Despite the fashionable dresses Annie's been wearing lately, she's sporting some noticeable tread marks on her back. Anyone else catch those? Confusing, I know -- wasn't Richie the one who was run over by a car (after being clocked with a crowbar)? Yes, but Annie was the victim of another hit-and-run: the Greenlee bus. She wasn't lying prone in the road, either. The writers and producers picked her up and tossed her right in the oncoming vehicle's path, and while I still feel for both the character and the actress, it's getting harder to back Annie's increasingly desperate attempts to get away with murder.

Annie's main problem is that she was never meant to be duplicitous. All of this conniving and backstabbing is new to her, so she's bound to make some mistakes. However, she should've more closely studied Richie's antics. Annie's tactics since killing her brother have reeked of desperation and amateurism: shouting something akin to "He was supposed to grab Greenlee!" when she discovered that Richie had absconded with Babe; cracking under pressure and pointing the proverbial finger at Zach when Jesse probed for further information regarding Annie's whereabouts the night Richie was killed; only showing up for work at Fusion for a few hours at a time...

Oh, wait -- every Fusion girl (they're certain not women) does that.

Annie's degeneration becomes more depressing with each passing episode. Whether you like her or not, it's increasingly obvious that Annie is being put out to pasture for the sake of a Greenlee and Ryan reunion -- a reunion that no one really wants, by the way.

No, I'm serious: who wants Ryan and Greenlee back together? Do you? If you do, please take a few minutes to write in and tell me why. Why does such a toxic relationship appeal to you?

Speaking of Ryan and Greenlee, each will have to lose their respective partner in order to rekindle their ridiculous love story. Annie's fate is becoming more apparent (I for one predict she'll be killed, thus freeing Ryan's third child from the hell that would be stepmother Greenlee), but what about Aidan Devane? The show sure seems to be trying its hardest to convince us that Greenlee and Aidan are the real deal, but I think they're trying too hard. Greenlee and Aidan were doomed the moment Rebecca Budig returned to the canvas, so the question is: how will Aidan be eliminated so that Ryan and Greenlee can be together? Will he be killed? Will he leave town?

Reverend Jackson

From the very beginning of Friday's episode, I believed the Erica/Jackson/Sam Woods scenes were going to be more painful than another re-run of Ryan and Greenlee's wedding. And for the first three-fourths of the show, they were that bad and more.

But then Jackson grew a spine, and I all but stood up and cheered.

Since the beginning of their relationship, Erica has been like a spoiled rich kid with one too many toys. She begs for a new toy, flatters it, braids its hair -- and then discards it in favor of her favorite beat-up, ratty teddy bear.

For years, Jackson has been that teddy bear. No more. Everything he said to Erica was the absolute truth, and the look on La Kane's face was priceless and much anticipated, at least for this anti-Erica fan.

Preach it, Action Jackson. You're not a welcome mat, so it's about time you removed Erica's designer shoes from your surface.

Now, don't get me wrong: I'm a Jack/Erica fan. I think they're wonderful together, and I believe Jackson's ability to be brutally honest with Erica is one aspect of their relationship that keeps the female ego balloon from floating away to space. But the countless "You're Erica Kane!" and other B.S. flattery has got to end.

Invariably, Jack and Erica will walk down the aisle once again, but please, please-oh-please, let Erica's eleventh wedding be her last. I am so tired of this diva (not a compliment) acting like a flirty teenager. She's a grandma. Give her family-oriented storylines, not the same love triangle we've seen with Erica since the early '80s. It's over. Settle her down and give her some depth. It's time for something other than Erica's hair to have volume.

Wrap-up