Hope was a busy woman as she returned to Salem to say goodbye to her dad. Although she narrowly missed Doug’s

memorial service, she visited his grave to properly mourn him in the Thursday, December 5 episode of Days of Our Lives.

She also met the suddenly turned-up grandson, who shares the same name as her father. Naturally, her cop instincts took

over. She doesn’t trust the guy one bit. And she shouldn’t.

Hope Returns, Reunites, and Reflects

It was so good to see Hope Brady (Kristian Alfonso) back in Salem, and Julie (Susan Seaforth Hayes) was so happy to see her. But even before seeing Julie, Hope met Doug Williams III (Peyton Meyer). Naturally, she wondered who in the world this man was that stood in the middle of the Horton family house.

Julie let her know who he was, but you could tell that she knew there was more to his story. Hope also gave Julie an update on Bo (Peter Reckell). It turns out he didn’t wake up after moving his fingers.

After Julie’s, Hope headed to the cemetery, where she expressed her extreme heartbreak to Doug (the late Bill Hayes), her father. She cried for him and talked about how she would never get to hug him again and that she missed him. But he’ll always be in her heart.

She had a couple of wonderful interruptions, first Jennifer (Melissa Reeves) and then her children, Shawn (Brandon Beemer) and Ciara (Victoria Konefal). Even though Hope won’t be able to get any more Doug hugs, she received comfort from Jennifer, Shawn, and Ciara.

Hope Redirects

When Jennifer arrived, there were hugs, Hope calling Jennifer “cuz,” and they talked about the new grandson that suddenly showed up in town. Hope was the voice of reason. Maybe because everybody is so vulnerable right now, the family seems to have accepted that Doug is Doug. And that Doug is good.

But viewers know he has the valuable diamond necklace from the time capsule, so we know he’s suspicious. Lucas (Bryan Dattilo) and Ciara accused Steve Olson (Stephen Schnetzer) of being the thief. Why was everyone trusting Doug so easily? Even Jennifer didn’t seem to think there was anything out of the ordinary. Thankfully, Hope felt something off about this grandson.

Hope asked Jennifer to keep an eye on the guy after she heads back to Bo. And she knows her journalist cousin can do some digging, too. Now, Jennifer doesn’t trust him either, and that’s a good thing.

Burning Questions

How did Doug know there was even a necklace to steal? Was it simply about him breaking into the house while everybody was at the funeral and finding it in the box? Or did he know about this necklace beforehand?

What are your thoughts on Hope giving Jennifer the mission? Did you love Julie, Lucas, and Ciara telling Doug about the pot-laced donut incident

How great was it to see Marlena (Deidre Hall) be there for Belle (Martha Madison) in the wake of her impending divorce from Shawn? Philip (John-Paul Lavoisier) and Shawn have a civil conversation, and Philip says he is not about to go after Belle. Was he sincere? And, finally, was Xander’s (Paul Telfer) warning to Stephanie (Abigail Klein) about Philip a little hypocritical?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.