Sometimes having amnesia can be the best time of your life–if you’re a character on a daytime drama! Amnesia is as common on soaps as it is uncommon in real life, but a good amnesia plot can be riveting and scintillating not to mention scandalously juicy when done right.
In case you’ve forgotten (pun intended!) here are a few sensational amnesia storylines from each of the four remaining network soaps.
Days of our Lives
Right now on Days of our Lives, Jack (Matthew Ashford) is experiencing a classic case of amnesia. Maybe it has to do with also being back from the dead—again! Surely all that passing back and forth from another dimension can mess with one’s memories?
Jack has been both a good guy and a bad guy over the years. This version is definitely nasty. He has double-crossed his own son, J.J. (Casey Moss) and taken up with town vixen Eve (Kassie DePaiva). Hope is on the horizon, spoilers reveal that ex-wife Jennifer (Melissa Reeves) will help him remember something significant.
The Young and the Restless
The Young and the Restless just wrapped up an amnesia storyline involving mega titan Victor Newman’s (Eric Braeden) son Adam (Mark Grossman). Coincidently, he, like Days of our Lives’ Jack, is also back from the dead!
Adam is currently wreaking havoc in Genoa City. Not too long ago he was living as Spider, a pro gambler living large in Vegas. Dear old dad brought him back to town, where he was promptly shot, causing his memories to come flooding back. Amazing how that happens!
Now he is suing his brother, Nick (Joshua Morrow) for custody of his son, and chasing after his ex, Sharon (Sharon Case). Some things never change.
General Hospital
On General Hospital, Jason (Steve Burton) is a permanent amnesiac. So far at least. Sadly, he was a promising young man wanting to follow in the footsteps of his parents, and become a surgeon. Instead, he got in a car with his drunk brother. They crashed and mobster Sonny (Maurice Benard) took Jason under his wing. Now, he’s a hired hit man and enforcer, a bit of a career switch. But, he has mended ties with his family.
The Bold and the Beautiful
On The Bold and the Beautiful, Taylor (Hunter Tylo) once lost her memories, but in doing so, she gained a prince! Yep, she married into royalty while suffering from amnesia. When her memories returned she, too, returned to her civilian life as a shrink.
Do you have a favorite amnesia storyline? Let us know which one, either past or current!
Tanya Clark
Tanya is a freelance writer, therapist and educator. The L.A. native was born at General Hospital, foreshadowing her obsession with writing about soaps, something that makes her feel young, restless, bold and beautiful, a state of mind that hopefully remains that way all the days of our lives.