Hevon Must Be Missing Angels: Applauding Y&R's Hilary Curtis & Devon Hamilton Winters On Finding Rare Love

Young and the Restless's Hilary (Mishael Morgan) and Devon (Bryton James) are bringing back forbidden urban love dynamic in the afternoon.

Nowadays minority descent lovers being together seems to be ultimate forbidden taboo in the network television world-- ultimate unsolicited territory. Every turned channel features one brown toned individual pairing up with white counterpart. ABC's Shonda Rime's Scandal's Olivia and President Fitz and Grey's Anatomy's Jackson and April, Fox's Sleepy Hollow's Abbie to Icabob (they are so gonna go there), The Mindy Project's Mindy and Danny, and NBC's Parenthood's Jasmine and Crosby to name a few. Heck on PBS's Downton Abbey rebellious Rose was trying to marry to a "colored" jazz singer for scandalous plot point purpose. This feminist round table discussion about white obsession with viewing minorities as "beautiful attainable exoticism" addresses and slays perception. Viewers will continue watching these programs not realizing racial boundaries needing to come into play. Fact remains that one cannot be romanticized unless on canvas whiteness wants character to be romanticized.
That's why Young and the Restless has been applauded for as long as I can remember.

Drusilla (Victoria Rowell) and Neil (Kristoff St. John) were one of daytime's best beloved African American fairy tales.

Back in the 1990's, as a youngster on my mama's knee, I fell in love with vivacious Cinderella-esque Drucilla Barber. She was written to stereotype-- poor, uneducated, sassy black woman, but Victoria Rowell graced phenomenal wit, humor, intelligence, and bravery into this memorable character. Former runaway ballerina turned fashion model and illiterate turned excellence, Dru became radiant apple to eye of Neil Winters. Rich, successful, savvy businessman was bright, kind, and charming-- the eloquent black "prince" that Disney's Princess and the Frog were too afraid to create. Alongside evening episodes of The Cosby Show, watching Young and the Restless during summer and holiday noontime breaks were everything thanks to Dru and Neil's roller coaster romance. While Neilla (yes made up my first soap portmanteau) was going on, All My Children's Angie and Jesse (Mom was gung ho on her CBS soaps) were also making pivotal waves, breaking molds of predominately white genre. On Y&R, Neilla had their problems-- career interference (Neil didn't want Dru to become the big model) and affairs (Dru cheated with Neil's younger brother Malcolm due to sugar pill high and Neil with Carmen years later). Despite tangled messes they still loved one another in that traditionally over-dramatic, cannot-live-or-breathe-without-you soapy fashion. Now in comes the man Drusilla and Neil adopted-- Devon Hamilton Winters. Big kicker here-- Devon is in love with Neil's current wife, Hilary Curtis and she loves him too! Urban drama, angst, and sexy off the charts chemistry galore has come right back to Y&R with a fiery diligence!

Feelings were running deep when Devon (Bryton James) came to Hilary's (Mishael Morgan) aide after a pool escapade.

Why have I come to adore Hilary and Devon?
It's liberating happiness for varied reasons.
One: The actors are fantastic! Emmy winning Bryton James has come a long way from Family Matters. Now I have always been skeptical about Devon, but over the years he has grown like a wild, free spirited rose. Not weed nor thorn. A rose. Bryton is marvelous at expressing degrees of emotion, convincing viewers of Devon's inner turmoils and gracious joys. Mishael Morgan is an actress eliciting captivating charisma. I expect big wave currents in her future. Perhaps even future Emmy nominations once stories become basis to showcase depth she is capable of conveying. After all, Mishael has overcame hurdles of bad writing-- already a win.
Two: Hilary Curtis is a smart, snappy, well-traveled, trilingual woman with degrees under her belt (Y&R's young Olivia Pope). In the beginning, a real evil villainous lady-- placing alcohol in former alcoholic Neil's drink as well as revealing his journal entries to the web, trying to break up Lily (Drusilla's daughter with Malcolm) and Cane's marriage among other malicious shenanigans to avenge her mother's death. She's changed now. No, not sprouting halos and angel wings, Hilary's tough edges have softened just a bit and shell is broken. Like Dru, she was a former aspiring dancer and just as ambitious. How could I not appreciate evocative similarities? Oh, and she married Neil. Boom.
Three: Devon Hamilton Winters is made for Hilary. Simply put. He had a mother who loved drugs more than him. A rich father who never knew he existed. Devon too is a hard working individual like Hilary-- passionate about music (one needs music to dance sometimes right?). He lost his hearing due to meningitis and received a successful cochlear transplant. Ultimately revealed to be Katherine Chancellor's (R.I.P. valiant Jeanne Cooper) long lost grandson, he receives a vast inheritance. Money brought eventual troubles. Hilary isn't the first woman of Neil's that Devon has treasured. He had a one night stand with Tyra. However, with Hilary, Devon's heart is one hundred percent soul mate clad. And she feels the same.
Four: You know a couple is worth weight in pure gold if the actors can have great eye sex. Eye sex? Oh, that's when the eyes say everything without touching. Hilary and Devon had been making love for months, way before "innocent" hand brushing and unnecessary clothes came tumbling off. When two sets of chocolate brown eyes speak simultaneous sweet friendship and underlying ardent passion, pairing has exceeded expectation. Hevon is one helluva guilty pleasure. Even if they only have a three minute scene without uttering dialogue to one another. It's that abyssal deep.
Four: Neil is blind twice over! From Hevon's beginning, currents were swirling about for all to see and feel. Even Hilary's nemesis, Lily commented on the flying firecracker sparks.Yet somehow Neil does not sense rapturous phenomenon. Of course, as luck would have it, when Hevon prepared to announce and celebrate their beautiful love, Neil has a horrible accident and loses his eyesight. Now he really can't SEE them.
Five: I must explain strange fixation with diehard shipping of varied blond haired blue eyed women and dark haired, deep-eyed men-- primarily Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Buffy Summers and Angel, Days of Our Lives' Samantha Brady and EJ Dimera, Guiding Light's Tammy Winslow and Jonathan Randall, and General Hospital's Maxie Jones and Nathan West. I relish unseeable forces dooming pairings to be together, but undeniable, irrefutable love is driving catalyst forcing pairings to break conventional rules. Above mentioned pairings have that. Now Hilary and Devon falling into the category and obsession is quite an invigorating twist.

And by spend the night, they mean Devon (Bryton James) and Hilary (Mishael Morgan) have a splendid evening under the stars dancing. Still, they're right for calling it "the ultimate betrayal." The eye sex was off the charts sizzling.

Now there is nothing wrong with interracial love. Nothing. Love is love. But something is wrong with Hollywood perspective. There's always something wrong with Hollywood and race. Frankly, I'm sick of black women being valued and rewarded only when white man desire them and vice versa for black men. They're being painted not to want one another, avoid each other in scenes at times. I once had a social media argument with someone who viewed desirous outcry for African American couplings to be racist notion. I didn't understand her conviction. I do not dislike interracial pairings (favorites include Saved by the Bell's Zach and Lisa, Awkward Black Girl's J & Jay, and Y&R's Daniel and Lily when Davetta Sherwood played her). I have immensely championed white pairings. How is it not appropriate to a black woman and a black man to want each other-- to feel that same forbidden longing, that of which enhances a soap opera drama? I miss Dru and Neil a lot. Thus, I cannot help being drawn towards Hilary and Devon's destiny bound hearts. My longing is their longing like ravenous buzzing bees to promised nectar. Others shouldn't protest them either. Yes, it's a sordid affair, a truly terrible fate. Devon told Hilary before she got married that he had feelings for her. What does she do? Marries Neil anyway despite what inner voice telling her no. The dawn of long marriages seems to have passed in soap operadom. Sad but true. Perhaps Hevon is one of the few potential young pairings that can break this pattern, this notion that supercouples are extinct.

On September 17, 2014, Hilary and Devon's love could no longer fight against humming need for passionate consummation.

As for other soap operas still on the air with black couples in love, General Hospital has Jordan and Shawn. Bold and the Beautiful's Carter and Maya, however, are not ill fated destiny. Maya wants Rick Forrester and has always wanted Rick Forrester. Days Of Our Lives needs to catch up. Let's face it even when Renee Jones  (Lexie Carver) was on the latter soap, she wasn't used as front burner material. Unless her character had some tawdry affairs or died. Currently, the audience wants and craves Hevon fruit. TV Source Poll results have Hevon as #3 Best Couple (top Y&R pairing and only African Americans), Bryton at #3 for Best Actor and Mishael at #6 for Best Actress! Lord knows I want them. They just might be my last ship. After all, others sank hardcore. I'm still crying real tears. My track record with forbidden love isn't exactly peachy keen. Angel left Buffy. Tammy died. EJ died. Samantha went to Hollywood. Maxie and Nathan are banned from seeing each other right now.

It'll only be a matter of time before Hevon and its portrayers take number one spot in the CBS Soaps Poll.

So I need Hilary to dump Neil as soon as eyesight comes back. She should be with her true love-- Devon. It sounds real easy and maybe downright cornball, but the ride will be bumpy and soapy and hopefully not too traumatic. Since Dru fell off a cliff and left her jacket behind in 2007, the writers can create a sweet humble return for Victoria Rowell. Is that too much wonderful to ask for? Neil's eventual pain will need healing and having happily ever after with Drusilla would salve wounds. Whereas other creative juicy obstacles can just try damnedest to keep united Hevon apart. 

Cheers to Bryton and Mishael, hoping that there will be more twists and pulls as Devon ad Hilary continue to fall further into intricate webs of love.

In closing, Young and the Restless will always have steadfast allegiance. Occasionally, I despise character downfalls and scream at the screen, but its devotion to humanizing urbanism has stirred since childhood. I cannot completely turn my back on appreciative artistry. In Genoa City, African Americans rise alongside populated whiteness, fall in and out of love, and swarm in richly wealth sans beholden tendency. My excited, obligated heart swells at thoughts of more exploratory Hevon trysts and clandestine rendezvouses. Although fearing outcomes and revelations, I believe Hilary and Devon are meant for one another-- brown skinned Romeo Montague to brown skinned Juliet Capulet. Addictive angst and scorching drama cloaks them, but above all else fervent, consuming, bone-melting, soul stirring love-- most important element tying solid romance together. So much potential. I cannot wait to see what further stories are planned.
Besides if narratives don't meet expectations, there is always fanfiction.
Thank Hevon for that.