It’s been over a month since The Young and the Restless’ Cane (Billy Flynn) revealed himself to Aristotle Dumas, and I’ve been patiently waiting to lock into this new iteration of the character. To really feel invested in his new ominous portrayal, this mysterious obsession with Chancellor and this need to prove he’s a worthy adversary of Victor (Eric Braeden). Unfortunately, I’m admittedly just not a fan.
Now to be clear, my feelings of disappointment don’t rest on Flynn’s shoulders. He’s a fine actor, so this isn’t directed at his talent.
With that being said, Flynn has his own take on the Cane character that is markedly different from former Cane potrayer, Daniel Goddard. Flynn’s Cane is a little more conniving and dubious in my opinion, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Especially, since there’s still so much to be unpacked surrounding what Cane has been doing offscreen in his six-year absence from Genoa City.
This brings me to the storyline that ushered Cane back into The Young and the Restless fold. For months, viewers watched as the hype around who could be behind Aristotle Dumas was developed. He was built up as a mystery billionaire who could compete with The Great Victor Newman when it came to business. So when Cane was revealed to Aristotle, it was like the math wasn’t “mathing.”
Yes, I predicted Aristotle would be Cane a while ago based on the breadcrumbs left by show writers, but him confirming my suspicions and explaining he got the money to become a billionaire tycoon on the back of bitcoin investments, I just find it hard to believe.
His reveal felt like The Wizard being shown to be a culmination of smoke and mirrors in The Wizard of Oz. Sure, it’s possible the bitcoin story is true, but Cane and his father spent much of their previous time on the show involved in cons, scams and lies. It’s hard to believe they reconciled before Colin (Tristan Rogers) died, and they went legitimate to amass this large fortune.
Additionally, say what you will about Victor being a “villain” in his own right, but the man is the savviest tactician in all of The Young and the Restless business world. Plus, he’s had his share of enemies over the years, and you’d be hard pressed to recall one that’s been able to defeat Victor (sure, he’s lost a few battles, but never the war). And if Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman) hasn’t taken down The Mustache, I fail to comprehend how Cane thinks he’ll be able to do the honors just because the size of his bank account has grown. He doesn't feel like a viable contender for the Newman patriarch.
Also, let’s talk about the fact that Cane’s reveal quickly fizzled into a series of murders that feel premature. Damian (Jermaine Rivers) wasn’t even on the show for a year before he was killed because of Cane’s assistant. Damian’s relationships with Nate (Sean Dominic) and Lily (Christel Khalil) were just starting to really cement, so I feel cheated that viewers won’t get to see the possibilities thanks to Cane. Since I was already a bit disenchanted with him because of the Victor angle, this hasn’t helped.
Oh, and then to have Cane murder off one of the very few Chancellors left in Chance (Conner Floyd) feels like a slap in the face of longtime viewers. The Chancellor name once commanded respect, fear and adoration in Genoa City. Now, it feels like another great family is being phased out of the canvas of the show.
Lastly, because I felt disconnected with Cane due to this “rivalry” with Victor and his hand in Damian and Chance’s murders, I’ve found it hard to enjoy this French excursion on The Young and the Restless, and it’s lasted for weeks. So the trip coming to an end is a great thing in my book.
While I’ll just have to give this new Cane a little more runway to land the plane here, I hope it happens soon. Getting the real story of his newfound finances and him being shown why Victor is Victor for a reason are a great place to start.
New episodes of The Young and the Restless air weekdays on CBS. Episodes become available to stream on Paramount Plus the next day.
