The Bold and the Beautiful recap (Dec. 1): Ridge needs time

We were treated to part two of Brooke and Ridge’s conversation about the CPS call on the Dec. 1 episode of The Bold and the Beautiful. And, unfortunately, you could see the writing choices in this particular conversation because parts of it didn’t make any sense.

First, Ridge went from feeling betrayed by Thomas to accusing him of abusing Douglas which was wild to hear considering he’s done no such thing. Thomas asked his son to be quiet about something he discovered the same way Brooke, Hope, and Liam did when they didn’t want him telling the Forresters that he caught his grandmother kissing Deacon.

Second, Brooke insisted that she would have checked with Ridge before placing a call to the authorities. There is no realm of possibility where that would have happened. Check with him for what? It’s not like Ridge would have said, “Yes. Go ahead and call Child Protective Services on my son.” So the fact that he agreed that she would have done that was farfetched.

Lastly, Brooke had an “I choose me and my self-respect” speech that came out of nowhere considering Ridge never asked to come back to her. She assumed that’s why he was there when he gave her no indication that was the case.

That’s not to say Ridge isn’t conflicted. He is. But it was difficult watching Brooke talk about what she deserves when her ex-husband didn’t express his torn feelings. She presumed he was choosing her in that moment so now it looks like the time he’s taking for himself is her idea when he never made a move that even hinted that he expected to reunite.

Here’s full recap of events.

The Bold and the Beautiful recap (Dec. 1)

Once again Ridge made clear to Brooke that he’s more sorry about Thomas’ actions than she could possibly know. Remember, she asked him repeatedly what it is that he wanted her to confess, and all he’d tell her is that she knows why he’s upset. Of course, Brooke didn’t so their conversations ended up going nowhere but in circles until finally Ridge left her.

Understandably, Brooke wanted to know every last detail of what happened, so Ridge told her. He took her through the CPS call to the recording that he’d heard and how Thomas managed to pull off convincing him that it was her who brought the authorities into Hope and his son’s custody struggle.

Angry, she reiterated that Thomas needs professional help and not from his mother, Taylor. In his grief, Ridge accused his son of abusing Douglas which isn’t even remotely true and was galling to hear since we’ve seen their scenes together and that couldn’t be farther from reality. He sounded as over the top as Brooke did when she walked in on Thomas using a knife to cut his apple.

Brooke’s frustration elevated when she learned that it was Steffy who stopped the wedding because she knew about the call, and when Brooke pressed about whether Taylor knew and it was clear from Ridge’s face that his bride did, it looked like Brooke was two seconds away from going to go find Taylor herself to give her a piece of her mind.

She refrained, but we all know it’s coming. Ridge told her that Taylor found out before the wedding, but he wasn’t forthcoming on why he was sure Taylor was going to tell him after the wedding and not hold onto it possibly forever.

We know it’s because he’d assured her that they weren’t getting married because of Brooke but, unlike everyone else in this storyline, Ridge can’t seem to own up to the things he’s said and the promises that he’s made.

It’s because of this inability to be honest, with himself and with others, that Brooke launched into a speech about what she deserves. It was a fine moment for her, don’t get me wrong, but it was also incredibly presumptuous considering it’s predicated on the idea that Ridge was trying to come back to her without sorting his feelings out about what he wants.

Had he made a move I could have understood where she was coming from but, since he didn’t, it just came off as Brooke assuming she’ll always be top choice and that what she deserves is to be the only choice. The latter part I agree with, but the former is a character trait that’s grating. However, she should be able to look in the mirror and like and respect the person she sees.

Prior to the CPS call, Ridge was running out of the house to go spend time with his family that doesn’t include her. He allowed them to exclude Brooke and he reveled in their get togethers. Ridge wasn’t carrying himself like a married man, and was typically hugged up and flirting with Taylor without caring who saw. Most of their shared family bore witness to this including Donna and Hope.

It was embarrassing as was finding out from her sister that the reason he wanted their marriage annulled was so he could marry Taylor as quickly as possible. And, he hadn’t even given her the courtesy of knowing why he wanted to erase their marriage and pretend like it never existed. All of that was hurtful and that’s on Ridge, not Thomas (though Brooke didn’t get into that part).

Brooke told Ridge to figure himself out. To decide what he really wants for his life and his future. After her speech, he said he needed time and she gave that to him, but not before reaching out for a hug before they parted ways.

Back at the mansion, Taylor was coming to terms with the fact that her wedding day was ruined and she would not be getting married…at least not yet. Steffy was having a hard time accepting that herself. She wanted to believe that Ridge only went to go tell Brooke the truth and then he’d be back to marry her mom.

Thomas still wasn’t remorseful about his actions outside of how he devastated his mom. He and his sister fussed about it so much that Finn, who’d sent the kids along with Lee back home, kept warning Thomas to watch how he speaks to Steffy. Not that Thomas paid him any mind.

Taylor was sick of the fighting, but she did assure her son that while there will be consequences for what he did, his father would never turn his back on him. We’ll have to wait and see how well her words hold up considering all that Ridge has said regarding Thomas. Kind of like how she, her family, and us are waiting to know what Ridge is going to do.

Fortunately, we won’t be looking like Bill as we ride this story out. He was quite the sad sack after being rejected by both Brooke and Katie. Drinking on his own has apparently become a habit of his. Deacon’s picked up on it since Bill’s been doing it at his place of business and the two had a less than memorable talk about their dynamic and the Brooke of it all.

The scenes screamed filler. Hopefully, the writers give Bill a storyline of note soon because him staring into liquor as he opines about how he’s changed only to not having gotten anything out of it is less than enticing.

Until next time, Bold fans. Stay beautiful!

Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more The Bold and the Beautiful news and coverage! New episodes of the soap air Mondays-Fridays on CBS. Evening viewing is available on Paramount+.