't know the names of all of the actors during these scenes, so I will have to use their characters' names. A good example was Billy - typically, I can't stand Billy, especially his interactions with Chloe, but during this storyline, my opinions of what was happening fell in line with his. And when he was charged with arranging the memorial, he did his niece proud. And when he set the stage for what the service would be and punctuated the ending of it with everyone letting go of red balloons, I was actually proud of him.

I was kinda surprised at how moved I was by Neil (Kristoff St. John). Make no mistake, St. John usually brings it, in terms of performance, but his demeanor during this whole thing added authenticity. He made you believe that he knew, appreciated, and loved Colleen for being Lily's friend and for Colleen being Colleen. You felt the gravity of Neil's fears for Lily, especially when he had to face the completely unexpected death of Colleen. He felt like a family friend and a genuine friend to Traci.

The rest of the Abbotts were fine, but the standout was absolutely, positively Traci. For the last few weeks, she has been the heart (no pun intended) of the whole storyline. I have always been a fan of Traci, since I saw myself in her. I'm a twin and unfortunately, I was the decidedly chubbier twin all of my life, so I could relate to Traci's growing pains/rivalries with Ashley, and later, her rivalries with Lauren and her incessant drive to have unqualified happiness within her own skin and on her own terms. The majority of the time, Traci was unsuccessful at getting what she wanted, but she never became bitter about it. So when Traci mothered Colleen, and was damn good at it, it was a significant, well-fought victory; and when her precious child was taken away, it hurt me so deeply. I am ashamed to say that although I related to the Traci character on a personal level, I never knew the name of her portrayer. I was several years gone from Y & R before I began reading soap opera credits, so I never knew her name until yesterday.

Beth Maitland is her name.

Beth Maitland crushed it, on Friday's episode and for the episodes leading up to the memorial. Traci's grief was truly one of the most startlingly authentic portrayals I've seen in years. At times, it was too overwhelming to watch, but impossible to turn off. And the fact that Maitland's Traci tried to be sunny beneath the downpour of tears was quintessential Traci, but her pain was unlike any pain Traci endured over the last 20+ years.

Beth Maitland's performance should be an argument towards giving veterans the frontburner versus hunting down models/reality show contestants and giving them undeserved screen time. Yes, soaps are great testing grounds for new actors, but the vets can and should be the professors on screen.

Kudos, Beth Maitland!