BEST FAMILY DRAMA I THE ABBOTTS, Y&R
The tight-knit Abbott clan’s slow unraveling was a gripping saga to behold. Though siblings Jack and Ashley had long clashed over how the family biz, Jabot, should be run, they always had each other’s backs. That changed dramatically a year ago, when Jack shut down Ashley’s power play for the CEO seat by revealing a little-known bylaw that only a bio Abbott — which Ashley is not — could have that position. In what seemed like cosmic irony, a paternity test later confirmed that Jack wasn’t John’s son, either. While Jack grappled with an identity crisis and tried to find out who his real father was, Billy took over at Jabot. A returning Kyle sabotaged his uncle’s tenure by sneakily encouraging a relapse of Billy’s gambling addiction (leading to an engrossing intervention). Throughout the messy turmoil, Traci’s well-timed visits lent crucial color and depth as she dispensed advice and even a scolding or two. After Ash regained Jabot control, the show delivered a mind-blowing twist when it was revealed that Jack was John’s bio son; Ash had rigged the test as payback. Jack rejoiced, but Ash got the last laugh when she walked off with the patents of the Jabot products she developed, making peace with Dina before moving to Paris to start her own cosmetics line. With all this tumult, the Abbotts were unquestionably the family to watch in 2018.